Havaj – Nature, History and Cycling Route in the Lower Beskids

Havaj is located in the Lower Beskids in the valley of the Poliansky potok. The village combines a distinctive natural setting with a multifaceted history and a documented cycling route whose main destination is Havaj. If you are looking for a smaller place with landscape, cultural and activity-related attractions for your trip to Slovakia, you can combine different impressions here without any one theme completely defining the village.

Natural Setting of the Laborecká vrchovina

Havaj is part of the cadastral areas of the protected Laborecká vrchovina area. Among the main conservation objectives are, among others, the lesser spotted eagle (Aquila pomarina), the red kite (Milvus milvus), the black woodpecker (Dryocopus martius), the grey-headed woodpecker (Picus canus) and the kingfisher (Alcedo atthis). The protected area includes deciduous forests as well as adjacent agricultural landscapes with a mosaic of shrub stands. These different landscape elements provide favourable conditions for a diverse group of protected bird species.

This means that in Havaj, the focus is not only on the village itself but also on its landscape context. For visitors interested in natural history, the combination of forests, agriculturally influenced areas and shrub stands is the defining perspective on the surroundings. There is also a specific photo spot: Havaj has a selfie point where visitors can take photos.

History and Church

The settlement of Havaj dates back to the 14th century. Before 1430, Havaj was acquired by nobles from Perín and in the 17th century was part of the Stropkov estate.

An important architectural monument is the Greek Catholic Church of Saint Nicholas. It is a Baroque-Classical single-nave building with an integrated tower. A single-nave building has one longitudinal church interior. An iconostasis is a wall of images between the church interior and the altar area. The interior furnishings, including the iconostasis, high altar and side altar, date from around 1824. Local traditional and religious history also includes a report from May 1741: At that time, news spread throughout the Stropkov estate of a weeping icon in Havaj in Zemplín County. A county refers to a historical administrative unit of that period. The church, its interior furnishings and this historical report thus provide an independent cultural perspective on the village.

Cycling to Havaj

Another way to get to know Havaj is the “Bicyklom na Havaj” cycling route. It is 25 kilometres long and leads through the wooded landscape from Malá Poľana to Havaj, the main destination of the route. For planning a cycling trip, not only the destination but also the route through the wooded landscape is therefore important. The route complements the cultural-historical and natural-history perspectives with an active way of approaching Havaj.

For further orientation, you can also visit Bžany and Stropkov.

For the overview of the wider region: Okres Stropkov.