When I travel abroad, I like to visit big cities. I like to observe their culture, technology, and modern and/or historical places, taste local cuisine, and enjoy the noisy nightlife. Therefore, whenever I can, I am always looking for a one-day trip outside of the big city.
This usually gives a completely different perspective on the country, for instance, on its inhabitants and their lifestyle, on culture, architecture, and nature. Everything that usually delights in a big city—splendour, momentum, bustling streets, loud clubs, and sumptuous restaurants—disappears as soon as you leave it. Only then can you see the full picture.
I love such trips. I’m always excited about them because I never know what to expect or what will happen. Such places are rarely described in popular guidebooks, and there are no tourist crowds. In conclusion, I love them and recommend them to anyone who wants to see something more than the usual paths trodden by tourists. The trip “Budapest one-day outside city” is a perfect occasion for me to see Hungary from a different perspective.
Budapest one-day outside the city. What to choose, where to go?
There are several offers on the market, and it is not easy to choose. You can decide, among others, for:
- Royal Tour (Sissi) Gödöllő – visit the former summer residence of Queen Elisabeth (Sisi) & Emperor Francis Joseph. Guided tour through Godollo’s former Royal Palace (4 h). Price 17.000* HUF (49 $)
- Puszta Full-Day Tour from Budapest with Lunch – Puszta on the Hungarian Plain is one of Europe’s largest expanses of protected prairie. The tour guarantees a visit to an authentic Hungarian horse ranch, a horse carriage ride and a horse show (8h). Price 19.000* HUF (98$)
- Danube Bend Tour – an excursion into Hungary’s history along the Blue Danube, with a visit to Esztergom (Centre of the Catholic Church) and Szentendre, called: Artist’s Village (10h). Price 32.000* HUF (98$).
*Prices valid in 2023
Danube Bend Tour
„Danube bend tour” is a Budapest one-day outside city trip around the Danube River. This tour was organised by the Eurama travel agency. I booked it several weeks in advance. I also received all confirmations and vouchers a few days after. The trip plan included a visit to three historical places:
- Esztergom, where the largest and most important Christian Church in Hungary is located
- Visegrad – ruins of the royal palace and citadel, and a panorama of the Danube valley from the nearby hills
- Szentendre (St. Andrews) – colloquially called “Artistic Mecca” – is considered the most beautiful small town in Hungary and one of the most beautiful in Central Europe.
The trip was about 9.5 hours long. We left Budapest on a tour bus and returned by a cruise ship. The trip’s price included lunch and entrance tickets to the Basilica in Szentendre.
Esztergom
It is one of the oldest cities in Hungary. The city was founded in the year 960 by Prince Gejza. In the place of the former Roman border watchtower, he established the first capital of Hungary. St Stephen was baptised and crowned in Esztergom (in 1000). In 1224, the daughter of King Bela IV, St Kinga, was born in this place. Esztergom is the primatial seat of the Roman Catholic Church in Hungary.
On the other side of the Danube, there is the Slovak city Štúrovo (Párkány). Our first stop was on the Slovak side because, from the other side of the Danube River bend, it is the best place to see the basilica towering above the city.
The Cathedral of Our Lady of the Assumption and Saint Adalbert in Esztergom was created between 1822 and 1869. Its total area is over 5600 m2. The basilica is 118 m long and 49 m wide. The central dome has a diameter of 33.5 m, and its height measured from the outside is 100 m.
You can visit the basilica daily, but during the year, the church, the underground crypt, the treasury, and the viewpoint on the dome’s roof open at different hours and on different days.
A detailed schedule can be found on the website of the Basilica, which is also available in several languages
Entrance tickets:
- Visiting the Church is free of charge for individual visitors
- Treasury – 900* HUF (3,1$)
- Dome Lookout – 700* HUF (2,5$)
- Panorama Hall—entrance is free of charge with a combination ticket to the Treasury and the Dome Lookout and a tourist guide ticket. For Individuals, the entrance fee is 300* HUF ($1$).
*Prices valid in 2019
Beware: the cathedral’s liturgical space will be closed to tourists 30 minutes before Mass. During services, the Church is open for worship only.
Visegrad
During the Roman Empire, on the rock towering over today’s Visegrad, the Romans built a border fortress. Later, a Slavic settlement was established here, and in the 9th century, the Hungarians took it over.
In the first half of the fourteenth century (1325), King Charles I erected a castle in Visegrad, which was the main residence of successive kings of Hungary. The Upper Castle also served to secure the Hungarian royal insignia.
Visegrad lost its importance after the Hungarians lost the battle with the Ottoman army in Mohács in 1526. In 1543, the Turks seriously damaged the castle, which was never used again. The city was reborn in the seventeenth century but regained its municipal rights in 2000.
When Visegrad was the capital of Hungary, it was the place of Visegrad congresses, that is, meetings of the kings of Hungary, the Czech Republic, and Poland (in 1335 and 1338). The tradition of cooperation in Central Europe is being continued by the so-called Visegrad Group, created by the presidents of Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Poland. Presidents of these countries meet in Visegrad every year, beginning in 1991. Since 2016, on February 15th, International Visegrad Day has been celebrated.
Currently, the town’s tourist attractions are a citadel and the ruins of the royal palace, which are rich archaeological sites. Above all, however, it is worth seeing the panorama of the Danube Valley from the nearby hills.
Visegrad Nagyvillam Restaurant
In Visegrad, we stopped at the Hungarian restaurant Nagyvillam, where we had dinner. It was included in the price of our trip. This place is worth my recommendation—both because of the tasty food and the beautiful views extending from its terraces.
More about Visegrad and its attractions you can read on visitvisegrad.hu
Szentendre (St. Andrews)
Szentendre is approximately 20 km from Budapest. You can easily get there from the city—directly by suburban train from Batthyany Ter station, or by a cruise passenger ship across the Danube.
Szentendre is a picturesque town of artists. It has an unforgettable atmosphere, numerous museums, art galleries, narrow streets, interesting architecture, and a picturesque view of the Danube Bend. During the summer months, the town is teeming with life. It is often visited not only by tourists but also by the inhabitants of Budapest.
Szentendre is the so-called “city of artists” or “city of painters” because of the many artists who came here at the beginning of the 20th century.
The town also has many fascinating museums, housing several sacred objects.
Ferenczy Museum Centre
The Ferenczy Museum was established as the town’s local history collection in 1951 and was named after artist Károly Ferenczy. Today the Ferenczy Museum Centre owns a uniquely rich collection of Szentendre’s paintings, graphic art, sculpture, and numismatic art. Open from Tuesday to Sunday, from 10.00 a.m. to 6.00 p.m. Entrance ticket 1400* HUF (4,9$).
Ceramics Museum
Kovács Margit Ceramics Museum, opened in 1973, is one of Szentendre’s most popular museums. The museum presents the lifework of Kossuth Prize-laureate ceramic artist Margit Kovács. During the summer months, it is open daily (closed on Mondays) from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Off-season, it closes at 4:00 p.m. Entrance ticket 1400* HUF (4,9$).
Open Air Museum
The Hungarian Open Air Museum presents Hungary’s folk architecture, culture and lifestyle in 8 regional units on 60 hectares. It is the biggest kind of museum in Hungary. It is located 3 km away from Szentendre. The Museum covers 312 different buildings arranged in 8 regional units. The Skanzen train goes from the Entrance Building to the Study Collection and back for comfortable transport. It runs every hour, on the 2,2 km long road and has five stops from which all the regional units can easily reach. You can buy online tickets and avoid the queue. The daily train ticket cost is 500* HUF (1,8$). More about the train you can find here: skanzen.hu_train.
- Between April and October, the museum is open Tuesday through Sunday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
- The museum entrance ticket is 2000* HUF (7$). The Skanzen website has more information about getting there from Budapest.
*Prices valid in 2019
During our trip to Szentendre, we walked with a guide who told us the history of this place and described its main attractions. Then, we had about 1.5 hours of free time for independent sightseeing and shopping.
We returned to Budapest on a river cruise which leaves Szentendre marina once a day at 5.00 p.m. The return journey was about 70 minutes long.
Budapest one day outside the city. Final summary
The tour was fully professionally prepared and carried out. During such trips, there is always a lack of enough free time for self-sightseeing. However, on this trip, I think that we had enough time.
Within a few hours, we had the chance to get to know Hungary from a different perspective. We saw small towns, green suburbs of Budapest, beautiful churches, and picturesque views. During the trip, we also met interesting people—other participants in our trip—and got to know their motivations for visiting this part of Hungary.
Yes, travel can educate us, show different perspectives, broaden our horizons, let us meet interesting people and better understand the reality around us. I am thrilled I found this trip and took advantage of it. Therefore, I recommend this form of sightseeing to anyone with similar needs as me: to expand endless horizons of knowledge and feed a constant hunger for visiting new places. In conclusion, one day outside the city, Budapest is an excellent opportunity to meet those expectations.
Budapest – my other posts
I also encourage you to read my other posts about Budapest: