Destination: Budapest Dates: March 2017 Nights: 2 nights Hotel: A&D Designer Homes- through Booking.com Highlights: River Danube, the pubs and ruins, and thermal baths Low lights: Customer service, buildings in bad conditions and graffiti
Day 1. Getting Dan-a-be 30!!
We got a taxi from the airport to Budapest city centre. It was a 35-minute drive and cost us 25 euros. You can take public transport to the city centre, which can be found here.
Check-in wasn’t until 3pm, so we grabbed a coffee and walked around. Coffee in Budapest is probably the cheapest we have paid compared to other European countries. A cappuccino or tea will cost you around 330-400 HUF (around £1).
We stayed in A&D Designer Home Apartments within the Jewish Quarter. The area itself had a gothically historic feel. As we walked passed several underground gentlemen’s clubs we quickly realized we were possibly staying in Budapest’s red-light district, which in the shadow of the huge synagogue felt somewhat seedy, but also not unsafe. The apartment was clean, spacious, and comfortable. Being on the top floor you had some great views of Budapest. The apartment was close enough to the inner city and within walking distance to the main attractions (as seen on the map below).
Once in the apartment, we had to secretly decorate it with the small number of party props I managed to fit into my hand luggage. It’s the thought that counts!
I had pre-booked a surprise Budapest Dunabe Cruise for the birthday girl. It cost £40 per person which included:
- a 3-hour cruise
- live Gipsy music
- a folklore program and operetta singer
- a 4-course dinner
- a glass of champagne or ”pálinka
After a terrible effort to surprise the birthday girl by telling her not to come out yet, she opened her presents and we got ready for a night on the Danube.
We headed down to Dock 11, near Elisabeth Bridge, to locate our white and purple boat. We were greeted with a glass of champagne and shown to our table.
We were placed at the front, near the action. We were served our 4-course dinner, which was nice but not memorable. The best thing about the cruise was the entertainment and Budapest at night. The dancers were energized and got the crowd moving by getting us up on the stage. After some traditional dancing and drinking, it was time to disembark and see Budapest’s nightlife.
As it started to rain, we didn’t have to walk far when we found Marhaba Shisha Bar Budapest on Pilvax Kov street, it had a good atmosphere, cosy seating, good cocktails, and more importantly, great shisha.
After a few cocktails and apple flavoured shisha, we walked back to the apartment. That’s where the nightlife was hiding, right under our noses. What a contrast to the morning. We could hear music coming from somewhere close, but couldn’t pinpoint where. Once in the apartment, we found the source. There is a rooftop night club opposite the apartment, which can be very loud on a Saturday night. We didn’t mind as they were playing old skool R’n’B. The timing was perfect as we were celebrating a 30th birthday and what a way to celebrate than to take us back to the ’90s.
Day 2. Absolutely ruined!
Today was a great day for exploring as the sun made an appearance. We wanted to check out the other side of the river, or what locals call Buda! The big hill seemed like a great place to start. From here, we found the Liberty Statue, which was erected in 1947, commemorating those who lost their lives for the country. It was only a 30-minute walk from the apartment. There is plenty of history and places to capture views of the city on this hill.
We walked down to Vaci Street, the most known street in Budapest for its high street shops, restaurants, and cafes catered primarily to tourists. We grabbed something to eat before tracking down the unique memorial of Shoes on the Danube Bank.
It was a very moving piece of art reminding us of a dark part of history. People were lighting candles, putting down flowers, and paying respect to the fallen.
If you carry on walking alongside the river you will find the Hungarian Parliament Building, which is the most iconic and largest building in Budapest, and you can see why.
After a stroll around the parliament building, we found ourselves in Liberty Square, which is a nice park with 6 separate paths leading to the Soviet War Memorial. The park has a lot of monuments and is a constant reminder of Hungarian history. The park is surrounded by beautiful architecture. At the bottom, you will find the Archangel Gabriel statue with an exhibition with news articles, personal stories, and pictures of so many Jewish survivors.
The weather took a turn so what a great opportunity to take cover inside a Hungarian restaurant! We found a small, cosy place called Kispiac Bisztro, near the park. What a find! Meat heaven, simply done and bursting with flavour. It definitely pays to go off the beaten track.
As the evening approached, we walked back alongside the river to see the Széchenyi Chain Bridge, the first permanent bridge to be built on the River Danube, connecting Buda and Pest. It was nice reading couples’ dedication to each other in the form of a padlock.
Our last night in Budapest was spent in one of the ruin bars. When I was researching what to do in Budapest, Szimpla Kert, Budapest’s iconic ruin bar kept coming up, luckily it was only a stone’s throw away from the apartment. It would have been rude not to!!
This use to be known as an offbeat bar, nowadays it is full of tourists doing what we were doing getting that Kodak moment. Nevertheless, it’s still worth experiencing.
Day 3. Strip, Dip, and Pawn!
Did someone say thermal baths? Yes, please! We made our way down to Szechenya Spa Baths. It’s located straight down Andrassy Avenue, which was a 30-minute walk from the apartment. Andrassy Avenue is one of Budapest’s main shopping streets, with cafes, restaurants, theatres, Embassies, and luxury boutiques. At the end of the avenue is Heroes’ Square, which is part of the UNESCO World Hertigate site. After a selfie with the statues of the leaders that founded Hungary, we were off to the spa. We paid just under £10 for a daily ticket with locker usage. The weather was cold enough to get into the warm waters and play a bad game of chess!
The Travel Bug 