Meet your guide at 12:00 PM in front of the main entrance to Park Inn Danube Hotel and receive a short introduction to Bratislava. As you walk through the historical city center, learn about the ancient history of Slovakia. Learn about the origins of the city when the old Slavs, the predecessors of modern Slovaks, inhabited the area and created the Great Moravia Empire. Learn also about Bratislava´s importance as a city in the Austro-Hungarian empire. Hear stories from the time when Bratislava was the capital city of Hungarian Kingdom.
Walk to Michael's Gate, only remaining gate of former city wall, the Main Square, the Old Town Hall, and the Bratislava Primatial Palace. Your guide will explain the role of Bratislava through the years of World War II, and the years of communism in the latter half of the 20th century in Slovakia and the subsequent Velvet Revolution. Continue to Reduta before the walking part of the tour ends at the Cathedral of St. Martin, where 19 Hungarian kings and queens were crowned.
The next part of the tour is taken by car. Pass by the Presidential Palace and the Palisady district, a district full of villas from the beginning of the 20th century, built in a functionalist style. Next is the main highlight of Bratislava, Bratislava Castle, which provides excellent views of the city. Pass by the building of Slovak Parliament and finish with a visit to Slavín Monument, dedicated to Soviet soldiers who liberated Bratislava at the end of WWII.
The last stop is the ruins of Devin Castle, one of the oldest buildings in Slovakia, built in times of Great Moravia Empire. Hear of the patrons of the arts who lived here, as well associated stories and legends of the site. After exploring the site, be returned back to Bratislava.
