The existence of this monument, whose oldest preserved parts date from the 14th century, is documented in writing as early as the 13th century.

The construction of the castle was associated with control of the most important roads that ran along the Váh and Kysuca rivers. The oldest part of the castle is a cylindrical tower, which originally formed the entire castle. It was enclosed by a low perimeter wall and surrounded by a moat, over which a drawbridge probably led.

We therefore classify Budatín Castle as one of the few so-called “water castles” in Slovakia. The castle had several owners, e.g. Matthew Csák of Trenčín, the Balassa family, the Suňog family and the Csáki family. The last owner was Count Gejza Csáki, who owned the castle until 1945. Budatín Castle has been the seat of the Museum of Považie Region in Žilina since 1953. An integral element of Budatín Castle is the tinkering trade – a truly Slovak phenomenon.

The permanent exhibition on tinkering here is the only specialised exhibition of its kind in the world. A part of the Budatín Castle complex is a park founded probably in the mid-19th century in the natural-landscape English style. Visitors here can find, along with a pleasant place to relax, a Maple-leaved Plane Tree, which was declared the Slovak Tree of the Year in 2016.

Did you know…?
Katarína Suňogová was walled up in the tower of Budatín Castle. Her father had her confined in this way because she did not want to marry Ján Jakušič, the groom he had chosen for her. Katarína loved the knight Fraňo Forgáč, who eventually freed her from her prison. However, when Jakušič found out about it, he challenged Fraňo to a duel. He killed him in the duel, and Katarína had no choice but to marry Jakušič – a man she did not love and who had killed her one true love.

Annual events:
March/April: Stations of the Cross – ecumenical devotion of the Stations of the Cross in the park
May: Spring Beauty – an exhibition of plants and trees combined with a cultural programme
July: Golden Times of Budatín – an event as if taken from the times of the last owner of Budatín Castle, Count Gejza Csáki
September: Meeting of Tinkering Masters – a meeting of artistic craftsmen from Slovakia and the Czech Republic, supplemented by accompanying events October Budatín Market – a traditional final seasonal event combined