6 best day trips from Budapest

Day trips compared

The day trips

20 km · About 40 minutes by suburban train

1.Szentendre

A riverside artists' town of baroque churches built by Serbian settlers, cobbled lanes and galleries, including the Margit Kovács ceramics collection. The Hungarian Open Air Museum (Skanzen) on the edge of town brings together village houses from every region of the country.

Getting there

HÉV H5 from Batthyány tér

Best for

Couples, Families, Culture

40 km · About 1 hour 15 minutes by bus

2.Visegrád and the Danube Bend

At the Danube Bend the river turns sharply south between wooded hills. Visegrád's hilltop citadel looks down on the bend, and the remains of King Matthias's Renaissance palace lie by the river below. Summer boats from Budapest make the journey itself an outing.

Getting there

Bus from Újpest-Városkapu, or a summer boat from Vigadó tér

Best for

Couples, Families, Quiet stays

50 km · About 1–1.5 hours by train

3.Esztergom

Hungary's largest church, the domed Esztergom Basilica, stands on a hill above the Danube looking across to Slovakia. The town was the seat of Hungary's first kings, and the cathedral treasury and the climb to the dome are the highlights.

Getting there

Train from Nyugati station

Best for

Culture, Quiet stays

30 km · About 50 minutes by suburban train

4.Gödöllő Royal Palace

One of the largest baroque palaces in Hungary, the summer residence of Emperor Franz Joseph and Empress Elisabeth (Sisi), with restored royal apartments, exhibitions about Sisi and a large landscaped park.

Getting there

HÉV H8 from Örs vezér tere

Best for

Families, Culture, Couples

140 km · About 2 hours by train

5.Eger

A baroque town known for the castle whose defenders held off an Ottoman siege in 1552, a 40-metre Ottoman minaret you can climb, thermal baths and the Valley of the Beautiful Women, a horseshoe of wine cellars pouring Egri Bikavér.

Getting there

Direct train from Keleti station

Best for

Food lovers, Culture, Couples

130 km · About 2 hours by train

6.Lake Balaton

Central Europe's largest lake has shallow, warm water on its southern shore and a northern shore of vineyards, spa towns and the Tihany peninsula with its hilltop abbey. Balatonfüred, with its lakeside promenade, is the easiest day trip; summer weekends are crowded.

Getting there

Train from Déli or Kelenföld to Balatonfüred

Best for

Beach, Families, Couples

Day-trip tips

• Leave early: most trips are more relaxed with a morning departure and a return before dinner.
• Bus 16 links Deák Ferenc tér with the Castle District across the Chain Bridge, buses and trolleybuses fill the gaps elsewhere, and night buses cover the main routes.
• For trips over about 150 km, an overnight stay or an organised tour saves a lot of travelling.

Questions travellers ask