Bratislava Slovakia Weekend Getaway

[kkstarratings]This is Dan from Vagabond Buddha. This is my Bratislava Weekend Getaway guide.

We are digital nomads traveling the world finding the best retire cheap in paradise locations in the world.

We have been in Mexico for 4 months. Now, we are on our way to Portugal for a month or two. We think Portugal might be a place that many digital nomads and international retirees would like to spend time. So we are heading to Portugal to gather data for you.

On our way to Portugal, we are visiting friends in Budapest. Bratislava and Vienna are just 2.5 hours from Budapest. So we are going to spend 2-3 days in both Vienna and Bratislava.

While here in Bratislava, I am creating this travel guide for you. I am keeping it short and sweet because our time here is limited.

If you would like to learn how to make money online or live as a digital nomad all over the world, please subscribe at Vagabond Buddha or our Youtube Channel or grab a free copy of my Ebook.

Bratislava Facts

Here are some interesting initial facts about Bratislava. I am here now as I type these words. 🙂 Click on the below Google Map to zoom into Bratislava.

Bratislava is the capital of Slovakia. 450,000 people live in Bratislava and 650,00 people total live in the metropolitan area.
Bratislava is ranked the third richest region in the EU after Hamburg and Luxembourg.
Bratislava is only 1 hour from Vienna and 2 hours from Budapest by vehicle.
According to the earliest evidence carbon dated so far, permanent human settlement of Bratislava began about 5000 BC.
The area was controlled by Rome from the 1st to the 4th century AD. Romans introduced grape cultivation and winemaking which continues today.
Slavs arrived in the 5th and 6th centuries AD. Slavs are an ethnolinguistic group that speak the various Slavic languages. Slavs stretch from Central to Western Asia and seem to have the Himalayas as their southern border. Now they have a presence in Western Europe and North America. See Slav Migration Map.
Bratislava (Pressburg) was given “town privileges” by Hungarian King Andrew III in 1291 and declared a free Royal Town in 1405 and given its own coat of arms in 1436 by King Sigismund.
Although the Kingdom of Hungary fell to the Ottoman Empire in 1526, the Turks failed to hold Bratislava. So Bratislava became the new capital of Hungary in 1536. Between 1536 and 1830 eleven Hungarian Monarchs were crowned at St. Martin’s Cathedral and ruled from Bratislava.
Bratislava started to lose its influence after the crown jewels were taken to Vienna in 1783. Subsequently, many of the central administrative offices began to move to Budapest.
Before WWI, the population was 80% German or Hungarian and only 15% Slovakian.
After Czechoslovakian forces occupied the city in 1919, Bratislava (Pressburg) became Slovakia’s political center and part of Czechoslovakia. May Hungarians were expelled or fled, and Czechs and Slovaks moved to Bratislava.
The Hungarian population was reduced to 15%.
In 1938, Nazi Germany annexed several boroughs of Bratislava because they contained many ethnic Germans.
Bratislavian government leadership fell under the Nazi influence and deported 15,000 Jews to concentration camps where they were murdered by the Nazis. People are murdered, not exterminated.
At the end of WWII, most of the Germans were evacuated by the German authorities.
When the communists seized power in 1948, Bratislava became part of the eastern bloc of countries under the Soviet Union.
In 1989, Bratislava became one of the earliest centers for the anti-communist Velvet Revolution.
In 1993, Bratislava became the capital of the newly formed Slovak Republic. The was the restoration of a democratic government.

If you find this interesting or helpful, please book using my recommendations. 🙂 If you book my recommendations such as flights, tours (Viator Tours, Get Your Guide Tours) or accommodations, you will pay nothing extra, but we will earn a small commission.

Bratislava Free Walking Tour and Map

Here is the Youtube video of our Bratislava Free Walking Tour.

Click the interactive Google Map on your smartphone to be guided on this tour.

Bratislava Castle: This is the main Castle of Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia. The site of the castle, like the city, has been inhabited for thousands of years because of its strategic location and access throughout Europe. The Baden Culture was the first to construct settlements on Castle Hill in 3500 BC. Later, evidence shows castle hill served as an acropolis for the Kalenderberg Culture in 750 BC.

The castle hill was an important center for Celts and Romans in the 5th century. Slavs showed up during the 6th through 9th centuries. By the 9th century, there was a palace constructed of stone and a basilica. By the 11th century, the castle was the central castle for the Kingdom of Hungary. It was one of the few castles able to withstand Mongol attacks in 1241 and 1242. When the Turks conquered present-day Hungary, this castle became the capital of the remaining Kingdom of Hungary.

When Maria Theresa of Austria became the queen of the Kingdom of Hungary, she kept her promise to live both in this Castle and in Austria. Maria Theresa was the only female ruler of the House of Habsburg. She was a sovereign of Austria, Hungary, Croatia, Bohemia, Transylvania, and Milan, and the Holy Roman Empress from 1740 to 1780.

Old Town Hall: The Old Town of Bratislava is a complex of buildings built in the 14th century AD. The town hall was created by connecting 3 former townhouses. The Old Town Hall houses the Bratislava City Museum, founded in 1868 and includes torture devices. The townhall underwent many restorations, the most recent a Renaissance style renovation in 1599 and a Baroque restoration after an 18th-century fire.

Primatial Palace: This palace in old town Bratislava was built in 1781 for the archbishop. After the archbishop moved to the summer palace this palace was used for ceremonial government purposes, such as signing international treaties and peace accords. The Hall of Mirrors was used to sign the fourth Peace of Pressburg ending the war of the Third Coalition dissolving the Holy Roman Empire in 1805. The bust of Emperor Francis II on the staircase next to the Hall of Mirrors commemorates this event.

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Franciscan Church (Church of the Annunciation): This is the oldest religious building in old town Bratislava. The church was consecrated in 1297 in the presence of King Henry II of Hungary. In 1526, Ferdinand I of the Holy Roman Empire was elected to become the King of Hungary. Kings knighted nobles here to the Order of the Golden Spur. Adjacent Chapel of Saint John was built in Gothic style in the 14th century.

Michael’s Gate: This is the only gate surviving from the medieval fortifications. Bult around 1300, it was refreshed by Baroque construction in 1758 with a Dragon and St. Micheal on top. During medieval times the city was surrounded by walls with entry and exit only possible through one of the four gates. This entrance was rebuilt to show how it was once closed off by a drawbridge and moat.

Grassalkovich Palace: Today, this serves as the palace of the president of Slovakia. It was built in 1760 for a Croatian Aristocrat, Antal Grassalkovich, a close friend of Maria Theresa.

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Summer Archbishop’s Palace: This was originally the 17th century Renaissance summer seat for the archbishops of Esztergom. The archbishops were based in Bratislava during the Ottoman Empire. The palace now houses the government of Slovakia.

Church of St. Elizabeth (Blue Church): This is an Art Noveau Church completed in 1913 named after Saint Elizabeth. Saint Elizabeth was a princess of the Kingdom of Hungary who was married at 14, widowed at 20, and died at the age of 24. She was canonized in 1235 for her Christian charity. She used her dowry to build a hospital where she served the sick daily herself.

Please book using my recommendations. 🙂 If you book my recommendations such as flights, tours (Viator Tours, Get Your Guide Tours) or accommodations, you will pay nothing extra, but we will earn a small commission.

Best Bratislava Day Tours

Guided Tours

Viator Tours: There are some really great day tours originating in Bratislava or Vienna. Here are a few that remain top rated by hundreds of people over many months.

GetYourGuideTours: There are some really great day tours originating in Bratislava or Vienna. Here are a few that remain consistently top rated over many months:

Bratislava Best Restaurants, Street Food, and Surprise Experiences

There were only two eating experiences we loved here, so we will share only those two.

Bratislava Flagship Restaurant: This is a traditional Bratislava restaurant with amazing food and great prices. It is also a great traditional experience. A meal for two here including drinks was about 17 Euros.

Asian Bistro Hoang-Nam: This is a super cheap Vietnamese place that both Qiang Hui and I loved. We kept going back. I had a Tofu-Rice dish that was 3.5 Euros. Qiang had a chicken pho dish that was 3.0 Euros.

Bratislava Best (and) Cheap Hotels

You should stay within 4-5 blocks from the Old Town City Hall in Bratislava, if possible. Here are some recommendations depending on your budget, they get cheaper as you move down the list.

Radisson Blu Carlton Hotel

Old City Hotel

Hostel

Airbnb (Where we stayed.) If you are new to Airbnb, use this code http://www.airbnb.com/c/dbell50 for a big discount.

I started living internationally in 2007. The world is changing and you might be curious about how you could live the laptop lifestyle. Maybe you will be a digital nomad someday? If you would like to learn how to flourish in the new digital economy, please subscribe to Vagabond Buddha, our Youtube Channel, or get a free copy of my Ebook.

Bratislava Flights, Buses, Trains

Bus: The bus from Budapest to Bratislava was 22 Euros per person, roundtrip. You can find trains, tickets, and locations FlixBus. The bus from Vienna to Bratislava is much cheaper.

Bratislava Slovakia Cost of Living

Monthly Cost of Living, Bratislava, Slovakia ($USD)

Expense	Cost	Low	Medium	High
Airbnb	$23.00	0	14	30
Moderate Hotel	$50.00	0	12	0
Backpacker Hostel	$41.00	30	3	0
High-End Restaurant	$25.00	1	4	8
Neighborhood Restaurant	$8.00	30	44	48
Food Cart	$5.00	30	12	4
Subway/Train/Metro	$1.50	20	26	8
Bus	$1.50	20	10	0
Taxi/Uber	$5.00	6	10	20
Total	Per Month	$1,735.00	$1,661.00	$1,406.00
Total	Per Day	$57.83	$55.37	$46.87

The above table is just my notes from my time here. The above numbers are for one person and do not include alcohol, tours, or extras. I do not guarantee these prices for anyone.

For more information about how the above “Cost of Living Monthly Multiplier” works, please visit the bottom of this page at Vagabond Buddha.

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This is Dan of Vagabond Buddha. Thank you for stopping by. The world is your home. What time will you be home for dinner?

Warning: I am not offering you these prices. These are just my notes and estimates from the time of my visit and this post. Your costs will likely be drastically different if significant inflation or deflation occurs or the market changes after this post. I will not update these numbers until I am on the ground again here, if ever.