Oct 8, 2024
Great fun and good food along the Danube river - We had a great time on the boat, we enjoyed the music and really immersed in the Hungarian folkore. Dancers were excellent in getting the audience involved and we have fun.
The food was good and well served, the only flaw was the 1st course that was a too small bit of portion, not really a normal course
Review provided by Viator
Oct 6, 2024
Great show! - This dinner cruise was soo enjoyable. The food was spectacular, the trip along the river at night made for some great pics of the historical landscape. The musicians and dancers were very talented and entertaining. The show was interactive also, as they included the crowd. Well done!
Review provided by Viator
Sep 16, 2024
Great way to see the skyline with some culture! - This was an excellent outing. We met great people from around the world, had really good food (not gourmet - it’s not meant to be a 5 star restaurant), and the entertainment was super fun. Worth it for an evening outing!
Review provided by Viator
Jul 18, 2024
Great evening - Excellent evening. Good food which was cooked well and tasted lovely, good service with friendly staff. Great entertainment with singing and dancing and live music
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Sep 6, 2024
Great way to see Budapest at night - The highlight of the cruise was the excellent entertainment and the views of Budapest at night. Food was enjoyable, however table service was disappointing. Overall, well worth doing.
Review provided by Viator
Sep 29, 2024
Disappointing with cool soup and even cooler customer service. - We had high expectations for this Budapest river cruise experience with Silverline, hoping to enjoy a leisurely evening gliding along the Danube, taking in the stunning views of the city’s iconic landmarks. However, the experience fell significantly short of what we had anticipated from the promotional literature, due to several key issues that marred the evening.
To start with, the cruise was delayed by more than 30 minutes due to late-arriving guests. While it’s understandable that timeliness can sometimes be affected by unforeseen circumstances, the lack of communication from the staff during this waiting period was frustrating. Many of us who had arrived early or on time were left wondering what was happening, with no updates or apologies provided. It set an unfortunate tone for the evening, as we sat idly at the dock, watching the minutes tick by and other cruises depart.
Once we finally departed, the dining experience left much to be desired. The first course was a chicken soup, which unfortunately arrived cold. Soup, particularly on a chilly evening, should be warm and comforting, but this was a disappointing start to the meal. There was also a glaring lack of vegetarian options on the menu, which left some of my fellow diners struggling to find something suitable to eat. In this day and age, it is surprising that a major tourist offering like this wouldn’t cater to a wider range of dietary needs.
Throughout the evening, one of the most persistent issues was the dining environment itself. The boat was designed with a split seating layout, meaning that only about half of the diners had the privilege of enjoying the picturesque river views. The rest were left to dine with their backs to the window, missing out on what is meant to be the highlight of a river cruise — the opportunity to admire Budapest’s stunning cityscape illuminated at night. This was a significant oversight in the boat’s design and felt like a missed opportunity for all guests to fully appreciate the beauty of the journey.
To make matters worse, there was an outdoor smoking section located just off the dining area. The door to this section was frequently opened by passengers going outside to smoke, resulting in frequent blasts of cold air rushing into the dining space. This not only disrupted the cozy ambiance that one would expect on such a cruise but also made it uncomfortable for those trying to enjoy their meal. The management should seriously consider a better separation between dining and smoking areas or a more effective way of preventing cold drafts from disturbing guests.
Lastly, the service left much to be desired. The waiting staff were abrupt, showing little customer focus or warmth throughout the evening. Requests for refills or questions about the menu were met with terse responses, and at times, it felt like the staff were more focused on getting through the evening than on providing a pleasant experience for their guests.
In conclusion, while the river cruise offers a unique way to see the city’s landmarks from the water, the experience was marred by a series of unfortunate mishaps. From the late departure to the cold food, uncomfortable dining environment, and poor service, it fell far below expectations. A more thoughtful approach to guest comfort, menu diversity, and staff training would go a long way in improving the experience.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Oct 13, 2024
Don’t waste your money… - Very boring, the entertainment was amateurish and the food was not to our liking. Points of interest were not explained, so we had no idea what we were seeing. We would not recommend this tour.
Review provided by Viator
Sep 26, 2024
Terrible - The food which was inedible. The duck my wife had gave her stomach problems the next day. There was only one vegetarian choice, ratatouille which is poor. It was also our 25th wedding anniversary the evening of the cruise, and despite it being known, as the lady ticking off our names dockside wished us happy anniversary, so we were heartened that our milestone anniversary would be mentioned on board. However, it was not acknowledged as my wife had wanted for me. Although there were birthday wishes given by the operetta dancers to a lady on board, which was lovely for her, but made us feel rejected, because we had made a complaint about the food. We loved Budapest, but the operetta dinner cruise was a huge disappointment, never to be repeated again.
Review provided by Viator
Sep 25, 2024
Vegetarian beware - My wife booked this prior to us coming to Budapest. It was for our 25th wedding anniversary evening. She stressed in communications that I was a vegetarian. It was awful.
The menu had choices for meat-eaters, but no choices for vegetarians.
First course was "seasonal soup." It was inedible. There was no other taste other than cinnamon. I sent it back.
Main course was Ratatouille. Totally over spiced with pepper. It was just about edible because I asked for some grated cheese. I felt I had to eat it as it was beginning to spoil the evening. The dessert was OK.
The entertainment was fun, but by then, the evening was spoilt.
My wife did not like her food either. Never doing that again.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Jul 24, 2024
Not worth it. Give it a miss. - I wish I had paid attention to the reviews here. They are in every way true. 1.5 hours cruise. Not 2 hours. Cold food. Not 4 course. Horrible horrible taste. Entertainment is good and an ok service can only do so much at the end. With Price of nearly £300 for a family of three, it feels like we fell in a touristy trap. Best thing to do would be to just take a cruise for a tenner and then get dinner at a place with live entertainment afterwards.
Review provided by Viator