Bratislava Castle + Cathedral Free Tour

This route climbs from Franciscan Square (Františkánske námestie) through the Old Town to Bratislava's two biggest landmarks. First stop is St Martin's Cathedral, the Gothic church where eleven Hungarian kings and queens — including Maria Theresa — were crowned between 1563 and 1830, a fact still marked by the gilded crown replica perched on its spire.

The walk finishes at Bratislava Castle itself, the whitewashed, four-towered fortress that has watched over the Danube since the ninth century and been burned down, rebuilt and restored more than once. From its courtyard and gardens you get the best panorama in the city: the Old Town rooftops, the river, the modernist UFO Bridge and, on a clear day, the hills of neighboring Austria.