Riverboat travel has always been an integral part of Budapest’s history – not long ago, the Danube was the primary form of transportation between the Hungarian capital and the nearby riverside towns. Traveling by ferry to neighboring cities along the Danube is still an appealing option today, especially with the fresh expansion of Budapest’s Mahart riverboat services for the spring and summer seasons: several day trips are now offered daily to visit beautiful riverfront towns like Szentendre, Visegrád, and Esztergom, while their Budapest-sightseeing vessels raise anchor much more frequently.
After limited operations during the winter season, now several ferryboat lines of Mahart Passnave are expanding service from only operating on Saturdays to instead offer almost-daily round-trip voyages to nearby communities upriver from Budapest, making it easy to take day trips to several historically significant Hungarian towns. Since April 26th, the popular Budapest-Szentendre line is running daily except on Mondays, departing from downtown Vigadó Square at 10am and arriving at the Szentendre dock at 11:30am, before the return trip departs Szentendre for Budapest at 5pm, providing passengers with an entire afternoon to explore the town’s charming cobblestone streets; this easy excursion costs 3,000 forints for a return ticket.
Beginning on April 30th, the Budapest-Esztergom line also starts daily operation, departing from Vigadó Square at 9am between Tuesday and Sunday, before passing Szentendre and stopping in Vác, and then progressing north along the pristine Danube Bend, sailing amid lush vegetation and sylvan heights before stopping in the castle-topped town of Visegrád and finally reaching Esztergom (Hungary’s capital during medieval times) at 2pm; the return voyage leaves at 4:30pm, and round-trip tickets for the full excursion cost 4,500 forints.
Travelers who embark on either of these daylong cruises enjoy panoramic rides from beginning to end, as the boats pass by famous Budapest landmarks like the Chain Bridge, the Buda Castle, and the Parliament, before progressing north. As a nice alternative to taking a day trip, Mahart offers one-hour leisurely cruises that take passengers between the Margaret Bridge and Rákóczi Bridge, drifting by many of Budapest’s famous landmarks, including the Parliament, Gellért Hill, and the Chain Bridge. During the trip, visitors can learn about the history of the Hungarian capital and several important details of key landmarks, provided by audio guides in 11 different languages. The boat departs hourly from 11am every day from dock 5/A of Vigadó Square, with the last excursion leaving the port at 8pm (from May 1st through October 23rd, the first service departs at 10am, while the last boat service kicks off at 9pm). The trip costs 2,990 forints per person, and it includes a welcome drink on board.
Also, every Sunday from April 25th through September 25th, tunes from the ’60s and ’70s drift from the Danube as evening nostalgia cruises kick off at 7:30pm from dock 6 at Vigadó Square. The two-hour trip is complete with food, drinks, and dancing, making it an ideal occasion for mature passengers. The excursion costs 4,590 forints per person, and it includes two welcome drinks. And those who step aboard Mahart’s dinner cruises will enjoy a smorgasbord featuring a variety of Hungarian specialties, like goulash soup, beef stew, or stuffed cabbage.
During these tasteful trips, live music entertains guests as the boat sails around Margaret Island, before returning southward to Rákóczi Bridge, allowing passengers plenty of time to delight in Budapest’s evening scenery. During the peak season from April 25th through September 25th, the three-hour journey departs from dock 6 of Vigadó Square every day from Tuesday to Saturday at 7:30pm, and a ticket costs 8,990 forints per person, includes a welcome drink and the unlimited buffet dinner on board.To get to the Mahart ticket office and the departure point for all of these voyages, take tram line 2 to Vigadó Square, where a staircase leads down to an underpass leading toward the riverfront. After progressing through this tunnel, you will see a long oval-shaped building, which is the Mahart ticket office on Jane Haining rakpart, a busy thoroughfare that runs along Pest’s Danube waterfront. After crossing the road and purchasing your tickets, while waiting for the next service to depart, take a look at the plaque mounted on the side of the information center – this memorial highlights the level of the Danube during floods dating back decades, including the highest inundation just in 2013.For complete English-language details about these cruises and more, check out the official Mahart website.
