In Bratislava for a Few Hours
On several different travel forums I’ve seen this question posed more than once:
I have the possibility of traveling to Bratislava since it is so close to Vienna, before I travel to Prague (or Budapest). Is Bratislava worth the stop?
The short answer is yes, it’s worth the trip. The longer answer is, based on the factors that people base their decision, such as time, cost, and interest, here’s why if you have a few hours to spare before on your way to Prague or Budapest, then a trip to Bratislava is worth it:
Time—Travel time to Bratislava from Vienna is approximately 1 to 1.5 hours. Bratislava is located 72 kilometers (45 miles) from Vienna. Bratislava and Vienna are the two closest capitals in the EU. It takes approximately the same amount of time to take the train as taking a bus to Bratislava. Neither the main bus station nor the main train station is within short walking distance to the Bratislava old town. You’d have to take another local trolley bus to get to the old town. Yellow/orange ticket dispensers are located close to bus and tram stops. You won’t need more than a 10-minute ticket and those cost about 14Skk. Another option is to take the hydrofoil, a boat that travels down the Danube and ports you very close to the Old Town. I’ve never taken it personally, but I’ve heard that it is nice. I’ve also heard that it doesn’t take too much longer than the train or bus, and that the ticket prices are very reasonable.
Cost—If you are taking the train to Prague or Budapest, you might consider buying your ticket to your final destination from Bratislava. Train ticket prices are cheaper in Slovakia than if you bought your ticket in Vienna. If you are spending a few hours in Bratislava, you probably won’t need more than 500Skk ($20). A good meal in a restaurant will cost you anywhere from 120Skk to 250Skk, more likely to be the lower figure, and you will probably need some change for public transportation. If you are going to buy your train ticket in Bratislava for Prague or Budapest, certainly you will need more. There is an exchange office in both train stations in Bratislava. One idea is to ask the ticket teller the price of the ticket first, and then go change your money. If you have extra crowns once heading to your final destination, change them in Czechia or Hungary once you get there.
Interest—What to do in Bratislava for a few hours? I’d recommend taking a walk up to Bratislava castle to see the panorama of the city. It’s interesting because you can see the Old Town (Staré Mesto) with its baroque and classic style of architecture, and then you can see the “socialist realism” architecture from the communist times very close by. You won’t be able to miss seeing Petržalka, the most densely populated area of Slovakia, with all of its blocks of flats. It’s truly amazing. What else is interesting is that from the castle looking down at the Danube River, if you look to the right (up stream), you can see castle ruins from Hainburg castle in Austria. If you are interested in tasting Slovak cuisine, head to the Slovak Pub on Obchodná Street. They serve traditional Slovak food with a good selection of Slovak beers. And the pub itself is interesting with lots of things to look at. Their menu is translated into German and English as well as Slovak, and the wait service is multilingual. No need to fear of getting lost in the translation.
Are you convinced? Stopping through Bratislava is definitely worth it. Of course, I’d recommend staying a few more days to see more of Slovakia, and if you are planning on going towards Poland, stops in Košice or Poprad might be nice.
1 Comment on “In Bratislava for a Few Hours”
For buying train tickets, please note that the main train station takes all major credit cards, so you don't need to exchange money. The cards use the best exchange rate of the day, although they do also charge a transaction fee of 2-3%. The prices are much, much better than buying tickets ahead of time via RailEurope. The clerks at the counters all speak fluent English. If you have extra Slovak currency, the German train lines that run to Prague and Budapest have dining cars that take the currency, so you can dispose of it that way. But almost all the restaurants and cafes in Bratislava Old Town take credit cards, so you don't need much, if any, Slovak currency. And once they convert to the Euro in 2009, you won't have that issue at all. Bratislava also has a CityCard that you can buy for 1, 2, or 3 days that gives you unlimited travel on the trams and busses, as well as admission to the major attractions in Old Town. If you take the train from Vienna to Bratislava, you can purchase a train ticket that includes the CityCard privileges for one day and is very reasonable. It is easy to find English speakers at the tram stop at the main train station to get into town. Ask younger people, who tend to have good English and are very helpful. Several lines (e.g., the #13 tram) run straight into town and only take a few minutes.
September 7th, 2008 at 12:44 PM