Timing my boat cruise on Legenda

Posted by Decent-Yam-223@reddit | budapest | View on Reddit | 9 comments

Aloha from Hawaii everyone.

After reading through countless reviews and questions on here about river cruising in Budapest , I’ve come to the conclusion that cruising with legenda would be ideal. With that in mind a have some quick questions if you don’t mind.

Sun sets around 20:44 pm on June 30th which is when I would cruise but so I grab the 20:45pm cruise or the 21:00pm cruise. Ie. Do I go when the sun is still setting or when it’s already dark for the lights ? In fact would it be ideal do go at 21:15 to be safe to know that I’ll at least see the parliament lit up ? Or is seeing it bathed in golden light just as gorgeous ?
I’ll be pre purchasing my tickets. Do those tickets allow us to chose a seat ?
Where should I sit ? Up top ( but what if it’s a rainy night ) or inside ?
Do we really need to line up early if there are no seat reservations ?

And lastly

Did they fix the no purchasing of drinks after the first complimentary one ?

Mahalo and thank you

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Decent-Yam-223@reddit (OP)

Thank you everyone. I ended up getting the 9:30 cruise on Legenda so that we can see the beautiful city lit up one last time before we leave the following day. I’ll def report back
Thank you for all your help

P1umberJack@reddit

I can't help you with the boat trip, as a local I've never tried it. BUT. If you really want to see the sun setting over the horizon, it's worth choosing the boat trip that departs before the official sunset, because on the western (Buda) side of the city there are mountains (we call them mountains, but they're actually hills) over where the sun disappears earlier. As others have written before me, the illuminated parliament at night is better viewed from the other side of the river, Battyhiány Square is located right opposite it. The decorative lighting doesn't last all night, it's turned off around 11 pm.

Thank you everyone

Gold_Combination_520@reddit

It will be pretty any time around sunset. You can actually take better pictures of the lit up parliament if you go on a walk on the Buda side (did a similar boat tour, pictures were bad)
No seat selection. Most of the people walk anyway on the boat to get the best views
Samesies but I'd go on the top
Samesies. Don't overthink, it will be a nice experience regardless where you sit. The ride isn't that long so you could even stand throughout the whole journey.
Nothing on their site about this, but since it's a tourist thing, I'd bet you can buy drinks. But you can always choose their dinner boat too if that's an important thing for you.

Best_Persimmon7598@reddit

Both times work, sun starts setting at that time, to have a nice orangey color, several more minutes will pass, I’d recommend the earlier one tho.
Usually seats in cruises are first come-first served and you’ll probably want to walk around and see different sides of the city. But if you pre-purchase them, you’ll be able to see if the page lets you choose seats
Sit wherever you want, people tend to move, if it’s forecasted to rain, take a poncho with you, problem solved.
Refer to point 2, if first come-first served, I’d be there in time, around 10 mins before the time it tells you to go.

You’ll have a great time! You’re overthinking this, sometimes it’s nicer to just make choices in the moment, like the seating choice. Have fun

bacondesign@reddit

Go in the "blue hour" period, 20-30 minutes after sunset when there's still enough light and the sky is deep blue. City lights should be on by then ideally but you cant 100% count on that. Lot also depends on the weather. A cloudy, rainy sky wont be as pretty.

Guillermo1810@reddit

I took Legenda when some of my friends were here (I'm Hungarian), and I found it very nice! I would bring guest again. Haha, but I agree you are overthinking this. It's an hour/hour and a half river tour, not a 2 week long cruise ship. It's cute, you can listen to Hungarian legends/folk stories in your headset. It's a smaller boat. Sit where you want. You will see the same things you would if you walk by the riverside on foot. You won't miss anything, really 15 minutes slots mean zero difference. Go when it's convenient, as I remember you just sit where you want, you can stand up, etc. As I remember there was a drink included, which you have to pick up yourself at the counter.

McLeiwand@reddit

I can very comfortably say that you are overthinking this.

igenigen@reddit

I do not want to be rude, but locals do not take boat cruises.

Sun sets around 20:44 pm on June 30th which is when I would cruise but so I grab the 20:45pm cruise or the 21:00pm cruise. Ie. Do I go when the sun is still setting or when it’s already dark for the lights ? In fact would it be ideal do go at 21:15 to be safe to know that I’ll at least see the parliament lit up ? Or is seeing it bathed in golden light just as gorgeous ?

Parliament is not always lit up at night. This depends on the water level and many other factors. Going at night will be your best bet regardless since this is when the city is the most beautiful.

I’ll be pre purchasing my tickets. Do those tickets allow us to chose a seat ?

No.

Where should I sit ? Up top ( but what if it’s a rainy night ) or inside ?

Wherever you want. Keep in mind a window seat does not guarantee you will get a good view.

Do we really need to line up early if there are no seat reservations ?

Up to you.