Suggestions for two night stay in Budapest?
 

Hello,

My husband and I are staying with family in Vienna Aug. 5-15 and plan to travel to Budapest for a short trip (2 days). Any help with the following is appreciated!

-- What is the best mode of transporation between Vienna and Budapest? Train? Plane?

-- Any reccomendations for a nice 3-4 star hotel central in the city, but not too expensive?

-- What sites are "must see" aside from the mineral spas?

-- Recommendations for great places to eat?

-- Any other suggestions for our stay?

Thank you so much!
Sheila

Last summer my daughter and I drove from Vienna to Budapest. Since they are so close I should think the train would be the better bet. Think you might also have the option of a hydrofoil between the two. Make a search for that on this board. We stayed at the Burg Hotel across from the Hilton in the Castle District in Buda which was magical. Of course, we visited Pest but were SO happy to return to the Castle District !

The train is clearly the best way to travel between the two cities -- about 3 hours.

Hotel options are many, and location is one of the considerations. My preference is to stay "downtown" rather than the castle district, in part because transportation options are greater. Though not perfect, the Taverna is reasonable, if sometimes noisy (street noise).

"Must see" things could easily fill twice the time you have, but at a minimum do see the castle district (3 or so hours, could be more), National Museum (2 hours), District V Central Market (at the lower end of Vacu utca). Highly recommended is a 1/2 day sightseeing tour of the city -- that will touch on the highlights nicely; just use one with a live guide, not tape recordings.

There are many great restaurants, and prices all over the lot. Among others, try Fatal.

Rod

Suggestions: (1) Train. (2) K&K Hotel Opera. (3) Szobopark. (4) Add another night or two.

Another vote for the train. We stayed at the Intercontinental which was not inexpensive but the view of the Castle and the river was worth the price.

As for must sees...take a short cruise on the Danube around sunset. Seeing the buildings and bridges all light up is wonderful.

The opera house is beautiful even if you just walk into the lobby it is worth a stop.

I stayed at the Hilton West End which is in the city. It's attached to a huge shopping mall, but the hotel is relatively new and nice in a bland sort of way. Do NOT stay at the hotel where the baths are; very dated and run down. The Boscolo hotel New York (?) appears to be lovely;had drinks there. It's also new, and in the city.
We had a great Asian dinner at a place called GeorgeJohn, or something similar. Was impressed that they had a jazz band on a Saturday at lunch time. Food was great; a bit pricey, but fantastic service and very hip. Would also urge you to have coffee at a beautiful coffee shop near the opera house. Old world/faded but so nice.
Have fun; it's a great city

Tagging along with this thread -

Is it better to stay in Buda or Pest?


Shemoney - I've been doing research for our trip there this fall. We were originally taking the boat between the two cities but it turns out it is a 6 hour trip. Airfare between the two is pricey as well. Frequent trains though and someone said it's around E80-90. www.bahn.de for the schedule.

All the hotels that have been recommended on this site (Hilton, Marriot, Intercontinental) are VERY expensive - $175-$250 range per night. Don't know about the price for the K&K Opera. I've noticed that people on this site tend to stay in expensive American hotels so if that's not for you, you might want to check a guide book.

The restaurants I've seen recommended here (and in a few guide books) Gundel - elegant, Gerber Banya-Tanya - traditional, and Fatal.

Hope that helps. Please do a summary when you come back to let us know what you chose and how it was.

gnr :-)

I'm sorry you won't have more time for Budapest. It is a favorite place of ours after our first visit last year. We stayed at Hotel Victoria ([email protected]) on the Buda side. We paid €102. It is a wonderful hotel overlooking the Danube with fantastic views of the chain bridge and Parliament buildings. Huge picture windows in each room (you'll want an upper floor in order to get clear views). Lovely room, helpful staff, pleasant breakfast room (breakfast included).

There's a wonderful French restaurant behind the hotel, Jardin de Paris. We enjoyed great food under the stars, listening to two very good musicians play jazz.

St. Stevens is a beautiful church. We took the elevator to the top and then some stairs in the dome to the outside. The views of the city were spectacular.

I second the suggestion for the evening Danube cruise, and a half day city tour for orientation is also a good idea.

If you were staying longer I would suggest visiting Szentendre. We went one way by city train and returned by hydrofoil.