At the end of World War I and following the Treaty of Trianon, Hungary (as sucessor of the Austro-Hungarian Empire) lost two thirds of its territory.

In the north-west the river Danube became the border and the city of Komárom was divided: The bigger part with the historic town centre on the North bank now was part of Czechoslovakia, only Southern outskirts remained Hungarian territory.

The official Hugarian name is Komárom, the Slovak part also called Komárno, the German name of 'Komorn' is not used anymore, although especially in Hungarian Komárom (and in a few rare cases also in Komárno) German road signs and texts can be found.

Distances to the resp. capitals:

Komárom - Budapest: 60 miles
Komárno - Bratislava: 64 miles

Hungarian town on the south shore of the river Danube.
inhabitants: 30.000
postal code: H-2900

internet: www.komarom.hu

Slovak Town on the North shore of the rivers Danube and Waag.

inhabitants: 38.000
car license plate: KN-
postal code:

internet: www.komarno.sk

Orientation: North is Slovakia, south is Hungary: River Danube divides the agglomeration into two independent cities.

Arrival by express train fromGyör:
Would you get off here, if you didn't have to??.

View from the fly-over at the railway station and accross the river to Slovak Komárno.

the river Danube is amazingly broad here, so even minus the pollution you wouldn't want to swim to the other side..

The Hungarian trunk road M1 in Györ in direction of Budapest (=east): still 28 miles to Komárom .

(Erszébey hid)

Main street in downtown Komarom (M13) towards the iron bridge over the Danube river.

(Igmandi utca)

Lonely Planet wrote that "the only reason to get to Komarom is to get away":
fact is indeed that the historic and cosy city centre is on the North bank on the river. (=in Slovakia)

(Klapka György út)

Lonely Planet ® forgot to mention though that the Hungarian side partly has street-signs in German, too.

Having crossed the bridge, we arrive in Slovakia:
the Slovakian side is entirely billingual (Hungarian-Slovakian) and is regarded as a centre of Hungarian/Magyar culture in Southern Slovakia.

a typical view of the old town, Slovak territory only since 1919.

all street-signs and official boards on Government buildings are bilingual.

In a few cases, German could be spotted as third language next to Hungarian and Slovak on some (non-) official signs.

Neatly organized bilingual direction pole.

The "House of Hungarian Culture" in Komárno: two thirds of the inhabitants of the Slovak side rather speak Hungarian as first language.

All street names have a Slovak and a Hungarian name.

and finally, after all this educative stuff, a touristic view of the main square with the old town hall.