Michal helped us research our Slovakia ancestors prior to our arrival helping us to add about 40 people to our family tree! He guided our almost three-day tour including a meeting with one of our living relatives and walked us down the streets our grandparents played as young children before emigrating to America. Michal was very thorough in his research and was able to act as our interpreter throughout the tour. We would definitely recommend him to anyone wishing to learn more about their Slovakian ancestry.

Michal Razus guided my husband and me around eastern Slovakia for 2.5 days (Sept. 11 - 13, 2022).  He met us at our hotel in Presov & drove us all around the region, including a visit to a Lemko museum over the Polish border.  

We had two main interests.  1) All my ancestors are Carpatho-Rusyn/ Lemkos from villages in southeastern Poland--not Slovakia--so this trip was for me to see what Rusin & Eastern-Catholic culture is like south of Poland with no specific genealogical research needed. I have distant DNA matches in Slovakia but that wasn't our focus.  (In case I had wanted to explore my Lemko relatives in Poland, Michal recommended a Polish colleague of his & another in Ukraine when we asked about volunteering there.  I appreciated Michal's insight & willingness to sacrifice his own business when he knew something would be a better fit for me, the client.)  

2)  We also love history so we wanted to visit castles & other historical sites, see wooden churches, & get to know about life in Slovakia In general, to be travelers.

I wasn't sure if we would interest Michal since we didn't require his genealogy skills exactly (more a tour guide who also knows about Rusin culture).  So I was happy that he could squeeze us into his busy Sept schedule just a month in advance.  When we asked about volunteering to help Ukraine, Michal even took us to a non-profit in Presov that sends supplies to Ukraine. We almost got to deliver supplies which would have been fascinating. (Alas, schedules changed on their part but hopefully we'll still be able to help them from afar.)

As others have reported, Michal was warm, helpful, professional, & knowledgeable.  He suggested great places when we were clueless (i.e. seeing a church with models of all the wooden churches for an overview; Lubanov Castle over Spis since the latter had lots of remodeling being done & the former was more informative). Michal also suggested local restaurants & lodging that suited our needs.

We never stopped asking him LOTS of questions about everything--Rusyns in history & modern culture, life in Slovakia, politics, sociology, food, religion, TV shows, you name it.  I think these discussions on-site and in the car were some of the highlights for me. Michal didn't just bridge the language & logistical challenges for us as tourists (and yes, those can pose challenges in Slovakia!), he made it all real and personal and rich.  We could never have learned so much on our own.  He was a teacher and a friend.  I was concerned that we wouldn't interest him because I didn't have family members for him to find in Slovakia. Yet while making genealogical connections for clients is a highlight for Michal, I got the feeling that he also enjoys good conversations about culture & identity in his country & for those connected to it through immigration.  We certainly experienced that in spades.

In short, we strongly recommend Michal as a guide and genealogist in Slovakia!
Michal Razus guided my husband and me around eastern Slovakia for 2.5 days (Sept. 11 - 13, 2022). He met us at our hotel in Presov & drove us all around the region, including a visit to a Lemko museum over the Polish border.

We had two main interests. 1) All my ancestors are Carpatho-Rusyn/ Lemkos from villages in southeastern Poland--not Slovakia--so this trip was for me to see what Rusin & Eastern-Catholic culture is like south of Poland with no specific genealogical research needed. I have distant DNA matches in Slovakia but that wasn't our focus. (In case I had wanted to explore my Lemko relatives in Poland, Michal recommended a Polish colleague of his & another in Ukraine when we asked about volunteering there. I appreciated Michal's insight & willingness to sacrifice his own business when he knew something would be a better fit for me, the client.)

2) We also love history so we wanted to visit castles & other historical sites, see wooden churches, & get to know about life in Slovakia In general, to be travelers.

I wasn't sure if this would interest Michal since it didn't require his genealogy skills exactly (more a tour guide who also knows about Rusin culture in Slovakia & the U.S.). So I was happy that he could squeeze us into his busy Sept schedule just a month in advance. When we asked about volunteering to help Ukraine, Michal even took us to a non-profit in Presov that sends supplies to Ukraine. We almost got to deliver supplies which would have been fascinating. (Alas, schedules changed on their part but hopefully we'll still be able to help them from afar.)

As others have reported, Michal was warm, helpful, professional, & knowledgeable. He suggested great places when we were clueless (i.e. seeing a church with models of all the wooden churches for an overview; Lubanov Castle over Spis since the latter had lots of remodeling being done & the former was more informative). Michal also suggested local restaurants & lodging that suited our needs.

We never stopped asking him LOTS of questions about everything--Rusyns in history & modern culture, life in Slovakia, politics, sociology, food, religion, TV shows, you name it. I think these discussions on-site and in the car were some of the highlights for me. Michal didn't just bridge the language & logistical challenges for us as tourists (and yes, those can pose challenges in Slovakia!), he made it all real and personal and rich. We could never have learned so much on our own. He was a teacher and a friend. I was concerned that we wouldn't interest him because I didn't have family members for him to find in Slovakia. Yet while making genealogical connections for clients is a highlight for Michal, I got the feeling that he also enjoys good conversations about culture & identity in his country & for those connected to it through immigration. We certainly experienced that in spades.

In short, we strongly recommend Michal as a guide and genealogist in Slovakia!

Michal Razus is a wonderful tour guide, interpreter, and a professional genealogist.
He is extremely knowledgable and is very friendly. We felt like he was a member of our family and we were at ease from the minute we met him.
Our trip to Slovakia to find family members would not have been possible without him.
He did such a wonderful job over 8 days with us. We met family, visited cemeteries , and searched town records and archives to find family that had passed on.
We also enjoyed our time visiting UNESCO sites and seeing the various towns between our ancestors home and Presov.
We always felt safe and very looked after by Michal. We consider him a lifelong friend and would recommend hm to anyone who is planning a trip to Slovakia.