Best Daytime River Cruises
Most boat touring companies in Budapest focus on sunset and evening cruises. These are the cruises that can sell out online, and even when they don’t, they attract scores of tourists and potentially locals too who queue up to buy last-minute tickets. Memorable as they may be, the daytime cruises are also a great way to soak up the riverbank sights along the Danube River.
These don’t tend to get as crowded, often cost less, and weather-permitting, you may get a brilliant blue sky to catch those epic photo shots. There may be fewer cruises running during the daytime, and even fewer that start in the morning, but on this page you can explore all your options.
Comparing Daytime Cruises
| Cruises | Provider | Price | Schedule | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daytime Sightseeing Boat Cruise | Legenda | €20 | Every 45 minutes from 10:15 to 16:15 | 75 minutes |
| Historical Cruise with Hableány Paddle Steamer | Duna Cruises | From €10 | Every 90 minutes from 11:00 to 21:30 | 60 minutes |
| Daytime Hop-on/Hop-off Cruise | Mahart Cruises | From €14 | 13:15, 14:30, 15:45 | 60 minutes (full day ticket) |
| Danube Sightseeing Cruise with Welcome Prosecco | Budapest Sightseeing | From €20 | Every hour from 12:00 to 18:00 | 60 minutes |
| Budapest City Sightseeing Cruise | Purpleliner | From €12 | 12 starts between 15:30 and 21:15 (also at 11:00, 12:30 and 14:00 during weekends) | 60 minutes |
Best Budapest Daytime Cruises
When deciding which daytime cruise to pick, you should check the starting dock, schedules, and optional extras that come with the cruises.
#1. Daytime Sightseeing Boat Cruise (Legenda)
You can take this boat cruise in the morning or the afternoon, it runs every 75 minutes and it is the only one that does a loop around Margaret Island.
- Schedule: Every 45 minutes from 10:15 to 16:15
- Duration: 75 minutes
- Price: €20
- Extras: Welcome drink and live guided walk at Margaret Island
- Starting point: 1052, Budapest, Jane Haining rkp. 7
- Provider: Legenda Kft
Legenda’s daytime cruise on the Gondola boat is a smart, flexible activity for anyone who wants an early cruise. It starts from the Legenda City Cruises dock between the Chain and Elisabeth bridges, along the Jane Haining Rakpart, and it goes every 45 minutes. The boat cruise does an extended route, making a single stop at Margaret Island and travelling around the island before heading back.
You can jump off at this stop and take the next Legenda daytime cruise back, unless you take the last scheduled cruise. On Margaret Island, there is a short live guided walk, which is a neat extra, as is the welcome drink you get when you board this cruise. This is a medium sized boat that has a rooftop deck.
#2. Historical Cruise with Hableány Paddle Steamer (Duna Cruises)
One of Duna Cruises’ famous historical boats (alongside the Kisfaludy), the Hableány has day and night cruises, and the day cruises are very good value for money.
- Schedule: Every 90 minutes from 11:00 to 21:30
- Duration: 60 minutes
- Price: Starts from €10
- Extras: N/A
- Starting point: 1052, Budapest Jane Haining rakpart 10
- Provider: Duna Cruises
You board a small replica of a paddle steamer boat, which has an upper and lower deck. It is small, but this is good because your view doesn’t get obstructed, and while it may be fashioned like a paddle steamer, this boat can move pretty fast and smoothly across the water. It has the charm, the comfort, and the epic views of Budapest from the Danube River that you are after.
Though you don’t really get extras on this cruise, at least they are not included in the ticket price. You do the standard 1-hour loop, and while there is a guide, this is an audio one that you can download on your phone and listen to with your own earphones. Not many cruises can beat this one for prices during the day, but it does tend to sell out quickly during high season, especially given the smaller seating capacity.
#3. Daytime Hop-on/Hop-off Cruise (Mahart)
This daytime cruise is run by Mahart and is the only Danube Cruise to have hop-on hop-off tickets. The service doesn’t run continuously throughout the day, and in total you can get 3 full loops, but for the price of 1 ticket that is excellent value.
- Schedule: 13:15, 14:30, 15:45
- Duration: 60 minutes (1 day ticket)
- Price: Starts from €14
- Extras: Welcome drink
- Starting point: 1052, Budapest, Vigadó Tér Dock 5
- Provider: Mahart Cruises
So to first go through the negatives. This cruise only has 3 stops: Batthyány Tér, Margaret Island, and back at Vigadó, where you start. There are only 3 cruises in the day, starting at Vigado at 13:15, 14:30 and 15:45. So you aren’t using it all day, but you can do three full loops on the Danube if you want, which is much more than what other cruises give you for the same price.
The segmented structure of this cruise allows you to explore Margaret Island and jump off at Batthyany on the Buda side if you want to do some exploration there too. It gives you the flexibility to cut your cruise into multiple segments, or do repeats, which is fun. It is a unique offering, and on the older Mahart boats, you get a pretty authentic cruising experience on the Danube.
#4. Danube Cruise with Welcome Prosecco (Budapest Sightseeing)
This cruise is more expensive than most standard 1-hour daytime Danube cruises, but for a good reason. It doesn’t attract the big crowds, but caters to people who want a quieter cruise aboard a classy ship with a welcome drink.
- Schedule: Every hour from 12:00 to 18:00
- Duration: 60 minutes
- Price: Starts from €20
- Extras: Welcome drink
- Starting point: 1052, Budapest Jane Haining rakpart Dock 6
- Provider: Budapest Sightseeing Kft.
That extra you pay is for the comfort of larger seating places, big tables, and a more characteristic boat that has a large rooftop deck. You don’t get private seats but you don’t really need them, as the daytime cruises don’t really fill up as much as the sunset cruises, and there is plenty of space onboard. Budapest Sightseeing may not have the largest fleet among Budapest boat tour companies, but it matches the very best ones for quality.
It is worth shelling out the little extra for this cruise if you want something more comfortable, and there is plenty of rooftop deck space to walk around and catch your photos of the Buda and Pest embankments.
#5. Budapest City Sightseeing Cruise (Purpleliner)
The popular Purpleliner cruises run regularly from afternoon time to night, and while these are spacious, modern boats they do tend to get filled up quickly. However, during the day you can often beat the crowds and get great seated spots in the lower deck or up on the rooftop deck.
- Schedule weekdays: 12 starts between 15:30 and 21:15
- Schedule weekends: Same, with extra starts at 11:00, 12:30 and 14:00
- Duration: 60 minutes
- Price: Starts from €12
- Extras: N/A
- Starting point: 1052, Budapest Jane Haining rakpart 11
- Provider: Purpleliner
During weekends this cruise has three additional starts, at 11:00, 12:30 and 14:00, which are good, quiet times to catch your boat trip. The Purpleliner Danube cruises are easily among the most popular in Budapest, and so they can fill up dramatically, so you should definitely book ahead and arrive a good 30+ minutes early to check if you need to queue or not.
In the worst case scenario, the boat can get crowded and you may not even get a space to sit, this can happen during peak summer periods. But that usually happens for the cruises later in the day, so with a daytime cruise you may just beat the crowds and get an ideal spot.