How to spend 2 hours in Bratislava

Hola, hola!

If you’ve been following me on instagram lately, you know that last month I took a trip to Prague and on our way there we stopped for a short while in Bratislava, one of the four European capitals that river Danube passes through.

This was actually my second time in this city and everything was exactly as I remembered it: a small, very chic historic center, with beautiful well preserved (mostly) 20th century architecture. Also, did you know that here it is said to be the narrowest house in Europe? It’s a tiny strip of a house, right next to Michael’s Gate.

So, what to do if you have only a few hours to spend in Bratislava?

Discover the Old Town. Yup, the typical! Wander the lovely streets of the historic city, enjoy a coffee at one of the plenty cute cafes (well, I’m always up for a rather laid-back, relaxed approach of a new city) and discover the human-sized statues (tip: look for areas with bulk’s of tourists crowding to taking photos). The most popular statue is of Cumil (“the watcher”), popping up from a manhole, but read here more about them and the stories they hold.

Walk up to the Castle. Or maybe take the sightseeing tourist train to get you there, it’s up to you. We decided for a pleasant walk which took us around half an hour one way, from Michael’s Gate. Didn’t get to visit the interior, but the courtyard and the views from up there were alone worth the walk!

If you add one more day to your stay (does this count as a rhyme?), I also recommend you a short trip to the ruins of Devin Castle, perched on a high cliff right where river Morava flows into Danube. It’s a pleasurable way to spend a few hours learning a bit about the history of the place and chilling out with the great views of the two rivers at your feet. I visited it back in 2011, when I had more than just a few hours to spend around and it really stuck in my memory as a nice trip.

So, how many statues did you photograph yourself with in Bratislava?! 😀