Deena

Hi all. I am thinking about planning a trip to Vienna, Prague, and Budapest. I'm trying to determine logistics right now. I'm planning on arriving at one of the cities and departing from another back to the U.S. Has anyone taken a similar trip that included all three cities? I'm not planning on renting a car but wanted to rely on trains and ferries (perhaps on the Danube if that itinerary is best). I'm interested in hearing about other travel experiences in this area? Thanks, in advance!

Travel Fan

Deena - My husband and I did Vienna, Budapest and Prague last year. It was a fabulous trip. You didn't mention how much time you have. We did it in 12 days and that was a whirlwind. We flew into Vienna from the states and stayed there for 4 days. Great city. By the way, highly recommend the Konig von Ungarn (sp?) hotel. Centrally located (just 2 blocks from St. Stephens cathedral) and reasonably priced. We flew from Vienna to Budapest. At the time (late spring/early summer) Austrian Airlines had a great deal going for U.S. citizens(I am assuming you are a U.S. citizen). You could buy one way tickets anywhere in Europe for something like $130. Don't know if this kind of deal is still going on, but may be worth exploring. Budapest was also a great city, although it took some getting used to after Vienna. Budapest hasn't quite gotten the hang of things, tourism wise yet, but that made it all the more charming. We stayed at the Hilton. Don't know what your budget is, but the hotel is in a great location (although the rooms were early communist decor). The area around the hotel is absolutely charming and you get great views of the Danube and Pest. Cars are restricted in the area, so it is great for walking. From Budapest, we flew to Prague. Again, a fantastic city. Stayed at a small hotel near the castle. Don't remember the Czech name, but it translates into "The Inn at the Red Lion." Very reasonably priced and friendly staff. I liked the order in which we did the cities. We started with the largest, most frentic city first and then gradually wound down to the very manageable, small world charm of Prague. Hope you enjoy your trip.

Mary Ann

Hi We did all 3 cities last year also (along with several others over 3 weeks). We started in Prague, a city that is absolutely charming and you need at least 3 days and 3 nights. We stayed at the Cloister Inn near Stare Mesto somewhat central between Old Town/Charles Bridge and Wenselas Square. They truly have welcomed capitalism and amazingly most speak some English. Next we did Budapest and it, as she mentioned above, has not quite gotten the hang of tourism. We stayed at the Kulturinov which is on Castle Hill (the best of budapest) just across the cobblestone street from the Hilton. It is located in one wing of a government building. Somewhat sparse, but economical, clean and convenient. Be sure to take a night time Danube cruise, Budapest is most beautiful at night when lit. We spent 3 nights which was enough for seeing Pest, touring castle Hill, cruise, concert, and trying to get into the Gellert Baths which were closed. We next drove to Vienna, about an hour and a half away. There we spent 2 days and 2 nights seeing Schoenbrun, the Opera, etc. Vienna is very cosmopolitan after the other two. It is a much more expensive city than the other two also. We stayed at Pension Nossek on the Graben just down the street from St Stephens. A car is worthless in the city center, most streets are pedestrian only. They are terrific cities you should have a great time!

Lee

Mary Ann: Couldn't help but notice your mention of the Cloister Inn in Prague. We are leaving for a week in Prague on November 13th and would appreciate any details concerning that hotel, area and what you liked the most, least, etc. <BR> <BR>Although I have been doing my homework, we have not been in the Czech Republic prior to this trip. <BR> <BR>Thank you.

Deena

Thanks, Travel Fan and May Ann. Loved your input. I forgot to mention that we will be staying for a total of 15 days and are looking for charming 3-4 star hotels (centrally located).

JB

It's been a while, but...a lovely, high-quality, centrally-located hotel in Vienna is (or was) the Graben near St. Stephen's. You might see if it's still in the books. The Inter-Continental was dullsville and not at all Viennese. If you can manage to work in the hydrofoil to or from Budapest our entire clan just loved that trip, even in the drizzle. Ditto the comments on the communist decor but great location at the Budapest Hilton.

adrienne

Hi Deena, <BR> <BR>I did all these three cities about 5 years ago without a car. Flew into Budapest. Took the minivan from the airport to the Taverna Hotel. It’s the hotel with a bowling alley inside it. Would recommend this hotel for its central location in the pedestrian area and good staff. We ate in the hotel restaurant one night and the food was good. Took a trip to Szentendre which is an hour and a half from Budapest on the boat but took the train back (1/2 hour). I would recommend the train as the ride on the Danube at this point was boring. There was very little scenery to look at. Szentendre is a wonderful town full of restored buildings in great colors. There are lots of churches of all denominations. Stayed in Budapest 4 days. <BR> <BR>From Budapest took a train to Vienna where we stayed for 5 days at Pension Nossek on the Graben. It’s a 2 or 3 star hotel and the rooms were fairly large. The staff was very accommodating, getting us tickets for Mass at the Hofburg Chapel with the Vienna choirboys. I would definitely stay here again. <BR> <BR>Again took a train to Prague and stayed there 6 days. We stayed with a family outside of town beyond the castle. It was a B&B type of set up in a residential area. There was a restaurant a few blocks away where we ate several times when we didn’t want to go back into town. <BR> <BR>So, unless you’re going to be taking a few trips outside of the cities you definitely won’t need a car. The taxis were very cheap in Prague – from the train station to the place we stayed was $8 as was the ride to the airport. To get into town we took a tram which stopped in front of the house. <BR> <BR>Be glad to answer any other questions. <BR> <BR>Adrienne <BR> <BR>

Mary Ann

Hi Lee <BR>The Cloister Inn was a really good location for being central. One way was the trolley station and Wenselas Square (also a department store with stamps about 2 blocks away), the other was Old Town/Jewish Quarter and Charles Bridge, ATMs were close by. We walked over the Bridge to the Castle and back one night for dinner. During the day, we took the tram/trolley over and walked back. We used Rick Steves and he has some great walking tours for Pargue, though weather could be a factor. The Cloister Inn has a good size breakfast, parking if you need it. The rooms were a decent size with nice clean bathrooms and the television had CNN, friendly staff. It seemed very quiet, but my sister in law occasionally was bothered by the elevator at night. It is built actually on the outside of the building and can echo noise due to the court below. They do not have a restaurant and their location (across from the Police station) does not have any restaurants in the immediate block (probably the least liked feature but we did not feel unsafe in the neighborhood and it made us see more of the city). We ate mostly at Old Town, Wenselas, and over at the Castle area. We like to walk. Between Old Town and the bridge was a cyber cafe we used to email home. If you are driving, be sure to get directions, there are a lot of one way streets, the Inn is on one (we parked the car and left it). Check out their web site. You can email me direct if you choose, but do it soon we leave for OZ & NZ next week. (That forum is no where near as good as this). Oh a Czech friend recommended Bonaparts, it is on a street leading up to the castle, small, quaint, wonderful food. We ate there one time and had drinks another to break up the walk. We also did a concert on the Steps of the Museum at the end of Wenselas Square. It was a trio, lasted about an hour and a half, they give you cushions, it was really nice. If you are planning to tour the Jewish Quarter, they do not take credit cards. We had to make a trip to the ATM which was several blocks away at that time from the quarter. The view at night was one of my favorite things along with the Bridge. Since the river front is maybe 3 or 4 blocks from the Inn we would walk by to view the castle accross the river lit at night, it was just beautiful. Regardless of where we ate, I do not think we had a bad meal the whole time we were there (and with 4 of us, we had a few picky eaters). As you can figure out we really enjoyed the city and the trip. Hope yours is just as wonderful!

Lee

Mary Ann: Thank you for the excellent info on the hotel and on Prague. <BR> <BR>I realize that in November, the weather may not be very cooperative, but we still plan to walk and trolley our way around. We may take the train to Cesky Krumlov as it's always been on my mind to see, but haven't made it yet. <BR> <BR>There will be four of us, also, my wife and I and her parents. We usually have a good time together and pretty much like the same things. <BR> <BR>Thanks, again!

Deena

Thanks Adrienne. You answered so many of my questions about getting to each city without a car. It can be done!!Very helpful!!