Múzeum Bojnice

About the museum

Bojnice Castle is the seat of the Slovak National Museum – Bojnice Museum. The last noble owner, Count Ján Pálfi, expressed in his will of 1907 the wish that the castle be opened to the public and that the works of art remain in their original places.

The heirs contested the will, and in 1941 part of the valuable collections was sold at auction; by agreement with the state, however, part of the collections remained in the castle. After a fire on 9 May 1950 destroyed the towers of the central castle, it was decided to set up a regional museum in the castle, and in 1951 the first exhibition opened to the public.

The castle has been a national cultural monument since 1970. From 1981 the museum has focused on documenting and presenting neo-style art in Slovakia, and since 1996 it has been an independent part of the Slovak National Museum. The collection comprises about 6,000 objects of fine and applied art, such as furniture, clocks, weapons, ceramics and textiles.

Highlights

• The Count's Apartment with the Golden Hall
• Hunyadi Hall with a Baroque chandelier
• The neo-Gothic interiors of the central castle
• The chapel with the original Bojnice Altar
• The Pálfi family crypt and the travertine cave beneath the castle

Permanent exhibitions

• Prehliadka Zámok a jaskyňa – A guided route through the Count's Apartment with the Golden Hall, the Hunyadi Hall, the floors of the central castle with neo-Gothic interiors, the chapel with the Bojnice Altar and the Pálfi family crypt. It ends in the travertine cave beneath the castle.
• Prehliadka Zámocké komnaty – A guided route through the Count's Apartment with the Golden Hall, the castle chapel and the living quarters, such as an Art Nouveau bedroom, a neo-Rococo and a Biedermeier salon, a dining room and a neo-Renaissance bedroom.

Founded

1950

Operated by

Slovenské národné múzeum

Director

Slavomíra Lenhartová

Admission & discounts

Prices apply to the Castle and Cave tour (basic route). The Castle Chambers tour and the children's tours have their own admission. Children under 3 and holders of ICOM, UNESCO, ICOMOS, ZMS and ZŤP-S cards enter free, as does the teacher supervising a school group (1 teacher per 15 children). School programmes: History at the Castle €4, Watercolour in the Castle Chambers €6. Tickets are sold at the ticket office (cash or card) and also online in advance. Admission includes permission to photograph and film.

Accessibility

• Partially wheelchair accessible
• Elevator: no information
• Accessible restroom: no information
• Accessible parking: no information
• Service dogs welcome
• Tactile models & exhibits
• Sign language tours: no information
• Easy-to-read materials: no information
• Audio description: no information

According to the museum, the castle is not accessible for people with limited mobility. The Castle Chambers route is only partly step-free, and the Castle and Cave route involves a large number of stairs. Blind and partially sighted visitors can take the tour with an assistance dog and with a tactile model of the castle at a scale of 1:100, with labels in Braille (in the castle chapel in the second castle courtyard).

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

• Family tours & workshops

The museum offers children's tours (Čarovný príbeh pána Bartolomeja and Hra na minulosť) with their own admission, and programmes for schools.

Getting there & parking

Museum address: Zámok a okolie 1, 972 01 Bojnice.

Amenities & dining

• Museum shop

Souvenir shop.

Events & venue rental

• Spaces for rent
• Weddings / ceremonies

The museum hosts weddings and rents out other spaces; details are on the museum's website.

Plan your visit