A Guide to Budapest
Thermal Baths
Budapest is renowned for its thermal baths scattered all over the city. There are over 80 different "springs" to choose from, with the most popular one being the Szechenyi Baths that are over 100 years old. These famous yellow buildings house 18 pools with a mixture of hot and cooler temperature pools. They are open everyday, have lap pools, whirl pools, fountains and inside and outside options. Although slightly pricey to enter, the Szechenyi baths are quite a sight to see. They also hold pool parties almost every Saturday night that get REALLY crazy but are meant to be incredible. If you don't visit these baths then there are plenty of others to choose from nearby. You are spoilt for choice, but you should definitely experience one of them.
Fisherman's Bastion
Fisherman's Bastion
The Fisherman's Bastion is located on the Buda side of the city and has been around since the 19th century. It overlooks the Danube river and almost all of Budapest. It looks like a fairytale castle and has so many different sections to explore from the Mathias Gothic church to all the staircases, towers, arches, statues and view points. The views really are incredible and it all looks like something out of Hogwarts.
Danube River (by night)
A must-do in Budapest is a river cruise by night along the Danube River. There are lots of different
companies and boats that offer them with dinner and drinks on board and it's an incredible way to see the city. One of the most remarkable sights on these river cruises is the 100 year old Parliament House which is the biggest building in Hungary. By day it stands in all its 'Gothic revival' glory begging to be explored, and by night its spectacular lights draw all eyes to its beauty.
House of Terror
The House of Terror is a museum that exhibits both the fascist and communist regimes that ruled the country in the 20th century. It also has a memorial for all the victims who suffered during these cruel periods, several floors including a basement where there are padded cells and torture exhibits. If you aren't a museum goer, at least try and do a drive/walk by of this building as it's eerie architecture is worth the trip, and when the sun hits the building at a certain time the words "TERROR" are meant to appear on the sidewalk.
Margaret Island (Margit-sziget)
Margaret Island was one of my favourite parts of Budapest and possibly the cities biggest hidden gem! One extremely hot, forty degree day, my boyfriend and I were sweating from every crevice of our bodies and were on a frantic search for a swimming pool in a city that was famous for thermal baths. Typical. With no swimming pools showing up on google maps and a language barrier that prevented us from conveying the "we're hot as f*ck" message, we thought all hope was lost. Then the clouds opened up above us and the heat gods sent us a guardian angel in disguise as a hostel receptionist who pointed out a huge slab of land in the middle of the Danube river on a map on his desk. He simply said, "water slides" and we were sold.
After a complicated, illegal tram journey and narrowly escaping an overweight, evil transport officer who mistakenly gave us directions to the island and then proceeded to attempt to chase us through a crowd whilst threatening to call the cops and fine us, (because we may not have bought tickets) we made it!
Obviously finding these "water slides" was our first priority due to the heat, but on our way we passed beer gardens, food stalls, water fountains, gardens, ponds and people riding around on all sorts of crazy carts, bikes and electric mini cars that looked like pick up trucks. It was all quite an experience and we definitely didn't get to see everything this amazing little Island had to offer.
It was very fairytale like with forests and old ruins and winding paths, and after some hand gestures that were meant to look like water slides we were pointed north where we walked until we felt like Little Red Riding Hood lost in the woods, until finally, this big building rose up ahead and HALLELUJAH we had reached our destination. This incredible little island has a water park smack bang in the middle of it thats super cheap (to get in to and to get a locker for your stuff), has water slides, whirl pools, wave pools, cool and warm pools, food and drink, and it was such a great atmosphere.
If you go to Budapest you cannot skip visiting this Island, I would go back in a heartbeat! Explore every inch of it and experience it all!
Food Markets
After our magical visit to the famous Szechenyi Baths, we literally walked outside and saw all these markets across the road. To this day we have no idea what the event was, what it was for, nor what the name of it was, but there was FOOD, and LOTS of it. We wandered over in a hungry daze and wanted to eat absolutely everything. They had coffee, smoothies, juices, slushies, hot dogs, mexican carts, german sausages, chips, pork knuckles, kebabs, sweets, chocolate fondue and heaps of traditional hungarian food, as well as a huge stage with live music, mini petting zoos, and so much more. It was amazing and led us into the Vajdahunyad Castle and some lovely gardens. There are also botanical gardens and a zoo behind the baths. We were super lucky to come across these random markets and enjoy the amazing food and atmosphere. Even if you miss the random food markets, the castle, gardens and architecture around the Szechenyi Baths are a good little exploration to check out.
Heroes Square
Photo: lovintrends
Heroes Square is also on the way to the famous baths, as it is very close by and a popular metro stop. It is one of the most visited and popular sights in Budapest commemorating important national leaders, a tomb of an unknown soldier and the Seven Cheiftans of the Magyars. Whilst visiting you may get the same pleasure as I did experiencing a one direction fan club gathering, a group of men on a peddle-bar (a literal bar on wheels that you have to peddle to make move, whilst drinking beer) and lots of crazy tourists.
Ruin Bars
Another AMAZING and absolute favourite parts of Budapest is their ruin bars/pubs. From my understanding there was a time where a huge number of old buildings were due to be demolished and abandoned, but were instead, refurbished with old bits of furniture, and done up with old bits of junk, lights, seating and plenty of alcohol, to create this retro style pubs that totally reinvented the nightlife of budapest. There are loads of really unique ruins pubs scattered around the city and they are such great places to be. Cheap drinks, great music, and some of them are so intricate that just exploring the rooms are fun. My favourite (pictured above) had all these rooms that reminded me of scenes out of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, because we were all so drunk and kept sitting in these rooms full of fuzzy old tv and computer screens that would then show really random images, lots of blinking lights and tangled cables. There was an outdoor cinema, and all sorts of old machines stuck on the wall, and the place was pumping! There were such great atmospheres in all of them, and if you miss out on these you will 100% regret your life choices!
St Stephens Basilica
Another architectural beauty is the St Stephens Basillica located on the Pest side of the city. It is the largest church in Budapest and took over 50 years to build. It's pretty incredible to look at, inside and out, even if you aren't religious, it was quite interesting to look around.
Chain Bridge
Chain Bridge
The Chain Bridge is a beautiful bridge connecting Buda and Pest with two lion statues on either side of it. It looks amazing and has a beautiful view of the Danube River and the city. Not only is it beautiful to look at but it has a really dark myth/story about it that the sculpture of the lions apparently forgot to give them tongues and soon after the success of the bridge, he jumped off of it in a sort of poetic justice? Not sure if thats true, but it's definitely an interesting story!
Escape Rooms
A unique and quirky little trick that Budapest has up it's sleeve are the Escape Rooms (now more popular in major cities). These rooms are hidden in alleys and ruin bars and all kinds of places. The allure is that you are shut in a room with a group (you make your own groups) and your aim is to solve the puzzle of the room within an hour. They have some crazy things like hidden doors and keys and phone booths and maps and keys and intricate puzzles and mazes and codes, and the whole thing is so much fun, especially with your friends. They are really challenging but doable, and worth the entertainment.
Food
Definitely my most crucial information when travelling, food is everything. Budapest has a mixture of westernised food places such as TGI Fridays, Wok to Walk, McDonalds and possibly even a subway, as well as having some really great, cheap restaurants that offer you a taste of traditional Hungarian foods like the delicious Goulash soup. Most of the food is super affordable as Budapest is a cheap country and there are supermarkets where you can buy most of the normal snack foods and even meals to cook yourself if you have an apartment. I would recommend trying a local place at least one of the nights you visit.
Transport
Budapest has a great transport system with underground trains (the metro), trams, ferries and buses. There are all quite easy to understand, excluding the incident I experienced with the tram service. It wasn't super clear where you bought a ticket so we kind of just hopped on and hoped for the best and even though we only had to travel three stops, we unluckily ran into the transport officer who tried to fine us. Make sure you ask your hotel/hostel receptionists for directions, maps and tips on where to buy tickets, etc. Nothing is really that far away, and most of it is walkable if you have to.
Accommodation
There are lots of REALLY nice hotels in Budapest, however on my travel budget I always opt for the hostels. My favourite/only one I've stayed in is the Wombats Hostel which I think has a great location and is an AMAZING hostel. It's got a kitchen, common room, bar with themed nights, super helpful staff, really big spacious rooms and a really nice atmosphere. Its in walking distance to central metro and tram stops (where you can travel to the Szechenyi Baths, Heroes Square, Margaret Island, etc), supermarkets, atms, bottle shops, ruin bars, lots of great food places, a massive shopping centre and St Stephens Basilica is just around the corner. Otherwise accommodation is pretty reasonably priced.
Currency
In Budapest they use the Hungarian Forint (HUF) and at the moment one British Pound will buy you about 400 HUF, or 1 Australian Dollar will buy you about 200 HUF. Things are very cheap in Budapest, the booze, the food, the clubs and everything in between isn't so bad either.
So PLEASE, if you're looking for a hidden gem in Europe, you want an affordable but amazing trip, then make sure you give Budapest a visit. It's an incredibly old and beautiful city with so many things to do and see and explore. I've been there twice and aim to go again in the near future. The people are fun and friendly, the food is amazing, the baths are incredible, the nightlife is pumping and there is an endless list of possible adventures. Put it on your bucket list!
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