Bratislava - Not as Bad as People Say!

We continue on our tour of central Europe with the p's & give our biased, unprofessional opinions of Bratislava, Slovakia.

Ian & I had been to Budapest & Vienna before, so this was the only truly unknown on the trip. I feel comfortable rolling with the punches and we've gotten ourselves into some pretty divey conditions (Ian sleeping in a closet in Rome, 26 hour train ride in August to Istanbul, a sub-zero train ride sleeping in the crowded hall back from Krakow in January) , but things are different with your parents. They've worked so hard to visit you and take this vacation to places they never really wanted to go before you suggested them. 

As seen on previous posts, they're troupers, but I as worried about this tiny capital of an oft-forgotten country. The night before we were looking at things to do and came across one review that described the whole city as "smelling like cabbage". Here we go, hold your breath...

 Bratilava Ratings:

Ratings will be done in Zlatý, for the  Zlatý Bažant beer (Golden Pheasant).

Transportation in Bratislava

cheryl
2.5 zlatys -
We walked all around the old town – and had our rental car from Hungary. My rating reflects my dread with taking the car back to the rental guys – who looked a bit thug-like (all ended up okay). However, I did worry a bit if something happened to it, that it would haunt me forever. Parking was also a be-atch, with having to drive down a dead-end street full of tourist cars causing me to anticipate a long, difficult back-out. Leaving town was hard – we were trying to get to the castle and the directions weren’t quite clear – and because I was already car-freaked, it made me a be-atch. Then I apologized to my wonderful family, followed the directions and saw the wonderful castle.

Dave
3 zlatys -
Traffic was light and it was easy to get around. Parking did suck. City center was easy to just walk.

Ian 
2 zlatys - 
Seemed to have an extensive tram network, but having a car and it being such a small city we didn't need to use it. Although I must admit, driving seemed hectic with lots of on way streets and poor markings.

ebe
3 zlatys - 
Our drive through Hungary and into Slavakia was less scenic and more boring. Luckily, the whole "scenic" drive from Budapest to Bratislava only took about 3 hours. Once inside the city, it is infinity walkable. Parking was ok to find, but paying for it was bizarre. Men in orange vests wander the streets and you pay them in increments of time. Strange.

Accommodations in Bratislava

cheryl
2 zlatys -
We rented an apartment through AirBnB – that was priced right, convenient and without many amenities. It was a spacious apartment with two bedrooms, two baths, a small kitchen and an outside porch. The building itself was none-too-pretty. We were awakened by garbage trucks arriving at a nearby restaurant early in the morning. There was no coffee maker and most of the kitchen items were a bit dirty-looking.

Dave 
2 zlatys -
We rented an apartment through AirBnB – that was priced right, convenient and without many amenities. It was a spacious apartment with two bedrooms, two baths, a small kitchen and an outside porch. The building itself was none-too-pretty. We were awakened by garbage trucks arriving at a nearby restaurant early in the morning. There was no coffee maker and most of the kitchen items were a bit dirty-looking.

Ian 

3.5 zlatys -

I like Igor's eastern European dry sense of humor. Great location int eh center of the city. Really pretty spacious rooms at a good price. The big drawback was that it was a little hostel-y feel with single beds and decor.



ebe
4 zlatys -
Actually wasn't AirBnB, unfortunately we couldn't find a place on the site. But this was a similar arrangement as we were able to stay in our own apartment with 2 bathrooms & 2 rooms - perfect! The back balcony looked out over a yard area where we watched a woman feed feral cats. Def a bit odd. The poor guy - Igor- renting it to us was nice, but seemed quite downtrodden.

Sights in Bratislava

cheryl
4 zlatys -
We ran into a street fair when we were in the old town section of Bratislava and found some wonderful folk art and handcrafts. Old town had beautiful plazas and a large cathedral. There were lots of bronze sculptures, many of them humorous in nature. Some of the buildings had foundations that were over 1000 years old. There is even a walkway over what used to be a moat. When we left old town we went to Bratislava Hrad (Slovakian for castle). The castle has recently undergone an extensive maintenance program – and is beautiful. There are walls around the castle, some of which are many stories tall. From inside the castle walls, there is a great view of the Danube River and the UFO Bridge. The UFO Bridge is nicknamed this due to the spacecraft-looking restaurant on top of the bridge. Outside the city, there are lots of buildings that look like early communist block houses and not so pretty. We did see a branch of my favorite store on our walk around town – amazon.sk!! We also got ushered up to the sidewalks by a large parade of local men accompanied by riot-gear cops for some sort of protest. According to Eryn, these are fairly common throughout Europe – although I found it very intimidating.


Dave
3.5 zlatys -
Nice view from Bratislava Castle of the Danube. City center was clean and well-maintained. Crowds were quite light and it was easy to get around.

Ian 
2.5 zlatys -

The sights that are there are interesting. For example, the castle & old city center. Just compared to Budapest or Vienna, a bit lacking in sights.

ebe
4 zlatys -
One of the main concerns of visiting Bratislava was that there wouldn't be much to see. Several nasty internet reviewers were proved wrong as we enjoyed the lovely old town, little market, and magnificent castle. We lucked out with a beautiful weather and the town hit the mark of "charming". There wouldn't be enough to see for a multi-day trip, but there was too much to see for just a short one-night stay. 

Dining in Bratislava

cheryl
4.25 zlatys

The Slovak Pub was recommended by our AirBnB host and a convenient walk from our apartment. At first it looked like it only had smoking areas, however, when we asked for non-smoking – they walked us through what seemed like miles of happy restaurant patrons eating wonderful food – to a quiet no-smoking section. The food was awesome. We even ordered appetizers and desserts. They specialized in many local foods from area farmers. There was a huge menu and I had my first Radler (a beer and Sprite mixture) that was better than it sounds. We had homemade bread and desserts of dumplings and strudels. Yummy!!


Dave
4 zlatys -

Quirky, a little hard to find – sprawling once inside. Good, authentic homey food. Quite tasty. One of the best meals (Top Five) that we had on our vacation.

Ian
4 zlatys -

Went to the Slovak Pub and was blown away by how awesome a college bar it was. Food was hearty, drink was cheap, tummy was fool...Ian was happy.

ebe
4.75  zlatys - 
When looking at reviews of where to eat, Slovak Pub kept coming up, but I just wasn't sure. When our host suggested it and we wandered up to it, it seemed like fate. We made our way up the stairs, saw a full front room, then were led through one room, then another..another....and another! This place is huge and offers a great selection of inexpensive dining options and some awesome brews. Locally brewed and interesting adaptions of black and tans, radlers, etc. Plus - bagels! They are becoming more common in Berlin, but I haven't had one in a year. Tasted like fatty heaven.

 Overall

cheryl
4 zlatys -

Bratislava is a beautiful European capital city with a lot to see – and we saw very little of it. The skyline of the Old Town area is fascinating with many steeples, towers and turrets. The dated buildings made the walk through town much more interesting.  The statues made it clear that the people here have a great sense of humor and pride – I took photos of my family sharing a bench with a bronzed Napoleon-type general, a large antique bicycle that was made into a modern-day bike rack, beautiful copper doors, buildings with dated cornerstones and a red geranium-decorated town hall.  Seeing the protesters was a bit disconcerting, but made our visit infinitely more interesting. The castle was beautiful and the views of the Danube River and the UFO Bridge were amazing. There are a lot of shops and a museum I would have liked to visit. We did stop by a church as we were walking that was very plain on the outside and ornately beautiful inside. Slovakia, on the other hand seemed quite financially depressed in many ways, which is interesting as it is only an hour from here to Vienna, Austria. Would definitely spend more time here if the opportunity arose.
 

Dave

3.5 zlatys -
Bratislava where we stayed was very nice, the surrounding areas were full of many old eastern European block housing. Enjoyed the sights that we saw. Could have spent more time there.

Ian 
4 zlatys -

Despite being off the main tourist path and perhaps not living up to nearby giants, Bratislava had a charm that made it special in it's own right. I'd go back for a day or two to relax and enjoy partying.

ebe
4 zlatys -
Relieved to say we would have enjoyed staying longer. Prices were good, there were interesting things to see, we got beautiful mementos of our time there. PorterBalls recommended.

Just entered Slovakia

Sculptures

Slovak Pub

Protesters

 

 

Market

Corner of the castle

Castle Wall

The fam at the castle

More ratings & posts from the parent's trip: 
Stettin, Poland 
Budapest, Hungary
Berlin Botanical Garden
Hungary's Open Air Mueum

To check out other cities we've visited, click on the Ratings tab.