Hrad Devin Castle Beauty

e château qui a été témoin de la gloire et de la chute de la Grande Moravie et fut ...

The castle which witnessed the glory and fall of Great Moravia and was blown up by Napoleon’s army. Later declared to be a national cultural monument of Slovakia. Since it is situated on a high cliff over the Morava and Danube rivers, and standing on the frontier between Slovakia and Austria, it offers beautiful panoramic views and is a very popular place to visit. Come here if you want to soak in the rich medieval history which is mirrored in its ruins :)

LOCATION

Devin Castle is situated in Devin which is a borough of Bratislava, 12 km away from the city center. The bus journey takes around 20 minutes. An alternative is to take a taxi (if you don’t have a car). You can also get there by a boat from one Bratislava port or from Hainburg, Austria. The public transport is quite easy, you need to get on the bus 29 at the „Most SNP“ station. It is the one under the UFO bridge (right part of the picture). The bus’ final destination (which will be also written on its front) is „Opletalova.“ Get off at the stop called „Štrbská.“ From there you walk around 6 minutes. You will know that you arrived to the correct place once you see a large parking lot with a hotel and some restaurants on your right side.

WHAT TO SEE AROUND DEVIN CASTLE?

There are two parts of the castle you need to see. For the first one, which is the actual castle with the museum, you need to get a ticket. The second one is a public path along the river bank – also very much worth of seeing.

We recommend you start with the paid part (as the last admission is between 16:30 and 18:30 – depending on the month you visit). If you choose to go for a guided tour, the entrance ticket will be included in it so you don’t need to buy it separately. We like this 3-hour tour because it allows you to learn about the castle’s rich history and in the same time, sample some locally made products :) Alternatively, if you want to combine the city sightseeing with Devin castle sightseeing, this 5-hour tour is probably a better option for you.

If you continue on your own with a purchased ticket, take the left trail on the first small crossroad. You will arrive to the cash desk which is built from many stones – quite an interesting building.

FAMOUS WATCHTOWER

What you see on the ground next to the wall below is the basics of a Roman building which were discovered during an archaeological research in the 1930s. Have a good look on the second picture – can you see the watchtower on the left? It is one of the most photographed items of the castle and a legend has it that a bride jumped from here on her wedding day after her family killed her groom because they did not approve of him. That’s why it is called the Maiden Tower. If you have a closer look on the picture, you can also see a tunnel cave in the middle of the wall which passes through the whole castle hill.