Devín Castle is located in Devín, a borough of Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia. It towers over the confluence of the Danube and the Morava rivers which form the border with Austria.
This site at the confluence of the Danube and Moravia has been settled since prehistoric times. Devín was part of Limes Romanus after the Celtic period from 1st to 4th centuries. In the 9th century it was connected with the name of Prince Rastislav. A royal border fort as gradually built in the upper castle. The cliff (elevation 212 meters) is an ideal place for a fort due to its position at the confluence of the aforementioned rivers. The fort watches over an important trade route along the Danube as well as one branch of the Amber Road. In 1809, the castle was destroyed by Napoleon’s troops. It was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1961. Some parts of the castle have been reconstructed in the 20th century (A restoration project is ongoing since the end of World War II.) and the castle hosts an interesting museum. Inside the castle is also a sprawling landscape of walls, staircases, open courtyards, and gardens in various states of disrepair.
The castle is easily accessible from the centre of Bratislava by car, bus, boat or bike. Information about the opening hours is available here.
Not so far from the castle you can find Sandberg, an abandoned sandpit that is extremely rich in fossil remains of marine coastal and terrestrial fauna and flora. From Sandberg you can walk a nice path leading to the Devínska Kobyla hill and lookout tower. We wrote about the hike in an article available here.
Nomad Society 