City Rating: Budapest
Population: 1,750,000
Date of visit: September 2019
Attractions & sights: 4/5
Nightlife: 4/5
Safety: 4/5
Infrastructure: 4/5
Low budget factor: 3/5
Total: 👍👍👍👍/5
Budapest in a nutshell:
Budapest is a beautiful city that has a lot to offer and everyone should have seen it at least once. The Hungarian capital scores with great sights, a good restaurant scene and lively nightlife. All in all, Budapest is one of the best capital cities in Europe. In comparison to the nearby capitals, it is the better destination than Bratislava, Ljubljana or Belgrade. Only Vienna plays in a higher league.
Where to stay in Budapest:
In Pest. That’s on the east bank of the Danube River. Or to make it easier: on the side with the Parliament building. 🙂 This is the most vibrant area of the city. You can visit Buda, where the Fisherman’s bastion, Buda Castle and Citadella are located, during the day.
The very best location for accommodation is probably in the triangle Chain Bridge, Aria Hotel and Marriott Hotel. From there you can reach every attraction on foot and the nightlife areas are not too far away.
The Good:
Budapest offers the total package: great sights, beautiful architecture, a lively city center, exciting activities, a fantastic restaurant scene and top nightlife.
In my opinion the most interesting sights are on the Buda side. The fisherman’s bastion I would like to mention here first. This former castle offers the best photo opportunities in Budapest. The prices for the viewing terraces are quite humane (1,000 HUF).
From there, you get relatively quickly to Buda Castle, which is also worth a visit. And if you still haven’t had enough, you can visit the Citadella on Gellert Hill, where you also have a sensational view over Budapest.
By the way, if you don’t want to walk up to Buda Castle or the fisherman’s bastion, you can also use the funicular. You will reach the station as soon as you have crossed the Chain Bridge.
However, there is also a lot to do in Pest. The parliament building, probably the most famous building of the city, is in this part of Budapest. Also you will find the beautiful St. Stephen’s Basilica, where you can also enjoy a beautiful view from the tower.
Other fun activities are a cruise on the Danube, the thermal baths (there are some of them in the city), museums or the rooftop bars. The most famous of these is probably the High Note Sky Bar. It is best to reserve a table when you want to go there in the late afternoon or in the evening as it is usually full. However, you will easily get a table during the early afternoon.
Another plus is the restaurant and bar scene. Budapest is full of sensational restaurants, often small bistros with traditional Hungarian food like goulash or chicken paprikash. However, almost every cuisine is represented in the Hungarian capital.
Even in the evening you are spoilt for choice, because Budapest is a paradise for night owls. The city offers a lot of bars, pubs and nightclubs. The specially equipped bar Szimpla Kert is a must if you are in Budapest. In general, I would describe the nightlife in Hungary’s capital as one of the best in Europe.
Even though Budapest can theoretically be explored on foot, the beautiful yellow trams or taxis can also be used if required. The infrastructure is generally quite good and on a Western European level. Nevertheless, here are two useful tips regarding transport:
- Taxis are unfortunately known to rip off foreign guests. This can happen on the one hand by completely overpriced fixed prices or by prepared taximeters (what happened to us). The solution is to use the taxi app Bolt, the Hungarian Uber. There you can see the Price Range before you start your journey.
- The airport is about 30 minutes away from Budapest. The taxi to Budapest costs about 25€. With the bus that goes non-stop from the center to the airport, however, you have only about five minutes longer and pay 3€. This is definitely the better option.
The Bad & the Ugly:
There is little to criticize about Budapest. Like in all cities with a high number of tourists, there are some problems caused by tourism.
The first problem I have already described above: the taxi scams. Again, use Bolt to avoid trouble!
The second problem is overcrowded sights and long queues in front of attractions (e.g. in front of the ticket counter of fisherman’s bastion or the funicular to Buda Castle). I’d recommend to avoid the tourist masses and do sightseeing in the morning hours as early as possible.
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