Margaret Island

Also known as Margitsziget

A 2.5-kilometer green island in the middle of the Danube, largely car-free. Features include a musical fountain, ruins of a 13th-century Dominican convent, Palatinus Strand pool complex, and a Japanese garden. The best escape from summer heat without leaving the city center.

A 2.5-kilometer car-free island in the Danube in central Budapest, containing ruins of a 13th-century Dominican convent (where Saint Margaret of Hungary lived until her death in 1271), a 12th-century Premonstratensian chapel ruin, a musical fountain, thermal spa pools at Palatinus Strand, and a Japanese garden. The island is one of the densest concentrations of medieval religious ruins in Budapest, set inside the city’s main recreational green space. Free to enter; tram connections from both Buda and Pest banks. Allow 2-3 hours to walk the full island circuit. Budapest is 250km southeast of Vienna; 2.5 hours by direct train.