What to expect
Swap the city for a slow afternoon in the vineyards. Winemaker Zuzana Barnáková walks you through the Vajnory vineyards on the edge of Bratislava or the historic vineyard landscape of Svätý Jur and talks about the land, life in the vineyards and her low-intervention wines – or leaves you to the view and the quiet.
It is made for small groups of two to six: couples, friends, or a gift for a bride-to-be.
Experience highlights
- a vineyard walk with the winemaker in Vajnory or Svätý Jur
- a picnic on blankets among the vines, with two bottles of her wines of your choice and water
- local food: sourdough bread, seasonal vegetables, local cheese, homemade spreads and olive oil
- views over the vineyards and the countryside
Before you go
Picnics are booked by e-mail: give your preferred place, the number of people, any dietary needs, the date and the wines you would like. Both meeting points can be reached by car, taxi or public transport (Vajnorský potok stop).
If you want more wine, choose it from the winery’s e-shop and it arrives chilled. The picnic season runs from spring.
What to expect
Go Bratislava Food Tours combine the city’s landmarks with stops at local restaurants, cafés and markets. A licensed local guide leads each walk, and every tour is a full meal rather than a few bites.
Groups are kept to eight people. Couples, families with children and solo travellers join the public tours, and private tours and company team-building are available too.
Experience highlights
- Traditional Food & City Tour: an Old Town walk with traditional Slovak dishes and local specialities
- Communist Era Food Tour: from the New Market Hall to the inverted pyramid of the Slovak Radio building, with socialist-era snacks and drinks
- Brunch and Cakes & Pastries: five stops each, including walnut and poppy seed pastries
- Vegan Food Tour: plant-based versions of Slovak dishes with non-alcoholic wine
- Christmas Markets Food Tour: Christmas soup, market specialities and mulled wine, from late November to early January
Before you go
Come hungry and skip a big meal beforehand. Brunch and pastry tours start at 10:00, the communist-era and vegan tours at 12:00, the traditional tour at 13:00 or 17:00, and the Christmas tour at 17:00.
The Vegan Food Tour is the one designed for plant-based diets.
What to expect
Tastings in the Dark (Tmavá degustácia) pours Slovak wines in complete darkness, in a historic cellar in the Old Town. With sight switched off, you notice aromas and flavours you would easily miss at a regular tasting.
Each evening has its own theme. An unusual night out for couples and friends, and groups of ten or more can book a private tasting.
Experience highlights
- a tasting of Slovak wines in total darkness
- a historic cellar in the courtyard of the Palace Apartments hotel on Michalská Street
- changing themes, such as a Pinot showdown or new Slovak grape varieties
- guessing aromas and flavours by smell and taste alone
Before you go
Tastings take place at Michalská 3, in the cellar in the courtyard of the Palace Apartments hotel, on set dates, usually starting at 18:30. Tickets are sold online.
Most public tastings are in Slovak and English only on selected dates, so check the calendar early if you need English.
What to expect
ZaVínom.sk (GoGo.wine) is an online portal where you book wine tastings directly with Slovak winemakers. Some wineries are on the edge of Bratislava, others in wine regions further away, such as Strekov, Tekov or Tokaj.
Tastings near the city, in Svätý Jur or Limbach, fit into an afternoon. The portal suits couples and groups of friends, as well as company events and private celebrations.
Experience highlights
- tastings in wine cellars with the winemakers themselves
- blind tastings, tastings in the dark and wine dinners with food pairing
- vineyard picnics, wine route tours and stays with a tasting
- themes such as natural wines, small producers or historic venues
- wine festivals and gala events
Before you go
You choose a tasting, a date and a time slot online, and filter by place, group size or distance. You meet at the selected winery or event venue.
Some tastings are offered in English, so check the listing. Groups of more than ten send a group request instead of booking online, and gift vouchers are available.
What to expect
See how beer is made before you drink it. On this private tour with Taste Bratislava, a local beer guide takes you to a traditional microbrewery in the historic cellar of a former 17th-century Baroque monastery.
You talk to the brewer, taste beer straight from production and then compare it with other Slovak craft styles. It also works for company groups and team events.
Experience highlights
- a behind-the-scenes production tour of the microbrewery in its monastery cellar
- a chat with the brewer about how local beer is made
- freshly brewed pale and dark lager
- a guided tasting of four more Slovak craft beers, six in total, with a small beer snack
- local tips on what to see and do in Bratislava
Before you go
The tour runs every day at 14:00 or 15:00 and is on foot, with pick-up or a meeting point at the Radisson Blu Carlton Hotel. Groups of more than ten get a tailored proposal.
Bring a few questions for the brewer. Afterwards you can walk back to your hotel or carry on in one of the city’s brew pubs.
What to expect
Slovak drinking culture goes beyond beer and wine. In this private tasting with Taste Bratislava, a local guide pours six traditional spirits and explains how each is made, how it tastes and the customs that go with it.
A good start to an evening out for groups of friends who want to know what locals raise a glass with.
Experience highlights
- six Slovak distilled spirits, from fruit brandies to juniper
- pálenka (slivovica), the plum brandy, and its fruit versions such as pear, apple, cherry, peach and apricot
- borovička, a juniper spirit often compared to gin
- a small pub snack with the tasting
- local tips on what to see and do in Bratislava afterwards
Before you go
The tasting runs every day at 16:00, with pick-up or a meeting point at the Radisson Blu Carlton Hotel. Groups of more than ten get a tailored proposal.
Some of the spirits are around 52 %, so eat beforehand and sip slowly. Afterwards you can walk back to your hotel or carry on in one of the city’s pubs.
What to expect
A private day trip with Taste Bratislava into the wine country that starts at the edge of the city. A local guide drives you through the vineyards of the Little Carpathians to two wineries and brings you back, so nobody has to rent a car or stay sober for the road.
A good fit for couples and small groups who want to taste Slovak wine where it is made.
Route & highlights
- pick-up at your hotel and a drive through the Little Carpathian vineyards
- Šenkvice: a behind-the-scenes tour of a family winery, its cellar with old oak barrels and a tasting of white, rosé and red wines introduced by a sommelier, with a cheese platter
- Pezinok: a historic underground wine cellar at the château, with old winemaking equipment on display and more local wines
- a short vineyard viewpoint stop near Svätý Jur on the way back
Before you go
The tour runs Tuesday to Friday, starting at 10:00, with pick-up at your hotel or the Radisson Blu Carlton Hotel. Six wines are tasted in total.
Expect some walking, including into underground cellars. Groups of more than six get a tailored proposal. Bring a bag if you plan to buy bottles at the winery.
What to expect
An evening pub crawl with a Tripito guide that skips the tourist bars of the Old Town. You go to old-school local pubs where the décor and the drinks still feel like socialist Czechoslovakia.
Along the way you taste what people here used to drink, from beer soup to local oddities with names like magic eye and fruit heaven. A good night out for groups of friends who would rather drink with locals.
Experience highlights
- local pubs off the usual tourist routes, with a retro, communist-era feel
- tastings of unusual local drinks, including beer soup
- stories about everyday life in socialist Czechoslovakia
- Bratislava after dark, the way locals know it
Before you go
The crawl starts at 19:00 on any day of the week, for small groups of up to 15 people, on request. The meeting point is arranged when you book.
Have a proper dinner first – there are several tastings along the way. The organiser lists a guide in Slovak and Czech, so ask about English when booking.
What to expect
Slovak wine is not only made from grapes. This day trip with Tripito takes groups to a family winery in the Skalica region, where the winemaker welcomes you in traditional costume and pours wines made from apricots, pears, plums, rose hips, elderberries and herbs.
Each fruit wine keeps the smell and taste of the fruit, with the structure of a wine. A good pick for groups of friends and team days, and for anyone who thinks they have tasted every kind of wine.
Experience highlights
- a welcome from the winemaker in folk costume
- the story of the family winery and how fruit wine is made
- a tasting from more than 20 wines, from dry and dessert styles to barrique and ice wine
- limited editions that are hard to find anywhere else
Before you go
The trip runs on request for groups of at least 10 people, with departure from Bratislava or Vienna. The organiser lists a guide in Slovak and Czech, so ask about English when booking. With this many wines to taste, plan the transport so that nobody in the group has to drive.
What to expect
A walking food tour with Taste Bratislava. A local foodie guide leads you to selected spots for traditional Slovak dishes, then on to a wine bar where a sommelier presents wines from local producers.
A good choice for food lovers who prefer a glass of wine to a pint, and for couples or small groups.
Experience highlights
- traditional dishes based on meat, potatoes, dumplings and sauces, enough for a full lunch or dinner
- three Slovak wines – white, rosé and red – with a cheese platter, introduced by a sommelier in a wine bar
- Bratislavské rožky, the traditional pastry with poppy seed and walnut fillings, and handmade chocolate pralines
- blackcurrant wine, honey wine and Kofola, the herbal cola created in Czechoslovakia
Before you go
The tour starts with a pick-up from your hotel or at the Radisson Blu Carlton Hotel, with an early and a later afternoon start every day.
Plan the tour instead of lunch or dinner rather than on top of it, and save room for the sweet finish.
