Budapest

Budapest

Notes

  • Public transportation is great: Underground trains, surface trains, trams, buses. Nov 2017: NO Uber or Lyft is available. Taxis are available, but expensive.
  • Most tourist attractions are in a compact area, easily walkable. Stay in the Inner City, close to the Danube River. The Budapest Marriott is an above-average hotel in a great location
  • On mass transit: There are no turnstiles / barriers to using mass transit. But there ARE human ticket checkers. It is best to buy tickets – they are cheap.
  • Most restaurants already add a tip / service charge (10% – 15%) – so you don’t need to.
  • Lot of people smoke in Budapest – even in some restaurants. Some restaurants have a non-smoking section
  • Lot of business establishments will accept Euros, if you are out of Hungarian Forints

Must See / Do

  • Travel on the Millennium Underground (underground line M1) 10/10
  • Citadel 10/10
  • Buda Castle 10/10
  • Fisherman’s Bastion 8/10
  • Matthias Church 8/10
  • Eat in Gundel Restaurant 8/10
  • Dohany Street Great Synagogue 7/10
  • St. Stephen’s Basilica 7/10
  • Walk on Andrassy Avenue 7/10
  • House of Terror 6/10

Itinerary

  1. Castle District (10/10 MUST SEE). The Castle District includes –
  2. Day 2
    • Citadel. Climb up to the Citadel from the end of Elizabeth Bridge. The trail is not marked well, but just keep going up and left, and you will end up at the Citadel. The views are excellent, and keep getting better with every turn.
    • Gellért Hill Cave (6/10 DO IT) This is a church carved into a cave. The church might be hard to find – it is almost at street level right across from the Gellert hotel (right under the big cross) at the Buda end of Liberty Bridge (Szabadság híd)
    • Lunch: Central Market Hall (Great Indoor Market Hall)
    • Walk on Vaci Utca – Vaci Utca is a pedestrian street full of retail establishments – think Third Street promenade in Los Angeles or Las Ramblas in Barcelona. It is touristy, but do it anyway
    • Dohany Street Great Synagogue
    • Drinks: Doblo Wine Bar. Try brandy variation Palinka – geographical indication protected – like burgundy
    • Old Turkish Bath – Rudas Thermal Baths – Gender-segregated hot baths with lot of almost-naked men. The place gives you a small waist apron like loin cloth which, only barely, covers the front. Most people prefer this to speedos or swim trunks. So you have men walking around the hot baths with their bare behinds showing, making for a distinctly uncomfortable experience.
    • Dinner: Nobu Budapest
  3. Day 3
    • St. Stephen’s Basilica – take the elevator to the cupola for nice views. See The mummified hand of St. Stephen adorned with golden leaves and ruby-pearl bracelets
    • Travel on the Millennium Underground (underground line M1) – it’s old, loud, creaky and classic
    • Vajdahunyad Castle (houses the Museum of Hungarian Agriculture)
    • Heroes’ Square
    • Lunch: Gundel Restaurant – try the reasonably priced, 3-course lunch special. Try somloi galuska (sponge cake) dessert
    • Walk on Andrassy Avenue (World Heritage Site)
    • House of Terror
    • Drinks: Csendes Vintage Bar
    • Dinner: Szazeves Restaurant – try stuffed cabbage

To Do for Next Time


Photos taken with an iPhone 6

Buda Castle
Buda Castle
Buda Castle
Buda Castle
Buda Castle
Buda Castle
Buda Castle
Buda Castle
Buda Castle
Buda Castle
Buda Castle
Buda Castle
Buda Castle - Fisherman's Bastion
Buda Castle – Fisherman’s Bastion
Hungarian Parliament Building - as seen from Fisherman's Bastion
Hungarian Parliament Building – as seen from Fisherman’s Bastion
Buda Castle - Fisherman's Bastion
Buda Castle – Fisherman’s Bastion
Buda Castle - Fisherman's Bastion
Buda Castle – Fisherman’s Bastion
Buda Castle - Fisherman's Bastion
Buda Castle – Fisherman’s Bastion
Buda Castle - Fisherman's Bastion
Buda Castle – Fisherman’s Bastion
Buda Castle - Fisherman's Bastion
Buda Castle – Fisherman’s Bastion
Buda Castle - Mary Magdalene Church Tower
Buda Castle – Mary Magdalene Church Tower
Buda Castle - Mary Magdalene Church Tower
Buda Castle – Mary Magdalene Church Tower
Buda Castle - Mary Magdalene Church Tower
Buda Castle – Mary Magdalene Church Tower
Buda Castle - Mary Magdalene Church Tower
Buda Castle – Mary Magdalene Church Tower
Buda Castle - Mary Magdalene Church Tower - you can see the outline of  the church when it stood
Buda Castle – Mary Magdalene Church Tower – you can see the outline of the church when it stood
Buda Castle - Matthias Church
Buda Castle – Matthias Church
Buda Castle - Matthias Church
Buda Castle – Matthias Church
Buda Castle - Matthias Church
Buda Castle – Matthias Church
Buda Castle - Matthias Church
Buda Castle – Matthias Church
Buda Castle - Matthias Church
Buda Castle – Matthias Church
Buda Castle - Matthias Church
Buda Castle – Matthias Church
Citadel
Citadel
Elisabeth Bridge - as seen from the Citadel
Elisabeth Bridge – as seen from the Citadel
Citadel
Citadel
Citadel
Citadel
Citadel
Citadel
Gellért Hill Cave
Gellért Hill Cave
Elisabeth Bridge
Elisabeth Bridge
Elisabeth Bridge
Elisabeth Bridge
Széchenyi Chain Bridge
Széchenyi Chain Bridge
Széchenyi Chain Bridge
Széchenyi Chain Bridge
Liberty Bridge
Liberty Bridge
Liberty Bridge
Liberty Bridge
Liberty Bridge
Liberty Bridge
Liberty Bridge
Liberty Bridge
Hungarian Parliament Building
Hungarian Parliament Building
Hungarian Parliament Building
Hungarian Parliament Building
Hungarian Parliament Building
Hungarian Parliament Building
Hungarian Parliament Building
Hungarian Parliament Building
Hungarian Parliament Building
Hungarian Parliament Building
Museum of Applied Arts
Museum of Applied Arts
Central Market Hall
Central Market Hall
Central Market Hall
Central Market Hall
Central Market Hall - gotta pay a quarter to use a shopping cart
Central Market Hall – gotta pay a quarter to use a shopping cart
Advertising Morris Column
Advertising Morris Column
Dohány Street Synagogue
Dohány Street Synagogue
Dohány Street Synagogue
Dohány Street Synagogue
Dohány Street Synagogue
Dohány Street Synagogue
Dohány Street Synagogue
Dohány Street Synagogue
Dohány Street Synagogue
Dohány Street Synagogue
Pest - Inner City Parish Church
Pest – Inner City Parish Church
Pest
Pest
Pest - St. Stephen's Basilica
Pest – St. Stephen’s Basilica
Pest - St. Stephen's Basilica
Pest – St. Stephen’s Basilica
Pest - St. Stephen's Basilica
Pest – St. Stephen’s Basilica
Vajdahunyad Castle
Vajdahunyad Castle
Vajdahunyad Castle
Vajdahunyad Castle
Vajdahunyad Castle
Vajdahunyad Castle
Hero's Square
Hero’s Square
Ethnographic Museum - Acapella Concert
Ethnographic Museum – Acapella Concert
Csendes Vintage Bar Ruin Pub - they cut a bathtub into two to create two "seats"
Csendes Vintage Bar Ruin Pub – they cut a bathtub into two to create two “seats”
Riverfront
Riverfront
Riverfront
Riverfront
Grilled Goose Liver
Grilled Goose Liver
Soproni
Soproni
Erdinger
Erdinger