Meet Szandra

Two reactions were of happily surprise: the first that I got to know a Hungarian footbiker, the second that we would meet with our footbikes. Szandra, you are a tourguide in Budapest and there are many ways to choose how to guide people through Budapest. The city is big and walking will take long. An open bus is another way. Or a boat. Maybe even these stand up electric mobility scooters. Fatbike electric rollers. You name it, it is all out there.

81 year old Dominique, who’d fled the war in Croatia, now lives on a very limited pension. ‘Why would I sit at home and do nothing, while I can sit here and earn a little extra?’

I would have taken no tour whatsoever if it had to be done on any of these. Yet while living three years in Hungary and never having been to Budapest for leisure reasons, now seemed the moment. You are the only person who offers tours through Budapest on a kickscooter, or kickbike. I wanted that!

Living in Hungary is not the same as living in Germany or the Netherlands and where we live is probably aeons away from your lifestyle in the capital, where you have been born and raised. Budapest is daunting to us, a place I avoid and one where I see sadness and suffering, like every city. I also know that Budapest, or any capital is the accumulation of the country in its highest form. Be it Delhi, Dhaka or Dushanbe. The capital is a showpiece, a mixture of all on offer and more of a reality than a sleepy village with 16 inhabitants and my garden to marvel through.

When we decided to get a tour guided by you I was a little excited.

Cute sticker of a comic book shop, I thought. Szandra told us it is a political grafitti. A city is so full of meaning that most of it fails to make sense to people passing through.

1) What drives people? I think seeing certain things, the mind starts to spin and a desire becomes a palpable reality. I wanted to kickbike, as a follow up for being on a bicycle. When I cycled the world I was single. Now being married and trying to shape my desire to be in nature while running a self sustainable lifestyle and being settled this vehicle seemed a good solution. The one who sparked me was a French lady who was able to fit all her belongings on a kickbike and traveled the world. What sparked you, Alexandra?

Szandra: Thanks for your question Cindy, thinking back to the 1^st rides always brings a smile on my face. Back in 2019 I was chatting with a colleague about ways to get to the office where we both were working. Budapest is a big city, so this is a favorite topic of small talks here. At one point he asked me: ‘Why don’t you come with scooter?’ I’ve never thought about it and I simply don’t know why. I knew immediately that a scooter would be something for me. A much better, healthier, active way of commuting than crowded, noisy and often dirty public transport vehicles.

First I bought a small Oxelo scooter. It was shaky as hell, still I loved it so much that I took it with me for the annual family holiday to Sárvár, a famous spa town in Western Hungary. There was a camping near our hotel and there was a Czech family with a camper, right in front of our window. They had 2 colorful kickbikes, a thing that I’d never seen before. I didn’t even know its name. And I fell in love with that thing at first sight.

It was the will of fate that we continued our journey from Sárvár to the Czech Republic with the idea of finding these ‘giant scooters’ there. And there they were. I mean like everywhere. I felt like a child in a candy shop.

I learned that kickbiking was such a popular activity in the Czech Republic that you could rent kickbikes (or footbikes, as they name it) in many places frequented by local tourists. So we hired them, tested them. After returning to Hungary I ordered my first footbike from a Czech company, a foldable Kostka with 20” wheels. It arrived in late Autumn but I kicked it happily all through the Winter. I was one of the first footbikers in Budapest.

I’ve learned since then that a few other people share this passion in Hungary. We’re a tiny group, members are scattered all over the country. I set up a group called Buda-Pest Footbike Club on Facebook to keep in touch. I also try to organize events to meet in person, though the possibilities are limited due to the distance.

2) In my opinion a kickbike is swift and doesn’t need practise, basically everyone can roll around on a kickscooter without a motor that propels you. The fun part of a kickbike board is that you can stop instantly and swirl around whatever comes your way. In Budapest we were allowed to kick on the pavement and no one was annoyed (do not try this in Germany). Long distances can be made without feeling the body stiffening up and to our surprise we kicked 20 kilometers. What is the charm to offer city tours on a footbike? How could I, for instance, get my sister along with me, who is more of a lazy boat tourist.

Szandra: You’re right Cindy, charm of a footbike lies in its simplicity. You don’t have to be particularly strong or fit to ride it. Basically everyone can do it. And you can use it so many different ways! Even when you kick it in a slow, comfortable way, you get faster and farther than by walking. It’s a great feature when it comes to sightseeing in a big city.

Walking for long hours is exhausting, sightseeing buses get stuck in traffic jams, public transport is crowded and noisy, sightseeing boats keep you separated from locals, while e-vehicles like e-scooters, segways are not supported by locals as they roam the pavement fast and make dangerous maneuvers.

On a footbike tour you are out on the streets among local people, right at the foot of the most famous landmarks like the Parliament and the Chain Bridge. You are out in the open air to feel the breeze in your hair and the sun on your skin. Still you’ll fit into the local community.

Further advantages? As you mentioned, you can stop a footbike wherever and whenever you want, be it at a monument or at a cafe. You also can enter into such area of the city where bicycles and e-scooters are not allowed to go due to their speed and size.

It’s good to know that sightseeing with footbike is not a new invention. Fellow footbike enthusiasts offer tours in places like Plymouth in England, Salzburg in Germany and Firenze in Italy. There are further tour opportunities in the Dutch countryside and in rural Germany. It seems that people like these programs.

Despite all the pros of a footbike, I don’t want to say that footbike tours are for everyone. Imagine the city is a tea shop. You enter the shop and pick the tea that you like the most. Same is valid for sightseeing tours. There are many ways of discovering Budapest and it’s best to adjust the type of tour to your preferences. If you prefer to move around sitting, having snack, drinking prosecco, then it’s best to book a boat tour, bus tour or a guided tour in private car. If you are a determined walker, go for a gorgeous walking tour. If you prefer speed and quick impressions then guided bicycle tours, e-scooter/segway tours are the perfect choice.

Footbike tours are best for those who like it active, who are into doing some light physical activity, who are a bit outdoor-minded and want to immerse into the streets of Budapest, mingling with locals. I offer a day tour and a night tour covering the central World Heritage area of Budapest. Both tours are approximately 12 km long and take 2.5-3 hours. We take more than 10 stops on each tour. So we go in a comfortable pace and there is a lot of opportunity to recharge. I strive to make my tours relaxing, slow and smooth, ‘just like the old Danube river flows’.

I mentioned the many different ways you can use a footbike. So if you are a sport enthusiast, then kick it hard and it’ll work the entire body from head-to-toe. Literally. One fellow footbiker said that a footbike is a rolling gym and he was right!

Thinking of the fitness minded, sporty guests, I offer a sport history tour in Budapest, which is really unique. Not only due to the footbikes but also due to the interesting topic. People often meet a foreign nation for the first time during sports events such as the Olympics and World Cups. Hungarian athletes perform quite well despite the fact that Hungary’s population is only 9 million, less than the citizens of London or L.A. So why not to dedicate a sporty tour to our great athletes who have made our country famous abroad?

Those who choose this approximately 30 km tour, which is a great achievement physically, win a medal as a reward for their achievement, like real athletes. It’s a lot of fun.

3) When I kick behind you I saw a lot of people looking curiously at your vehicle. They try to find the pedals and when thy can not locate them the frown between their brows is furling. When I am fully packed and kick through Hungarian villages I feel a clown doing an act. But the fact is that kickbiking is a whole lot more fun than cycling. What do you find the best asset of a kickbike, especially in regard to cruising through a city like Budapest?

For anyone who isn’t into sporty things and doesn’t like to stretch and prepare and dress and do all kind of handlings before starting an activity, Geo liked this way of transport as a guided tour immediately. We took our own kickbikes with us, mine is used regularly but Geo’s kickbike is unused since he doesn’t have to tour with me any longer.

Szandra: Well, I regularly ride a bicycle in Budapest using BUBI, our community bike system. My experience is that when you ride a bicycle, you just rush through the city. You rush because you simply can’t go really slow by bike. If you lose too much speed you lose your balance and fall. Footbikes are more suitable for slow rides. When you ride a footbike you have the time to enjoy the view and experience the atmosphere of the place. Another issue is stops and starts. It’s so easy to hop on and off a kickbike! Just a few kicks and you’re on your way. Getting up and down a bicycle or park it can be more complicated. I think I mentioned before that footbikes are allowed to enter many area where bicycles are not allowed to go due to their speed and size. It means that you can discover every little corner of the city by footbike while you remain on the main tracks by bicycle.

Nevertheless if you have only a half day in Budapest and you want to see all the main attractions, a bicycle, even a community bike can be a great choice.

Cindy: What I loved were the historic details you told us. The city sprung up to a life 150 years ago and the artefacts you showed us, the tiny roads but also the grandeur. We need to come back to visit musea, kick through parks and see a lot more that Budapest has to offer. And not in the least, to meet up with you. It was simply a pleasure to have a friend in Budapest, eventhough we met for the first time. While Geo and I kicked through a dark city back towards our vehicle, we said how much we liked being with you.

Szandra: Thank you for your kind words Cindy! The best thing in our profession is to inspire people to come back for more. To awaken your curiosity. To whet the appetite to see and learn more. We are such a small nation in the heart of Europe that this is one of the biggest recognition for our culture that can be given.

I think I mentioned you that I knew you and Geo like people preferring a simple country lifestyle and not in fond of big crowded places like a capital. So I was a bit afraid that you’ll have enough of all the hustle and bustle of Budapest in 15 minutes. But you stayed and enjoyed and asked great questions about Hungary. You’ve got involved into our history. It was a unique experience to ride with you both! Thinking back of that afternoon I’m still smiling.

4) You have 10 kickbikes and 3 sort of tours. The challenge for me is to get out of my comfort zone. Kicking through forests by myself, starting to set up camp in the late afternoon and a slow start of the day and on such tours I hardly meet humans. If I do they are often shocked to see me and there is such a gap between us that more than waving, smiling and stutteting is not going to happen. So, I simply loved to talk to you and learn about the country we live in. It was such a pleasure! What is the feeling you get out of your job guiding people on a kickbike through Budapest?

A great question again Cindy! It’s always you, the guests who make the tours unforgettable. I’m local, born and raised in Budapest, so the only way I am exposed to different cultures, different point of views, wanderful ways of life is through you. Every encounter is a small miracle.

It’s also a unique feeling to see my own nation through your eyes for a few hours. I always learn from these encounters. I learn from the big wide World and I learn from my own culture too. And I love to learn. Could there be a more pleasant profession?

Two weeks later, Geo and I rode our kickbikes two more days through Budapest and I can add that it was not half as nice as it was together on a tour with Alexandra. We felt a little lost, circled rather aimlessly around. We think it makes much sense to explore the city with a guide (I know… it’s me saying this and I mean it!)