Šamorín opens a very flat stage across Žitný ostrov, the large river island between the Danube, Little Danube and Váh. The route leaves town into a landscape of embankments, side channels, fields and long straight roads. Around Gabčíkovo, the engineered side of the Danube becomes visible: wide canals, riverside tracks and open horizons rather than narrow valleys. From there, the stage stays deep in the lowlands of southern Slovakia. Small villages, poplar rows, farmland and wetland areas shape the ride eastwards. Before Komárno, history becomes more present again. The town sits at the Danube and Váh, directly on the Hungarian border, with fortifications, port-town character and the clear feel of an old river crossing.
