Road Route, Stage 1: Travel Guide Bratislava - Moravský Svätý Ján

Your journey begins. The first stage of your road bike adventure starts in Bratislava and follows the Danube and Morava rivers.

Start your journey under the iconic SNP Bridge in Bratislava and follow the promenade along the Danube. At certain point, you will cycle on the road with traffic but with cycle lane to Devín, where the cycle path starts again.

Devín Castle is definitely worth to visit, or at least to stop by under its majestic rock at the confluence of the Danube and Morava rivers. There are several Iron Curtain memorials around as well, worth to remember the darker side of the 20th century history, Cold War. 

After 11 kilometres from the start, you turn north and follow the Danube river. Most of your cycling experience will follow the former border road built for the guards of communist totalitarian regime in Czechoslovakia (1948-1989).

Make a stop at 15 km in Devínska Nová Ves by the Cycling Bridge of Freedom (often called the Chuck Norris bridge by locals according to a social media poll 🙂 ), that crosses the Morava river to a elegant Scholsshof chateau in Austria. There are also interesting 20th history relics as Iron Curtain barbed wire or a 1930’s military bunker.

From here, say good bye to prefabs and civilization. Picturesque natural landcapes of the Morava river floodplains will accompany for the rest of your stage with only a few villages. At 19km you ride under the charming historic Marchegg viaduct, built as a part of the first train route between Vienna, Pressburg (Bratislava) and Budapest in the late 1840’s.

At 27 km you have a chance to cross the cycling bridge to Austrian village Marchegg. However, for cheaper beer or kofola continue other 6 km to Vysoká pri Morave, or to the westernmost village in Slovakia, Záhorská Ves (42 km). Local pub U Blažeja offers authentic fast food lunch as sausage or pickled cheese.

The next village Suchohrad (46 km) is your last option to refill water or buy snacks before the longest natural section (30 km) all the way to the goal of today, Moravský Svätý Ján. However, if you don’t mind riding on the road with traffic and feel like swimming in the lake surrounded by pine trees forests, make a small detour to Gajary, Rudava and Malé Leváre.