Bus Slovakia

Travelling by bus in Slovakia is still the most popular way of getting around the country. Despite the well developed train network, reaching some of the smaller towns is possible only by bus. Of course, buses also connect larger Slovak cities. Moreover, in comparison to trains, for most routes, taking a bus is a cheaper and faster way of getting from one city to another. Slovak highways, although not in a perfect condition, keep getting better, meaning that you can get fairly quickly from one part of the country to another, e.g. from Bratislava to Kosice. 

Intercity buses in Slovakia

Taking an intercity bus is the most common way of travelling between Slovak cities. Currently there are several bus companies offering daily departures from the most important cities. Bus travel is becoming more and more popular, due to the affordable bus tickets. Moreover, Slovakia is a fairly large country, however getting from one part of the country to another via bus can be done pretty quickly. The latest study from 2013 says there were 270.000 people travelling on non-urban buses, but that number is definitely much higher today, as seen by the number of new bus companies popping up each year. 

Timetables and tickets

Timetable for intercity, regional, suburban and local buses can all be found online. Alternatively, you could get the timetables from the main bus stations. You can also use the search form above to find the travel combination you need. Buying tickets online is de facto the standard today, especially since the Coronavirus pandemic restricted physical contact among people. Another advantage is that online tickets tend to be cheaper than the ones bought at bus stations. There are also various discounts for students or larger groups, so make sure to check that before traveling.

Below are some of the most common words you might encounter when traveling by bus in Slovakia:

• Bus – autobus
• Bus station – autobusová stanica
• Ticket – lístok
• Luggage – batožina, batožinový
• Airport – letisko
• Timetable – cestovný poriadok, časový harmonogram
• Public transport – verejná doprava

Domestic bus routes

Domestic Slovak bus routes connect large cities with even the smallest towns and villages. Since the bus network in Slovakia is widespread, it shouldn’t be a problem to find a bus going to even the smaller country settlements. There are multiple daily departures between large cities such as Zilina, Kosice, Trnava and Bratislava. Below we have listed the most popular domestic lines in Slovakia.

Bratislava to Banska Bystrica	Bratislava to Kosice	Bratislava to Zvolen
Kosice to Michalovce	Kosice to Presov	Kosice to Spisska Nova Ves
Zilina to Ruzomberok	Poprad to Strba	Ruzomberok to Poprad

International bus routes

Slovakia is positioned in central Europe, and surrounded by several other countries. The majority of international buses go to the neighboring countries of Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Austria. There are also routes to eastern countries such as Ukraine and Romania. Bratislava and Kosice are the most common departure cities from Slovakia, but there are also routes going from or through other Slovak cities. Licensing of the international routes is done by the Slovakian Ministry of Transport, and coach transport has been liberalized since 1996.  Below are listed the most popular international routes in Slovakia.

Bratislava to Vienna	Bratislava to Prague	Bratislava to Graz
Bratislava to Belgrade	Bratislava to Budapest	Bratislava to Zagreb
Kosice to Budapest	Kosice to Uzhhorod	Banska Bystrica to Prague

Bus from the airports

There are four Slovak airports offering scheduled commercial flights. Although most passengers fly into Bratislava airport, there are also flights to smaller airports located in the cities of Kosice, Poprad and Silac. All airports, except for Poprad airport, have scheduled buses going to their respective cities. Due to its proximity to Vienna, there are also departures from the Bratislava airport to Austrian capital. Anyone looking for a door-to-door transfer, there are taxi services operating at each airport. Slovak word for the airport is letisko, and you will see that on some buses going from and to Slovak airports.

Bus companies in Slovakia

There are dozens of bus companies operating in Slovakia. That includes companies offering intercity, suburban and local lines, as well as companies handling bus rentals and bus tours. Public transport companies usually offer intercity routes too, so don’t be surprised if you encounter one company multiple times when traveling through Slovakia. Below we have listed some of the most popular bus companies in Slovakia.

Adiš	Akara	Arriva Michalovce
ARRIVA Nové Zámky, a.s.	Arriva Trnava	Auto Petrović
Autodoprava Chorvat	Autodoprava Kečkéš	Autodoprava Poprad
Autodoprava-CK	Bisbus	Blaguss Slovakia
Bus Karpaty	Bus Trans	CK Eurotour
Daf Tour	Danza Trans	Domatos
Dopa autodoprava	Doprava Mrazek	Dopravné Automobilové Služby
EL-DE Trans	Eurobus Slovakia	Europe Frey Team
Fevel s.r.o	Gabriel Czinege G Travel	Gamabus
Gapal Tour	Incar	Jacko Bus
Janter	JOJO Bus	JRH Bus
Kastrans	K-Bus	Kontakt Liptov
Krištof Tour	Krusa Trading	L+L
Lekomas	Limousine Services	Marcel Bus
Marijo	MK-Bus	Molnar Doprava
Monet Prievidza	Motocentrum	MT Lines
M-Travel	MT-Tour	Mučina
Nitrans	Olijanbus	Osobna doprava
Paulus Bus	Pavol Kohut	Promet Trans
Regio Group	SAD Dunajska Streda	SAD Humenne
SAD Poprad	SAD Prešov	SAD Prievidza
SAD Trenčin	SAD Zvolen	SAD Žilina
Sanytour	Satur Transport	Selicky Autodoprava
Slivtour	Slovak Lines	Staňor
Student Agency	Tac-Bus	Tomecar
Tomy Ružomberok	Trgoturs	Turancar
VS Trans	Zanado	Zeus Travel

Bus stations in Slovakia

As in other European countries, Slovak bus stations are usually located in or near the city center. You can recognize the stations by the autobusová stanica sign written on the front entrance. Bus stations in Bratislava, Zilina and Kosice are equipped with usual amenities like toilets, kiosks and waiting areas. However, bus stations in smaller cities might not have the same facilities, but only an outside waiting area situated right next to the bus arrivals. To see which bus stations are exactly located and which amenities are available, click on the city name below. 

Bratislava	Kosice	Poprad
Nitra	Zilina	Trnava
Banska Bystrica	Presov	Liptovsky Mikulas

Renting a bus in Slovakia

Hiring a coach in Slovakia is pretty straightforward. Basically the only thing you have to do is find a company which offers rental services. Alternatively you could use a platform for renting a bus in Slovakia. Bus rental is centered around larger cities like Kosice and Bratislava. Depending on a company, buses should be in decent condition, equipped with all the necessary amenities for longer trips. Also, larger companies have English-speaking drivers, but sometimes it’s easier to let a travel agent handle the contact with the bus company.

City buses in Slovakia

Public transportation in Slovakia consists of city buses, trolleys, trams and metros. It is commonly known as Mestská hromadná doprava (MHD). Public buses are the most common and widespread way of transportation in the cities. All larger Slovak cities have an active urban public transport. Bus companies which drive these city routes are, in some cases, the same ones which handle suburban and long distance routes. Bus tickets can be bought at designated bus stations, from the fare machines, and of course online. In some cities you can purchase a city bus card (pass), which can save you some money, especially if you plan on staying multiple days in the city. In general, bus tickets to get around Slovak cities are not expensive, and usually cost up to a few euros.

Below is the list of companies handling public transportation in larger Slovak cities:

• Bratislava – Dopravný podnik Bratislava
• Banska Bystrica – Dopravný podnik mesta Banská Bystrica
• Košice – DPMK
• Nitra – Mestská hromadná doprava v Nitre
• Prešov – DPMP
• Žilina – Dopravný podnik mesta Žiliny

NOTE:

• When purchasing tickets on board with the driver, make sure to have the exact amount of money with you
• In some cities like Bratislava and Kosice, bus tickets can be purchased using an app or SMS service

FAQ – Bus Slovakia

For bus companies

If you operate a Slovak bus company and would like to be included in this list, you are more than welcome to contact us, we also can offer you the access to an easy platform for managing bus rentals in Slovakia.