Hájske – Cycling Route, Folklore and Sacred Buildings

Hájske combines a specific opportunity for cycling travellers with a remarkably multifaceted local culture. The Okruh Podunajskou pahorkatinou cycling loop passes through the village. The Kepeždanka folklore group is committed to preserving old Kepeždian songs, costumes and traditions. The village’s sacred history includes the Kostol sv. Barbory church, an old chapel and a historic procession. The OZ Kepežský štek association is committed to wine culture and wine-growing traditions. Hájske therefore offers a clearly recognisable cultural focus for a journey through Slovakia.

Cycling through Hájske

The Okruh Podunajskou pahorkatinou cycling loop passes through Hájske. This makes Hájske particularly interesting if you want to base your travel decision not only on individual sights, but also on a specific cycling experience. The loop provides an independent point of connection: it links the village name with an active form of travel without reducing Hájske solely to its historic buildings.

Kepeždanka and the Preservation of Local Traditions

An important part of the local culture is connected with the Kepeždanka folklore group. It was founded in Hájske in 1984 and is committed to preserving old Kepeždian songs, costumes and traditions. This focus makes the group a bearer of local memory: its activities encompass not only individual objects, but also sung, worn and handed-down forms of culture.

Kepeždanka’s repertoire includes the Stará kepeždská svadba, carnival customs and Christmas carols. The Stará kepeždská svadba refers to a traditional wedding performance, while carnival customs and Christmas carols represent other parts of the annual cycle. Visitors thus gain a more nuanced access to regional culture than through a single historical date: the repertoire encompasses wedding customs, seasonal celebrations and musical traditions.

Church, Chapel and a Historic Procession

The sacred points of reference in Hájske include an old chapel dedicated to the Ružencovej Panny Márie. The Kostol sv. Barbory church was built in 1841 on older Baroque foundations dating from the beginning of the 18th century. Its construction history reveals several historical layers within the same church building. The furnishings also include a Classicist pulpit and a stone baptismal font from the beginning of the 19th century.

A kepeždská púť took place in Hájske on the occasion of the feast of the Ružencovej Panny Márie. During this procession, the route led from the Kostol sv. Barbory church to the chapel, accompanied by singing and prayers of the Rosary. The traditional connection between church, chapel, song and prayer describes a religious practice that is not confined to a single building, but links the two sacred sites. The procession belongs to a past event and should not be understood as a current event date.

Wine Culture as Another Local Connection

The OZ Kepežský štek association contributes another cultural facet. In Hájske, it supports wine culture and wine-growing traditions, organises wine tastings and also takes part in such tastings elsewhere. Alongside folklore and sacred history, wine-growing is therefore also part of the documented local identity. For travel planning, this creates a place where cycling, traditional culture, religious architectural history and wine culture offer different ways of experiencing Hájske.

If you would like to explore other destinations from the same selection, you can find Diakovce, Tešedíkovo, Šaľa, Dlhá Nad Váhom, Vlčany, Neded, Kráľová Nad Váhom and Žihárec here.

To the higher-level travel overview: Šaľa.