The late summer and the autumn is the most popular time of the year to visit Budapest, and we already notice an increased amount of requests dealing with guided tours, excursions, Danube Cruises and similar activities. But, a very important part of the planing is finding a suitable hotel in central Budapest, and we have written this article to help you. The hotels mentioned are all located in central Budapest and they have good prices on hotel rooms at the moment.
We wish you a pleasant stay in Budapest and hope you find a good hotel suiting your needs and your budget.
I will arrive to Budapest Airport Terminal 2, and wonder how I can get from here to the Obudai Island where the Sziget Fes(z)tival is arranged. Can you please help?
In general we would recommend arranging with an airport transfer which is not especially expensive, but it will take you directly from the airport to the island and it is a very efficient way of getting there. Still, if you want a more advanced and public transportation way of getting to the Obudai Island, Sziget Fesztival, the following can be a working solution.
First travel with bus 200E from Budapest Airport Terminal 2 to Köbánya Kispest (metro station). From there you can travel with the metro to Deák Tér, then change to the red metro and travel to Batthány Tér (red metro). There you can change to the HEV traveling towards Szentendre. You need to stop at Filatorgiat, and then you are there.
Another option, much easier, is to travel with the special bus for the Sziget Festival from Liszt Ferenc Airport (Budapest Airport). This will be operating between August 4th and 8th between 9 in the morning and 00.30 every day, every second hour. On August 13th this bus will be operating from 3.00 til 14.00 transporting people back to the airport. We do not know anything about the actual cost of this bus, but it seems like a good solution to get from the airport to Obudai Island (this information is valid for Sziget Fesztival in 2012…)
In case you are confused, Obudai Island is the same as Hajogyári sziget and Óbudai sziget. These are just other versions of the same place.
Just a few months after Budapest Airport terminal 1 closed down due to lack in passengers it is about to reopen as a parking lot for people wanting to leave their car outside the centre of Budapest and keep traveling with train from there. This is an ideal solution as the new Ferihegy train station opened some years ago, and it can serve as an easier way to get to the city center, instead of bringing the car all the way.
The fee for parking here is supposed to be around 500 HUF per hour if you park from 0-12 hours. The monthly ticket for parking here, much more interesting for people who would like to use this on a daily basis is to cost 12,000 HUF.
No, there are no 48-hour tickets available. The only option is the 48-hour Budapest Card, but that costs 10,000 HUF almost and you need to visit a lot of museums for this to be worth the price. You could consider the “csoportos 24 órás jegy“, or as it would be in English: “Group ticket for 24 hours“. This can be used for up to 5 persons travelling together all the time, in the same wagon. The price is 3100 HUF and is worth using for families and larger groups traveling together. IF you are three persons, then the price for two such cards would be only 6200 HUF, compared to three persons buying the Budapest Card would cost 30,000 HUF.
You can buy this tickets described here at the larger metro stations around in Budapest.
You could consider the 72 hour ticket if you stay for three days which costs 3850 HUF per person.
We are coming to Budapest in December for the Christmas markets. We will be staying in the centre of Budapest? What is the crime rate, will we be safe to wander around at night?
Our answer is not scientific, but rather based on the experiences we have from other tourists we know and also as locals who have been hanging out in the city for a long time. In general there is not much crime taking place in the centre of Budapest, neither during daytime or by night. The crime taking place is not violent crime, but rather pick pockets and women tricking you into night clubs where you later get high bills and similar. The American Embassy writes:
“Crime in Budapest is a concern. Be careful during your visit, and exercise the same caution you would in any big city or tourist area at home. Do not walk alone at night; keep your belongings secure at all times. Passports, cash, and credit cards are favorite targets of thieves. Keep items that you do not store in your hotel safe or residence in a safe place, but be aware that pockets, purses, and backpacks are especially vulnerable, even if they close with a zipper. We recommend you use a travel money belt that keeps your cash and passport under your outer clothing and well out of view. Be sure to secure these items when you get back to your hotel or residence. “
If you are a girl or a lady it is especially important not to walk alone, but always have someone to walk with in the evenings. In most situations, 99.9%, there will be no problem if you walk alone, but still sometimes you can hear of situations where things have happened to people walking alone. BUT, that is very seldom, and you do not really need to be afraid… just be careful, and do not be stupid!
As a tourist you will mostly avoid those areas recognized as dangerous in Budapest, so we recommend that you stay in the city centre, enjoy life there and just common sense!
If you have any feedback, response or maybe disagree with our text, just write a comment!
I am planning to buy a vacation home in Budapest and wonder what is the best area to buy a vacation home in?
There are several areas in Budapest and in Hungary ideal for a vacation home. In the typical alpine regions of Europe you can find luxury chalets available, and in certain areas of Hungary you can find similar constructions to the chalets found elsewhere in Europe, though not as nice and large and luxurious as in Austria, Switzerland and similar nations. In Budapest there are no real mountains with fresh air, but a Hungarian citizen would say that Rozsadomb on the Budaside is a very nice area for living. But, that is not an ideal vacation home area either.
If you want the feeling of living by the seaside we would recommend an apartment/hotel located at the Romai Part. This is located a bit north of Budapest, and here you can walk and buy food, drinks and snacks from smaller and larger restaurants located along the Danube. These are typical summer houses, but maybe not so much of a place for a winter time. If you want to live in an area with lots of summer houses side by side, but not on the Romai Part the so called Szentendre Island is a popular area, for example in Surany.
For those in love with Budapest, they will not want a vacation home outside the city center, but rather somewhere as central as possible, so that only leaving the flat, you will be out where things happen in the centre of Budapest. If that is you, then you should consider a flat in the Corvin District (Corvin Negyed), or maybe somewhere else in a new apartment house inside the Great Boulevard (nagykörüt).
If none of these interest you, then maybe you should got for a house with a garden on the Budaside, somewhere in the Budafok area. There you can find larger properties with gardens, possibility to plant grapes and of course the chance to live in an area with wine cellars, the Törley champagne factory and larger green areas.
Budapest has something for everyone, be it a summer home by the Danube, a house with a garden full of grapes or a central apartment in the city center. Good luck finding a vacation home in Budapest!
It is impossible to really answer such a question, as no answer is totally objective, and everyone will answer differently to that question. But, we can at least try to answer it, and then hopefully this answer will make it a bit easier for you to decide what five star hotel you want to stay in while in Budapest! Budapest is not the place for luxury chalets, but rather large large luxurious hotels in the city center with magnificent decorations on the inside, a real royalty feeling to them and service that make you feel like a dignity or some other super star, at least that is the way it is supposed to be!
Corinthia Grand Hotel Royal
If you visit a site such as TripAdvisor they will say that Corinthia Grand Hotel Royalis the best five star hotel in Budapest. The hotel has been voted among the most luxurious hotels in the world year after year and it is without a doubt a brilliant hotel with an amazing service, a wonderful Royal Spa on the inside and other services. Our problem with the hotel is the location, a bit outside the inner city center and not really ideal in our eyes. But, if you plan on staying a lot inside the hotel and only want pure luxury, this is probably it!
For a long time Four Seasons, located by the Danube and the Chain Bridge has been very popular among stars and celebrities coming to Budapest. It has a brilliant location, great service and everything is perfect, still – for us something is missing!
Some would say New York Palace, but the problem is the same as with Corinthia Grand Hotel Royal, the location (they are almost neighbours).
So, if we would decide – and in this answer we do… our favourite hotel would be Kempinski. It has a brilliant location, though the minus is that it has no view of Danube. But, within a few minutes you can walk to the Danube and that will have to do. You are near public transportation, near the shopping street, near a big park and everything can be reached within minutes from here. The hotel looks very nice both on the inside and the outside, and they have a very nice spa area, lots of treatments available and it is a stunning hotel! If the Danube view is important, we would go for Four Seasons instead!
Maybe you do not agree? Write your comment and share your wisdom on the subject!
Where can I buy public transportation tickets in Budapest?
You can buy tickets for the public transportation in Budapest at almost all metro stations (except from some station on the yellow line travelling between Vörösmarty Tér and Mexikói Út). In addition to this you can buy some tickets at newspaper/magazine shops (Relay) and other small stores around in Budapest. Some bus stops have small ticket sale stands from where you can buy tickets, but in general the only safe place to go where you for sure can buy tickets are the metro stations. They have different opening times, but often they open 5.00 or 6.00 in the morning and stay open until 20.00 or even later in the evening.
Can I buy a one week transportation card at Budapest Airport? Or maybe a single day ticket or a three day ticket?
It is not possible to buy daypass, three-day pass or a week pass at Budapest Airport. The only thing you can buy at the airport is single tickets, a package of ten single tickets and Budapest Pass. In most situations we do though not recommend the Budapest Pass, as that only is worth the money for those who plan to visit A LOT of museums and so on. For the normal usage of public transportation and maybe for visiting a few museums it is better worth simple buying a normal Budapest transportation ticket (3-day pass or 7-day pass) and later paying full entrance fee on the different places.
What to do then? As you arrive at the airport you can buy a single ticket at the Relay shop at the airport. Enter the bus, validate your ticket and travel to Köbánya Kispest (end station of the bus). There you can buy all tickets available, also the 1-day pass, 3-day pass and 7-day pass, and from there you can travel on with the metro to the city center of Budapest.
