Many of the travel guides list a visit to Vienna (in Austria) as one of the top things to do when visiting Bratislava (Slovakia). I think that’s a little unfair.
Although I have to admit that when my father-in-law asked us what was in Bratislava apart from the train to Vienna, we weren’t necessarily able to answer him!
There is no doubting that Bratislava is an excellent hub if you fancy exploring central Europe, with trips to Austria, Hungary and the Czech Republic being relatively easy. But don’t overlook Bratislava itself. Its size and relatively small selection of sights, very economical accommodation and dining options, led to a relaxing and enjoyable weekend.
We visited at the start of December; in part spurred on by a desire to tick off 50 countries visited (since birth) by the end of the calendar year. Fickle? Yes, but who can resist the allure of a Christmas market and a mulled drink or two? Certainly not us.
Cue -3 degree temperatures but we were lucky enough to be greeted with bright blue skies on one day and snow on the next. The perfect combination, particularly so when visiting the Christmas markets with the snow providing just the right sort of atmosphere for sipping mulled punch and sampling the local steaming delicacies. More on that shortly.
Everyone is different but we chose to book an AirBnB for our visit. At around £90 (in total) for 3 nights in a modern, clean studio apartment (called campari) above a cute street food garden, only 15 minutes walk from the Old Town and 10 minutes from the main train station, we felt it was great value and an excellent base to explore.
Look in any travel guide and the sights of Bratislava can barely fill a page – namely the Castle, St Michael’s Gate, the Old Town Square and Hall, the UFO, Grassalkovich Palace, the Cumil/Man at Work Statue – but we felt that it meant a far more relaxing city break than others we had been on. We weren’t franticly rushing around the sights, worrying whether we would cram them all in.
Given the city’s size, we found it easy enough to check out all of the above in a day (aside from the Man at Work Statue who had suspiciously not shown up for work), interspersed with a tasty brunch at the original Urban House (a cafe/bar/venue) in the heart of the Old Town on Laurinska and various stops for mulled punch plus fried potatoes with cheese at the Christmas Market found in the Old Town Square.
I have to admit that we were both pleasantly surprised by the food in Bratislava, having no idea what to expect. Amongst the local delicacies sampled were: duck with stewed red cabbage, loksha and carlsbad dumplings (left), zemiakove placky (centre – in this instance with cheese and a garlic mayo), beef with creamed vegetables and leavened dumplings (right), and lokse (not pictured but quite like a pancake with either sweet or savoury filling). More appetising than they look. I promise.
Try Mestiansky Pivovar (a micro brewery with extensive menu featuring Slovakian specialities) on Dunajska and Slovak Pub which was a labyrinth. Main courses were between 8-10 Euros, beer around 2-3 Euros and Prosecco could be found for under 2 Euros. A glass of punch at the Christmas markets was a couple of Euros, or less.
Another top tip is to download the Taxify app (essentially like Uber) to zip around the city. It is unbelievably cheap. Literally we have no idea how the drivers make any money. A 20 minutes journey from Old Town to the Airport cost 4 Euros, and a similar price to go to the TV Tower in Kamzik Hills. We ventured into the forest to ride the bob-sleigh and chair lift but sadly both were closed due to the ice and snow. Instead we sought warmth and refreshments in the TV Tower Observation Deck.
So having ‘done’ Bratislava, we took the advice of the travel guides and headed to Vienna, alongside a train load of other tourists. During the warmer months you can sail eastwards along the Danube to Vienna. Instead, we took the train which took around an hour and 20 mins, and cost around 25 Euros for two people for a return trip. Staff in the station were helpful and spoke English, and trains pretty much every hour.
Stating the obvious but Vienna is obviously a lot bigger, better known and therefore touristy than Bratislava. There are bus loads of tourists everywhere which can be a little frustrating at times and meant we spent quite a bit of time dodging the crowds, rather than paying attention to the monumental imperial architecture in this city.
Honestly, the city does a good job of rivalling Paris and Rome on the ‘wow’ factor, with sights such as the State Opera House, Rathaus, Museums Quarter, Belvedere Palace, Spanish Riding School, Karlsplatz, Hofburg and Stephansdom Crypt.
We were a little overwhelmed by the sights at every corner, so took some time out to take it all in at the Bitzinger Hot Dog stall around the corner from the State Opera House. A very tasty dog indeed! We also stopped in at Cafe Sperl, a traditional Viennese cafe where we tucked into apple strudel whilst someone tinkled on the piano. FYI – you should also know that Vienna is more expensive but given Bratislava was as cheap as chips, we didn’t begrudge the prices.
Finally, if like us you are visiting in the run up to Christmas, it is hard to miss the various Christmas markets that adorn Vienna. From recollection there was one at the Belvedere Palace, another in Museum Quarter and the main one at Karlsplatz. Hate to say it but once you’ve been to one, it is difficult to distinguish between these markets. That’s not to say we didn’t enjoy looking at the stalls filled with Nutcrackers, Gingerbread Biscuits, enamel-wear and inhaling the fumes from the vats of punch!
So, if you are looking for a twin centre city break over 2-3 days, especially in the run up to Christmas, I would definitely recommend Bratislava and Vienna. If you are on a budget, I would suggest staying in Bratislava and travelling through to Vienna, as flights, accommodation and eating/drinking tend to be cheaper, and there are less crowds.
And yes Vienna is one of the top 10 things to do when visiting Bratislava but so what!
Travel for travel's sake 