Vysoké Tatry (literally, High Tatras), informally Mesto Vysoké Tatry (literally, The Town of High Tatras), is a town at the feet of the Slovak part of High Tatras in Slovakia including all the major resorts in that region. It was created in 1990, and its official name from 1990 to 1999 was Starý Smokovec, which is the name of one of its major settlements.
The town of Vysoké Tatry is special in many respects. It is not a true town, but a conglomerate of separate and different settlements (originally separate villages), whose only common feature is that they are the main tourist resorts in the Slovak High Tatras, while being connected through a common railway network (the Tatra Railway). After the country’s capital, the town is Slovakia’s major tourist destination. On December 31, 2004, it had 4953 inhabitants, excluding tourists. It is located at an altitude of 1,010 m (3,313.65 ft) above sea level. Covering 380,216 km2 (146,802.22 sq mi), it is Slovakia’s largest urban area.
The local authority, cultural centre, and main shops are located in the settlement of Starý Smokovec.
The town consists of three cadastral areas, which consist of 14 settlements:
- Štrbské Pleso (the settlement itself was transferred to the village of Štrba, according to the ruling of the Supreme Court)[1]
- Vyšné Hágy (f. in 1890, 1125 m)
- Podbanské (f. in 1871, 940 m, partly in the village of Pribylina now)
- Starý Smokovec
- Horný Smokovec (950 m)
- Dolný Smokovec (890 m)
- Nový Smokovec (1 000 m)
- Starý Smokovec (founded in 1793, 1 010 m)
- Tatranská Polianka (f. in 1885, 1 005 m)
- Tatranské Zruby (f. in 1923, 995 m)
- Nová Polianka (f. in 1946, 1 060 m)
- Tatranská Lomnica
- Tatranská Lomnica (f. in 1893, 850 m)
- Tatranská Kotlina (f. in 1881, 760 m)
- Tatranská Lesná (f. in 1927, 915 m)
- Kežmarské Žľaby (920 m)
- Tatranské Matliare (f. in the mid-19th century, 885 m)
Source: Wikipedia.org, foto: Ján Ťažký - nemcok.sk
