What to see and do in Budapest?

In My Humble Opinion
1

I’m going to Prague, Vienna, and Budapest in July, and am looking for some advice from my fellow Dopers. What should I see and do while I’m in Budapest? (I’ve created parallel threads here about Prague and Vienna if you have any suggestions about them.)

I don’t need advice on the ten or twenty things that are at the top of everyone’s lists. Assume that I’ve read about all of them and will be visiting some and have ruled out the rest.

What I’m looking for are your suggestions for things I might not otherwise have considered that are as good as, or better than, the big obvious attractions. Essential Budapest things that the guidebooks may have missed. Or advice about ways to get around the city, ways to save money or avoid crowds while doing touristy things, traps to avoid, great places to eat, etc., etc.

I like science, technology, transportation, modern art, classical music, and weird and offbeat things.

We’ll be there from July 12-14 if you want to recommend any events, concerts, etc.

Thanks.

2

I lived there from 1998 - 2003, last visited in 2007, so I could help you out.

First, for food, http://chew.hu is a great English-language resource. The Top 33 list link at the top of the page is very well researched and dependable. I would say, if you want Hungarian food, Café Kör comes highly recommended from me (and it’s been on that Top 33 list since I lived there). It’s also not far from Liszt Ferenc tér (Franz Liszt square), a great spot for taking in the Hungarian coffeehouse culture and people watching. It’s a really bustling area during the summer, and the Franz Liszt musical academy is right there. If you can catch a concert there, you should definitely do so.

Do not miss a visit to the famous thermal baths of Budapest. My favorite tourist-friendly one is the Szechenyi Baths, located in City Park (Varósliget) near Heroes Square (Hősök tere). The place is huge and can be a bit of maze to navigate: not only do you have the big outdoor pools (there’s two thermal pools and a swimming pool), but you also have saunas, steamrooms, massage rooms, and additional thermal baths, etc., on the inside. If you’re a little more adventurous and want something even more historical, you might want to check out the Rudas Baths, a Turkish bathhouse dating back to the 16th century. It used to also be a place to spot Bobby Fischer back in the days he was hanging out in Budapest. Unless things have changed, the baths are single-sex, male only. (Although I believe there is a pool section that allows women.)

Let’s see, if you like transportation, Budapest is home to Continental Europe’s first underground, the Metro 1 (Yellow) line that runs from Vörösmarty tér (just east of the Danube, smack dab in the middle of the touristy/shopping district) up Andrassy út (Budapest’s grandest boulevard) to a terminus just past City Park. It’s quite cute (basically, it looks like an underground tram rather than the big hulking subways of Metro Lines 2 & 3). A reasonable itinerary could be to enjoy a coffee and cake at the Cafe Gerbaud on Vörösmarty tér, take the #1 line up to the baths, enjoy the baths, walk back down through Heroes Square (where you have two art museums nearby to choose from: the main Budapest fine art museum (Szépművészeti Múzeum) as well as a smaller contemporary art museum, the Műcsarnok. I’d peruse an art museum, then continue my way down Andrassy, passing Franz Liszt Square and the Opera house to Café Kör for dinner. Here’s my suggested route. That should take up a good bit of your day.

If you’ve still got energy at this point, keep walking west, and cross the Danube on the Chain Bridge (Lánchíd), Budapest’s most famous bridge. When you cross the bridge, there is very nice pub, the Lánchíd Söröző, located right off the traffic cricle, to your right. If you’re thirsty, stop by for a couple of pints there. Despite the fact that it’s located right by the Chain Bridge at the base of Castle Hill, it’s actually quite populated by locals. This was my local hangout and, in my opinion, one of the nicest bars in Budapest. Be sure to try some of the local hard alcohols (if you’re into that sort of thing). Unicum is famous Hungarian bitter which is probably most comparable to Jagermeister, but less sweet and more bitter and herbal. Also, ask for the házipalinka (“hozzy-paw-leen-kaw”), which is the house brandy, a clear distillate of fruit juices, with fruit varying depending on the producer, but can feature plums, peaches, pears, etc.

If you don’t feel like stopping for a pint (or after you’ve refreshed), you can continue heading west onto the path which will lead you up Castle Hill into the part of Budapest I like to call “Disney Buda.” Or, if you want, you can take the overpriced (IMO) funicular up the hill, just so you can introduce that word into conversation. Once atop Castle Hill, there’s a very good contemporary art museum that I enjoyed, the Ludwig Museum. This is just a good part of Budapest to lose yourself in, but not so much to eat and drink in. Wander around the castle and Fisherman’s Bastion. If you’re lucky, there may be a free organ concert at St. Matthias Church (highly recommended.)

Forgive me for rambling. I can go on for much longer, but this should give you a starting point. If you have any specific questions, I’m happy to help. My knowledge is a little outdated for the more hip hangouts. If you do like pub culture, Budapest has exploded with courtyard beer gardens, which started becoming popular in about 2003, right when I was moving out. Szimpla kert was one of the first, opening up in an abandoned building in an old section of the Jewish Quarter. Oh, actually, looks like there’s a whole website devoted to these types of pubs, called Ruinpubs, apparently.

Anyhow, let any questions fly.

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I should add, I know that my advice above has some of the typical touristy things, but I just want you to add to what the guidebooks say so you have an idea what someone who’s lived there for awhile thinks is worth seeing, in case you’re on the fence about anything. The absolute best guidebook for Budapest, and, in my opinion, the best city guidebook I’ve ever read, is Andras Torok’s Budapest: A Critical Guide. You probably don’t need or want another guidebook at this point, but I would definitely consider this one for an insider’s perspective on the city.

Another one that just popped to mind that’s off-beat and transportation related is The Children’s Railway, which is a small rail line that runs in the hills of Buda, operated by children (well, with adult supervision, of course.)

Also, Statue Park is a bit of a surreal graveyard of the giant communist-era statues that used to inhabit Budapest before the fall.

4

An afternoon at the Museum of Electrotechnology in Budapest is counted among my most cherished memories. We wandered in accidentally – and were both fascinated by the exhibits and charmed by the retired-physics-professor docents, who actually seemed crushed that we did not have enough time before closing to tour all the exhibits in detail.

At one point, one of the docents was showing us a battery and we asked how it worked. He could not remember the right word (“am usually giving tour in German”) and he was wracking his brain, getting frustrated, until finnally he blurted out: H(2)SO(4)!!! And we said Oh! Sulphuric Acid and he said YES and he was so pleased with us, I felt like I got an A on the quiz. :smiley:

Magyar Elektrotechnikai Muzeum
Kazinczy utca 21
Budapest, Pest 1075
Hungary
http://www.emuzeum.hu

5

I liked Statue Park, but it helps if you are already interested in all things Soviet, and it is a bit of a hike if you are only in town for 2-3 days.

I, personally, might skip the Castle District, and instead hike up Gellert Hill. You can do this by starting on any side of it and walking up. If you do start just behind the Gellert Baths, you can see a cave church along the way, as well as the house where Raoul Wallenberg saved a bunch of Jews from the Nazis. At the top, you can see the Leaf Lady and the Citadella.

I lived there in 2001, and visited in 2003 and 2005, so my food selections must be out of date.

How to get to the Children’s Railway (2-3 hours, 6 modes of trasport, beautiful views): Start at Moszkva Ter. Take the #18 Tram (Villamos) 2 stops to Varosmajor. Get onto the Cogwheel railway, and take it to the end. Walk 5 mins to find the Children’s Railway, actually run by children! Take it to Janos Hegy. Hike up (follow everyone else) 20 minutes to the chairlift (libego), but before you get on, hike another 10 minutes to the lookout tower on top of the hill. After the chairlift, take the bus (only one here) back to Moszkva Ter. This trip sounds weird, but it is really pretty, and worth the time. (Also, check my work against the transit map!)

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I couldn’t emphasize this enough. We made the mistake of waiting toward the end of our trip to visit the baths–they were amazing and we could’ve gone every day. Great people watching, very relaxing, just wonderful.

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This is a good point. Make time to go to the baths on at least two days. It is the best thing to do in Budapest.

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Just to be clear: we should go there to bathe, or just see them? If the former, what is the protocol? Is it like a hot tub at a spa? You just sit there and relax, or is there more to it? Bathing suits? Lots of other people around?

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I loved my visits to Budapest.

Definitely bathe! Bring swimsuits, towels. I think slippers are provided (?). It’s very free and easy; just do what you like - chill out in the pools or go in the jacuzzis. People are very helpful and will let you know what to do. I went in a 70C steam room when I was there. Jesus!

Here’s what I wrote after my first visit. I’ve been back twice since, the most recently was two weeks ago. It’s a really fun city. My favourite phenomenon is the “movable pub”.

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Different locations have varying set-ups, but most of them have multiple pools–some really large, some much smaller, most usually 2 degrees off of each other (covering perhaps a 16-degree C range), so once you start getting a little too warm/cold, you just hop over to an adjoiningg pool to get a little variety. It doesn’t sound like much, but the time simply evaporated when we were there. It’s not rarefied like a spa either (though some places have similar amenities)–you see all ages and body types, a real cross-section of the populace who come there during their lunch break or after work. It, from all appearances, is a very common ritual among the citizens there, and I can understand why–it’s very relaxing (no yelling or horseplay, just mellow and serene). The baths provide towels and little lockers or secured hutches to change in and store your stuff. All very low-key and service-oriented, though the buildings are often stunningly beautiful.

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Yeah, I was referring to the Szechenyi baths specifically. I went to another, more modern one in Debrecen too, and the setup was quite similar.

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Like you say, different locations vary. Some of the baths cover a higher range. Rudas, for instance, goes from 16C - 42C. But 20C - 38C would probably be the most typical range.

Anyhow, one common ritual in the baths is alternating the hottest baths with the coldest baths, and then relaxing in a normal temp pool. Or doing the same with the sauna, alternating the sauna or steam bath with cold water baths, and then layout out on one of the tables in the relaxation room they have next to the sauna in Szechenyi.

Also, it’s worth reading the etiquette tips on the baths.