Čierny Hron Forest Railway: Timetable, Prices and Routes 2026

What the Čierny Hron Forest Railway is

The Čierny Hron Forest Railway (in Slovak Čiernohronská železnica) is a former narrow-gauge forest railway in Čierny Balog, south of Brezno. Construction began in 1908, and from 1909 it carried timber from the valleys of the Čierny Hron basin to Hronec. Its branches totalled almost 132 km, with a gauge of 760 mm. Operation stopped on New Year’s Eve 1982, by which time it was the last forest railway in Slovakia.

In that same year it was listed as a cultural monument, and from 1983 volunteers restored it at summer work camps. The first train with tourists ran to the Vydrovská valley on 1 May 1992. Much of the train staff are still volunteers, and according to the railway the fare is a contribution to restoring the monument, not a commercial service.

Today trains run on three short routes. Each starts and ends at Čierny Balog station, so you always come back to your car. The carriages are historic, mostly open in summer, and the trains are pulled by diesel or steam locomotives.

Three routes: which to choose

• Vydrovská valley (green route): 4 km one way into the forest to the Forestry Open-Air Museum. A diesel train runs, six times a day in season, and the round trip takes 45 minutes. Going up, the train does not stop at the intermediate stops; it stops only on the way down. The best choice for small children and for combining with the open-air museum.
• Šánske (red route): 5 km through the Hronec valley. In season a steam train runs here, 60 minutes there and back, with a stop of about 15 minutes at the terminus. A cycle route also runs along the valley.
• Dobroč (blue route): 4 km through Čierny Balog and its hamlets. Here the train passes right between the grandstand and the football pitch, which children like best. 50 minutes there and back, with rest areas and playgrounds at the end, and according to the railway’s map about 1.5 km from the stop there is the Pustý vrch lookout tower.

The routes can be combined, and a ticket for two or three routes is better value. For all three, count on a whole day; the railway gives 3 to 5 hours. The fourth section from Šánske via Hronec to Chvatimech is outside regular operation because the track is worn, and only work and special trains run there. You can, however, ride the line on pedal rail bikes (draisines), which are booked in advance at cyklo.horehronie.sk.

Timetable 2026

The diesel train to the Vydrovská valley ran daily from 28 February to 15 September 2026, leaving Čierny Balog at 10:00, 11:00, 12:30, 13:30, 14:30 and 15:30. It runs if at least 6 full tickets are sold. To Šánske and Dobroč, diesel trains run only to order for a group with at least 20 full tickets.

Steam trains ran in 2026 as follows:

• from 4 April to 20 June every Saturday, and also on 1 May and 8 May,
• from 27 June to the end of August every day,
• in September only on 5, 12 and, for the last time, 13 September.

The steam train leaves for Šánske at 10:30 and 14:00 and for Dobroč at 12:00 and 15:30. Half an hour before each steam train a guided tour of the museum and the depot begins. Steam depends on volunteers, though: the locomotive runs when qualified staff are at the station, and in case of a breakdown the formation may change or a ride may be cancelled. During the extreme heat at the end of June 2026, for example, a historic diesel railcar from 1939 replaced it for a few days.

As of 2 October 2026 the regular season is over. The railway will announce when trains run in 2027 on chz.sk.

How much a ticket costs

The price depends not on the length of the route but on the number of routes you ride. The 2026 price list for regular trains:

	Adults	Pensioners	Children 3 - 15 years, ISIC students up to 26, ZŤP
One route	€15	€11	€7.50
Two routes	€26	€18	€13
Three routes	€38	€26.50	€19

Children under 3 travel free. The steam train has a surcharge of €2 per person regardless of age. A family gets a 10% discount on the total price if it buys at least two routes. The family ticket applies to two adults or two seniors and at most four children.

Example: two adults and two children aged 3 to 15 pay €78 for two routes, €70.20 after the family discount, plus the steam surcharge.

Tickets cannot be bought online. They are sold by the ticket office by the museum in Čierny Balog station, where you can pay by card for purchases of at least €15, and by the conductor on the train, who takes cash only. Seats on the train are not reserved for individual travellers, and pre-booked groups of 15 or more have priority. In summer and at weekends, arrive earlier.

Getting there from Bystrá

From Bystrá you drive down into the Hron valley, follow the main road towards Brezno for a short way and turn off in Hronec into the Čierny Hron valley. The road runs alongside the old forest railway line all the way to Čierny Balog. You will find the exact distance and time in the box above. There is a car park by the station, and more at the termini in Dobroč and in the Vydrovská valley at the Vydrovo-Koliba stop.

Forestry Open-Air Museum in the Vydrovská valley

The open-air museum is run by Lesy SR, the Slovak state forests. It is an outdoor museum covering 140 ha, with a nature trail and over 80 stops about work in the forest: a forest chapel, a mini world of small forestry buildings, a gamekeeper’s lodge, a forest tractor and the remains of the Dobroč fir. They recommend at least 3 hours for a visit, but you do not have to walk the whole trail; there are shorter routes too.

One thing to watch. After windstorm damage, timber is still being processed in the Vydrovská valley, so according to Lesy SR the open-air museum is open at weekends and on public holidays. On working days public access is restricted in the affected parts. Check the situation on lesy.sk before you go.

You reach the open-air museum by train or on foot. Going up, the train runs straight to the terminus Vydrovo-Konečná; it stops at Vydrovo-Korytárske and Vydrovo-Koliba only on the way down. At Vydrovo-Koliba there is an entrance area with an information centre, ticket office, car park and refreshments. A nature trail of about 2.1 km also runs from Čierny Balog alongside the line.

With children

• Children under 3 ride free, and a pushchair travels free too.
• There is a small museum of forest railways in the station, open all year. Children press a button to start a model of the line and can touch almost everything, cut a short piece of rail or stamp the date on an old cardboard ticket. Locomotives and carriages stand on the tracks outside, and you can climb aboard.
• The open carriages are breezy even in summer. Bring the children a sweatshirt, and in spring and autumn a jacket.
• With small children one route and the museum are enough, and with the journey it makes a half-day trip. If your children love locomotives, pick a steam day and arrive for the depot tour half an hour before departure.
• The Lampáreň station restaurant is open during train operation in the main season. From 14 September 2026 it is closed to the public, so outside summer pack a snack.

Outside the season and in winter

Outside the regular season only special trains run. In the 2025/26 season these were the All Souls’ Day Express with a steam locomotive on 1 November, the St Nicholas Express on 6 December, and Christmas, New Year’s Eve and New Year rides on 26 and 27 December, 31 December and 3 and 4 January. Diesel trains ran on all three routes, leaving Čierny Balog at 10:00 and 15:00 for Dobroč, at 11:00 and 14:00 for Šánske and at 12:00 and 13:00 for Vydrovo. In February 2026 a Carnival train ran, and from 28 February the pre-season with diesel trains to Vydrovo began.

As of 2 October 2026 the railway had not yet published dates for winter 2026/27. If you are staying with us in December, follow the News section on chz.sk.

What to combine it with

If it rains, on the way back you can stop at Bystrianska Cave, which is close to the apartments. More tips for families by the age of the children are in the article Chopok South with kids, and we have planned a whole week day by day in Chopok South itinerary. More ideas for wet days are on the Rainy day ideas page.