Which means of transport to use Slovakia?

From the airport to the city centre Slovakia

The fastest, but also the most expensive, solution is to take a cab (with meter), for which it will cost about 10 € to reach the city center (official cab offered by the airport: ✆ +421 948 966 967). There is also the Bolt app that works on the same principle as Uber. Public transport is obviously the cheapest option (€1.20). The journey takes between 45 minutes and 1 hour depending on traffic. At the exit of the arrivals terminal, bus 61 will take you from the airport to the train station. From there, you can reach the old town on foot (15 minutes walk), by bus no. 93 (Hodžovo námestie stop) or by streetcar no. 1 (Námestie SNP stop). Bus 61 runs from 4:42 am to 11:32 pm and leaves every 15 to 20 minutes (https://imhd.sk/ba/cestovny-poriadok/linka/61/smer/Hlavna-stanica/zastavka/Fafruny/314573294610). Tickets can be purchased at a ticket office in the arrivals hall or at a vending machine near the bus stop (note that the machines only accept coins, so make sure you have change). If you are arriving at night, the night line #61 will also take you to the train station, departing every hour between 11:52pm and 3:52am.

The airport is located on the eastern outskirts of the capital Bratislava and is directly connected to the D1 highway

Arrival by train Slovakia

The Slovak railway network is extensive and organised, but slow. The train can be faster and more frequent for some destinations (Poprad or Košice), very slow for others (Nitra, Banská Bystrica). The best thing to do is to compare the speed of trains and buses for your destination on the excellent website cp.sk, which gives all bus and train timetables. Travelling by train is worthwhile if you are not in a hurry and want to enjoy the beautiful Slovak landscape. The price of rail travel is roughly comparable to bus fares, a train ride costs about €1 for 20 km.

Trams, buses and trolleybuses leave from Bratislava's main railway station (Hlavná stanica) for the whole city. The old town can be reached on foot in 15 minutes. It is a major national and European railway junction. You can get fairly cheap tickets here for the whole of Europe, and very cheap tickets for the various cities in Slovakia

International lines : Bratislava is connected by train to Vienna (one train every hour, one hour journey, 75 km). For Budapest (one train every 2 hours, 214 km, about 20 €), prefer trains without change that reach Budapest in 2 hours 30. Prague (396 km) is served by a train every hour, a 4.5-hour journey. There are two direct trains a day to Warsaw (674 km), with a journey time of 7.5 to 10 hours. One direct train per day reaches Bucharest (1,100 km) in over 17 hours.

National lines: In Slovakia, Bratislava is connected by train to all major cities: Nitra (one train leaves about every 2 hours, 91 km, the journey always includes a change and takes about 2.5 hours, €5.50), Trnava (one train every quarter of an hour, 46 km, 50 minutes journey time, €2.55), Trenčín (one train about every 1.5 hours, 132 km, 2.20 hours journey time, about €6), Komárno (6 direct trains per day, 120 km, 2.5 hours journey time, €7), Žilina (one train about every 1.5 hours, 203 km, approx. 3 hours travel time, approx. 10 €), Poprad (one train every hour and a half, approx. 344 km, 4 hours travel time, approx. 15 €), Banská Bystrica (one train every 2 hours, 3.5 hours travel time, 230 km, approx. 11 €), Prešov (three trains per day with one change, 5.5 hours travel time, 446 km, between 15 and 20 €), Košice (one train every hour and a half, 445 km, 5 hours travel time, between 15 and 20 €)

Trains are free for people over 62! With an identity card and a photo, you can obtain a card at the ticket office that gives you free travel on regular trains and discounts on express trains.

Arrival by boat Slovakia

Thanks to its location on the Danube, Bratislava is regularly connected to Vienna by boat. The centre of Vienna (Schwedenplatz) and Bratislava are connected by a fast catamaran, Twin City Liner, but also by another fast boat, which is anchored in Vienna on Handelskai. You can also use the services of lod.sk for transportation by boat.

Public transport Slovakia

Bratislava, like all its Slovakian counterparts, is a city that can be discovered very easily on foot. The Slovak capital has a dense, efficient, clear and cheap (at least for tourists) public transport system (Mestská hromadná doprava, https://imhd.sk/). There is no metro in Slovakia, public transport is provided by bus, streetcar or trolleybus lines, which arrive on time and are never on strike! At night, the service is reduced, but continues to run on the main lines at a slightly lower frequency.

Tickets(Cestovné lístky) can be purchased at tobacconists(tabák), newspaper stands or vending machines located near the stops. They cannot be purchased on the public transport system and must be stamped (once only, at the beginning of the journey) at the yellow terminals inside the bus, trolley or streetcar. There are different types of tickets: €0.70 (2 zones) are valid for 15 minutes, €0.90 (2 zones) for 30 minutes, €1.20 (3 zones) for 60 minutes, €1.50 (4 zones) for 60 minutes, €1.90 (5 zones) for 90 minutes, etc. Children under 6 years old travel free of charge. Please note! Transporting large luggage, strollers without children and dogs is theoretically charged at €0.35 (buy a 15-minute ticket at the reduced rate), it will be valid for 3 hours. 24-hour pass: 3.50 €/6.90 €. 3-day pass: 8 €. Passes must be redeemed on the first trip after purchase, and only.

Arrival by bus. Opened on October^1, 2017, the Bratislava bus station (Autobusová Stanica Mlynské Nivy) is brand new and modern. It is about 100 m from the old station and has digital screens to check schedules, free toilets, Wi-Fi and plenty of stores to buy food and drinks. There is still work going on around it and the final project should be completed soon. It is located east of downtown. Bus 37 connects the station to the city center on the Danube banks, and bus 208 connects to the Presidential Square (Hodžovo nám.) north of the city center. Bus 210 connects the bus and train stations.

The bus network is very well designed and covers the entire Slovak territory. Fares are about the same as for trains, but the transportation, although less pleasant, can sometimes be faster than by bus.

International lines : there is a bus every hour to Vienna (74 km) in about an hour. For Budapest (215 km), it is better to take the train, because only 3 buses reach the Hungarian capital in about 3 hours, with the companies Orange ways and Regiojet. For Prague (443 km), there are hourly buses that take 5 hours to reach the capital with changes in the Czech Republic.

National lines : In Slovakia, Bratislava is connected by bus to all the large and small towns in the country: Nitra (a bus about every half hour, 98 km, 1 hour 15 minutes travel time, €2-5), Trnava (a bus every quarter hour on average, 51 km, 45 minutes travel time, about €3), Trenčin (a bus about every two hours, 124 km, 1 hour 30 minutes travel time, about €7), Komárno (a bus about every two hours, 99 km, 2 hours 10 minutes travel time, €4.70), Žilina (a bus about every one and a half hours, 215 km, 3.5 hours, approx. 10 €), Poprad (one bus every hour and a half, 340 to 360 km depending on the route, approx. 6 hours, approx. 20 €), Banská Bystrica (one bus every hour, 3 to 4 hours, 230 km, approx. 12 €), Prešov (8 direct buses per day, 8.5 hours, 444 km, approx. 21 €), Košice (12 buses per day, 430 km, 7 hours, approx. 21 €)

To consult the timetables go to the website cp.sk (in English), for cheap trips with a maximum of comfort: regiojet.sk, finally eurolines.sk and flixbus.sk also circulate in Slovakia.

For all your trips, bus and train consult the website : www.cp.sk

Bike, scooters & co Slovakia

There are no bicycle lanes in Bratislava, but electric scooters have recently made their appearance in the capital. The old town is a pedestrian zone where it is pleasant to stroll, and the new districts are often unpleasant to walk around because of the traffic; you also have to be very careful with the trams. The only trails suitable for cycling lead to the Devin Castle or the Danubiana Museum. There are a few bike rental companies in the city centre, some of which even offer guided tours (bikebratislava.sk; www.bratislavabikepoint.com). A bike-sharing system similar to the Parisian Vélib has just been set up in the capital (slovnaftbajk.sk), costing €6 per day.

With a driver Slovakia

Looking for an original tour with a driver? The website www.authenticslovakia.com offers thematic tours of the city in old Škoda cars. These tours will help you discover the post-communist city of Bratislava.

By car Slovakia

Bratislava is located at the intersection of important motorways. Prague is 330 km away, Budapest 200 km, Vienna 65 km. From Vienna, take the E60 motorway, then the E58 (or 9). From Prague, take the E55-E65 motorway, then from Brno turn south onto the E65. From Budapest, the M1 to the town of Vértesszőlős, branching off onto route 1 towards Komárno, which road becomes towards Bratislava route 63 or E575.

Be careful to take the vignette to be able to drive on the Slovak motorways, 10 € for 10 days, 14 € per month and 50 € per year for a car. Online purchase possible on the website https://eznamka.sk. It is also increasingly difficult to park in the city centre of Bratislava, which is often congested. Parking spaces are expensive and clogs are installed without mercy.

If you want to rent a car, you obviously need to have your driving licence with you. In principle, there are two possibilities: local agencies (www.autopozicovna.autowilis.sk; www.auto-rental.sk) or international agencies (www.europcar.sk; www.avis.sk). Slovakian agencies are cheap, but it is better to book in advance. Seat belts are compulsory in the front and back of the car, both in the city and in the countryside. Maximum speed limit on roads 90 km/h, on motorways 130 km/h and in town 50 km/h. You must keep your headlights on at all times, day and night.

Accessibility Slovakia

Even though the city is modernizing and making more and more efforts in this direction, there is a severe lack of facilities to make life easier. Only a few buses are equipped to accommodate wheelchairs

Tourist traps Slovakia

As with many destinations, the main risk of scamming for tourists in Slovakia are cabs and their drivers. So be careful around train stations and airports, which are their favorite areas. In order to benefit from preferential rates in Bratislava as well as in the whole country, it is best to order your trip by phone. This way you can be sure that you are dealing with an official cab. Here are some contacts of real cabs: Fun Taxi, ✆ 421 905 767 757 - www.funtaxi.sk, Yellow cab, ✆ +421 24 444 11 11 - www.paladio.sk. There is also the Bolt i app that works on the same principle as Uber, reliable and a little cheaper.