St Martin’s Cathedral, Bratislava

St Martin's Cathedral, Bratislava tickets: which one to buy

Saint Martin's Cathedral stands at the western edge of Bratislava's Old Town, below the castle and beside the busy motorway bridge, and entry to the cathedral is by a small admission for tourists outside service times, which covers the nave, the crypts and the treasury. It is the most important church in Slovakia, where the kings and queens of Hungary were crowned for almost three centuries.

Walking tours of Bratislava include the cathedral along with the castle, the Old Town Hall, Michael's Gate, the Blue Church and the bronze statues in the streets. Bratislava is about an hour from Vienna by train, bus or boat, and many visitors come on a day trip. The cathedral is an active church, and visits pause during masses. The castle is reached by a steep walk from the cathedral. Tickets for tourists are sold at the entrance, and audio guides are available in several languages.

Visiting St Martin's Cathedral, Bratislava: what to see

The cathedral was built in the Gothic style between the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, on the site of an earlier Romanesque church, and it was part of the city's fortifications. From 1563 to 1830, when Bratislava, then called Pressburg or Pozsony, was the capital of the Kingdom of Hungary while Buda was under Ottoman rule, eleven kings and eight queens were crowned here, including Maria Theresa in 1741. The tower, eighty-five metres high, is topped with a gilded replica of the Hungarian royal crown, weighing about three hundred kilograms, on a cushion. Inside, the cathedral is a Gothic hall with three naves and a long choir.

The Chapel of Saint John the Almsgiver, designed by the baroque sculptor Balthasar Permoser, and a lead statue of Saint Martin cutting his cloak for a beggar, by Anton Raphael Donner, are highlights. Brass crowns set in the pavement outside mark the coronation route. The crypts below the church hold the tombs of archbishops of Esztergom and noble families. The treasury displays liturgical objects, including chalices and reliquaries. The organ in the west gallery is used for concerts. The church's stained glass windows were added in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The cathedral's tower was once part of the city walls, with defensive features still visible. Relics of Saint John the Almsgiver are kept in the chapel designed by Permoser. The cathedral was restored in the nineteenth century in neo-Gothic style.

St Martin's Cathedral, Bratislava opening hours and the best time to go

The cathedral is open daily with restricted visiting during masses, especially on Sundays. Bratislava is busiest in summer and during the Christmas markets in December. The Coronation Festival in late June recreates the crowning of Hungarian kings with a procession through the Old Town. Winter is cold, but the Old Town is charming at Christmas. Mornings are quiet. Boats from Vienna arrive at the Danube quay nearby. Allow about half an hour for the cathedral and crypts, and follow the brass crowns in the pavement through the Old Town. The Blue Church, an Art Nouveau church painted entirely in pale blue, is about fifteen minutes' walk east of the Old Town.