As far back as the 16th century the messengers of Ivan the Terrible, crossing the mountain ridges and the hard-to-reach passes of the Sarmatian Mountains, reported to the tsar that the water in these parts was: "sour as cabbage soup, and there are wells in which you could boil an egg, and there are little streams in which, once you wash, you could turn into a bird". The healing properties of the Carpathian springs helped resorts to develop in this picturesque and ecologically clean locality. High on a mountain meadow, amid untouched forests, lies the small village of Syniak.
The healing water of the Syniak deposit is mentioned in documentary sources in 1783. According to legend, shepherds noticed that their livestock did not fall ill if it drank the water in the basin of the Syniavka River.
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| Syniak. The Syniavka River |
Then the herdsmen tried the taste and the healing qualities of the blue-tinted water on themselves and found in it an unheard-of strength. Rumours of the springs' healing qualities spread all around the district.
Count Schonborn, owner of the Zakarpattia dominion, made use of the spring's natural healing properties and opened bathhouses with tubs for spa treatments. The year 1834 is regarded as the founding of the resort, and by 1837 distinguished guests were already coming to take the waters and staying in its rooms. The treatment building was built to fit the lie of the land, since it is very important, when taking mineral water, to give the body physical exertion.
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| Syniak. The 'Syniak' sanatorium. The treatment building |
The holidaymakers took turns climbing up and coming back down, winding through the bends and exercising their musculoskeletal system.
The first chemical analysis of the miraculous water was carried out in 1823 at the St Petersburg Medical and Technical Academy.
The water — weakly sulphidic, low-mineralised, sulphate, weakly alkaline, sodium-calcium-magnesium — has a bluish tinge. After the Second World War, in the heyday of the trade-union health resorts, five blocks of the 'Syniak' sanatorium were built.
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| The entrance to the 'Syniak' sanatorium |
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| The 'Syniak' sanatorium. The dining hall, the club, the restaurant, the library |
This is the only health complex in Zakarpattia in which hydrogen-sulphide mineral water is used for treatments.
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| The 'Syniak' sanatorium. Crutches left behind by the holidaymakers |
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| The 'Syniak' sanatorium. Indications for taking the mineral water |
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| The 'Syniak' sanatorium. At the treatments |
The colour of the resort's main therapeutic factor gave its name to the local toponyms — the Syniak mountain massif, the Syniavka River, the Syniak valley, the village of Syniak.
The settlement arose in the 18th century. The local population, mostly from German families, worked in forestry and timber cutting. In 1838 a water mill was built.
It so happened historically that most of Syniak's residents are parishioners of the Catholic church. The first church was destroyed in 1958, during the campaign against religion. The new church was raised in 1997.
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| Syniak. The Church of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross |
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| Syniak. The Church of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. The spiritual centre |
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| Syniak. The Church of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. The spiritual centre |
The village has just one street and a few dozen dwellings, as well as mini-hotels, shops and cafés.
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| Syniak. Holovna Street. The rural medical post |
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| Syniak. Dwellings |
The crystal air of the Carpathians is saturated with ozone and phytoncides and seems, too, a little bluish.
As you stroll through the enchanting forest that surrounds Syniak on all sides for many kilometres, you can hear the creak of the pines and the hum of the crowns of the mighty beeches, cloaked in a snowy-blue veil.
A winter holiday in Syniak is impossible to imagine without a spot of skiing and a fast descent down the snow-covered slopes.
In 2001 two ski runs were created, 950 metres and 1,200 metres long, with a vertical drop of 220 metres. In places there are natural hummocks and ridges.
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| Syniak. Mukachevo district, Zakarpattia region. |
A small run, 400 metres long with a vertical drop of 50 metres, will suit beginner racers.
Experienced instructors give lessons to those who wish to achieve an easy, graceful ride. Children are taught from the age of three.
There is a hire service for skis and snowboards. In Syniak the rates for hiring sports gear and using the lifts are a little lower than at other popular resorts. In January 2019 the cost of hiring skis was 200 hryvnias.
The T-bar lift — 20 hryvnias, the multi-lift — 15 hryvnias. There is no queue.
At the foot of the run, the participants in the ski races are offered hot tea of Carpathian herbs, shashlik, and tasty Zakarpattia wine or mulled wine.
What can tourists see near the resort? Ten kilometres away stands the castle-
palace of Count Schonborn. In this same village of Chynadiiovo there is one more, the
Sent-Miklosh castle-fortress. A walk in
the centre of the town of Mukachevo and a tour of Palanok Castle will leave unforgettable impressions. Another district centre of Zakarpattia,
Svaliava, lies 27 kilometres from Syniak.
The address of the sanatorium and the ski slope: the village of Syniak, Mukachevo district, Zakarpattia region. You can get there from
Lviv,
Stryi, Mukachevo by passenger or suburban trains as far as the Karpaty station, and then onward by bus or taxi. The Mukachevo-Syniak bus service runs every 2 hours from the town bus station.
Coordinates: 48°34'26"N 22°50'32"E
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