Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¿ª½±¼Ç¼

We’re not taking new bookings for travel to Austria at the moment. Our specialists can advise you on all the destinations you can currently book with us.

Skip to content
Bratislava

Bratislava day trip & walking tour

Bratislava, Slovakia's capital set on the Danube, is a less popular destination than better-known cities in the region, but this fact also makes it less crowded, so you can spend your day exploring the cobbled streets without feeling rushed.

Your driver will pick you up at your Vienna hotel and connect you with your local Bratislava guide. The city combines the legacy of its Soviet history with the hallmarks of a central European city. Beginning in the Old Town, you’ll find castles, medieval portals and cathedrals existing in tension with the city’s Eastern Bloc past.

The first stop is Bratislava Castle, a massive white rectangular structure with the peaked red roofs and towers typical of the region. Situated on a rocky height between the Carpathians and the Alps, just above a major ford of the Danube, the castle’s strategic position means it has been inhabited for thousands of years. From the grounds, you can see the entire city below, plus Austria on the Danube’s opposite bank and on a clear day, parts of Hungary.

Other stops in the Old Town include Saint Michael’s Gate, the only remaining medieval fortification in the formerly walled city, and Saint Martin’s Cathedral, a stark Gothic structure whose grey stone spire dominates the city skyline.

The Primate’s Palace, with its pale-pink walls and neoclassical columns, is the final stop before lunch. Its Hall of Mirrors glitters in the sunlight with its many arched windows, and was the site of important treaty signings in the 19th century. The building now houses the mayor’s office.

In the afternoon, take a break for lunch on your own, then have time to explore the shops and cafés of the city before the drive back to Vienna. Look for the quirky statuary on Bratislava’s streets, including Cumil or Man at Work, a hard-hatted worker who peeks out of a manhole with playful eyes.

On the way to your hotel, you’ll stop for a brief visit to Devin Castle, a ruin on the clifftop border between Slovakia and Austria and the site of various fortifications since the Bronze Age. The 1st-century fortress stood in various forms through centuries of strife, until it was finally ruined in 1809 by Napoleon’s retreating forces.

The regime of the Iron Curtain era covered the border site in military troops and barbed wire, but Devin Castle was reclaimed after the Velvet Revolution, and now is undergoing a many-decades-long restoration.

Speak to someone
who's been there

Start planning your tailor-made trip by contacting one of our Austria specialists

Excellent

Other experiences in Vienna

These activities are designed to give you the most authentic experiences around where you're staying. We work with local guides, who use their knowledge and often a resident's eye to show you the main sights and more out-of-the-way attractions. Our specialists can suggest tours and activities that will introduce you to the local ways of life.

  • Coffeehouse tour of Vienna
    Viennese coffeehouse

    Coffeehouse tour of Vienna

    Coffeehouse tour of Vienna

    This three-hour guided coffeehouse tour around Vienna brings you to some of the most storied cafés in the city, and gives you a taste of the city’s renowned coffee and pastries — all in one morning.

    View details
  • Jewish heritage walking tour
    Juden Gasse, Vienna

    Jewish heritage walking tour

    Jewish heritage walking tour

    Take a guided half-day walking tour of Vienna’s First District to the memorials and museums dedicated to Austria’s Jewish community and the 65,000 Austrian Jews killed in the Holocaust. Pay your respects at the Holocaust Memorial and see the ruins of a medieval synagogue.

    View details
  • Spanish Riding School performance
    Morning exercise

    Spanish Riding School performance

    Spanish Riding School performance

    Watch the Ballet of the White Stallions at the ornate Spanish Riding School inside of Hofburg Palace. You’ll get to see the world-renowned Lipizzaner horses as they perform flying changes and half pirouettes in the lavishly designed baroque-era arena.

    View details
  • Vienna market visit & cooking class
    Preparing apple strudel

    Vienna market visit & cooking class

    Vienna market visit & cooking class

    Spend a morning on a brief walking tour of Vienna’s markets, tasting the city’s delicacies along the way. Then retire to your guide’s private apartment for instruction on cooking a two-course gourmet lunch. Sample Austria’s wines with the meal you’ve prepared in a chef’s kitchen.

    View details
  • Vienna walking tour & Schönbrunn Palace
    Athena statue in front of Austrian Parliament

    Vienna walking tour & Schönbrunn Palace

    Vienna walking tour & Schönbrunn Palace

    This combined walking-and-driving tour lets you map out the location of many of Vienna’s most storied sites, as well as explore the mammoth Schönbrunn Palace. You’ll see the former imperial palace in Vienna as well as the Habsburg’s summer residence outside the city limits.

    View details
  • Wachau Valley & Danube boat ride
    Views over the Wachau Valley

    Wachau Valley & Danube boat ride

    Wachau Valley & Danube boat ride

    This river boat tour of the Wachau Valley starts with the Baroque majesty of Melk Abbey, then takes you on a slow drift through the vineyards, orchards and villages along the Danube’s forested banks. A stop in the historic town of Dürnstein, with its storied history, completes the day.

    View details