Budapest Archives - Page 8 of 50

Budapest in October

Posted on September 27, 2012April 8, 2026 by Budablogger

Budapest in October is a great city to visit in most situations and you are most likely to get great weather and some nice temperatures, even though things are a bit more uncertain than in Budapest in September or the main summer months. Still many people prefer October to the other months, especially if they are satisfied with temperatures around 20 degrees and consider everything above that as too warm. Read this article to get more information about the weather, recommended activities, festivals and good hotels in Budapest in October.

Weather in Budapest in October

The average temperature in Budapest in October is somewhere around 13 Celsius. Still, it will normally get quite a lot warmer during daytime, and in the hottest October Budapest has had an average temperature around 16 Celsius. It gets quite a lot colder in the evenings, but it is still a comfortable weather.

If you wonder what clothes to bring, you can in general bring some typical autumn clothes with your t-shirt and shorts available, but you should also be prepared with a jacket somewhere. The most important is to check the weather forecast a few days before arrival, that will probably give you some last advices on how to pack your suitace. On a bad October day with strong wind, you might need your jacket, but in general October is a nice month when a sweater should be more than enough.

Activities in Budapest in October

As a great autumn month, Budapest has some great activities and programs available in October month. Most of your time should be spent outdoors and you should prepare for some long and nice walks in the central areas of the Hungarian capital. October is also a great month for wine tasting and a great month for visit the magic city of Szentendre. Here you can walk around in nice weather, eat good food and shop traditional Hungarian handicrafts. There are some organized tours going to Szentendre as well, some of them including wine tasting which we can warmly recommend in this period of the year.

Knowing that the winter is approaching you should enjoy the last days of the year when restaurants have outdoor areas available, so if you can, drop by an outdoor cafe or restaurant instead of hiding inside a basement or some other inside restaurant somewhere. A great area for such outdoor restaurants and cafes are Raday Utca (by Kalvin square) or Liszt Ferenc square (near Októgon). If you look for a popular indoor restaurant in this area Sir Lancelot is a good example of such a restaurant. That is though a very special restaurant, so if you look for a more typical kind of restaurant in the central Budapest area, why not read the article about good restaurants near the St Stephens Basilica?

October is also a month with quite a lot of concerts, so if you are lucky one of your favorite artists might be performing in some popular Budapest concert venue. The most popular of them all for indoor concerts is Budapest Sportarena, located by the metro station (red line) Stadionok.

Hungarian national day – October 23rd

October 23rd is one of three national days in Hungary. On this day the people of Hungary celebrate their revolution against the Sovjetian army in 1956. Their fight was not in vain and inspired people around the globe to fight the Communist reign. The revolution started as a success and the communists had to leave the country, but less than two weeks later they returned stronger than ever, and the revolution was stopped. On October 23rd in Hungary today there are some special programs going on in front of memorials, by the Parliament and flowers are placed at important locations in the city, but except from that this is not a very special day. All shops are closed, while restaurants and cinemas stay open.

Festivals in October

There are some festivals in Budapest in this month, and though there are not at all as many as you can find in Budapest in September, there are still some things worth checking out.

Palinka and Sausage festival

The Palinka and Sausage festival is one of the highlights in the October month in Budapest. It was arranged for the first time in 2009 and has since then been a great success. The location is in the Castle area and this is the place to taste lots of different sausages and drink some of the Hungarian fruit spirit named Palinka.

Café Budapest festival

Café Budapest is a new name for a baby we have known for a long time, the Budapest Autumn Festival (founded in 1992). This festival celebrates contemporary art featuring today’s progressive art and artists. During the festival there are loads of concerts arranged, so if you are into some contemporary concerts with alternative sounds, noices, accoustic and electric concerts… this festival might be interesting for you!

SPAR Marathon in Budapest

The most popular marathon in Hungary throughout the entire year is arranged in Budapest in October. The full name of the marathon is SPAR Budapest International Marathon, and they have arranged this marathon soon 30 times. More than 30,000 people participate, though not all in the full marathon (43km). There are also shorter distances available, so that everyone will find a length suitable for their shape and legs. The marathon is normally arranged in the start of October, first or second Sunday.

Chimney Cake festival

In 2013 the Chimney Cake festival will be arranged in Budapest for the first time. Here you can taste different kinds of Chimney Cakes, listen to popular Hungarian music at one of the many concerts and partake in competitions of different kinds. More information about the festival here.

Good hotels in October

A good hotel is a good hotel in all seasons of the year, still there are different requirements you have to a hotel depending on the month. In October you should expect nice weather, meaning you will spend most of your time outside the walls of the hotel, which means that you do not need a whole lot of extra services inside your hotel. Instead of staying in an expensive hotel with large SPA you can save some money and stay in a cheaper hotel, and rather visit on of the outdoor thermal baths like Széchenyi Fürdő instead. Air-condition is not that important anymore either, but since most hotels have that service anyway, that does not influence the price so much. A cheap and central 3 star hotel in this season can be Cosmo Fashion Hotel. If you want four stars we would say Eurostars Budapest Center. This is a central four-star hotel with good prices, but not to much extras, meaning ideal if you plan on spending more time outside the hotel than on the inside of it. If you yearn for some extra luxury and five stars, why not choose Marriott and enjoy the beautiful view towards the Danube in the evenings.

Mark Knopfler Budapest 2013

Posted on September 12, 2012April 8, 2026 by Budapest Guide

He was born in 1949, was a founding member of Dire Straits and played in the band until it dissolved in 1995. He did not fall into despair after Dire Straits ended, but he kept on going solo and has enjoying even greater successes than ever since then. Mark Knopfler is the guy and in June 2013 he will come to Budapest again to perform in Papp Laszlo Budapest Sportarena. The concert will start at 20.00 on June 22nd.

The last Mark Knopfler concert in Budapest was arranged on July 4th in 2010, so almost three years later the Hungarian fans will get a new chance to see Mark as he returns to our beautiful city. If you would like to be there at this concert in June 2013, you can order your tickets online today using any of the links further down on the page. On those pages you can also find information and tickets for the other Mark Knopfler concerts in 2013.

Mark is known to be one of the best guitar players in the world, and he is also an excellent song writer who has written quite some film music as well, and he also has an enjoyable voice, so if you are a fan of Mark Knopfler and live in Budapest or plan on visiting Budapest on June 22nd next year, then this is the place to be. If you would rather listen to Mark Knopfler as he comes to Bratislava one day later, then why not travel to Budapest anyway and do a day trip to Bratislava on the 23rd to enjoy the concert there.

Mark Knopfler Budapest 2013

Budapest Sportarena
June 22nd, 20.00.

Tickets: WorldTicketShop – Seatwave.com – Viagogo

While in Budapest, check out the wonderful attractions and if you look for more information about what is going on in Budapest at this time of the year, check this page with information about the months in Budapest.

Good Budapest hotels now!

Posted on July 31, 2012 by Budapest Guide

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.

Good Budapest hotels now

– Mercure City Center (****)
– Iberostar Grand Hotel (*****)
– Sofitel (*****)
– La Prima Fashion (****)
– Hotel Erzsebet City Center (***)

If you plan on visiting Dublin in the near future, do not miss out on our new Dublin Guide with a supercool pub crawl available among the activities.

Where to watch Euro 2012 in Budapest?

Posted on June 9, 2012 by Budapest Guide

The European Championship is currently on and if you are coming to Budapest you might be worried about where you are going to see the matches with your favorite team. You have no need to worry, because almost wherever you go in Budapest you will find televisions showing all the matches, both in restaurants, pubs and similar places.

If you would like to see the matches though in a place where people gather together to see the matches, then we have some recommendations for you.

1) The Liberty Square
Just in the area between the Hungarian Parliament and the St Stephen’s Basilica the Liberty Square can be found. There you will find a big screen, places where you can sit, and also a big grass area where you can enjoy the large screen and also a cold beer if you would like to while watching the matches. One of the best places in Budapest to see the European Championship outdoor.

2) Champs Sports Pub
Next to the Great Synagogue the sports pub Champs can be found. Here you can watch your favorite team on one of the many screen located around in the pub. Probably the best indoor place in Budapest to see the European Championship

3) Akvárium
On the Deák Square, or the Erzsébet Tér, the club Akvárium is located (formerly know as Gödör Klub). Here you can also see matches outdoor at a large area with lots of people, and many staying out partying after the matches are finished

4) Next to Alle Shoppingcenter
If you are on the Buda side of Budapest and would like to see you favorite teams in Budapest, then a quite small area has been set aside next to the Alle Shoppingcenter where you can sit down, buy something to drink and watch the matches on a big screen.

We hope these advices can help you a bit, and we of course hope that you favorite team will win all their matches.

Where to live in Budapest?

Posted on May 27, 2012January 8, 2015 by Budablogger

Before arriving to Budapest many ask themselves the question where to stay/live while in Budapest. The question will have a different answer depending on the length of your stay and of course what is important to you and what requirements you have. Still there are some general advices that can be given. We will answer the question about where to live in Budapest in three different ways. The first part of our answer will be directed towards those coming to Budapest as tourists (1-14 days). The second part of our answer will be directed towards those who come to stay in Budapest for a reason for a period of between 2 weeks and half a year (short term visitors), and the third part of our answer will be to those who plan on staying in Budapest for half a year or a longer period (long term visitors)!

Where to live in Budapest as a tourist?

Budapest is a city divided in two by the river Danube, the beautiful river giving Budapest one of the most beautiful panoramas in the entire world. The first question is therefor whether you should live on the Pest or on the Buda side. In general it can be said that the Buda side is a bit more quiet, greener and with more parks and at times less traffic. The most important places at the Buda side as a tourist is the Gellert Hill and the Castle hill with the Castle of Buda as the main attraction. Some shopping malls can also be found on the Buda side.

The Pest side is where you find the popular tourist areas such as the shopping street Váci Utca, the most popular shopping malls, most of the popular restaurants, quite some museums, the Big Market Hall and of course the Heroes Square and the exclusive shopping street Andrassy út.

Based on the information given here the general tourist will find it preferable to live on the Pest side and rather visit the Buda side once or twice during their stay. If you do the opposite you will often find yourself constantly walking across the Danube (or grabbing a taxi) to do anything at all, and that is time that could be used in a better way. The walk along and across the Danube is of course beautiful, but since most of your time will be spent on the Pest side, our recommendation would be to book a hotel on the Pest side of Budapest.

Where to live in Budapest as short term visitor?

If you come to Budapest as a short term visitor (between 15 days and 1/2 year) you probably have a reason to be here. Maybe you come to work in a special office for a while or maybe you are part of an exchange program, thus having to attend a school in the Hungarian capital for a short/long period of time. There might be plenty of reasons for you to come, but if this is you, then our main recommendation would be to find a place to live near your office or wherever you have to go frequently. It is not so important whether you stay in Pest or in Buda, but look for an apartment near your office. If your office/school or whatever is a bit outside the city center, check the possibilities on how to get there with public transportation and if there are good opportunities, find a place to live near a station which will easily take you to the place you need to visit regularly.

Where to live in Budapest as a long term visitor?

Maybe you have met a beautiful Hungarian girl and would like to get married and live in Budapest for a long, long time (until death do as part)? Or maybe you have received an offer of a dream job somewhere in Budapest and now you need to find a place to live in a hurry. No need to worry, there are plenty of flats available for sale and for rent in Budapest, and if needed, you can easily find a place to live within less than a week (if you have the money ready).

You might ask the frequently asked question; where should i live? In Buda or in Pest? The general Hungarian would often answer that Buda is best and Pest is a bit like it sais… a pest and a plague. Buda is in general a bit more peaceful and on a long term stay that might influence your choice. Compared to many districts on the Pest side Buda also has less crime, stealing of cars and such problems, also a plus and point to the Buda side. If you come to Budapest as a foreigner with children you should consider where the children will attend school or kindergarten. There are quite a lot of great English schools and kindergartens in Budapest, and it is for sure ideal if you manage to find a place to live near any of these. For those coming because of a job you should of course take your office location into consideration and try to live not to far away from it, or at least make it easily accessible with public transportation. You might have a nice sport car, but when the traffic jams come to Budapest, your engine will not help you get quicker to work than if you had an old Lada.

If you want to live in the most luxurious areas of Budapest you should consider buying a real estate at the Rozsadomb, the Buda hills not far from the Margaret Bridge. Another option is to find a nice flat or house in the area around the Gellert Hill, or between the Danube and the Fishermens Bastion.

These are some simple advices, but feel free to share your thoughts on the subject writing a comment further down on this page.

Flamingo restaurant (Fészek étterem)

Posted on May 27, 2012November 27, 2013 by Budablogger

Flamingo restaurant (also known as Fészek étterem or Fészek klub) is the place you would normally never find, unless you knew about its existence. It is located in the seventh district of Budapest, not far from popular clubs such as Kuplong and restaurants such as Faustos and Trofea Grill. Still it is very different from these, and since it is so hard to find, it was almost empty as Budablogger went there to have his lunch.

Flamingo restaurant (Fészek étterem) does not look too much like a restaurant from the outside, but once they escort you to the garden inside the complex, it almost feels like a revelation. The restaurant has a really special atmosphere, but that is only valid in nice weather when you can sit outside in the garden and enjoy your meal. On a rainy day it can be enjoyable as well, as you sit in a kind of tunnel with roof above, but still outside „enjoying” the weather and the temperature. If you come during school time you can even enjoy the sound of children doing sports/gymnastics somewhere nearby (I am not sure if that is positive or not, but it wasn’t really disturbing at all).

The lunch menu in Flamingo costs about 1000 HUF, and then you will get three courses. As you come for a lunch menu you got a selection of different soups, main courses and desserts to choose between, making it easier for everyone to find something they like. When I visited the restaurant I started out with a broccoli cream soup followed by a pumpkin stew with pork goulash and an apple pie for dessert.

Flamingo is not among the top restaurants of Budapest, so therefore you do not expect the highest of high quality as you come here. But I at least expected the food to taste well and to satisfy my hunger. The soup came quickly and it was tasty, nice and green – just the way it is supposed to be. The main course came in a big portion and it looked very nice, and tasted even better. After eating everything until then I did not really need a dessert, but since it was in the menu I had ordered, then of course I had to eat the dessert as well (though I only ate one of the two pieces of apple pie).

: Lunch in Flamingo – Pumpkin stew with pork goulash

The dessert came quickly and to my surprise I got to quite nice pieces of apple pie. Some sort of apple sauce was placed upon and beside the cake and yet another time I really enjoyed the dessert, except from the fact that I was very full before I took the first bite of it.

All in all I can warmly recommend Flamingo (Fészek étterem) as a place for a lunch. It is probably a bit different during dinner, but if they keep the same standard as they did for the lunch, 80% of all visitors will be more than satisfied with what they are served. On the menu you can find traditional Hungarian courses, and they even have a three course tourist menu costing 15 Euro per person.

If you look for special tastes and culinary wonders, then you should probably go to Onyx, Faustos or Mak Bistro instead, but if you are looking for a quite cheap place to have a bite of food with nice taste and good portions, then this might be it. Feszek means nest, and because of that they have pelicans made out of tree located around in the backyard (garden), and they also have a house parrot which can be seen in the garden on sunny day. When that is present you almost feel as if you are out in the forest somewhere, with birds singing in the background.

: This is how it looks – very cool in the evening as well!

Flamingo / Fészek Klub / Fészek étterem

Kertész utca 36 (corner of Kertész utca and Dob utca)
+36 1 342 6549

More flights to Lisbon from Budapest

Posted on April 24, 2012December 13, 2017 by Budapest Guide

Since the bankruptcy of Malev other companies are getting more and more popular. We all know that RyanAir launched flights to 32 destinations from Budapest after Malev went down, and several other companies also launch new routes. Earlier today I read that WizzAir will launch two new routes from Debrecen to Milan and to Eindhoven (in addition to their existing route from Debrecen to London Luton). From the official web page of Budapest Airport we also got the information today that Tap Portugal will add even more flights to their existing route between Budapest and Lisbon. Last year the company brought more than 50,000 passengers on this line and this year they will hopefully transport even more people with even more flights added. This means that there will be two flights leaving every Saturday from Budapest to Lisbon, instead of one earlier.

Not long ago someone asked us whether it is possible to fly directly from Budapest to Paphos in Cyprus, this beauty of a city where the summer lasts for around 8 months a year. But, unfortunately we can not help out with flights to Paphos, at least not direct ones. But, if you look around, it is possible to fly with KLM to Amsterdam, and there you can change flights and fly on to Paphos.

Earlier Malév had a route to Cyprus, but it was not to Paphos either, so that would not help out under any circumstances. But, if you would rather visit Israel instead, then the amount of flights between Budapest and Tel Aviv was raised earlier this week, so it looks like it will get easier to visit Israel as well! Good luck with your flight tickets and have a nice holiday!

Die Hard 5 in Budapest: Where things are happening and when!

Posted on April 24, 2012November 27, 2013 by Budapest Guide

Yesterday we wrote about the fact that Bruce Willis (alias John McClane) is in town and that they were filming in the sixth district of Budapest yesterday, in the area around the Vörösmarty Utca. That was the first day of filming, and today it will continue. So, if you would like to see what’s going on, or at least meet up with some (un)polite police officers protecting the area, pay a visit to one of the following places:

Where things are happening, and when!
April 24: District VI, Vörösmarty utca.
April 29: District VI, Városligeti fasor.
May 3 (from 8:00 p.m.) and May 4 (from 6:00 a.m.) District V, Bajcsy-Zsilinszky út, Arany János utca, Andrássy út.
May 5-6: District XIV, Fine Arts Museum (Szépművészeti Múzeum), Dózsa György út 41.
May 8 (from 6:00 a.m.-8:00 p.m.) District XIV, 1956ers Square (56-osok tere), near the corner of Damjanich utca and Dembinszky utca.
May 14: Return to the beginning (Szabadság tér)

The rumors say that Budapest is not the real location of the story, but Moscow, but who knows? What is for sure is that traffic chaos will be caused by this filming, and for people living in the areas it means parking their cars somewhere else and walking home (showing ID to prove that they live in the mentioned areas). A bit inconvenient, but that is probably the price to pay to have a start like John McClane walking around in the streets of Budapest.

This morning we noticed on Facebook a picture that someone claims to have been made yesterday. It is just a fake, but a quite funny one, at least for Hungarians. Thanks to Andrassew David Igor for posting it!

Bruce Willis walking in Budapest? — Bruce Willis - manipulated picture... not really from the filming in Budapest!

Gospel in Budapest

Posted on April 11, 2012February 14, 2023 by Budapest Guide

As of April 28th there will be arranged gospel concerts in the heart of Budapest, in a beautiful church in Vaci Utca, every second weak. The choir is lead by one of the best singers in Hungary, and this will be a great gospel event, worth checking out. If you are interested and like gospel music, you can read more about the gospel event at our page about the gospel event.

At the page about the gospel concerts you will also find a video so that you can know more about what to expect, you will find the chance to reserve tickets and also information about dates and time for these gospel concerts. Read more…

Information on Budapest cruises

Posted on April 6, 2012April 8, 2026 by Budapest Guide

Many people coming to Budapest look for information on cruises on the Danube. The beautiful river flowing through numerous European capitals is probably more beautiful than anywhere else as it flows through the borders of Budapest. From the boat you can enjoy the panorama on the World Heritage List of UNESCO as you pass under the Margaret Bridge and enjoy the view towards the Hungarian Parliament, the Castle, the Gellert Hill, the Matthias Church and the Fishermen’s Bastion, and let us not forget the bridges; the Chain Bridge and the Elisabeth Bridge. An amazing and stunning view.

Some people who are not too much into geography might wonder if it is possible to travel on the Danube all the way until the Mediterranean sea, and then continue on one of the many Med Cruises there, but the answer to that question is no. For the patient traveller the Danube ends up in the Black Sea, but it is in no way connected to the Mediterranean Sea.

Most cruises available for tourists and suitable for tourists are those running on daily basis within the borders of Budapest. These tours normally last 90 minutes, and you get to see the most famous buildings and the panorama as mentioned above on these tours. We can warmly recommend such a tour in the evenings, because Budapest is at its most beautiful in the evening!

There are tours daily during the main tourist season to Szentendre, Visegrad and Esztergom as well, and for those who want to leave Hungary, there are opportunities to visit Bratislava and Vienna as well. The only problem with such tours are the fact that they last for such a long time, that you can not do a t/r trip in one day, which means you need to sleep one night at the destionation, or find another way of returning to Budapest again in the evening.

If you are looking for more information about a Danube Cruise, and would like to book a dinner cruise with live gipsy music or so on, take a look and read more about these options at our Danube Cruise page.