Žiar nad Hronom

Žiar nad Hronom is a city in Tekov on the Hron river, around 40 km from Banská Bystrica and 170 km from Bratislava.

Understand
While it used to be named Holy Cross, the new name from 1955 refers to the local metallurgy and aluminum manufacturing (literally glare upon Hron). The small city's population was around 17,000 in 2021.

By train
The Nové Zámky – Zvolen railway passes through the city with service from Bratislava and Košice.

By car
The city is intersected by the R1 Expressway, with an exit near Šášovské Podhradie. Road I/9 connects from Prievidza. R2 serves for transit purposes, bypassing the city, connecting on to I/9 and R1. Road I/65 passes through Horné Opatovce and the neighbouring village of Ladomerská Vieska.