Bicycling the Danube - 4 - Bratislava

Tuesday, 1 September 2026

Having had a very short day of riding and arriving in Bratislava at noon, we had the whole afternoon to enjoy the town. We were even able to meet up for a short town tour and a cup of coffee with the son of friends from back home who lives in Bratislava.

Like many towns in this part of Europe, Bratislava has three names: Pressburg (when ruled by Austria), Pozsony (when ruled by Hungary - it was the Hungarian capital), and Bratislava (now that it's the capital of Slovakia). Overtaken by Nazi Germany and then under Communist rule until the 1990s, it is now a thriving city undergoing renovations and renewal.

Primaciálne námestie (Primate's Square) with the Old Town Hall in the background. (The Slovak word for Square or Plaza, námestie, sure has me confused with the Indian greeting, namaste!)

Ornament on top of the building to the right of Old Town Hall.

Bicycle rack.

St. Michael's Gate (Michalská Brána).

The Presidential Palace.

Planet of Peace Fountain, in the plaza near the Presidential Palace.

St. Martin's Cathedral. A major highway is just off to the left, so it's difficult to get a good photo.

The interior of St. Martin's Cathedral. From 1563 to 1830, while Budapest was controlled by the Ottomans, this cathedral was the site of coronations of Hungary's kings and queens.

St. Martin giving part of his cloak to a beggar.

The Holocaust Memorial in Bratislava is next to St. Martin's Cathedral on the site of Bratislava's original synagogue. "Remember" is carved into the base in Slovak and Hebrew. Ironically, the synagogue survived WWII, but was torn down by the Soviets in the early 1970s to make room for ramps to the new SNP Bridge across the Danube.

The Church of St. Elizabeth aka The Blue Church is just outside Bratislava's Old Town.

The blue color continues in the interior of the Blue Church.

This set of reliefs was on a building across the street from the Blue Church, and reflects the post-WWII Communist/Soviet period. Slovakia became an independent nation in 1993 and a member of the EU in 2004.

Fanciful street art has popped up in Bratislava in recent years. This is the most famous: Cumil peering out from a utility manhole.

Another piece of street art.

Bicycling the Danube - 3 - Vienna to Budapest

Monday, 31 August to Saturday, 5 September 2026

This part of our trip had some unique challenges: Austria uses euros and speaks German; Slovakia uses euros and speaks Slovak; Hungary uses forints and speaks Hungarian. The three languages share very little vocabulary, and sometimes refer to towns and other geographic items with different names. The Danau becomes the Dunaj (Slovakia) and the Duna (Hungary). A bicycle (essential vocabulary!) is Fahrrad (or just Rad) in German, bicykel in Slovak, and bicikli or kerékpár in Hungarian. The signs for the Danube Cycle Path also change, and since for the final four days we were going back and forth between Slovakia and Hungary, following posted signs could be confusing.

Monday, Vienna to Hainburg

Many of the trees along the Danube are filled with mistletoe.

Reliefs on an unidentified building in Hainburg. Perhaps the building was originally a school of mathematics or engineering?

Saints Philip and James Catholic Church in Hainburg.

Wienertor (Vienna Gate) in Hainburg.

The inner courtyard at Hotel Altes Kloster. The original building dates to 1235; it was renovated into a hotel and conference center in 2010.

Sunset over the Danube as seen from our hotel room.

Tuesday, Hainburg to Bratislava

On our way out of Hainburg, we had a good view of the castle in Hainburg.

Bratislava deserves its own post. The short ride (20 km, 12 miles) gave us plenty of time to enjoy Bratislava.

Wednesday, Bratislava to Györ

This was a frequently seen style of shelter-with-table, both along the cycle path and in cafes.

The rest stop also had a small shrine - and a lot of wind turbines in the background. This part of Hungary reminded me a lot of the Midwest - flat terrain and fields of corn (maize), soybeans, sunflowers, and occasionally pumpkins.

Today's ride was potentially 80 km. Instead, we took the suggestion to get on the train in Mosonmagyaróvár (or simply "Moson") and take it to Györ, shortening our day to about 42 km of riding.

Carmelite Church in Györ.

Györ

A narrow street near the basilica in Györ.

We were intrigued by this strange structure. Turns out it's an entrance to an underground parking garage.

Thursday, Györ to Komárno

We rode all day in Hungary to the town of Komárom, then crossed the Danube to its Slovakian counterpart, Komárno. In 2009 both Hungary and Slovakia became part of the Schengen zone, so there is no longer border control between the two halves of the town.

The Church of St. Andrew in Komárno. The facade of this landmark had five niches with statues. All five looked exceedingly unhappy.

Trinity Column in the heart of Old Town Komárno.

Town Hall and General Klapka Square.

The "Courtyard of Europe" is a square where each building represents the architectural style of a different European country. A stage and outdoor seating was being set up, so it was difficult to get a nice photo.

The Evangelical Church. "Evangelical" usually means Lutheran in this part of Europe.

Friday, Komárno to Esztergom

Most of our riding in Slovakia and Hungary was away from the Danube. When we did get to see the river, it was clearly very low.

On our way up the hill to the Basilica.

The Basilica dwarfs the 100-ft high hill it's built on. At the right is the Esztergom Castle. (This photo was actually taken on the way out of Esztergom on Saturday.)

The Basilica is even more impressive on the inside. This is the most important church in Hungary. It is the tallest building in Hungary and the third-largest church in Europe.

The dome of the Basilica is 100 m (330 ft) tall. We had seen this dome for miles before we got to Esztergom. We had no idea that it was this huge, or that is was on a 100-ft tall hill. The architecture is reminiscent of the Blue Mosque and Hagia Sofia in Istanbul.

View from the Basilica terrace. This bridge, connecting Esztergom, Hungary to Stúrovo, Slovakia, was destroyed in World War II and not rebuilt until 2001! Until it was rebuilt, there were no bridges across the Danube between Vienna and Budapest. Now there are a few more, but ferries are still the most common way to cross the Danube. This is a problem when low water prevents ferries from operating.

Esztergom to Budapest

The castle at Visegrád in the "Danube Bend", where the Danube changes from being a largely east-west river to a north-south river.

Across the river in Nagymaros, the flood protection wall is designed to (1) be able to close off river access, and (2) add additional height for major floods.

Our tour originally planned a ferry ride from Szentendre to Budapest, but low river levels have forced suspension of this service. Instead, we took a train from Vác to Budapest.

The iconic view of the Parliament Building in the Pest side of Budapest. Our hotel (on the Buda side) was directly across the Danube from the Parliament.

We turned in our bicycles and gear (panniers, charging equipment, and bike locks) at our hotel in Budapest and prepared for the urban portion of our trip: two days in Budapest and two days in Prague.

Bicycling the Danube - 2 - Passau, Germany to Vienna, Austria

Tuesday, 25 August through Sunday, 30 August 2026

Traveling by bicycle allows a much closer view of the country than traveling the Danube on a cruise ship. They both have their plusses and minuses, but the bike brings you closer to places tourists rarely visit.

Tuesday, Passau to Schlögen

The Danube bridge at Passau - the starting point of the ride.

We weren't too far out of Passau where the road along the cycle path was closed for slope stabilization work.

A barge coming out of the lock at the Jochenstein dam and power plant. The river is exceptionally low this year, so the barges are lightly loaded.

I was surprised by how much corn (maize) is grown along the Danube - mostly for livestock feed.

At the end of the day we took a "bike ferry" across the Danube to our night's lodging. These small boats shuttle bicyclists, bicycles, and pedestrians back and forth across the river.

Lon and our bikes on the ferry.

Dogs are welcome everywhere in this part of Europe. This snack and water station for dogs was at reception at our hotel. It was not unusual to find similar water bowls for dogs at hotels, cafés, and restaurants as we traveled.

Wednesday, Schlögen to Linz

The Schlögener Schlinge ("Schlögen Sling") section of the Danube has one 180° curve, followed (downriver) by more tight turns over about 20 km. It's beautiful, but tricky navigation for barges and cruise ships.

Fields of pumpkins were frequently seen.

Much of the Danube Cycle Path (Donauradweg) is on a levee along the river.

Thursday, Linz to Grein & Bad Kreuzen

The ride from Linz to Grein started with a few bicycle problems (resolved in a bike shop in Linz) and was one of the most difficult days because of heat, sun, and distance. Fortunately, we were able to take a shuttle for the 8 km climb up to our night's lodging in Bad Kreuzen.    

The view from our hotel room balcony in Bad Kreuzen looked like a painting.

Friday, Bad Kreuzen to Emmersdorf

We took a bike ferry across the Danube to Weisen. This is a view of Grein from Weisen.

A railroad bridge at the eastern end of Grein, as seen from the cycle bath across the river.

The barges on the Danube are lightly loaded this year because the river is at an historic low. This photo was taken as we crossed the lock and dam on the Danube at Personbeug/Ypps.

Emmersdorf - a lovely town for a night's rest.

Memories of "Hochwasser" (high water) in Emmersdorf - ironic considering that this year the river is at an historically low level.

Saturday, Emmersdorf to Krems - Wachau Valley

The Wachau region is one of Austria's premier wine locations.

Steinertor - one of Krems' original city gates.

Another manhole cover - one of those things I can't pass up.

Sunday, Krems to Wien (Vienna)

Our day started with a train ride from Krems to Tulln. Negotiating the stairs to get to the proper track platform could be a challenge. Putting bikes on a train works well as long as you use the door marked with a bicycle.

Vienna marked the end of the first half of our ride.