Luckily I had an overnight at Vienna Airport so when my flight from Delhi got delayed I didn’t have to sweat it. I followed the signs to the hotel. It wasn’t too far from the terminal building but still a significant walk away. There was an covered underground passage all the way there.
Check-in was hassle-free and the room was comfortable for an overnight stay. The front desk was part of a bar and I had a quick dinner there and went back to my room. The room windows had views of the apron. The overall decor was trendy.
My flight to Munich and onward to Helsinki was just past noon. With spare time in the morning, I had two options head into Vienna and see the city or make a quick visit to Bratislava and add Slovakia to my travel map (though I had technically passed through Slovakia and Bratislava when I took the overnight train from Budapest to Prague). Of course, I chose the latter. I had booked the FlixBus service at 6:50 AM from Vienna International Airport to Bratislava. I was able to leave my bags in the room and check-out after I got back.
Most of the ride was in Austria and we entered Slovakia shortly before reaching Bratislava. I wanted to head into the old town so I alighted at the Einsteinova bus stop and took the overbridge towards the Slovak National Uprising bridge with the UFO Observation Deck on top. There was a walking/cycling track one level below the main roadway and it was a nice walk across the Danube river with the Bratislava Castle seen across on the hill.
It was too early still and there wasn’t a walking tour I could join at that time so I decide to stroll around on my own trying to see the sights. I started at the Holy Trinity Column and saw the Antona Bernoláka Monument and Lekáreň u Salvátora before heading to the Michael’s Gate.
From there I walked back to the main square in old town. There were lots of things to see there; the Maximilian’s fountain, Napoleon’s Army Soldier and Guard’s Booth.
My next stop was the Man at Work and I also saw Schöne Náci on the way there.
I walked to the Ganymede’s Fountain and Slovak National Theatre and then towards the Hviezdoslav statue at Hviezdoslav Square and the Hans Christian Andersen monument.
The Blue Church was my last stop and it was quite nice to see.
I was booked on the 10:30 AND FlixBus back from Bratislava central bus station to Vienna International Airport so I headed to the bus station. I somehow got a little lost on the way, probably because walking directions on Google Maps are not always accurate. Anxiety started to kick in as I was running out of time. I looked around and saw something like bus station and oriented myself in the direction and made it in time to catch by bus back. The ride back was smooth and after reaching the airport I walked back to the hotel to pickup my bags which I had left at the front desk and then back to the terminal for checking-in to my flight to Munich at 1:30 PM.
🚍 FlixBus