The Košice self-governing region occupies several historical territories. Each of them is unique, together they create a diverse and remarkable whole, full of beautiful contrasts. It is geographically diverse. The largest mountain range in the western part is the Slovak Ore Mountains. The heart of the region is the Košice Basin, which is bordered on the east by the Slanské vrchy. Behind them, the East Slovak lowland already extends. The Bodrog River gathers water from it. The place where it leaves the territory of Slovakia is the lowest Slovak elevation with an altitude of 94 meters. There are four large protected areas in the region. The jewel among them is the Slovak Paradise declared a national park in 1988, with typical deep gorges, canyons and waterfalls. The sought-after monastery offers the ruins of a medieval Carthusian monastery. In the southwest of the region is our largest karst area, the Slovak Karst. Thanks to the richness of karst phenomena and special species of flora and fauna, UNESCO has included it in the network of international biosphere reserves. In the northeast of the region, the volcanic Vihorlat Mountains have an impressive impression, with a jewel of nature – the Morské oko lake. In the basin of the river Latorica you can find a unique protected area of ​​the lowland type – a unique floodplain forest, which covers the dead branches of the river with rare plant and animal communities.