Party boats may be banned from Budapest city centre riverside

Budapest’s assembly has backed a motion from the opposition Democratic Coalition to ban “party boats” from the city centre riverside. The proposal was tabled by Mayor Sándor Szaniszló (18th district), Deputy Mayor Tibor Déri (4th district), and Dorottya Keszthelyi, a councillor in the 13th district.

The Budapest City Assembly has endorsed a plan by Dorottya Keszthelyi, the Democratic Coalition’s (DK) parliamentary candidate and councillor for Újlipótváros, to revoke public space permits for three “party boats” moored at harbours along Carl Lutz Embankment and Újpest Embankment in the 13th district.

Loud music, drunk guests: no more party boats?

Aimed at restoring peace to beleaguered residents, the motion targets the vessels’ unlicensed, alcohol-fuelled revelries. New arrivals in Újlipótváros have wearied of thumping music blaring from the boats until the small hours, not to mention the public disorder wrought by drunken, rowdy guests spilling onto the streets. Implementation now rests with Mayor Gergely Karácsony’s office.

Assembly members backing the DK initiative sent a clear signal: Budapest’s nightlife quarter must not encroach further into the city centre if the capital is to remain liveable. As Hungary’s prime tourist draw, it risks squandering its allure by offering foreigners little more than cheap chances to get legless, the party’s statement warned.

• We wrote about the “floating party district” of Budapest in a separate article before.