Отдых в Словакии, Ясна, отель Дружба Holidays in Slovakia, Jasna, hotel Druzhba

February is not the most inspiring month of the year, for this very reason we chose it for a vacation trip to somehow brighten up this cold period of time.
On the advice of friends, we, and this is actually me, my significant other, my son and our friends, chose Slovakia, the Lower Tatras, the Jasna ski resort. In January, we booked rooms at the Druzhba Hotel. Reviews on it were not very attractive, but the choice was made, and as it turned out, not in vain.
And on February 18, having thrown our suitcases into the car, our journey from Volgograd through Ukraine to Slovakia began early in the morning. The total length of the route was 2300 km.
After two days of travel, we crossed the border of Slovakia, and after 250 km we arrived at our destination. The hotel greeted us with colorful lights and lots of snow, and the friendly staff got us into our rooms without any delay.

The first evening was introductory, the hotel really turned out to be very cozy, I was impressed by the hall, in which there was a large library, and half of the books were in Russian. In addition, there is a showcase with a collection of alcoholic beverages, mainly Russian and Ukrainian production. You can immediately see the generous soul of our compatriots (we didn’t bring vodka from Russia alone). From the windows of the hall on the lower floor, a large pool of 25 meters was clearly visible, there is also a small one for children. There was also a bath complex, the cost of which was 11 euros. in three hours. In addition, the hotel has two restaurants, where during the rest we visited more than once. The food is delicious, the portions are large and the prices are low. Lunch, per person, cost about 10 euros, and dinner, if with alcohol up to 15 euros. The cuisine is European and, of course, local, which is distinguished by its high content of hot spices and wigs. As for breakfast, there were no big complaints here either, with the possible exception of an almost monotonous menu throughout all seven days. Reviews about poor-quality food, I can’t confirm, no one suffered from an upset of the gastrointestinal tract. Walking around the hotel, Russian was not often heard, more often it was Ukrainian, but mostly Slovaks, Czechs and less often Poles rested there, once they met a Frenchman.
After exploring the hotel, we moved out to explore its surroundings, opening the doors on the lower floor, we immediately found ourselves on the ski slope. Yes, the hotel was indeed, as promised to us, was in the middle of the descent. In the evening it was very beautiful, bright illumination, softly falling snow and flying skiers, snowboarders and lugers, all this was very impressive. On the other side of the hotel there was only a road and dense forest.
The second day met us with sunny weather. Waking up at seven in the morning local time, everyone went together for breakfast. The buffet did not have a great abundance of choice: scrambled eggs, scrambled eggs, fried sausages, sausages, cheese, pâ té s, cuts and culinary pastries. After breakfast, an hour swim in the pool and then forward to the track.
We are skiers, frankly, not from the pros, mostly amateurs. Our place of residence is not conducive to frequent practice of this sport. And to be honest, if it weren’t for our children, then maybe we wouldn’t have learned how to stand on skis. But one trip to Dombai made its choice, the son fell ill with a snowboard, and we did not lag behind, got on skis. I will not compare Dombay with Slovakia, you don’t have to be a great specialist here to understand where it is better.
In short, we first went for ammunition, since we had nothing of our own. The rental workers, adequate people, spoke in Russian, picked up everything we needed, and of good quality. While we were trying on boots, my son met Oksana from Moscow, she also came with her parents, but they already have a lot of skiing experience, it’s a pity they didn’t exchange coordinates.

After all the adjustments, having paid the rental of equipment 24 euros. for one set (taking into account the settings, the next days came out cheaper at 14 euros), our team went to conquer the tracks. During the day, of course, there were much more skiers than in the evening, probably, this affects the additional fee for the lifts in the evening. As we left the track at 10 am, so until 4 pm, then a two-hour break and then from 6 pm to 9 pm, until the lifts stopped. Came satisfied with a positive on their faces. This is how we started our holiday. I am not a great specialist, but it seemed to me that it was more comfortable to ride during the day than in the evening. During the day, the weather was positive, the snow was soft, but by the evening it was a small minus, the track was covered with a crust, somehow the skis did not glide so well. But on the other hand, there were few people in the evening, also a plus, unless the lugers knocked them down, there were a lot of them riding there and the speed was decent.
We liked the service, and the rental is good and the lifts are excellent, there are a lot of cafes, if someone is tired, then you can go to the city and relax. There is a water park with thermal springs, you can visit the caves on the way, and there is a little shopping, in short, if the mood is good, then you will like everything. Even the weather did not frighten us, for several days there was wind, heavy snow and rain, but we still rode.
Seven days flew by unnoticed, it was sad to leave, but everything ends sometime.
On the first of March they arrived home, safe and sound. Everyone liked the trip, despite the long journey, but we are adventurers in life, it happened that we drove farther away - road romances. So join.