2. Geography

The Slovak Republic is situated in Central Europe, sharing borders with Austria, the Czech Republic, Poland, Ukraine and Hungary. Mountains, lowlands, valleys, lakes, cave formations, forests and meadows provide many examples of Slovakia's year?round natural beauty. The Carpathian Arc, a range of mountains stretching across the north, takes up almost a half of the country. The south and east of the country lie in the lowlands, an important agricultural area in Slovakia.

The highest point: Mount Gerlach in High Tatras 2,655 m above sea level

The lowest point: River Bodrog 94 m above sea level

Maximum length: 428 km (Záhorská Ves [W] - Nová Sedlica [E])

Maximum breadth: 195 km (Štúrovo [S] - Skalité [N])

The longest river: River Váh (378 km)

Time GMT + 2; GMT + 1 from last Sunday in October to last Saturday in March.

Climate The Slovak Republic has a continental climate with 4 seasons (spring, summer, autumn, winter). Summers are hot; winters are cold, cloudy and humid. The average winter daily temperature is -2 °C, but can plummet to -15 °C. The average daily temperature in summer is 21 °C, but can be as warm as over 30 °C. The coldest month is January; the hottest month is July. The period from May to July is often considered the best season. Data concerns Bratislava, the capital of the SR. Weather in northern and mountainous regions could be much colder.

During the winters the sun rises approximately at 7:30 and sets about 16:00. During the summer, sunrise is before 5:00 and sunset is about 21:00.

Required clothing

Heavy overcoats and winter shoes or boots for winter, summer clothes for summer. Rainwear is recommended throughout the year.