Trip Report, Day 1,833 (+/-) Szentendre Day Trip

Just to add, in case anyone is considering biking from Budapest to Szentendre. We pictured a scenic ride along the 'main' Danube river, with constant views of nature and river traffic. But much of the ride is actually thru Budapest streets on a hard to follow route; when you get to the river portion, it is not the main Danube, it is a smaller side channel with almost no river traffic, and thru some food stands with no view of river, then when getting close to Szentendre, away from the river again thru non-descript fields. Don't mean to be too negative, we really enjoyed our time in Budapest; just wanted to set expectations for anyone considering this bike outing. Happy travels!

Yup, not much. You get the traffic channel on Margrit Island but the narrow channel on the Obuda Island. Then the next one up as well. Not much from the land. But on the water its a good boat trip. Granted especially the last third past Margrit Island and then when you round the bend and the Parliament seems to appear out of nowhere. Its pretty stunning.

But if you are going to do a scenic trail do check it out with Google Street View in advance. That whole routes is on Google.

I once had a friend visiting from Tehran and her flight got in early enough where I could have her picked up at the airport and brought to Szentendre instead of Budapest (about 10 minutes further and I had the driver drop her bags in town). We did the tour then took the boat into the city. There is no better way to see Budapest for the first time.

Maybe next year in June for me. I always seem to end up in Budapest when the boat isn’t running.

That young lady may have seen a few pictures of Budapest, this was 10 years ago and it was still pretty much under the radar. But she had no idea, and when the boat rounded Margrit Island and the Parliament rose up in front of us .... her mouth fell open.

Thanks for the description of your travel day to Szentendre and back. That is one day trip I’d like to do when we are in Budapest next month. I have 2 questions for you. If we are over 65 are all the little legs of this land trip, transportation wise free of a ticket, just show our passports on board? Also if we are fortunate enough to be able to take a boat back I’m assuming we’d need to buy a ticket at the pier?

Mona, yes, if you are over 65 the Budapest public transportation (except the funicular), the HEV Commuter Trains (like the one to Szentendre) and the MAV city to city trains are all free. You can take an HEV train from Szentendre then 2 metro lines, and a tram to a train station, then the 2.5 hour train to the city of Eger and it will cost you nothing if your are over 65 (except if you want a seat assignment on the train ... if there are any on that route ... then I think its 600 ft, might be 800 ft). Odds are on all of the transportation the inspectors and conductors will simply say jó napot as they walk past you. Rarely do I ever get asked for an ID, and never have they looked at it once I pulled it out of my pocket.

Here is the boat company. You can buy tickets in advance. But I suggest that you arrive at the boat 30 minutes early as there isnt a lot of room on the outside decks and that’s where you want to be if the weather is good. https://mahartpassnave.hu/en/budapest-szentendre-budapest-1

And you know that the city runs a sightseeing boat and a transportation boat within Budapest. That might be my next Trip Report. I can do this as I am not a citizen and not a permanent resident. I am simply an extended tourist.

OHHH, why the train up and the boat back? The train up is about 40 minutes. The boat up is closer to an hour against the current. The boat back is 45 minutes or less depending on how the river is flowing. And you get that entry view which is priceless.

Thank you! Definitely adding this to our itinerary. And the boat back sounds wonderful.

Happy to help.

Thanks to James and his clear directions we took a trip to Szentendre yesterday. There were only 2 cautions that we became aware of on this outing. 1) There was a bus replacement running for about the first 2 stops after arriving at the Metro 2 to H5 train so we had to find the bus marked H5, to the left of the church on the square. 2) There must be 2 H5 trains that operate this route. One stops 1/2 way to Szentendre and you will have to wait another 10 minutes for the train that goes from this midpoint to the real end at Szentendre. Check the train when you transition from replacement bus to the H5 train to see if you are boarding the through train, marked Szentendre on the front. We really enjoyed this day spent in Szentendre. Oh yes, and because we saw conflicting information about the return Sunday boat schedule, 17:00 vs18:00, we just took the train to bus to metro route back.

Yes. In our past visit to Budapest we also went to Szentendre. Was a nice day.
The most remembered part of the day was having our first Zwac Unicum. Oh, yeah. Wowser!

Sorry about the bus. The BudapestGo App always provides updates for things like that, and tgey didn't have anything today about a substitute bus, so I am guessing it was a short-term isdue. Sorry, I forgot to mention that not all the trains go all the way. My bad.

The trip is free if you are over 65, no ticket required. Under 65 if you have a 48 hour or longer metro pass you just need an extension ticket for that portion that is outside the Budapest metro area, which I think is 400 or 450 ft.

Treemoss2, if you liked it, tgen next trip tour the old plant. Facinating history including WWII, and commie times and return and rebirth and an interesting family.

I'd like to do a day trip to Szentendre when I come to Budapest the first week of October, specifically to visit the skansen. Not too interested in the town itself. But I am a limited walker and I've read the skansen is quite large and spread out and takes a lot of walking. Is there any help getting around it, maybe a shuttle or a golf cart tour for the handicapped? Also, one poster said there was no bus back to town the day he went so he had to walk 3 kilometers. Would you be able to use Bolt or Uber or local taxi to and from the skansen and train station? These are factors I need to sort out to make sure it is viable daytrip for a limted walker like me.

I do not recall seeing any golf carts, but a good idea that they might want to consider. Here is info on the train in the park https://skanzen.hu/en/visit/transport-in-the-skanzen/skanzen%20train

For bus service, the BudapestGo App and Google Maps will have the schedule. Here is info and the bus schedule https://skanzen.hu/en/visit/good-to-know/how-to-get

For a taxi, I am certain that one will get you there, but you might want to write CityTaxi and confirm. I would be a bit nervous about getting one for the trip back. https://citytaxi.hu/

Private transfers are the sure bet, but a tad pricey. Maybe bus there and transfer back? Contact: http://silverwings.hu/

If you cant get comfortable with those options, let me know and I will see what else I can come up with.

Bolt and Uber in Budapest are little more than a dispatch service for private, licensed taxi drivers driving yellow taxis with meters. But your app will work to call them.

Thanks, Mr. E. I found the train on the skansen website.