Hungary Travel Ideas
 

I will be visiting Hungary for about 10 days later this year (flying into Budapest). Does anyone have any suggestions on how much of the time to stay in Budapest, and suggestions on other places to visit. I probably don't want to stay in more than 3 hotels.

Hi Don, I spent 7 days in Budapest in Sept 99. It is a beautiful city. I only got out of the city one day and that was down to Lake Balaton, ths largest lake in Central Europe but only averaging 8' deep. Beautiful grounds around it. I found plenty to do in Budapest. I stayed in a private flat with a retired Chemist and his wife over looking the city with a great view from the balcony. He had also written a pamphlet of "Twelve walks in Budapest". I managed to do 11 of them. There are more museums than you can shake a stick at. I barely scratched the surface. There is a small outdoor park about 20 km outside of the city where they placed all of the Soviet statues after the Soviets left. The Opera house is beautiful (a smaller version of the one in Vienna) and very inexpensive to go to. The national museum is great, you could spend the better part of 2 days there. There are other day trips but I didn't have a chance to do them, but if you have any other questions on Budapest, post them here or e-mail me directly. <BR>Regards, <BR>Art <BR> <BR>

I'd also recommend Pecs and the wine district of Villany -- do a search here -- I've made some long posts before. A little short of time or I'd wax rhapsodic:)

For Budapest, including the Danube Bend area 3 or 4 days are enough,the longer one if you are interested in museums. <BR>If you rent a car touring the province is easy-our country is small,but a trip using train has to be planned carefully. <BR>I definitely would suggest PÉCS for a 2 nights stay.If you do not have a car you can go to EGER as a one day excursion,renting a car you can stay Eger and visit HOLLÓKÕ and AGGTELEK stalactit cave-both world heritage. <BR>For western Hungary having a car you can tour-HEREND(porcelane manufacture)-TIHANY(oldest building of the country) at the BALATON Lake-HÉVÍZ-thermal lake <BR>-SOPRON(medieval city)-PANNONHALMA(oldest monastery,world heritage). <BR>If you do not have a car you have to pick one or two of them ,Sopron or the Balaton lake area. <BR>Eastern Hungary ,the Great Plain or PUSZTA is completely different,you can take a one day organised tour from Budapest,but for a longer tour_KALOCSA,KECSKEMÉT-you will need even here a car. <BR>If you like "European style" towns go to western Hungary, if you are looking for special feelin go to Eastern Hungary. <BR>I am a guide having toured ,stayed and guided everywhere in Hungary ,so feel free to ask any questions. <BR>Rgds <BR>Eva

Eva, you don't do your city justice, especially for a travel agent. I had 6 full days in Budapest and just scratched the surfice. Could have spent another week. <BR>

Thanks all for your input! I now have tentative plans - <BR> <BR>Budapest for 5 nights (stay will include daytrips - to Danube Bend area, and perhaps to Eger, which I hadn't thought of as a daytrip, but it seems doable); then to Sopron for 2 nights and on to Pecs for 2 nights; last night back in Budapest in order to catch flight home. We will be going by train, so stops in more smaller places will not be practicable.

Hi I just read your itinerary. Have you considered the Danube Bend as more than a one day trip. We were there everal years ago and spent a night there and found it worthwhile and very enjoyable. Eger is a very nice city, we spent 2 night there about 4 yrs ago and liked it better than Sopron but that is a matter of opinion. <BR>alan

To Alan - Thanx for your suggestions. We were not planning to stay in any of the Danube Bend towns overnight because 1) we did not want to change hotels so often and 2) I think this way provides for more flexibility - we can pick which day(s) we make daytrips from Budapest once we were there - if we had hotel res., we would be "stuck" travelling on a certain day - and to a certain place. We can always leave Budapest earlier than planned if we want. <BR> <BR>I would have preferred not to have prebooked the hotels, but it seems that even as a few weeks ago, many hotels were sold out. <BR> <BR>As for picking Sopron and Pecs for the places to stay in for 2 nights, they and Eger, Szeged, and one or two other places seemed to be roughly the same as far as tourist interest (this form the guidebooks - you wouldnt know for sure until you had visited them). We had to limit our picks, so we are going with Sop. and Pecs. Eger is still a possibilty as a daytrip.

No direct train from Pécs to Sopron,you have to change minimum once may be twice ,the whole trip could take 7-9 hours,wating in really small towns without a locker at the station.The quickest one is to take a train from Pécs to Budapest, and from there an other one to Sopron,but even this trip with the shortest wating time could take 6 hours.Terrible. <BR>I think you can stay 2-3 days in Bp,go to Pécs, come back ,stay 1-2 days, and go to Sopron. <BR>Szeged is important for hungarians,but for for foreign tourists it is only a half day tour, and is far from Bp. <BR>Sopron and Pécs are the right picks, both are full of medieval buildings, <BR>museums etc. <BR>