In May 2024, I had the pleasure to travel to Budapest once again and spend a few days. If you have the chance one day, do check it out as it is one of the most beautiful cities in the world in my opinion. My previous visit was back in 2022 and I have to say, this trip I was taken aback by the inflation. It is not as expensive as Canada but it is catching up in a hurry. I would say the prices have risen about 40% in the past two years. The forint has fallen against most major currencies, so at least us visitors do catch a bit of break that way.
Fortunately, I was still able to find some good value which I am happy to share with you.
In This Blog:
Transport
Accommodation
Eating/Drinking
Thermal Baths
Szentendre Day Trip
Simple Pleasures
Conclusion
Transport
I arrived at Budapest airport early in the morning after a long but reasonably comfortable journey from Asia. My first mission was to get into the city center, though I wasn’t in a hurry, as I thought it unlikely that I could check in anytime soon. There are many options to get into the center. Of course, there are taxis available, the most convenient and expensive option. Another more affordable option is using a rideshare app, such as Bolt, which has been very good to me in Croatia and Thailand. Still more affordable is using the public transit which, if you are traveling solo and packing light as I was, is definitely a good way to go. There is an airport express bus (100E) which goes right to the heart of the city at Deák Ferenc tér. It requires a special ticket that costs 2200 forint ($8 CAD). This is a one and done ticket but I had a plan to stretch my transport budget even further.
I am a big fan of the Budapest transport system and my plan was to get a unlimited pass for one week, which covers all rides on buses, subways and trams. To get the pass, there is a public transport office at the airport. I just had to wait a little bit until it opened after 8 AM. Once it opened, they were really doing the business. I looked on the menu of passes but unfortunately did not see the one week option. To get me rolling, I ended up getting a three day pass for 5500 forint ($21 CAD). This is way cheaper than a taxi or rideshare to the city center but days later I found down on the bottom of the menu, there is a 15 day pass for only 5950 forint ($22.71 CAD). Whoopsie, I made this mistake so you don’t have to. Go for that 15 day pass if you are staying 4 or more days. Anyhow, my 3 day pass could be used on the other airport bus, the 200E. It goes as far as Kőbánya-Kispest, where I transferred to the subway M3, which carries on to the city center.
One thing to note is that Budapest is a wonderfully walkable city. If your accommodation is centrally located you may not even care to use the transport everyday, in which case the single use tickets for 450 forint may be the way to go. Just make sure to ride the number 2 tram at least once or twice during your visit. It’s path along the Danube riverfront has charming views throughout. It is one of my all-time favourite public transport rides.
Accommodation
In Budapest, there has been an interesting evolution in the past 5 or 6 years where the better value accommodations have shifted from Airbnb’s to hotels. The past couple of trips I have done a combination of hotels and Airbnb’s and I followed suit on this trip as well.
I started my stay with seven days at the Hotel Charles up in the Buda side of the city. I booked this a few months in advance on Expedia and got quite a good deal, mainly because I had about $200 worth of travel credit to use from my TD credit card. A couple of things steered me towards the Hotel Charles. First was that the hotel was on a major bus route. With my transport pass, it made getting around a breeze. Secondly, I was able to book the Econo Studio room for a good price. This meant that I would have a nice, big room with a decent kitchenette at my service to make my morning coffee and simple meals like eggs, noodles, etc. This helped keep the eats/drinks cost down.
After my one week at the Charles, I still had a few more days before I was catching a flight back to Canada.. I asked to extend my booking at the front desk and they said it would be 79 Euro per night, a little out of my budget. Instead, I moved to an apartment close to the main train station. It was more an Airbnb-type place that I booked on Expedia. It was quite a bit cheaper than extending at the Charles and I had a plan to take the train when I was leaving Budapest, so that tied in nicely.
The new place was really well-equipped, it even had a washing machine! It seemed like this was a brand-new renovation, one that took good advantage of the old apartment building having a very high ceiling. I could stand up comfortably in the kitchen area and in the upper sleeping area, so I guess the ceiling must have been close to 14 feet high. This kitchen had pretty much everything and if I had more time, I would not have been afraid to cook up major meals in it . The downside to this place was there is a “no-contact” check-in procedure which was kind of a pain in the butt and I did also miss the interaction with the staff like I had at Hotel Charles everyday.
Eating/Drinking
As far as the inflation goes, the food/drink prices is where I felt it the most. To give a simple example, I had a flat white coffee at the Coffee Stand, which is a hole in the wall place in the popular Jewish quarter. In 2022, it cost 750 Forint. This time, exactly the same coffee is all the way up to 1050 forint. That is quite a leap.
For dining out, rather than eating at full-blown restaurants, I mostly ate at smaller places that had few or no seats and a selection of pre-cooked Hungarian dishes. I believe these little places are called kifőzde. You could get a nice selection of Hungarian food without breaking the bank. I am pleased that on this trip, I didn’t rely on the ubiquitous kebab stands. They do provide quick, tasty food at a good price, though not the healthiest or truly Hungarian food. Give me gulyas and Töltött Káposzta (stuffed cabbage rolls) any day!
They had tasty cabbage rolls. The palicsinta pancake I would skip the next time, nobody makes them as good as mom did.
If you feel like going for a drink or two, I found this place, Fekete Kutya (Black Dog), which had tasty beer on tap and good ambiance. A pint of beer was 1220 forint ($4.60 CAD).
I made this soup in the room. The addition of spicy (csípős) pepperoni added a great paprika kick.
Thermal Baths
A must see/do of any Budapest trip is a soak in one of the many thermal baths. The thermal baths have been a thing here all the way back to Roman times. I went a couple of times this trip and I must say, my joints thanked me for it afterwards. The most famous baths, such as the Széchenyi Thermal Bath and the Gellért Spa, are definitely sites to see but the price of admission is getting way up there(>$60 CAD) . I did find good, affordable alternatives.
The first bath I went to was Veli Bej. The crowd at this place seemed to be mostly local. They had a few nice pools with various temperatures, nothing too fancy. The cost was 5500 forint ($20.75 CAD). Remember to bring flip flops and a towel if possible, otherwise you may have to rent them.
The second bath I tried was the Lukács Bath. This bath has a long tradition and a lot of different pools. There are more tourists here and quite a few people in general but it was not too overloaded. I enjoyed going from hot to cool pools. They also have a good dry sauna that looks to have been newly renovated. Outdoors they have a fun whirlpool. The cost was a very reasonable 4800 forint ($18.11 CAD).
Szentendre Day Trip
On the day I was leaving Budapest, I had a good chunk of time between checking out of my room and my night train departure. I figured this would be a good time for short day trip and the village of Szentendre fit the bill nicely.
I took the H5 train from Budapest’s Batthyany Ter to the end of the line at Szentendre. It is a scenic 45 minute ride north along the bank of the Danube. The train only cost 900 forint ($3.39 CAD) return. Note your Budapest travel pass does not cover this trip out of the city limits.
Once there, I meandered on into the town center. There are some impressive church spires in the center so you just have to walk in that direction. The pace here is more laidback than Budapest and the center is pretty charming.
For my late lunch, I found a place called Dorothea Bisztro. I was a little leery to try this place as there weren’t any customers in there at this off-hour (4 PM) but boy, I am sure glad I did. The sandwich I had is called the hot pork steak burger. It is 200 grams of super tender and delicious sous-vide pork shoulder. The fries were fresh and yummy too. I was well-stuffed for the night train trip ahead. For me, this meal alone would justify a trip to Szentendre.
Simple Pleasures
Hungary is renowned for it’s desserts and sweet treats. One little indulgence I got into, and was immediately addicted to, was the Túró Rudi. This is a little chocolate bar with chocolate on the outside and cheese curd on the inside. I know it sounds weird, but the bittersweet of the chocolate combines beautifully with the cheese curd. You will find them in the refrigerated section of the store. I would have brought a suitcase full of these back with me if I thought they could survive unrefrigerated. There are many flavours but I preferred the plain one. The cost was about 250 forint ($0.95 CAD).
If you want to jazz up the flavour of your soup, sandwich, eggs, etc. try some of
the excellent Hungarian sauces available. Paprika is by far the dominant Hungarian flavour profile. Along the paprika line, my favourite was the spicy Pista sauce. The less spicy version is called Anna. I was happy to find these even back here Canada (cost only $3.99 CAD).
I enjoy a mean game of sudoku as much as the next person and I was pleased to find this booklet with 100 puzzles in it for only 545 forint ($2.06 CAD). That is the cheapest sudoku book (by a long shot) I have found anywhere in the world. A bonus for me is learning a little Hungarian while getting my daily dose of sudoku.
Conclusion
Budapest has long been a favourite travel destination for me and even though it has become more expensive, it is definitely still worth visiting. The excellent, affordable public transport allows you to roam around and find the good value for dining, accommodation, recreation and more.
If you have been to Budapest or are planning to go, I would love to hear from you. Happy travels!
To see my google map link of my favourites, click here.
For more Budapest photos click here and for Szentendre, click here.
