Of all day trips from Budapest, the perfect one to spend some time in nature and discover the beautiful landscape of Hungary is certainly the hike to Visegrad castle and the Danube bend.
Keep in mind that we are full-time office workers/professional couch potatoes. If you follow our instructions, this DIY Danube Bend tour won’t require a big effort, nor a big budget. We are not only efficient travellers: we are also quite lazy 😀
Are you a couch potato? So are we! Nonetheless, when we do manage to get up from our lovely sofa, we enjoy spending time outdoors. We share our super-easy hikes, stories and adventures on our series “Hiking for couch potatoes“. If we can do it, you can do it too!
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Visegrad hike from Budapest: basic info
Located some 50 km north of Budapest, Visegrad is a small town that offers a gorgeous view of the Danube bend and the surrounding hills, many hiking trails and fun activities, and interesting insights in the history of Hungary and Europe inside the Visegrad Castle.
A typical Danube bend day trip organized by major tour operators would probably take you to Visegrad castle and to Esztergom, to see the massive Cathedral. This itinerary, instead, focuses on Visegrad castle and on lesser known towers and viewpoints.
When is it best to go?
Spring, summer and autumn are best to enjoy the beautiful scenery of hills and river. Just avoid a cloudy or foggy day!
Also, make sure you check out the opening hours of Zsitvay Lookout Tower and of Visegrad Castle.
How long does it take?
When planning your Visegrad day trip, keep in mind that you depend on public transport to reach Visegrad and to go back to Budapest: you may go by bus, by train, or by ferry/cruise.
Calculate some 8 hours, but if you hurry or bring lunch with you, you could make it in 6.
Also, consider that Visegrad Castle is the main attraction: be efficient like us and try to get there by lunch time, when most people leave, or didn’t get there yet.
What do you need?
- comfortable clothing and shoes for the trail
- water (there are some fountains to fill your bottle from) and snacks
- Hungarian forints, as credit cards and other currencies may not be accepted (by the way, do you have your Wise debit card yet? The brilliant one that can hold multiple currencies? Check out our review here!)
- a guidebook/notes/info on your phone about the history of the castle
- download the offline area on Google Maps and star-save the highlights
- except for the bus to Visegrad (which may be crowded), it is not necessary to buy any tickets in advance
How much does it cost?
As of June 2017 (I don’t think prices change much):
Or HUF 4600 / 300 = 15.3333 EUR without lunch
Day trip and easy hike to Visegrad: detailed itinerary
Map by Google Maps
Our super-knowledgeable friend and tour guide, Adam Marot of Behind Budapest prepared an easy itinerary: by taking the bus to the top of the hill, the effort was minimal!
How to get to Visegrad from Budapest
We started from Budapest at the Ujpest Bus Station (map) (north of Pest) where we took bus 883 by Volanbusz (timetable) at 10.15. After one and a half hour, we got off at stop Visegradi Bobpalya, which saved us all the effort of climbing up the hill from the town of Visegrad, which is down by the river.
Find alternatives by searching “Visegrad Bobpalya” on Google Maps. Hit “Directions” and enter your departure point.
Zsitvay Tower (Zsitvay kilátó)
It was already noon, so we had a quick snack with coffee and Hungarian bread “Pogacsa”, and then walked up to the Zsitvay Lookout tower (map), a nice stone building erected in 1933. From the meadow in front of it, it’s just hills and birds chirping! Being on top of a hill 378 meters high, we loved the breathtaking view from the top of the tower, of river, hills and forests, islands and towns, and most of all, our next stop, the Castle of Visegrad. We spent approximately 30 minutes here.
Of course, the main road can take you down to the Castle, but then how would this be a hike in Visegrad? We chose instead a lovely, peaceful trail in the woods, very easy to follow as it is marked on trees and stones with a white flag with a horizontal blue stripe, direction “Visegradi Fellegvar”.
Visegrad Castle (Visegradi Fellegvar)
In 10-15 minutes, we reached Visegrad Castle (map), which is located on top of a hill overlooking the river Danube and the town of Visegrad on the riverside. Even though it’s not particularly attractive from the parking lot, it’s worth the ticket! Being a Sunday in early June, there were many school kids on a day hike, but luckily we entered the castle around lunchtime, so it wasn’t too crowded.
Before reaching the viewpoint by the walls, there are already fun medieval attractions, like arrow shooting, throwing a spiked rusty weapon to a wood log, a trainer with a falcon, and two royal seats with suitable clothing ready for a costume picture.
The view from the walls is very picturesque: the Danube river flows peaceful and wide, confident among lush hills and red-roofed villages, and behind you the ruins of the castle walls rise high and bold. Thanks to a rising Hungarian flag, it is also a very patriotic spot!
Hungarian pride! 
Continue the visit inside the castle
As there are not many explanations available in English, it is worth reading up a little ahead about the story of Visegrad and its castle, or bringing a guidebook with you, or coming here with a tour guide.
The first Citadel was built by King Béla IV in 1246 because of the Mongol invasions, to protect the valley and the commercial route. It was expanded into a larger fortress during the Anjou era, and King Charles Robert moved the royal court here in 1323. This King also organized a Congress with the kings of Bohemia and Poland to solve issues among them, open new commercial routes, and create an alliance against the Habsburgs.
The Castle was left to ruins in the 18th century, when the Habsburgs ruled the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Excavations and reconstructions started in 1871. Nowadays, some parts of the walls are visibly new, made of concrete and bricks, giving the visitor a real sense of what remained and what is rebuilt.
We spent approximately 1 hour in the castle, exploring the different halls, levels and viewpoints.
Visegrad and Solomon Tower
Didn’t I tell you the Visegrad hike is super easy? The second and last part takes some 30 minutes, and it’s going down!
At 3.30 pm we were on our way, through the woods again, downhill towards Visegrad. We passed by a little chapel called Kalvaria Kapolna (map) and reached the city centre at the cutest staircase overlooking the red roofs, right behind the church. We enjoyed a resting lunch at a pizzeria right by the main church, and then headed to out last attraction.
The Solomon tower (map) is the Low castle, located on a small hill by the river, where the walls started to rise up to the High castlte. Also here, the recent restorations show very clearly what remained of the original tower and what was rebuilt; unfortunately, the result is not exactly the most beautiful medieval tower ever. Anyway, it is quite picturesque and the view is again gorgeous.
The renovated side of Solomon Tower 
The original side of Solomon Tower
How to get back to Budapest from Visegrad
There are different ways to get back to Budapest from Visegrad: by bus, by ferry, and by train.
We decided to take the train back, so we bought a ticket on spot to cross the Danube. The ferry from Visegrad to Nagymaros (map) offered us another amazing panorama: peaceful river, steep hill and ruins on the top, a true postcard! And finally, a 50-minutes train ride back (schedule, search from Nagymaros to Budapest Nyugati) from Nagymaros to Budapest Nyugati Station (map).
Visegrad hike summary
We recommend our Visegrad day trip itinerary to people who wish to combine nature and culture, without doing a huge effort. If you follow our steps, you will spend most of the day on your feet, but the actual hiking will be downhill, through peaceful woods and easy trails.
There’s more to do in Visegrad! The bobsled track close to Visegrad Castle must be fun; the city centre may deserve 10 minutes for a stroll; and in the surroundings there is a spa called Lepence, for some relax.
Did you know this place? Did you try our itinerary? Let us know in the comments!
Budapest looks amazing – great photos, looks like you had a great trip!
Thank you! It is an awesome hike from Budapest 🙂