Weather, phones and money

Weather- Bratislava gets fairly warm in the summer time. The average high temperature in July is 78° F (26°C) and the low is 58° F (15°C). Most hotels in Bratislava have air conditioning but be sure to check before you reserve.

Phones- Irish mobile phones should work in Bratislava. Coverage is good but since you will be roaming calls and text messages will cost quite a bit. Unfortunately American cell phones will not work as they use a different frequency and standard.

Money- After the split of Czechoslovakia in 1993, the National Bank of Slovakia introduced new banknotes and coins. These are called Slovak Koruna or Slovak crowns.

The Euro becomes the unit of currency in 2009 but for the mean time you will have to get used to the crowns.


One euro is approximately 34 crowns (check the exact rate here) and one dollar is about 26.2 crowns(check the exact rate here). It may be difficult to get crowns before arriving in Slovakia however most restaurants and supermarkets take credit cards and ATMs are plentiful. You may have to pay a surcharge to your bank for using your card in foreign ATMs. Smaller shops and stores are reluctant to break big notes.