Public transport in Bratislava

Bratislava has built an understandable public transport line system of buses, trams, and trolleys, which convey at regular intervals according to timetables. Apps with timetables are available both for Android and iOS. Most of the line stops of the public transport are comprehensively marked; including the name of the stop, and the timetable with a list of all its destinations.

Nearly all sights and main monuments in Bratislava can be reached by walking, however, regarding a transport to the airport, bus station or the main train station we recommend to use public transport lines or taxi.

Operating hours

Public Transport in Bratislava operates the bus, tram and trolleybus lines starting approximately at 4:20 am till 11 pm. After this time you can find bus lines with prefix "N", which means "night bus". All means of transport are marked by number and by the starting and final stop name (in a case of night buses the mark is: N91, N39, ...). The service of night buses is reduced and they usually go once an hour. We recommend to arrive at the bus stop 5-10 minutes before its departure, it might arrive earlier. 

Buying tickets

Remember to purchase an appropriate ticket before using the services and mark in inside the tram or (trolley)bus. You cannot buy the travel ticket from the bus driver; however it is possible to do so at the yellow coin-operated machines situated at most of the stops, newspaper stands, and tourist's information offices. Student and children tickets have 50% discount (you need a valid ISIC card). At some stops, these machines are missing so it might be a good idea to have some spare ticket in your purse. One ticket can be used for any kind of Bratislava public transport but there are tickets with a different validity:

  • 15 minutes (0.70€) - no transfers are allowed; once you get on one bus/tram/trolley you cannot change to another one with the same ticket.
  • 30 minutes (0.90€) - transfers are allowed, during weekends ticket is valid for 90 minutes.
  • 60 minutes (1.20€) - transfers are allowed, during weekends ticket is valid for 90 minutes.
  • 24-hours (3.50€), 72-hours ticket (8.00€), or 168-hours (11.40€) - transfers allowed; good choice for tourists expecting to use public transport more frequently. It allows you to travel as much as you need by all forms of transport.

It is also possible to buy an SMS ticket but it is working only for customers of Slovak mobile phone operators (T-Mobile, Orange, O2 Telefonica, Tesco Mobile, FunFon). These tickets are valid for 70 minutes (1€ cost of your prepaid credit) and are transferable among lines.

If you are visiting Bratislava for couple of days and you know you will need the public transport several times, we recommend you to buy a Multiday Tourist Ticket for unlimited numbers of routes including the night buses.

You can also buy "combined" tickets that might be used for travelling to small cities and villages close to Bratislava, you have to pay for every zone you cross (city center counts for two), please consult this map for further details.

Validating tickets

For getting on/off you can use every door opened along the whole vehicle. The ticket must be marked in the nearest ticket marker immediately after getting on. The marking devices are located by every door of the public transport and are working during the whole ride until the ticket inspector gets on the same bus as you, from that moment are the marking machines blocked. If your ticket is not marked or it is not valid anymore or you have transferred with 15 minutes ticket, you could get a fine. It is possible to pay on spot or in 5 days, the price is "only" 50€. If you pay between 5-30 days you have to pay 70€ in the office of Bratislava Public Transport (DPB). If you do not have cash, they will happily walk with you to the nearest ATM since they have bigger commission from your fine. Be careful, ticket inspectors are sometimes rude to tourists.

Finding timetables, stops & routes

If you are not sure about your destination or bus number, you may definitely ask someone waiting with you at the stop; they will be happy to help you out. The drivers usually do not speak foreign languages and are not that happy to assist you.  Vast majority of vehicles are equipped with displays showing the next stop, maps of public transport lines, and even announcing all stops out loud.

Popular routes for tourists

How to get from Central Railway station ("Hlavna stanica") to (or from):

  • Airport ("Letisko") - there is a direct bus from the central railway station, number 61 and the airport is the very last bus stop. Buy a 60-minute bus ticket for 1.20€. It takes approx. 20 minutes though. In a rush hour (5 - 6 pm) count with at least 30 minutes.
  • Bus station ("Autobusova stanica- Mlynske nivy") - there is a direct trolleybus number 210 get off at the last bus stop – "Autobusova stanica". 15-minute ticket is enough for this route, because it takes only 10 minutes.
  • City center (bus stop: "Namestie SNP") - First walk to SAV (2 min down from the station), then take bus number 83 or 93 to Zochova (2 stops)
     

How to get from central railway station (Hlavna stanica) to: City center: Important bus/tram and trolley points in the center of Bratislava are stops at: Racianske myto, Trnavske myto, Zochova.

Some of the bus stops you should know as a tourist:

  • "Suché mýto" - next to presidential palace
  • "Námestie SNP" - next to Main square
  • "Šafárikovo námestie" - next to the river Danube and National Museum
  • "Malá scéna" - next to the shopping centre Eurovea
  • "Zochova" - under Bratislava castle

Important bus/tram and trolley points (where you can change to many other links) are stops at:

  • "Račianské mýto"
  • "Trnavské mýto"
  • "Autobusova stanica Mlynské nivy" (central bus station)

 

SAD (busses outside Bratislava)

If you need to travel to a small city or a village close to Bratislava it is best to use SAD busses. You can find the nearest stop at this page, if you are not sure all busses start their route at AS Mlynské Nivy. This service is different from the public transport in Bratislava - the tickets are bought directly from the bus driver, so you have to enter via the front doors (tell the driver your destination. It is good to have coins and not bills, but you will get your change back anyways). 

Bicycles in public transport

Transporting bikes in public trams or buses is possible and for free, but is not allowed during the rush hours (you can transport bikes form 9:00 - 13:00, 18:00 - 6:00, during weekends and public holidays). You need to buy and mark a special ticket and ask the driver to give u permission in order to take the bike inside (it might happen, that the place selected for transporting bikes, strollers, wheelchairs is already occupied, so you have to wait for the next line). Board through the doors with a bicycle sign. It is possible to transport maximum 2 bikes in the first tram carriege or in the whole bus, so if you are in a bigger group you need to split. But the trams drive very often (every 10-12 minutes), so you can wait for each other at the final destination.