Levoca Travel Guide

Levoca is a magnificent town with many interesting sites to see.It's beginnings date back to the 12th century. It was a royal town with many privileges from the Kings, thanks to these it grew rich in the medieval times. The business routes that used to pass through the city moved southwards of here in the 19th century and the city was forgotten by all royalty. This left Levoca in it's current state of a semi preserved medieval town, very unique and with rich history.

The beautiful, St. Jacobs church lies there as well as the Cage of Shame. The town hall is a beautiful huge renessance styled building. The most impressive sight here is the tallest gothic wooden gothic altar in the world. it was built in the 15th century by sculptor Master Paul from Levoca. Walls surrounding the town are mostly intact and there is four gates through which people entered the town.

Legend says that a beautiful woman lived in the city that was money and power hungry, she sold the town to the enemy that was outside the walls of the town for two years waiting for it's surrender. Her name was Julianna Korponay, now called just the White Lady of Levoca. She led the enemy into the city through the secret underground passages that were built to supply the city with water during periods of siege. Her betrayal was punished and she was built into one of the walls in the underground. A painting of her is a part of the exposition of the medieval Levoca at the old town hall.

About 12 kilometers from Levoca is an astounding castle ruin. This used to be a fantastic fortress called Spissky Hrad. Currentlyit is open to visitors and in the summertime offers weekend entertainment in the form of concerts and medieval weaponry and swordfighting festivals. This ruin dominates the area and dates back to the 11th century. It has the largest courtyard in Central Europe and fully intact walls protecting it. A number of films has been shot at this fantastic location.

Levoca has a population of about 14000.