111op

Hi, I'm flying Malev from Tel Aviv to Paris, and I've a few hours free in Budapest. I arrive at 8:30 am and leave at 3:45 pm.

I've never been to Budapest. What can I do in a couple of hours? I just bought my tickets and I'm leaving on Friday, so there's not much time for me to research.

Thanks!

andersc1

You don't have a ton of time... will take you 30 minutes to get from the airport to downtown. Good news is Budapest is relatively compact so you could hit some of the highlights. Buda castle is up on the hill, you could walk around the Pest side and to Parliament. I believe you need to get tickets in advance to see inside Parliament, but you could walk around outside.

tedgale

1. The airport is on the "Pest" side of town, so it would be quicker/ easier to visit Pest than to visit Buda.

Anyway, I prefer Pest -- more authentic, less Disneyfied (and no hills, unlike vertiginous Buda).

2. The one thing that totally marks Budapest is the Danube. I would insist on seeing the river, quite apart from whatever else you do.

3. It's a GREAT city for walking. Hmmm, specifics...A walk along the (riverside) Korso (sp?) Or take the tram along the river? Or walk the length of Andrassy boulevard (and take the 100 year old metro back, in the opposite direction -- it's only one storey below ground and a true relic.)

Pegontheroad

I enjoyed simply walking through the city, especially along the Danube.

andersc1

To put it in perspective, the only thing that seperates buda from pest in the river, so its not very far. 5 Minute walk across the bridge.

isabel

The absolute highlight is the river and the Chain Bridge across it, and the views from the Bridge of Parliament on the Pest side and the castle on the Buda side. I would take the metro or other public transportation to the Parliament, walk around the outside, then walk along the river to the Chain Bridge. You'll pass the shoe memorial on this stretch. Walk at least half way across the bridge for the views. Back on the Pest side of the Bridge is the Gersham Palace Hotel, an art nouveau beauty. Pop into the lobby to have a look (great rest room just off the lobby). Keep walking along the river to the Vigado (concert hall, just past the statue of the little princess). Great views along this stretch too. One block in from the river is Vörösmarty tér, probably the main square in Pest. Gerbeaud the famous turn of the century pastry shop is here. This is the start of the main pedestrianized shopping street, Vaci utca. At the end of this street is the great market hall. On the second floor are craft stalls and food stalls where you can get langos (fried dough with about 50 types of toppings).

This whole walk from the Parliament to the Great Market is less than two miles. So even with lots of stops for photo-ops, snacks, etc you should be able to do this in the approximately four hours you should have.

111op

Thanks for the advice. I'm sorry that I've not had the time to review the options yet, but I'll take a look.

I have a more basic question. What's the best way to get to the city from the airport? I can look up the airport website, of course, but it's probably easier to ask.

Fast and cheap, of course!

Thanks again.

111op

I used the airport shuttle service that had to go to and back from a hotel. But I wasn't staying in one, so we arranged for the Meridien Hotel, which is very central.

Budapest Airport didn't leave me with the greatest impression. I think I got in at 2B, and there was exactly one ATM machine, which didn't work for me. So I had to walk to 2A, very nearby, but I had to walk outside to get to 2A. There was left luggage service at 2B(6 hours for about $10).

Since I wasn't feeling well (I caught a cold in Israel), I tried to spend time indoors, but it was cold in Budapest, so I found it a little depressing, especially when I wasn't feeling the greatest.

From there I took the Metro to the Fine Arts Museum (near Heroes' Square). Then I walked across the Chain Bridge and took the funicular up to Castle Hill.

Since I wasn't feeling well I skipped the walk to the Parliament and went to sit in the Four Seasons Hotel. I had a soup and an apple cider. I was reading over suggestions by you guys there and I saw that there were some suggestions by isabel I wanted to follow. But I just didn't have enough energy to do that. Next time (if there's a next time) I guess!