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HomeCouple TravelWhat’s a Budapest river cruise on the Danube actually like?Mr and Mrs...

What’s a Budapest river cruise on the Danube actually like?Mr and Mrs Romance


Slicing by way of town of Budapest, the Danube River has all the very best views of Hungary’s capital, and a river cruise exhibits you every little thing. However what’s it actually like on board? Right here’s what we discovered.

Budapest river cruise on the Danube - what's it really like on board

I’ve all the time needed to see the Danube. I’ve additionally all the time needed to go to Budapest.

Once we moved again to Sydney in our 20s, Christina and I used to go to a bit of cafe in Surry Hills that had an enormous photograph of Budapest on a wall.

The river sparkled behind the unimaginable Parliament Constructing with its Gothic Revival arches, domes and needle spires. And throughout the Danube, on the Buda facet, loomed the steep embankment and steepled church of Fisherman’s Bastion.

That picture has stayed with us and was a driving element in our go to to Budapest.

Humorous the place journey inspiration comes from, isn’t it?

Once we lastly made it to Budapest with the flowing waters of the Danube proper in entrance of us, we knew one of the best ways to see this fascinating metropolis of empires could be from the river.

Which Budapest river cruise is finest?

A fast search will present you there are dozens of Danube cruises in Budapest. And each firm has one million variations too.

Due to our resort concierge, we narrowed our choices down to 2 completely different cruise corporations:

A Dinner-and-Cruise firm and a Drink-and-Cruise agency, each of which run night cruises.

We went with the Drink-And-Cruise choice, however not for the explanations you may assume. Right here’s what we discovered:

Dinner and Cruise choice

– solely runs for 90 minutes
– is a seated dinner, which implies much less freedom to maneuver in regards to the ship and see the view
– takes away a possibility to discover a cool dinner spot someplace within the metropolis (of which there tens of millions) the place the meals might be higher
– prices HUF20,000 / €50 every, and that doesn’t embrace drinks

Drinks and Cruise choice

– runs for 2 hours
– has a dinner choice if you need it, however in any other case you possibly can select from 5 completely different drinks packages
– prices vary between HUF6,900 to HUF13,500 (€18-€35). The buffet dinner cruise is HUF19,500 and the Hungarian dinner choice is HUF15,900.
– the ship is an previous paddle steamer, which provides a little bit of environment to the night

Budapest river cruise on the Danube - Hungarian Parliament Building at night

As you possibly can see, on paper the Drinks and Cruise choice wins on most fronts, plus whenever you go for the Open Bar drinks choice, you’ve free run of the beverage scenario too.

Different drinks packages restrict you to a few cocktails, solely wine or solely beer. There’s additionally a Hungarian Tokaji Aszu (conventional dessert wine) bundle, the place you get one glass of Hungarian sweet-wine.

What was the Drinks And Cruise expertise like?

We joined the queue on the dock of the Danube and waited for our flip to board.

Behind us, a younger English couple from Liverpool stared moodily out over the Danube—Europe’s second largest river that passes by way of 10 international locations and travels from the Black Forest mountains in western Germany to its finish on the Black Sea the place it splits the borders of Romania and Ukraine.

“’s not as large because the Mersey,” the lad complained.

It was an indication of issues to come back.

Budapest river cruise on the Danube - lens flare over Hungary

Aboard our cruise

As we pressed ahead within the line and eventually crossed the gangplank to our ready paddle steamer, we got wrist bands, a glass of glowing wine and ushered into the bowels of the ship with the remainder of the drinks bundle plebs.

In a low-ceilinged room scattered with naked tables and arduous plastic chairs, we joined our fellow stow-aways and had been informed to not go away the room till the ship was underway.

Budapest river cruise on the Danube - inside the ship with dining on top and the holding pen below

In the meantime, company with eating tickets had been guided to their tables down wood-panelled corridors or up broad oaken staircases.

Above our heads, the sound of blissful folks music began and our already undrinkable glasses of glowing wine tasted simply that rather more bitter. Ideas of fleeing the ship and leaving our hundred or so cellmates to their destiny handed critically by way of our minds.

I’m glad we didn’t.

Earlier than lengthy, the ship’s engines had been paddling us down the Danube and the surroundings started transferring by.

Escaping the claustrophobic confines of our waterline enclosure, we made our method to the higher deck and its lengthy, deep balcony.

The night time views of town from the river will stick with us endlessly.

Budapest river cruise on the Danube - Hungarian Parliament Building at night

We settled in and put our gold Open Bar wristbands to good use. The faucet beer—Dreher I feel—was effective however the home wine was horrible.

Our seats, a bench dealing with the river, had been good. Even when hordes of individuals got here out to fill the balcony as we handed the beautiful Hungarian Parliament Constructing, it offered some wonderful people-watching alternatives.

We by no means went again downstairs.

Budapest river cruise on the Danube - Hungarian Parliament Building at night from behind the crowdsBudapest river cruise on the Danube - Fisherman's Bastion from behind the crowds

Would we e book the identical Danube River cruise in Budapest once more?

Despite the horrible welcome drink and the disagreeable situations earlier than we acquired underway, I’d nonetheless e book this cruise.

The ship is beautiful and provides a way of historical past and previous grandeur to the expertise, and the route it follows exhibits you a variety of the highlights of riparian Budapest.

You cross underneath six of town’s main bridges together with the Chain Bridge. Parliament from the water at night time is scintillating. It actually glows gold with its lights on its structure.

Buda Fort and Fisherman’s Bastion up on the Hill of Buda, and the Citadella on the Gellért mountain, the Liberty Statue, the Hungarian Nationwide Gallery—Budapest is such a good looking metropolis.

The one factor I’d change is the ticket sort.

Budapest river cruise on the Danube - evening falls in Hungary

The Open Bar cruise is pointless and possibly over-priced. However I nonetheless wouldn’t select the dinner choice for the explanations I’ve already talked about—not one of the individuals sitting at their tables inside appeared to be having a good time.

As an alternative, I’d both select the Wine Cruise, which provides you a selection of seven completely different wines, or the Craft Beer Cruise, which affords seven completely different Hungarian brews to strive. Each of those choices are cheaper than the Open Bar ticket too.

I’d then get to the upstairs balcony as shortly as potential and keep there.

River cruises in Budapest are common for good motive: you get to decelerate for some time and let the river take you on a journey.

It’s an exquisite method to see a spot that was as soon as divided by the mighty Danube, however that now makes the nice river its centrepiece.



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