I vote budapest over Prague. I have been to Prague twice and Budapest three times. Each visit to Budapest has been very pleasant for me. I first went in winter 2003, two days after Christmas and thought it the MOST beautiful place ever.
Second visit was late spring 2005. I rented an apartment. There were a few issues but the landlord was very accomodating.
Third visit was fall 2008. This was the best of them all. Maybe because by this time I felt somewhat at home.
I have found that Hungarians are not necessarily rude but just a little reserved.I agree that they are not overtly friendly but I have found that if I strike up a conversation, they will talk, and talk, and talk in their limited English, for which I am very grateful.I think that the non-westernization is what draws me to Hungary. I also like that they do not yet cater to tourists. So I know that when I am in Hungary, I am in Hungary!!
I would go back in a heart beat. It is unfoutunate about the Jobbitt
BTW, I have never had any issues with transport, lodging,etc. I only have positive memories of Hungary.

I loved Budapest. The only person in Budapest that was obnoxious was a friend of one of our traveling companions from Vienna. That woman could find nothing good about the place. I avoided her.

Hungarians seemed to be a pretty lively bunch to me. I always try to learn a few words, and sometimes fail miserably. At the Gellert Spa while talking to the, an older woman who was a retired Hungarian teacher over heard me.
She corrected my Hungarian, I tried again, no dice, tried once more.
Finally she grasped both my cheeks in her hands and said, "NOW say it."
I did.
"Perfect, just like that! You practice!"

I would love to get in more practice.

Hungarians aren't a smiley bunch but that doesn't mean they aren't friendly. Most of the people we met were very nice. Maybe it's just me and I'm grateful for this but I don't attract many sourpusses. Yay!

4 visits since 2004 and possibly another later this year. Budapest is one of my favourite cities in Central (don't say Eastern) Europe. I visited Prague in 2009 and much as I liked that city, I prefer Budapest more.

I'm not singing its praises for the heck of it nor to favour a debate; its just that I feel comfortable and good when I'm there. I enjoy the art and culture that the city offers and avail of the many theatrical, musical, operatic and performance venues to be found there (the Opera house, National Arts Centre, Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music, etc.) even travelling by cab on occasion to smaller suburban venues far off the tourist track if I'm interested in whats playing there. I've never encountered a local at such places who was unfriendly or unhelpful to me. I'm not saying unfriendly and rude people don't exist, but I've not attracted any so far (touch wood). On the contrary, one of my fondest memories was being asked to join a group of Hungarians for a glass of wine at their table when I nipped into a tiny resto-nightclub on a cold November night because I heard an excellent 3-piece jazz band playing within as I walked past. I ended up being with them, exchanging stories and laughter until the wee hours.
Also, on my first visit to Budapest, the owner of a ticket agency gave me for free, her own 2 tickets to the Opera that night because she was unable to book me any at the last minute. I just happened to walk past her shop and went in since I had a free evening, was there for 30 minutes while she called around to try to get me some, and then offered me hers for free. I was very touched by this.
I also recall going into a DVD store that sold new and used discs and having the tough looking salesperson help me look for a rare to find european movie. He called the hotel the next day when he located a copy for me from somewhere else and charged me the Forint equivalent of EUR 6.00 only for it.
I also like the layout of the city and the Danube coursing though it. It feels good and looks a pretty place to be. Also, so many interesting sites and buildings are easily accessible by foot. I've also travelled away from the city centre by bus and tram to a couple of the suburban malls and shopping centres and felt very comfortable there. No one hassled me and when I needed assistance, I confidently asked for it and received it.

The staff at the Gellert where I usually stay have always been polite and obliging, and now that I'm a frequent guest and know them, seem unable to do enough for me.

I don't think Hungarians look any more unfriendly or unsmiling to strangers than locals in other countries I've visited. Some of the older folk can seem intimidating but not the younger generation. My conversations with many of them indicate that they are a hopeful generation excited by the future and especially the changes in technology. And it has been my experience that when asking for help or explaining a situation, that the tenor of ones voice and perhaps a smile will likely better get you the response or reaction you seek.

How one feels about a particular place is not always based solely on that place and its people. A number of other factors impact one's memories as well: where one is coming from, whom one is traveling with, etc.

The first time we got there we found the Budapest residents a bit more formal and reserved - but that's because we had had a wonderful time driving through the Hungarian countryside and meeting with all kinds of friendly, smiling people, so we just put it down to big city indifference on the part of the Budapesters.

Of the three capitals that we drove through on that trip Bratislava's Old Town was our favorite. People there were still reserved but there was a warmth of just being human in that square with many people sitting in the outdoor cafes engaged in animated conversation. If it's between Prague and Budapest, then I'd be in the Prague group.

Maybe we're just lucky, but we haven't met with any rude nor unpleasant people in any of the Central European countries.

Generally I think people are far more likely to be very judgmental of a place and the people in it IF they had some unreasonable expectations. Of course, to some degree that problem can be reduced by having realistic expectations gained by doing some research. It's when people feel they don't have to do any such thing and that if the city isn't what they get at home, or in some travel fantasy they had, then it's all the city or country's fault. Which again is fine, and their problem, until they start trying to sell that as fact to the next round of trip planners. Then it's a bit much.

People in Budapest often are more reserved than other places. But are they corrupt and big ol' meanies? Please....

I liked Budapest pretty well, even though I usually prefer a more interactive culture. Give me the chaos and banter of Asia or Morocco any day (speaking of watching out for scams, tricks and angles). But that's not what I'd expect from Budapest. Budapest is to me is a quiet beauty with a lot of character which shows up in its worn edges and elusive smiles. It also carries a lot of mystery and a bit of pain in its intriguing history. It's no ready made vacation weekender.

IMO, one should try to either learn to travel at more than one speed and enjoy each place for what it is - or - find out who they are and do enough research to find the place that matches their personality. Never should one expect an entire culture to come to you. It's an ugly way to see and later talk about others.

My trip to Budapest last year was business related (small conference) as I said on the other thread. Thus I met quite a lot of locals, also some of the higher charges in administration. It was quite unpleasant and I must say yes, bribe and corruption are virulent in Budapest. The tourists probably don't encounter those during their usual four nights stay.

I had both pleasant and unpleasant experiences while in Budapest, speaking from the tourist view of point. I didn't think the city is inexpensive when it comes to music, restaurants, transportation - about the same as in East Germany.

The city appeared rather grey and grimy. Like other posters noted, the locals did not go out of their way to make the guest feel welcome. I wouldn't say they were openly rude, but got the impression they rather didn't want to be bothered. Helpfulness is different IMO.

I had a particularly bad start to that trip: The train engine broke down an hour before we reached Budapest. No information for about a half hour. Then we had to leave the train and were told to wait for a local train on the other platform. We did so, squeezed into the local train and arrived at the other train station in Budapest (Nyugati pu instead of Keleti pu) about 1.5 hours late. Now, there's a law in the EU that the passenger gets a compensation of 25% if the train is more than an hour late - but the staff at the train station refused to give us a note confirming the train was late. It was totally ridiculous. Talking to them was like talking to the deaf (my co-traveller spoke perfect Hungarian).

My expectations of Budapest certainly were not overly high. But the country and its capital certainly are somewhat mentally stuck in the communist era.

I.

Have been to Budapest 3 times, 2 on vacation and once on business - all since the departure of the Soviets.

I never felt threatened, cheated, at risk or overly confused, despite the fact that Hungarian is a totally foreign language - unlike romance or germanic langauges.

On the first trip I was amazed that so soon after the departure of the Soviets so many signs had already appeared in English at major tourist attractions - inluding hundreds of typed descriptive labels in some of the museums.

On the whole I found the people welcoming (there are some cranky people anywhere) and would go again in a minute.

The person who started the avoid Budapest post obviusly had a serious attitude/entitlement problem - and to take her judgement as anything near the experience of the average person would be just ridiculous.

I'll agree with Ingo that this is part of being mentally stuck in the Communist era. Under Communism, the people coming into contact with the public were not trained to be customer service oriented.

A story from the other side of the world, also a Communist country. Not too long after China was "opened up" by Nixon, we were staying in a Shanghai hotel which gave us breakfast coupons. One day, because of a slow elevator, we arrived at 9:01am in the dining room. The breakfast buffet was still laid out, so we proceeded to help ourselves to the breakfast items. A server rushed over and snatched the dishes out of our hands saying that breakfast was over. When we protested that the breakfast was still laid out and that we had just arrived, she suddenly turned very stern, looked at us like we were criminals, pointed to her watch and said "9:01, we don't serve breakfast after 9!" So, what to do but to slink back hungry to our room, lol. We were given coupons for every meal because food was strictly rationed, we were followed everywhere (discreetly and not so discreetly) and we never took the same taxi twice so as not to get the taxi driver in trouble and get accused of "collaboration" with the dreaded capitalists. But, boy, it sure was a safe country to travel in.

On another trip during the same period, I was in a plane from Hong Kong to Beijing and was sitting next to a high-level executive from the hotel industry in Hong Kong (yes, his hotel is a 5star hotel ). He was traveling constantly between the two cities because he was helping train the personnel for a new hotel that was opening up in Beijing (yes, it was going to be a 5star hotel ). He said that Communism had made zombies of the people, they lacked initiative and drive because the state took care of everything for them and so these young people didn't quite grasp the concept that they themselves had to be active. It was, to say the least, a fascinating and eye-opening conversation.

Today, of course, things are vastly different. The Chinese government - along with almost every present/former Communist government except maybe Cuba - has removed most of the social safety nets and people really have to scramble for almost everything. Soviet widows forced to sell heros' medals on the streets in order to get a crust of bread. The way the collapse of the Communist system has affected the average citizen living under Communism goes underreported.

Yes, Budapest has its grim aspects - but so do New York City and Chicago. Yes, the Budapesters are reserved but that may be preferable to the rudeness of the Frankfurters or the pushiness of New Yorkers.

All that said, personally I rather appreciate the "reserve" of the Central Europeans.

We visited Budapest for the first time in August 2010. We chose it because we attended a wedding in Kosovo and wanted to visit a city we had never seen while we were in the "neighborhood". I didn't know what to expect because I had read both favorable and negative comments about it. (Yes, unlike OP of the other thread, I do my homework before venturing out of my native country).

We were very pleasantly surprised. We spent four days there and we loved it. I can honestly say that we didn't encounter one person who was less than accommodating, and most were very friendly. Maybe we were just lucky, but I think, in part, your own experience depends on how you, the visitor, treat your hosts. I imagine that everyone in Budapest whom the OP in the other thread encountered let out a shout of joy the day she left .

We were there on St. Stephen's Day and were happily surprised to have the doors of the Terror Museum opened for us at no charge...and then to board the metro - gratis. Little did we know how lucky we were not to have to deal with those "thugs"!

I can see where Budapest wouldn't be for everyone. It's a big city going about its business. But we loved the architecture, we found the people friendly, we loved our hotel and we would go back.

Ellen

I visited Budapest in fall of 2008. I am a female and at that time was 36. I did not get scammed or in any way ripped-off. That being said, I had done a lot of research ahead of time.

I had a Budapest Card for unlimited travel on public transport. It did not have to be validated each time but was instead good for a certain time past the date on it. I do remember encountering ticket checkers at least once but did not find those particular checkers intimidating.

I also did not hail any cabs on the street. I either got cabs from my hotel or from other centrally-located hotels I happened to be near, e.g. Gresham Palace, Gellert Hotel.

I actually found the people I encountered in Budapest to be more friendly than those I encountered in Berlin. However, I made it a point to learn enough basic Hungarian so that I could use polite phrases and compose some simple sentences. I ventured into a restaurant in the Castle District to make a reservation for that night and somehow managed to make the staff there think that I was fluent in Hungarian until I had to confess I could no longer understand what they were saying. I am better at German than Hungarian so I can't blame the chillier attitude on lack of language skills.

I loved Budapest and would return if I had a chance.

PalenQ, it's Budapest, for cr**psake, not Flint or Detroit.

PalenQ: I never said we bribed the controllers. We paid the "FINE".

Budapest is as bad as I say - tourists are singled out (usually we smile and laugh) - locals are not so animated so it is very easy to pick out a tourist and the chances of that tourist not having "validated" a ticket worth euro 1.20 (in our case a grand total of euro 4.70) is very high and the controllers know they can impose a fine. The system is a scam, especially for tourists.

It is a corrupt system, plain and simple. I do entirely believe that if we both had stern faces, did not smile, did not talk, were not animated and jolly (it being Christmas day after all it is nice to feel happy!) then we would not have been targeted by the ticket controllers. They looked like beggars, were very unattractive, robust women and all the information says to "not interact" with beggars, scammers, pretty girls, taxis, etc., etc.

So you have to avoid beggars, avoid pretty girls, avoid anyone approaching you in the street, you should not hail a cab, avoid people pretending to be lost and cant find the bar they are looking for, avoid, avoid, avoid - AVOID BUDAPEST would be the easiest option ...

Not to sound rude, but I generally avoid beggars, strangers approaching me on the street and pretty girls on the street (since I am a girl)at all times, as a matter of safety, not just in Budapest.

Yes, that's pretty standard travel advice, more or less, for most any city.

I do so love the "unattractive" thing that keeps coming up over and over.

You think there are countries where you'd never even get out of the car for how unattractive the locals are?

This not-so-naive Irish guy disagrees strongly with his compatriot.

I have been to Budapest five times, and would happily go again any time. Never had a problem with ticket inspectors, although I have been checked many times: that's because I learned the rules, and honoured them. Never had a problem with beggars (of whom there are quite a few) because they are not generally as importunate as in quite a few popular tourism destinations. Never had a problem with pretty girls: I harbour secret wishes, but Herself keeps me under control. Never had a problem with cabs: I took the advice in the free guide to the city that I picked up in the airport.

I can recall one case of rudeness, memorable because I found it amusing; there may have been others, but not sufficiently important to remember. I can remember one minor rip-off, when I was charged for a drink that had been presented as if it were complimentary -- something like 250 Ft.

I can recall many pleasant interactions with locals. It's nice to be greeted on the street by the waiter who served you a meal a couple of days previously; it's pleasing to be welcomed with a smile and "long time since you were here" when you return to a favourite café six months after your previous visit.

Budapest is simply a nice place to be. It's a bonus that the city is very interesting.

We visited several years ago with our young daughter. We taught her to say the informal goodbye, funny enough pronounced "see ya." She melted any reserved demeanor.

We also stayed at a private home. It was cheaper, and the couple was warm and friendly.

I saw the ticket police, but we always had a validated ticket. I never felt targeted even though I'm sure we looked like tourists.

Frankly, I like the gruff demeanor. I also got to watch a local women loudly scold a Western European woman who cut in line for the bathroom. I could appreciate that.

I loved Budapest. I didn't think the people were any less or any more friendly than any other former communist city I've visited. The buildings and history there were fascinating, and the baths were a blast.

How is the system corrupt if you broke the law and are asked to pay a fine? Of course they single out tourists - the locals will have some sort of weekly or monthly pass.

In St Pertsburg we were stopped every time we got on and asked for our ticket. And yes, they were going down the aisle and asking every tourist. That only makes sense since those are the people most likely to not have the correct ticket - or validation or whatever.

It's like a small town having a speed trap. There is a dual purpose 1) slow down speeders and 2) collect revenue from non-locals (who know the trap is there). This is a time-honored way for governemnts to raise money - as well as enforce proper use of tickets.

As for the ticket takers being unattractive and "robust" - it's not a beuaty pageant. They have a job and they're doing it. You got caught. You do the crime you do the time. Any other attitude is just chidlish (not naive - bad enough in an adult - but childish). I can just see you stamping your foot and saying "It's not fair!" Ridiculous past the age of 3.

Padraig - my dearest compatriot - my opinion is my opinion - yours is yours.

You should try to remember how a minority of Irish people ever spoke up and complained about how things were not so good once upon a time in Ireland. I am voicing my opinion today about how bad things are in Budapest. You should know better....

None of you change the fact that I will continuously warn people (people being couples and families - there are some scum bags so they don't count!) about the dangers of visiting Budapest.

Ciaow

You *are* voicing your opinion. I, and I suspect most people, wouldn't have said anything personally, other than that you're trying to pass it off as expertise when you say things like "don't go to...". A great many people do see that what we have in fact is an anecdotal opinion, as most are, but coming from a rather inexperienced (and in my opinion a bit predjudiced) traveler. Some may not be in the position yet to see that side of it and so people are shedding some additional light on the subject. No reason anyone's opinion should remain unchallenged, especially if it's based on a couple of days and one or two little incidents and the challenger is actually knowledgeable on the subject. That can only serve to assist future travelers in their decision making.