BUDAPEST: where to sleep, what to do... ?

Hi! My boyfriend & I have planned to visit Budapest from 22.04.06 to 26.04.06
Can you give us some advise (about accomodation, sites, where to eat, what to do and so on...) ?
Thanks, Elisa

You surely have to visit a thermal bath (there are plenty of them), see Danube and bridges, and climb Gellert or Castle hill.
Check this website for details on Budapest thermal baths. There is also a lot of info about restaurants.
http://www.budapestindex.com/term/going-out/attractions/thermal-baths

Budapest is a fantastic city. A trip across the Danube is very recommended.

Hi Elicia,

I just got back from Budapest last week. Fantastic city! Everyone i talked to that visited the Szechenyi Baths near hero's square said it was the best one (including me, I went there twice), so that's a must do.

Also, and without affiliation, I highly recommend August Hostel -also near the city park - because of the wonderful time we had there. It's feels more like staying at a friends apartment than it does a hostel. The guy that runs the place (from chicago) let us use the internet for free all day, watch his movies, and drink his coffee. And when I was there, it was about 4 euros/night. Note: they said they were raising the prices soon though. Good place.

There are some good bars I went to that play live music. Fat Mo's and Old Man's Pub are the two I remember. And we ate at a pretty good not-so-expensive restaurant I recommend. From Oktogon, walk past Friday's so it and city park are on your left. Go past the sex shop and then the big white hotel and KFC and it's a little bit up past a coffee place i believe. There is a wifi sign on the door and when you go inside, the restaurant part is to the left, and the bar to the right. good luck finding that one!
Good indian place around the corner from August hotel too.

Take a tour of Parliament (30mins) or see an opera (the inside of the opera house is amazing)

Hope that helps.

Hi Elisa,

Certainly You'll find all the most important sites of Budapest on the sites advised above (and try this one: http://www.budapestinfo.hu/en), and You can choose wich kind of cultural sights You prefer.

As a personal advice You shouldn't miss the following while in Budapest:

SPA: True, Széchenyi is the most popular, and it's not separated by sex, but You migh want to have a bath in one of the Turkish Spas, Király, or Rudas on the Buda side. Note that there are different days for men and women to admit. More info on opening times and prices:http://spasbudapest.com/tartalom.php

CRUISE ON THE DANUBE Don't miss to admire the city from the river. If You have the chance, choose a boat after dusk.

THE PANORAMA FROM GELLÉRT HILL Climb up by foot or take a bus.

Have fun, and enjoy your stay

David

hiya
I lived in Budapest last summer - great city

I agree Fat Mo's is a good bar but very pricey for drinks.
when i was there in summer most of the nightlife was centered on the Danube. Not sure in Winter.

Ide recommend a Turk bath, the Soviet Park and a day trip to Zentedre - nice small town nearby.

last year we spent 4 days in Budapest and we rented a flat: something like 25 eur per person per night, in vaci utca, the central street. It was cheaper than hotels. We found some addresses on the web.

I suggest you to avoid to eat and buy something in vaci utca, the most touristic and expensive area of the city. At the end of Vaci Utca street there's a covered market which we liked very much: in the upper floor you can buy any kind of food, hot and cold, for very reasonable price and they serve very big portions. There's a lot of handcraft shops as well.
We went to gellert spa, nice and cheap, but maybe too much crowded..not so clean...and anybody was speaking english
maybe enter with the tourist one hour pass just to take some pictures, and try the others spas of the city..

VERY IMPORTANT: A TIP ABOUT THE TICKET ON THE subway: I don't remember how many lines has Budapest underground, but in any case, IF YOU CHANGE FROM A LINE TO ANOTHER YOU HAVE TO CONVALIDATE ANOTHER TICKET (doesn't matter if you've made just one stop and have immediately changed line). That system sound us really strange to be honest (and we obviously got a fine).
There's a lot of controls, including in the early morning or late evening..maybe better to buy a 3 days pass(I suppose there should be something similar..).

Another strange things we discovered was about prices in cafes menu.
There was written something like: orange juice, 330FT (100cc).
We understood that a glass of 100cc orange juice will be served to us, and we will have payed 330Ft. (that happen also everywhere, in my experience). We were really surprised discovering that the price was for ANY 100CC, so we finally had to pay 660 Ft "because the glass was 200 cc".
First, I can't measure the liquid inside the glass, so I have a clue about how much orange juice you're going to serve to me.
Second, If you are serving me something that I'm going to pay more than the exact price written on the menu, I expect you ask me how much I want... Besides the waiter was really rude...

[we don't remember budapest as the nicest city we've visited..]

I highly recommend the Kalmar B&B http://www.hotelhungary.com/hotel/kalmar.asp
Which is a mansion just a stroll up the hill from The Gellert Spa. It used to be the Prime Minister's home and it has an amazing history. Esther, the Inn-Keeper, is the architect's granddaughter and she is a great resource. Not only are rooms at the mansion much less expensive than hotels in the area but a full breakfast is included and cakes, cookies, coffee, etc. are always complimentary.
The location is great as restaurants, markets, shops are just a stroll across the bridge to pedestrian only streets which are charming. Depending on how much you like to hike, Fisherman's Bastion is not to far to walk to and is lovely.

Hi, i'm going, with four friends of mine, to Budapest this summer, and i want to know if any body knows the cheapest places to sleep. We also would like to know the best things to do during the day and by night, knowing that we will only stay in Budapest for three days and thoo nights. Best regards,

Nuno Cruz

To save money and feel as the Hungarians, I suggest to rent an apartment in central Budapest: it's a common practice in Budapest to rent an apartment, also for 2 nights. I have been in Opera Romantica apartment and Mozart apartment from www.dunaflat.com

Do not forget to have a cake atJegbufe in Ferencek Ter: the most popular and famous café in Budapest where you don't find tourists.

A good Hungarian restaurant is Pesty Vendeglo, in Paulay Ede: cheap and typical. Try it: you will love it.

Another very good Italian restaurant (new, fashion and cheap) id Donatella's in Kiraly utca.

I suggest also the Indian restaurant Salaam Bombay in Merleg utca.

Cooking in Budapest is fantastic. For more details on this, I have discovered that a group of Hungarian have written a top 33 list of best restaurant in Budapest ...and they always updat that list. I suggest to take that list with you in your trip to Budapest.

Have a nice holiday!

Margherita