Hotels in Bratislava

Bratislava is a most welcoming city. Vienna is only 1 Hr away by train and only costs 14 Eoro's return P.P. The market at Christmas time is very good with plenty of stalls selling all kinds of Christmas things at reasonable prices, also many food and drink stalls. There are also many individual shops rather than the multiples so the choices available are good. Plenty of places to eat, but it is much better to find some of the Slovakian restaurants down some of the many alleyways, rather than the touristy ones which are on the main streets. The Slovak restaurants generally offer many local dishes and are excellent value for money. Overall Bratislava is a very welcoming city very clean, always appears to be save even late at night, andoffers good value for money. If you like the theatre then you will find two theatres in bratislava which put on Opera and ballett, the cost for a ticket to some of these shows are unbelieably low, about 15to 20 Euros and offer exceptional value for money. The new theatre is very modern and comfortable with good views available from all very comfortable roomy seats. The transport for getting around the city consists of Trams, Buses and Trolley buses with the fares most reasonable( a 24 Hr ticket from time of validation (i.e the first journey you make)_ costs about 7 Euro's, and is avilable to use on all modes of transport. Tickets can be purchased at the stops in the city centre)

We went especially for the Christmas markets but they were a bit disappointing in comparison to other markets in European cities. There were too many food booths and not enough craft items. We were able to find some unique little craft stores nearby in the old town centre around the main square. Reaching Bratislava from Vienna was very easy. We came in by train which took just about 1 hour and was very comfortable. The train runs hourly and therefore, would have made an easy day trip (however we had a flight from Bratislava to Berlin the following day). The train station is very old and there are no escalators or elevators but lots of stairs which makes handling luggage very difficult. We were lucky to have met a lovely young university student who spoke excellent English and guided us from the train station right to our hotel. She was wonderful and we owe her a big thanks because it was dark and the route was not straightforward. The hotel was an easy 20 minute walk from the main square in the old town centre, and we walked back and forth during our stay so can't comment about public transportation. We had dinner at The Original Slovakian House Restaurant. While a bit pricey, the food was good and there was also live music. Bratislava's old town is nice with cafés, restaurants and craft stores and we bought a few unique items. We left Bratislava by plane. There is an airport bus that leaves the train station every 20 minutes, but we took a taxi which was $23 euros and took about 15 minutes to reach.

Bratislava has some amazing architecture. Some of which were a bit tired looking but there is a lot of renovation going on to get them back to their former glory. I was pleasantly surprised by the number of sculptures dotted around the city. The staff in the museums were predominantly elderly, surly, women. Woe betide you if you leant on the display cases! They watch you like a hawk, which, eventually became quite comical. Bratislava and Vienna are only an hours' train journey apart and Vienna is great for a day trip, if you have the time. It only cost 14 Euros return. It was 6.50 Euros to go up Bratislavas' UFO tower. I thought it was slightly over priced, but you do get a great view. If you don't want to spend money for getting that birds-eye view- go up to the Slavin Monument. It is a steepish walk but well worth it. No visit to Bratislava would be complete without visiting the Castle and churchs, so I recommend that too. I loved Bratislava. All the sites of interest were within walking distance. It is a compact city with plenty of eating places. By European standards, food and drink were cheap.There were areas with stark reminders of its' communist past but I think that added to its' charm, in a way. The younger generation definitely embrace new European attitudes, whereas, the older generation seemed to find it difficult to shake off the austere, communist mentality. That said, I thoroughly enjoyed my stay there.

Bratislava old town is atmospheric and without the commercialism and clutter of tourist groups that we found in Vienna (one hour by bus). Best place for vegetarians to eat is Refresh, a quirky little bistro - the tomato soup was free with the main course of Moroccan spiced tofu with couscous. At the other end of the spectrum and price range is the restaurant at the top of the UFO tower on the bridge where fabulous contemporary cuisine is on offer with spectacular views of the Danube and the Castle. Food in the 'local' restaurants will keep the cold out, if you have the stomach for platefuls of dumplings and very solid gnocchi! Wrap up warm for a trip to Devin castle or an evening stroll in the main square to watch the ice skating with a cup or two of mulled wine.

Bratislava is a beautiful, small European city with a magnificent historical old town. It is perfect for walking, if you choose to stay in the old-town, and you will not need public transportation as the main must-see sights are within walking distance. You should definitely see the Bratislava castle, the main square (Hlavne Namestie), the st. Elizabeth Church (Blue church), St. MIchael's Gate and St. Martin's Cathedral. In the old town, you will also find many nice coffee shops, patisseries, pubs and all kind of places to have a nice meal. You could also walk along the Danube river or rent a bike (or take a bus) and visit the Devin Castle which is approximately 10 km away. Definitely a beautiful place to go with many options.

cosy little nice old town where everything is in walking distance. All main sights - squares, churches and castle are in walking distance if you leave somewhere in or close to the old town. Some skating rings and lots of Christmas markets around are going to help you keep warm and happy if you visit in the winter. The traditional food is quite good, but avoid the touristy places like 1st Slovak pub ot the Bratislava Flagship. Those are not bad either, but they're more at the level of a canteen. We especially enjoyed the blue church - St Elisabeth and the buildings around it. It is very different and probably unlike anything else in Europe. It and also several buildings around it look like buildings just moved over from Barcelona.. :) The Devin castle is interesting, but don't go there on a cold winter day, :)