Bratislava is located near the point where the borders of several different countries meet, which means that it is possible to make day trips not only in Slovakia but also in Austria, Hungary and the Czech Republic. Many of Slovakia's most interesting destinations are in the central and eastern parts of the country and are too far away to reach in a day, but I've included the best places to see in southwestern Slovakia along with a good mix of attractions in each of the three neighbouring countries. Vienna is an obvious day trip in Austria, and Budapest is also reachable in a day from Bratislava but I haven't included it in this list since it doesn't make much sense to travel so far to visit a city with as many attractions as Budapest has just for the day. For the purposes of this list I've included destinations that are reachable within three hours of travel by public transport, and given each place a star rating out of five to give you an idea of how worthwhile it is to make the effort to travel there. Instructions are also included for how to get there by public transport starting from the train and bus stations in Bratislava. I've organised the destinations into three categories, those which are within one hour of travel by public transport, within two hours, and within three hours. For more information about the destinations in Slovakia see this post about the Top 100 Destinations in Slovakia and for those in the Czech Republic see this post about The Czech Republic's Top 100 Destinations. The photos included in this post show, from top to bottom, Mikulov (CZ), Esztergom (HUN), Plavecký Castle (SK), Smolenice Castle (SK), and Kopčany Romanesque Church (SK).
Destinations Less Than One Hour Away From Bratislava:
***** Vienna, Austria - (55 minutes to 1 hour) Train from Bratislava main station or from Bratislava-Petržalka station
*** Devín Castle, Slovakia - (20 minutes to 25 minutes) Take Bratislava city bus #28 or #29 from under Nový Most (New Bridge) to Devín village
** Gyor, Hungary - (1 hour) Take the bus with the company called Student Agency from Bratislava main bus station (daily at 11:15am)
** Trnava, Slovakia - (30 minuntes) Train from Bratislava main station
** Hainburg, Austria - (20 minutes) Take Bratislava city bus #901 from under Nový Most (New Bridge) which goes across the border to Hainburg
** Piešťany, Slovakia - (1 hour) Train from Bratislava main station
** Čunovo Art Gallery, Slovakia - (25 minutes) Bus from Bratislava main bus station to the bus stop 'Čunovo Muzeum'
** Modra, Slovakia - (1 hour) Bus from Bratislava main bus station
* Pottenburg Castle, Austria (15 minutes) Take Bratislava city bus #901 from under Nový Most (New Bridge) to the Austrian border village of Wolfsthal, then hike up the red-marked trail to reach the castle ruin
Destinations Less Than Two Hours Away From Bratislava:
**** Mikulov, Czech Republic - (1 hour 50 minutes) Take a train from Bratislava main station to the Czech border town of Břeclav, then change to another local train to reach Mikulov
**** Esztergom, Hungary - (1 hour 25 minutes) Take a train from Bratislava main station to the Slovak border town of Štúrovo, then walk across the bridge over the Danube river to reach Esztergom. The huge dome of the basilica in Esztergom is visible when you get off the train in Štúrovo, so you can use it as a landmark to follow to reach the bridge over the river
*** Trenčín, Slovakia - (1 hour 25 minutes) Take a train from Bratislava main station
*** Čachtice Castle, Slovakia - (1 hour 25 minutes) Take a train from Bratislava main station to Nové Mesto nad Váhom, then change to a local train to reach the village of Višňové which is directly beneath the castle
*** Brno, Czech Republic - (1 hour 30 minutes) Take a train from Bratislava main station
*** Beckov Castle, Slovakia - (1 hour 40 minutes) Train from Bratislava main station to Nové Mesto nad Váhom, then take a bus from outside the train station to the village of Beckov
*** Lednice, Czech Republic - (1 hour 20 minutes) Take a train from Bratislava main station to the Czech border town of Břeclav, then take a bus from outside the train station to reach Lednice
*** Valtice, Czech Republic - (1 hour 35 minutes) Take a train from Bratislava main station to reach the Czech border town of Břeclav, then change to another local train to reach Valtice
** Červený Kameň Castle, Slovakia - (1 hour 10 minutes to 1 hour 20 minutes) Take a bus from Bratislava main station to the village of Častá, then walk up the hill along the road to reach the castle
** Nitra, Slovakia - (1 hour 15 minutes) Take a bus from Bratislava main bus station
** Plavecký Castle, Slovakia - (1 hour 20 minutes) Take a bus from Bratislava main bus station to the village of Plavecké Podhradie, then hike up the hill to the castle ruins
** Smolenice Castle, Slovakia - (1 hour 15 minutes) Take a bus from Bratislava main bus station
** Skalica, Slovakia - (1 hour 20 minutes to 1 hour 50 minutes) Take a train from Bratislava main station to Kúty, then change to a local train to reach Skalica
** Eisenstadt, Austria - (1 hour 10 minutes) Take a train from Bratislava-Petržalka station to Parndorf, then change to another train to reach Eisenstadt
** Trenčianske Teplice, Slovakia - (1 hour 45 minutes to 2 hours) Take a train from Bratislava main station to Trenčín, then take a bus from outside the train station to reach Trenčianske Teplice
* Štefánik Hilltop Monument in Brezová pod Bradlom, Slovakia - (2 hours) Take a bus from Bratislava main station to reach Brezová pod Bradlom, then hike up the red-marked trail to reach the monument
* Tematín Castle, Slovakia - (2 hours) Take a train from Bratislava main station to Nové Mesto nad Váhom, then take a bus from outside the train station to the village of Lúka and walk up the blue-marked trail to reach the castle ruins
* Kopčany Romanesque Church, Slovakia - (1 hour 10 minutes to 1 hour 40 minutes) Take a train from Bratislava main station to Kúty, then change to a local train to reach Kopčany village. Walk from the village across the fields towards the Morava river to reach the church
* Dražovce Romanesque Church, Slovakia - (1 hour 45 minutes) Take a bus from Bratislava main station to Nitra, then change to another bus to reach Dražovce village. The church is on the hill above the village
Destinations Less Than Three Hours Away From Bratislava:
**** Olomouc, Czech Republic - (2 hours 40 minutes) Take a train from Bratislava main station to Břeclav, then change trains to reach Olomouc
**** Visegrád, Hungary - (2 hours 25 minutes) Take a train from Bratislava main station to Szob in Hungary, then change to a local train to reach Nagymaros-Visegrad station. From there walk down to the Danube river and take the passenger ferry across the river to Visegrád on the opposite bank
*** Kroměříž, Czech Republic - (2 hours 25 minutes) Take a train from Bratislava main station to Břeclav, then change to a second train to Hulín, then change to a third train to reach Kroměříž
*** Moravský Krumlov, Czech Republic - (2 hours 30 minutes) Take a train from Bratislava main station to Brno, then change to a local train to reach Moravský Krumlov
*** Znojmo, Czech Republic - (2 hours 45 minutes to 3 hours) Take a train from Bratislava main station to Břeclav, then change to a local train to reach Znojmo
*** Carnuntum Roman Archaeological Site, Austria - (2 hours 15 minutes) Take Bratislava city bus #901 from under Nový Most to Hainburg, then walk southwest along the red-marked trail to reach the town of Petronell-Carnuntum where the Roman site is located
** Gýmeš Castle, Slovakia - (2 hours 10 minutes to 2 hours 25 minutes) Take a bus from Bratislava main bus terminal to Nitra, then change to another bus to the village of Kostoľany pod Tribečom. In the village there is a Romanesque church to see, then hike up the yellow and then green-marked trails to reach the castle on the nearby hilltop
** Sopron, Hungary - (2 hours 20 minutes to 2 hours 45 minutes) Take a bus with the company Student Agency from Bratislava main station to Gyor (daily at 11:15am), then take a train from there to Sopron
** Rust, Austria - (2 hours to 2 hours 15 minutes) Take a train from Bratislava-Petržalka station to Parndorf, change to a second train to reach Eisenstadt, then take a local bus from there to Rust
** Dobrá Voda Castle, Slovakia - (2 hours to 2 hours 20 minutes) Take a train from Bratislava main station to Trnava, then walk out to the bus station outside the train station and take a bus from there to the village of Dobrá Voda. From there hike up the red-marked trail to reach the castle ruins
** Tata, Hungary - (2 hours to 2 hours 20 minutes) Take a bus with the company Student Agency from Bratislava main station to Gyor (daily at 11:15am), then take a train from Gyor to reach Tata
** Komárno, Slovakia - (2 hours 5 minutes) Take a train from Bratislava main station
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