Useful information

I want you to have the best Budapest experience.

Please find below some information which I believe will help you while you are here.

All the information shown below is believed to be accurate and true by the date of July 2023.

Introducing a few of my favourite places and activities.

Welcome to my beautiful city, Budapest. I, as your guide, will try to make your stay a beautiful and memorable experience.

PLACES YOU MIGHT WANT TO GO TO:

Castle District: take the escalator from the Castle Garden Bazaar, 400 meters to the south from the Buda bridgehead of the Chain Bridge all the way to the top!

Grand Market Hall: Open from 6 AM to 6 PM on weekdays. Saturdays until 3 PM, Sundays closed. 

Weekend market in the Gozsdu Courtyard where the sellers are also the makers of what they sell. (usually.) Open on Sat, Sun between 10 AM and 5 PM.

Commercial malls are open every day of the week between 10AM and 8PM.

Váci utca, main shopping street (fast food, fast fashion, beautiful architecture, elegant atmosphere, plus - there is a Happy Socks store there! My favourite socks!).

The Jewish Quarter (280 bars and restaurants) – ruin bars such as Szimpla Kert, Instant/Fogas and EllátóHáz)

Margaret Island - the island of peace, no cars, with good food, lots of greenery, a fountain with light and music show, a Japanese garden, rose garden, a modern jogging path and the best thermal bath in Budapest called Palatinus where mostly locals go and not tourists.

St.Stephen’s Basilica - the circular dome has the very best 360-degree views of the city, high-speed elevator to the top.

Dohány Street Synagogue - the third largest of the world, and the largest of Europe. 

FOOD, DRINKS IN BUDAPEST:

Szimpla Kert Sunday farmers' market 09:00-14:00

Try Goulash, Chicken Paprika stew, Lángos (frisbee-sized fried dough with sour cream and cheese and garlic), fish soup (not for beginners), spicy sausages and the sweet chimney cake! Traditional Hungarian restaurant recommendations: Blue Rose, Ghetto Goulash, Belvárosi Disznótoros, Mazel Tov, Restaurant 26, Ildikó Konyhája. Seafood: BigFish Restaurant. Vegetarian: Govinda restaurant, Napfényes, Las Vegans, Gringos Amigos and hummus bars. A good old-fashioned but really good quality burger is in Bamba Marha. Sweet Túró Rudi is the favourite dessert, look for it in supermarkets. Flodni: traditional Hungarian Jewish cake.

Drink: tap water is safe to drink, you may refill your bottles while in Budapest.  Local beer is called Dreher. The most famous dry red wine is Bull’s Blood, the white wines of choice are the Tokaji Aszú (sweetish) and Nyakas Aligvárom (dry). National drink: Pálinka (at least 37,5% alcohol, be careful with it). Best coffee in town is probably My Little Melbourne, Re-Charge or the Á la table, a French place. All of these are around Madách tér, in the downtown area, close to the Sissi Statue, our free walking tours meeting point.

Thermal Baths in Budapest:

Palatinus: 7AM-7PM, 4400 per adult. Since this is my favourite, here's the detailed price list:

PRICES FROM 1 JUNE 2023

Entrance fees weekdays and weekends

Adult admission 4 400 Ft or 4 900 Ft

2 hour ticket (1) 3 400 Ft 3.700 Ft

(until 12 noon on Saturday)

Afternoon ticket (from 17h) 3 400 Ft -

Adult ticket with AYCM card (2) 0 Ft 0 Ft

Children (3-14 years), pensioners, students (full-time) (3) 3 500 Ft 3 900 Ft

Family ticket for 3 persons (min. 1 person under 14 years)

9 800 Ft 10 800 Ft

Family ticket for 4 persons (min. 2 persons under 14 years)

12 300 Ft 13 700 Ft

Free under 3.

Gellért: 6AM-10PM, 9400 HUF

Széchenyi: 6AM-10PM, 9400 HUF

Király: 9AM-9PM, 2400 HUF

Rudas: 6AM-10PM 8600 HUF (single sex days, not mixed!)

Veli Bej Turkish 3PM-9PM 2800 HUF (max. 3 hours)

USEFUL EXPRESSIONS IN HUNGARIAN (how to write – how to say)

Thank you – Köszönöm – kuh-suh-nuhm

How much – Mennyibe kerül? – men-yee beh keh-roohl?

I don’t understand – Nem értem – nahm ayr-tem

Excuse me - Elnézést - Al-ney-zesht

I love you – Szeretlek – se-ret-lek

Goodbye – Viszlát – We-slut

Cheers – Egészségedre – Eggesh-she-gaddreh

As an afterthought, here is the longest word in Hungarian: Megszentségteleníthetetlenségeskedéseitekért - Mag-sent-shegh-talaneet-hat-at-lan-shagash-kad-ashai-tak-aert. Its not an everyday phrase. The English translation is: This is the result of the fact that you've been continually acting in such a way that now it is impossible to desecrate you. 

Now you get the picture. Hungarian is among the 5 most difficult languages in the world. If you lived here for the next 20 years, chances are that you could reach an intermediate level.

RECOMMENDED FREE INTERIOR VISITS

Four Seasons Hotel lobby

Koller Art Gallery in the Castle District - Táncsics utca 5

Fishermen’s Bastion in the Castle District – but only the lower level, you have to pay for the upper level

Párizsi Udvar – Paris Courtyard by the Elizabeth Bridge

Várkert Bazár – Castle Garden Bazaar with free escalator to the Castle Hill

Gozsdu Courtyard in the Jewish District – everything from hipster bars to flea markets to arcade halls resembling the 1990-s. This is the one with the weekend art market from 10 AM until 5 PM.

PUBLIC TRANSPORT 

Download the Budapest GO app, which is a journey planning and ticketing system, or use the purple-coloured ticket vending machines at main public transport hubs for physical tickets.  

Single uniform public transport ticket 400 HUF (1.11 EUR) – validate it after each boarding.

IN CASE YOU ARE USING A SINGLE TICKET FOR MERTO TRANSPORT, YOU MUST VALIDATE IT BEFORE GETTING ON THE ESCALATOR TO THE BOARDING PLATFORMS.

24-hour travel card 2500 HUF (6.7 EUR) – no need for validation, you’re all set

72-hour travel card 5500 HUF (15 EUR) - no need for validation, you are all set

Express airport bus ticket - 2200 HUF (6 EUR)

You will need to validate it on the bus.

OTHER USEFUL TIPS

Use ATMs that are bank-affiliated. Change money only at official places, and always check the buying and the selling rate – rates can differ.

Colour code for water bottle labels on their side: – PINK: still, BLUE: carbonated.

Some restaurants charge a service fee between 10 and 15%. Don’t tip if it applies, but remember that we are a tipping nation otherwise. 

Always validate your ticket upon taking public transit when beginning your trip (day tickets need no further validation other than purchase)

Never say thank you until you receive your change after handing over money. Saying thank you too early means you don’t want any change back.

Offer your public transport seats to elderly people to gain respect from the general population.

We hope you had, or going to have a good time with us. Please recommend us to your friends, other travellers while in Budapest and to everyone else. We do private tours too so we reply to e-mails really fast. Contact us via walkingtourofbuda@gmail.com.

Thank you for reading this list, and by that, learning important information We wish you the best experience during your visit.

HIKES AND EXCURSIONS THAT YOU CAN DO ON YOUR OWN:

Buda Views Hike by Chairlift and the Children's Railway

A favourite hike of mine is to take bus 291 (HUF 400) from its Pest downtown terminal (Nyugati train staion) to its Buda terminal (Zugliget), 25-minute ride, (check out the BudaPest Go App for more info, it's a journey planning and ticketing system) and then take the Buda Chairlift (HUF 3000) from the bottom of the hill to the top of János Hill, the highest point of Budapest. 

The Chairlift is probably the most unique Buda experience you can have in my city. A 15-minute glide above the treetops in a 2-person open chair (very safe, no worries). If you're alone, you'll get to ride alone, they won't make you sit next to a stranger. Once you're up there, there is a great fast-food restaurant with burgers and such. 

Then you can take a 5-minute hike up to the Elizabeth lookout tower, a famous favourite place of Elizabeth Wittelsbach, or Sissi, Empress of Austria and the Queen of Hungary, our star queen where she spent a lot of quality time with people of acclaim, some of whom were worthy noblemen of the Hungarian aristocracy. No entrance fee.

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At this point, you have three choices. 

First, you can take the Chairlift back to the bottom, from where you take the 291 back to Nyugati station. Second, you can walk the ten minutes to the Children's Railway, which is a narrow-gauge mountain railway, operated by children (!) taking you to Hűvösvölgy (this means Cold Walley in Hungarian, and for a reason) from where you have tram 56A to take you back into town. This train is of course for adults, too (HUF 1000). Third, you can walk to Normafa, a favourite hangout of families and nature enthusiasts, about 2 kilometres away on forested roads. Good street food, lángos, palacsinta and sausages. Numerous buses to the downtown leave every 20 minutes. 

Trip to Szentendre - Danube Bend

Szentendre is a picturesque artists' village in the most beautiful region of Hungary just to the north of Budapest, in the Danube Bend. Click here to see the photos I personally took there for you: https://photos.app.goo.gl/YZLeDnuiKdTdoBQH7  It is accessible by the suburban railway line H5 from Batthyányi tér M2 metro station. The ride is about 35 minutes long. As it is just outside the city limits, you will need to purchase an additional ticket besides your normal Budapest ticket or pass. The purple-coloured ticket vending machines highlight this option.

KEEP IN MIND THAT ON MONDAYS ALL MUSEUMS ARE CLOSED AND THE VILLAGE SLEEPS ALL DAY. GO ON OTHER DAYS.

The village is a jewel box Baroque gem, with 17 museums and many shops and restaurants. The best way to do it is by arriving around noon, as there is a boat ride back to Budapest on Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays at 5 PM. 

Main highlights:

Szentendre main square

Szentendre Old Town

Kovács Margit ceramics museum

Ferenczy Museum Centre

Public Transport Museum

Danube embankment

8-pool swimming pool and leisure centre

Ráby House

Belgrade Cathedral - Serbian Church Museum

Szamos Marzipan Museum - my favourite!!!

Art Mill

Skanzen (Open-air Museum of Ethnography) https://skanzen.hu/en - a MUST!

The Spartacus Trail Hike - a real challenge

The most spectacular hiking trail in the Danube Bend. Take H5 suburban train to Szentendre and from next to the train station there the bus to Pilisszentlászló and the bus back to Szentendre from the same bus stop. The hike ends where it starts.

This hike is for experienced and well-equipped people only! Bring proper hiking shoes or boots. 

One of the most beautiful and undoubtedly the most iconic hiking trails in the Visegrád Hills is the bold Spartacus Trail, originally designed for hunters, which became open to hikers for good at the end of September 2015. The spectacular narrow trail between Pilisszentlászló and Visegrád has been  cleaned up, strengthened and equipped with new signs and signposts. Starting from the centre of Pilisszentlászló, our circular tour winds along the Spartacus path to the Telgárthy gorge, then through the wild Apát-kúti valley back to the charming village.

Starting point: Pilisszentlászló, centre.

Nature of the tour:

A hiking tour on well-marked hiking trails with little elevation gain. The Spartacus trail is safe to walk, with narrow sections narrowing to single-track in several places. It winds level up the mountainside, with the more problematic sections reinforced and cleared. In wet weather, it requires extra attention. In the valley of Apat-kút, the stream has to be crossed in several places on fords and stones. On the stretch from Pilisszentlászló to the Telgárthy gorge there is no water supply, so take a good MRE (Meal Ready to Eat, like nutritious sandwiches) and a thermos for a warm drink plus water.

Description of the hike:

:

From the centre of Pilisszentlászló, in the mountain canton, next to the charming little chapel, we start northwest along the asphalt road marked Z. After a kilometre, you leave the last houses of the village at a pretty roadside cross. Back in the woods, follow the new track of the signposted road around the houses of the Delmár-kút estate through the woods. Walking along the wide, comfortable track through a small valley and shady woodland, you soon reach the signposted junction where the Spartacus path begins.

After a few minutes, you will see a sign warning you of the start of the Spartacus trail, which seems to be intended to scare the ordinary tourist a little. The difficult sections require serious physical fitness and the right equipment, according to the sign. The hike here is more adventurous in wet, rainy weather, but after heavy snowfall it can be particularly dangerous, so it's worth choosing a different route. In normal weather conditions, there are no difficulties in walking the Spartacus trail, but you need to be sure-footed and alert. Be sure to wear good quality hiking boots with good ankle support, which will also prove to be a wise decision later on at the fords of the Apátkúti Valley. And a quick-drying, well-ventilated technical T-shirt will make you feel very comfortable even in warm weather.

From September 2015, you can now officially hike on the iconic former hunting trail, which was established in the 1930s and has been guarded by hunting associations for decades. From the signpost, the real adventure begins, turning right onto the well-marked trail that winds roughly level along the mountainside. The green-marked Spartacus Trail stands out from the rest of the Hungarian hiking trails for its bold, spectacular lines, not least for the fantastic panoramic views it offers.

The excellently restored, cleared path winds comfortably along the steep side, sometimes between huge boulders, first through beech woodland, later through sparse groves. After passing the characteristic rock shelter, the Danube ribbon glistens between the Börzsöny and the Visegrád Hills. The path becomes a little tamer and leads through a beautiful beech forest to the abandoned Jenő hut. The original Spartacus trail split into a northern and a southern branch here, the signposted trail takes the northern branch, first along a wide carriage road, then after a few minutes the trail turns right off the carriage road. From here you go over the Apat-kúti valley towards Visegrad.

The character of the road remains unchanged, still level, winding along the steep hillside. Soon you come out again onto a wider carriage road, take a few steps to the right, but watch out because your waymarked path forks suddenly to the left and continues its winding route up the side above the Apátkúti hunting lodge. Soon you come to a fork, the former P∆ sign now continues as a green lane towards Visegrád, we go right, the path now signed Z+ takes us down into the valley to the trout hatchery in a few minutes.

It's worth a detour to the charming Bertényi Miklós Botanical Garden, known for its conifers - tickets are available at the Ördögmalom Forest Restaurant. We continue south on the asphalt road signposted P, passing the beautiful and idyllic Telgárthy Ridge and then the beautiful Apát-kút hunting lodge, passing the trout-farming ponds. Pass the rocky catacombs of the Devil's Mine on the roadside on the left, then at a barrier, P signs lead off the concrete road to the banks of the stream, where you can refresh yourself at the popular, large Kaán spring.

Hike on through the atmospheric Apát-kúti valley, taking the wide, comfortable path along the stream into the valley, which becomes deeper, darker and wilder. After a 10-minute walk, you come across the sparse water of the Alpár spring between the mossy cliffs on the left, then walk between huge boulders in the stream valley, which narrows into gorges. In places we cross fords to the other side of the stream, stepping over rocks on the wild stream bank. The valley slowly flattens and widens, passing two forest rest stops and a Buddhist prayer site before entering the outskirts of Pilisszentlászló. Our P-signposted hiking trail turns into a carriage road, then a concrete road, and we walk into the centre of the village to our starting point, the chapel.

With kind regards, 

Áron Fodor-Mózes