Szigetszentmárton

Szigetszentmárton is located in the centre of the Csepel-island, on its narrowest section. It is bordered by the Ráckeve branch of the Danube from the east. The village can be reached by suburban train, Volánbusz coach and by car from the direction of Ráckeve, Szigetcsép or Szigetújfalu. The closest bridge is in Ráckeve, from where route 51 is at a distance of just a few kilometres.

The village received its name from St. Martin, patron saint of its church. The four thousand year old “ancient carriage” uncovered outside the village border is a particularly important archaeological artefact, preserved in the National Museum. Following the expulsion of the Turkish, Eugene Savoyai settled Swabians, while Maria Theresa settled Bavarians in the village. During the 1940s as much as 80% of the village population considered themselves native German. Although the local Swabian and Bavarian communities declined with the deportations following World War II, their traditions survived owing to the local folk dance group, orchestra and choir.

The settlement reminds the visitor of a resort village. Holiday houses, hotels, restaurants and beer-houses line up 6 km long along the Danube. A camping ground is available by the beach. Tourists are welcome by the Small Danube Cultural, Ethnic and Youth Days (Kis-Duna menti Kulturális, Nemzetiségi és Ifjúsági Napok) and other regular music festivals. We can take pleasant walks in the scenic natural environment surrounding the village. The nature reserve situated at the southern border of the village preserved best the traditional woody-parkland character of the landscape. Indigenous species of the forest and waterside areas are the newt and the eared owl.

Sources: http://szigetszentmarton.hu/, http://hu.wikipedia.org/, http://www.vendegvaro.hu/, http://www.csepel-sziget.hu/