Bicycling the Danube - 3 - Vienna to Budapest

Monday, 31 August to Saturday, 5 September 2026

This part of our trip had some unique challenges: Austria uses euros and speaks German; Slovakia uses euros and speaks Slovak; Hungary uses forints and speaks Hungarian. The three languages share very little vocabulary, and sometimes refer to towns and other geographic items with different names. The Danau becomes the Dunaj (Slovakia) and the Duna (Hungary). A bicycle (essential vocabulary!) is Fahrrad (or just Rad) in German, bicykel in Slovak, and bicikli or kerékpár in Hungarian. The signs for the Danube Cycle Path also change, and since for the final four days we were going back and forth between Slovakia and Hungary, following posted signs could be confusing.

Monday, Vienna to Hainburg

Many of the trees along the Danube are filled with mistletoe.

Reliefs on an unidentified building in Hainburg. Perhaps the building was originally a school of mathematics or engineering?

Saints Philip and James Catholic Church in Hainburg.

Wienertor (Vienna Gate) in Hainburg.

The inner courtyard at Hotel Altes Kloster. The original building dates to 1235; it was renovated into a hotel and conference center in 2010.

Sunset over the Danube as seen from our hotel room.

Tuesday, Hainburg to Bratislava

On our way out of Hainburg, we had a good view of the castle in Hainburg.

Bratislava deserves its own post. The short ride (20 km, 12 miles) gave us plenty of time to enjoy Bratislava.

Wednesday, Bratislava to Györ

This was a frequently seen style of shelter-with-table, both along the cycle path and in cafes.

The rest stop also had a small shrine - and a lot of wind turbines in the background. This part of Hungary reminded me a lot of the Midwest - flat terrain and fields of corn (maize), soybeans, sunflowers, and occasionally pumpkins.

Today's ride was potentially 80 km. Instead, we took the suggestion to get on the train in Mosonmagyaróvár (or simply "Moson") and take it to Györ, shortening our day to about 42 km of riding.

Carmelite Church in Györ.

Györ

A narrow street near the basilica in Györ.

We were intrigued by this strange structure. Turns out it's an entrance to an underground parking garage.

Thursday, Györ to Komárno

We rode all day in Hungary to the town of Komárom, then crossed the Danube to its Slovakian counterpart, Komárno. In 2009 both Hungary and Slovakia became part of the Schengen zone, so there is no longer border control between the two halves of the town.

The Church of St. Andrew in Komárno. The facade of this landmark had five niches with statues. All five looked exceedingly unhappy.

Trinity Column in the heart of Old Town Komárno.

Town Hall and General Klapka Square.

The "Courtyard of Europe" is a square where each building represents the architectural style of a different European country. A stage and outdoor seating was being set up, so it was difficult to get a nice photo.

The Evangelical Church. "Evangelical" usually means Lutheran in this part of Europe.

Friday, Komárno to Esztergom

Most of our riding in Slovakia and Hungary was away from the Danube. When we did get to see the river, it was clearly very low.

On our way up the hill to the Basilica.

The Basilica dwarfs the 100-ft high hill it's built on. At the right is the Esztergom Castle. (This photo was actually taken on the way out of Esztergom on Saturday.)

The Basilica is even more impressive on the inside. This is the most important church in Hungary. It is the tallest building in Hungary and the third-largest church in Europe.

The dome of the Basilica is 100 m (330 ft) tall. We had seen this dome for miles before we got to Esztergom. We had no idea that it was this huge, or that is was on a 100-ft tall hill. The architecture is reminiscent of the Blue Mosque and Hagia Sofia in Istanbul.

View from the Basilica terrace. This bridge, connecting Esztergom, Hungary to Stúrovo, Slovakia, was destroyed in World War II and not rebuilt until 2001! Until it was rebuilt, there were no bridges across the Danube between Vienna and Budapest. Now there are a few more, but ferries are still the most common way to cross the Danube. This is a problem when low water prevents ferries from operating.

Esztergom to Budapest

The castle at Visegrád in the "Danube Bend", where the Danube changes from being a largely east-west river to a north-south river.

Across the river in Nagymaros, the flood protection wall is designed to (1) be able to close off river access, and (2) add additional height for major floods.

Our tour originally planned a ferry ride from Szentendre to Budapest, but low river levels have forced suspension of this service. Instead, we took a train from Vác to Budapest.

The iconic view of the Parliament Building in the Pest side of Budapest. Our hotel (on the Buda side) was directly across the Danube from the Parliament.

We turned in our bicycles and gear (panniers, charging equipment, and bike locks) at our hotel in Budapest and prepared for the urban portion of our trip: two days in Budapest and two days in Prague.