Orava Castle, the majestic dominant feature of the Orava region, is one of the most important monuments of castle architecture in Slovakia and one of the most visited castles in Slovakia each year.
The present area of the castle complex was created by the gradual construction of defensive, residential and farm buildings from the 13th to the start of the 20th century, and each part is evidence of various architectural styles – from Romanesque, Gothic and Renaissance to Baroque and Romanticism.
The castle hill was inhabited as early as in prehistoric times. The first historical reference to Orava Castle dates back to 1267, when it fulfilled three basic functions: a guard castle, a defensive castle and as the seat of administration of the territory that belonged to it at that time. During its history, Orava Castle and the castle estate was alternately the property of the king or wealthy landowners.
In 1800, Orava Castle suffered its greatest disaster; it burned down and was left in ruins. Partial rescue work was carried out by František Zichy, and in the years 1906 – 1912 Jozef Palffy restored the central part of the Castle. In 1868 under the auspices of the then director of the Orava Compossessorate, Edmund Zichy, the abandoned castle complex was repurposed to house the Museum of the Orava Compossessorate, one of the first museums in Slovakia.
In 1953, Orava Castle was declared a National Cultural Monument, and in 1953 – 1968 a general repair of the castle was performed. At present, it is under the management of the Orava Museum of Pavol Országh Hviezdoslav.
According to legend, a woman wearing white walks in the Middle Castle on All Souls’ Day at night and on Palm Sunday in the morning. She is said to be the wife of the Knight Donč, who reportedly had killed her. Supposedly, once on All Saints’ Day, the Knight Donč was in a foul mood, so he took it out on a servant. Nothing was good enough for him. When he started beating his maid for no reason, his wife, who witnessed the scene, tried to stop his malice and end the fight. However, the Knight Donč also stood up to her, and when she continued to defend the maid, in a fit of rage, he cut off her hand. His wife then bled and suffered pain from All Souls’ Day to Palm Sunday, when she finally died. The Knight Donč was troubled; he despaired of what he had done and no longer was able to feel at peace and one day he met the ghost of his wife in the castle courtyard. Three years after her death, the Knight Donč also passed away. Therefore, it is said that the “white lady” appears in the castle premises to this day and even after her death asks for forgiveness for her husband. Aside from the white lady, according to legend, a lady in black also appears in the interiors of Orava Castle. This is Alžbeta Coborová, the second wife of the Hungarian palatine and owner of Orava Castle, Juraj Thurzo. During her life, Alžbeta Coborova was a skilled and capable housewife and managed the entire Thurzo property very well during the absence of her husband, who was constantly on the battlefield or performing political duties away from home. She regularly checked the condition and order on her estates, and Orava Castle was no exception. So that the servants could fulfil their duties responsibly, she once promised to check them and pay attention to the proper fulfilment of her orders even after her death. So, after her death, she is said to occasionally appear at Orava Castle, carrying a lighted lantern in her hand and checking that everything is as she ordered it. And not only does she keep an eye on Orava Castle in this way, but she is also said to protect it.

Did you know…?
Orava Castle is made up of 27 buildings. You would have to climb more than 800 steps to visit all 155 rooms. The Castle was a filming location for movies such as King Thrushbeard (Kráľ drozdia brada), The Princess and the Beggar (Princezná a žobrák), Thomas the Falconer (Sokoliar Tomáš) and even for the first adaptation of the story about Dracula, Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror.

Annual events
April/May: Thurzo Festival – a traditional event focused on unlocking the castle for the summer tourist season
May: Fairytale Castle – an event devoted to fairy tales and especially to children
July/August: Mysterious Castle – an evening tour for families with children, in which visitors go on a mysterious and adventurous journey through the nooks and crannies of Orava Castle
August: Dracula – the Vampire Nosferatu – an event during which visitors tour Orava Castle after dusk and inevitably meet Count Dracula and his dark friends
December: St. Nicholas at Orava Castle – an event for the youngest visitors on the occasion of the feast day of St. Nicholas, which also includes devils, angels and St. Nicholas himself