less than 1 day in Budapest-what can I see?
 

I am cycling in Slovakia and Hungary the end of Sept. ending in Budapest around noon. I have the rest of the day to sightsee, will be leaving the next morning. I will have a metro pass, and especially love to walk. I want to see as much as possible, so want to plan my day. Are there any tours, or hop on, hop off buses, that people have liked that would be better than mapping out my day? Also last year I was in Venice for 2 nights, and experienced the opera and a Vivaldi concert that were exquisite. I'd love to do something like that in the evening, any suggestions? I know I'm trying to do a lot, but any suggestions would be wonderful, and thanks so much!

Go to the Opera house to see either ballet or opera. You can reserve tickets on line.

The building itself is beautiful inside and outside. You can go early and enjoy a glass of champagne before the performance.

Thanks, I will plan on doing that, as this would be as wonderful as seeing some top sightseeing attractions for me. Can you suggest a reputable website for this, and when I should start thinking of making a reservation to be sure to get a ticket, perhaps a month ahead?

Thanks, I will plan on doing that, as this would be as wonderful as seeing some top sightseeing attractions for me. Can you suggest a reputable website for this, and when I should start thinking of making a reservation to be sure to get a ticket, perhaps a month ahead?

If you plan on going to the opera you might be interested in the Hotel Pest. It is a block or two just off Andrassy Ave. We stayed there last fall and it was a convenient and nice place to stay.

Heros Square is interesting. You can catch a bus on Andrassy that takes you right to the square. There is also the Széchényi Spa close to Heros Square.
Fishermen's Bastion and Matthias Church

Central Market Hall (Nagy Vasarcsarnok) this is an interesting place to visit. The first floor is food items. There is a large shop selling Hungarian paprika The second floor is handmade linens etc.

We bought the tickets on line here www.opera.hu about a month ahead. We got lucky and enjoyed "Swan Lake for a mere $1.85! These are not the seats your want to take if you want to see something; we just got lucky and moved ahead to the empty spaces!

If you are interested, check out what my DH wrote in his summary of the trip and things we saw.
http://burlaki.com/travelog/budapest/

Happy travels!

Thanks everyone, I think I'll just pick out some of the major sights I want to see, and get a feel of Budapest. I will be staying at the Andrassy Hotel, part of the package. Walking down Andrassy will give me a chance to see the architecture etc. Hopefully I'll have a chance to return and spend more time, as I have not yet been to Praque. The travelog was great, and gave me an idea of what I want to prioritize. I will be seeing some of the small villages such as Estergom, Visegrad, Gyor, when I'm cycling, and this part is always very enjoyable.

Sorry, but Esztergom and Gyor especially are not villages but towns. Pop. of Eszergom: 35 000, Gyor 132 000

I know your visit is brief and you want to see things but I would suggest you go to one of the baths - they are the most unique Budapest experience IMO. The Gellert baths are in a beautiful hotel - very near the cave church, another pretty unique sight. Both are near the river so you will see some of that area too. Enjoy!

Matroskin,

I just read your husband's blog on your visit to Budapest. It was wonderfully written and so helpful; I've bookmarked it for our trip in August. Thanks for suggesting it!

Ellen