Five Nights in Budapest: A Quick Winter Getaway
Dec 6th, 2014, 11:37 AM
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Five Nights in Budapest: A Quick Winter Getaway
Back in May, American Airlines experienced a glitch on its website that resulted in cheap airfares to several European destinations in winter, including over Thanksgiving weekend. With roundtrips to Budapest, Hungary, running about $400 a ticket, we picked up a few and were on our way to the Old Continent. It was pure luck that we caught wind of the mistake fares.
The trip would be our fourth trip to Europe. Over the past decade, we've visited much of Western Europe as well as Istanbul. All of our prior trips occurred in summer. We chose Budapest because it is one of the cities that I've always wanted to see. It's something about seeing photographs of the Danube running through the city dotted with some of the city's architectural icons.
My goals for this trip were to take a trip on Danube, sample some of the delightful pastries and desserts that are just superior in Europe, and experience the famous Christmas markets found in this part of the world. I'm happy to report that we were able to check all of these boxes on this trip and more.
In terms of weather, Budapest experienced mostly overcast days and nights during our time in the city. The overcast skies interchanged with on-and-off drizzling rain, nothing that really affected our visit. Temperatures hovered around the mid-30s during the day and low-30s at night, which is seasonal for this time of year.
We left for Budapest from Washington, DC, via London on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, and returned the following Tuesday. We were on U.S. Airways for the intercontinental flights and British Airways within Europe, connecting via London both ways. The flights were uneventful and the service on all our legs were decent. Luck was on our side as our outbound flight experienced no delays given the stormy weather moving up the East Coast throughout the day that day.
We arrived in Budapest around noon of Thursday, passed immigration, and went our way to our hotel, the Sofitel, via taxi. The trip from the airport to the Sofitel took about thirty minutes and cost a flat 10,000 forints. The check-in process at the hotel was smooth and we were in our Danube-facing rooms in minutes. We dropped off our bags, freshened up, and went to find lunch.
To be continued...
The trip would be our fourth trip to Europe. Over the past decade, we've visited much of Western Europe as well as Istanbul. All of our prior trips occurred in summer. We chose Budapest because it is one of the cities that I've always wanted to see. It's something about seeing photographs of the Danube running through the city dotted with some of the city's architectural icons.
My goals for this trip were to take a trip on Danube, sample some of the delightful pastries and desserts that are just superior in Europe, and experience the famous Christmas markets found in this part of the world. I'm happy to report that we were able to check all of these boxes on this trip and more.
In terms of weather, Budapest experienced mostly overcast days and nights during our time in the city. The overcast skies interchanged with on-and-off drizzling rain, nothing that really affected our visit. Temperatures hovered around the mid-30s during the day and low-30s at night, which is seasonal for this time of year.
We left for Budapest from Washington, DC, via London on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, and returned the following Tuesday. We were on U.S. Airways for the intercontinental flights and British Airways within Europe, connecting via London both ways. The flights were uneventful and the service on all our legs were decent. Luck was on our side as our outbound flight experienced no delays given the stormy weather moving up the East Coast throughout the day that day.
We arrived in Budapest around noon of Thursday, passed immigration, and went our way to our hotel, the Sofitel, via taxi. The trip from the airport to the Sofitel took about thirty minutes and cost a flat 10,000 forints. The check-in process at the hotel was smooth and we were in our Danube-facing rooms in minutes. We dropped off our bags, freshened up, and went to find lunch.
To be continued...
Dec 6th, 2014, 12:52 PM
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Just missed you, we were in Budapest for 4 night, left on Thanksgiving moring. It was drizzly while we there but we had a grand time. Stayed at The Marriott, just down the river from you. Can't wait to read your report.
Dec 7th, 2014, 07:10 AM
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DebitNM, glad you enjoyed your time in Budapest too.
Fourfortravel, let me know if you have questions as you come along for the ride.
Here goes:
An Introduction to Budapest on Foot
Following a late lunch at L'Aranceto, an Italian joint just around the corner from our hotel (I will do restaurant and hotel reviews in a separate post), we embarked on a short walking tour of the city. A walk is one of our favorite ways to begin our trip in a new city, taking in the architecture and atmosphere as well as getting a lay of the land. We set off on our two-hour walk at around 3pm, which meant we had one hour of daylight and one hour of twilight as the sun sets around 4pm here at this time of year.
Our walk began right in front of our hotel. We followed the Danube River north, passing by the beautiful Chain Bridge to our left and several large late-19th century / early-20th century buildings on our right. About 20-30 minutes into the walk we came up the Parliament building, one of the main focal points on the Danube.
The Parliament was built in 1896 in celebration of 1,000 years of independence and still stands as a grandiose statement to Hungary's glorious imperial past as part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The Parliament building consists of three parts, the main central portion capped by a huge dome, and two wings, one for a lower house and one for an upper house, although Hungary has an unicameral legislature today. We walked around the building a little bit, but did not linger as we were devoting a full morning to it tomorrow.
Continuing on, we soon came upon the Margaret Bridge, which connected the Pest side of the city, which we were on, with the Buda side of the city, which we were about to reach. Walking along the bridge, we noticed replicas of the Hungarian royal crown with its famous bent cross decorating the structure. In addition to pedestrian walkways on either side, there are two lanes for cars as well as a couple of lanes for the city's tram system. The sun was setting as we walked across the bridge and we were able to witness the lights of the city come on, first on the bridge itself, then the buildings all around us, and on the Chain Bridge downriver. The city looked magical.
On the Buda side, there was a lot of construction on about half of the promenade along the Danube so we took the street immediately abutting it. Unlike the section of Pest along the river, Buda seemed more residential, with apartment buildings, restaurants and cafes, etc. Halfway between the Margaret and Chain Bridges, we were now directly across the river from the Parliament building, now aglow in lights. We snapped a couple of photos here and rejoined the promenade towards the Chain Bridge, passing glimpses of a couple of churches as well as the Matthias Church up the hill. In about another 30 minutes we came upon the Chain Bridge with Buda Castle dominating the view to our right. Here we crossed the Chain Bridge back to the Pest side of the city, taking in more scenic views of the river and the buildings on either side.
From here, we went to the Gresham Palace straight ahead as you leave the bridge, to the left of the Sofitel. Now a Four Seasons property, the hotel sets up a Christmas market in the main hall of the lobby. We browsed some of the stalls and watched a Herend craftsman handpaint one of the porcelain dishes he was selling.
It was about 6:30 now and we ducked back into our hotel to freshen up before dinner at the Paris Budapest Bar in our lobby.
On Friday, our first full day in the city, we explored the Pest side visiting Parliament, St. Stephen's Church, Andrassy Boulevard, and City Park. More to come...
Fourfortravel, let me know if you have questions as you come along for the ride.
Here goes:
An Introduction to Budapest on Foot
Following a late lunch at L'Aranceto, an Italian joint just around the corner from our hotel (I will do restaurant and hotel reviews in a separate post), we embarked on a short walking tour of the city. A walk is one of our favorite ways to begin our trip in a new city, taking in the architecture and atmosphere as well as getting a lay of the land. We set off on our two-hour walk at around 3pm, which meant we had one hour of daylight and one hour of twilight as the sun sets around 4pm here at this time of year.
Our walk began right in front of our hotel. We followed the Danube River north, passing by the beautiful Chain Bridge to our left and several large late-19th century / early-20th century buildings on our right. About 20-30 minutes into the walk we came up the Parliament building, one of the main focal points on the Danube.
The Parliament was built in 1896 in celebration of 1,000 years of independence and still stands as a grandiose statement to Hungary's glorious imperial past as part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The Parliament building consists of three parts, the main central portion capped by a huge dome, and two wings, one for a lower house and one for an upper house, although Hungary has an unicameral legislature today. We walked around the building a little bit, but did not linger as we were devoting a full morning to it tomorrow.
Continuing on, we soon came upon the Margaret Bridge, which connected the Pest side of the city, which we were on, with the Buda side of the city, which we were about to reach. Walking along the bridge, we noticed replicas of the Hungarian royal crown with its famous bent cross decorating the structure. In addition to pedestrian walkways on either side, there are two lanes for cars as well as a couple of lanes for the city's tram system. The sun was setting as we walked across the bridge and we were able to witness the lights of the city come on, first on the bridge itself, then the buildings all around us, and on the Chain Bridge downriver. The city looked magical.
On the Buda side, there was a lot of construction on about half of the promenade along the Danube so we took the street immediately abutting it. Unlike the section of Pest along the river, Buda seemed more residential, with apartment buildings, restaurants and cafes, etc. Halfway between the Margaret and Chain Bridges, we were now directly across the river from the Parliament building, now aglow in lights. We snapped a couple of photos here and rejoined the promenade towards the Chain Bridge, passing glimpses of a couple of churches as well as the Matthias Church up the hill. In about another 30 minutes we came upon the Chain Bridge with Buda Castle dominating the view to our right. Here we crossed the Chain Bridge back to the Pest side of the city, taking in more scenic views of the river and the buildings on either side.
From here, we went to the Gresham Palace straight ahead as you leave the bridge, to the left of the Sofitel. Now a Four Seasons property, the hotel sets up a Christmas market in the main hall of the lobby. We browsed some of the stalls and watched a Herend craftsman handpaint one of the porcelain dishes he was selling.
It was about 6:30 now and we ducked back into our hotel to freshen up before dinner at the Paris Budapest Bar in our lobby.
On Friday, our first full day in the city, we explored the Pest side visiting Parliament, St. Stephen's Church, Andrassy Boulevard, and City Park. More to come...
Dec 7th, 2014, 08:30 AM
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Very interesting, looking forward to more. We had drinks at the Gresham shortly after it was re-opened. We stayed up in Buda at the Hilton. It was a memorable city trip, sounds as if yours was as well.
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Dec 8th, 2014, 07:06 PM
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Trophywife007 and castlevisitor, thanks for chiming in. It's always encouraging to know that folks are reading it and finding it interesting or useful.
Cathinjoetown, we sure had a good time. Gresham is lovely and so is the Hilton, although I chose the Pest side because of the number of dining and entertainment options nearby.
I will post the next installment later this week, when I'm able to find a moment in between work.
Cathinjoetown, we sure had a good time. Gresham is lovely and so is the Hilton, although I chose the Pest side because of the number of dining and entertainment options nearby.
I will post the next installment later this week, when I'm able to find a moment in between work.
Dec 12th, 2014, 07:37 AM
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Vicky, from what I understand, May could be gorgeous. The warmer climate will be good for time on the water and exploring some of the surrounding countryside, a couple of things we would have wanted to do if we had more time and if the air wasn't as cold.
Pest Icons
We began our first full day in Budapest with a light breakfast of pastries and coffee at a bake shop a couple of blocks from our hotel. From there, it was a short hop over to the Parliament complex. We arrived at the building shortly before 9:00 and immediately proceeded to the visitors center, where we purchased our tickets for the 9:45 English tour. The tour lasted approximately one hour and focused upon four rooms including the central hall with its crown jewels and the main legislative chamber. During our visit we witnessed one of the hourly changing of the guards, which was more low-key and sedate than some of the other ones we've seen.
The Hungarian Parliament was heavily damaged by bombs and fire during World War II, but it has since been rebuilt and restored according to the original plans. The interior of the building is as impressive as its exterior. I appreciated the stately appearance and décor of its rooms and connecting hallways. Even the gilded central hall and grand staircase didn't feel over the top, as it can sometimes could.
Following our visit to Parliament, we made our way to St. Stephen's Church on foot, passing through the streets of Leopold Town. Leopold Town reminded me a lot of Paris, with its elegant 19th-century and early-2oth-century buildings. At the center of Leopold Town is Freedom Square, home to a Soviet War Memorial as well as a statue paying homage to Ronald Reagan for his role with the fall of communism in Hungary.
We arrived at St. Stephen's Church around noon and spent close to an hour exploring the beautiful structure. In addition to visiting the interior, we also decided to go up to the dome for a bird's eye view of the city. From here we were treated to wonderful views of the city's main landmarks including the Parliament building, Buda Castle, and the Danube River with its numerous bridges.
Just outside of the church was one of the city's numerous Christmas markets. The market was comprised of numerous stalls selling ornaments, gingerbread cookies, marzipan, and traditional food and beverages. We ate lunch here and spent a little bit of time browsing the wares before heading towards Andrassy Avenue, where we spent a better part of the afternoon.
Andrassy Avenue is the main commercial drag of Budapest. Here you find your typical international brand-name boutiques as well as department stores and some local shops and restaurants. Known as the Champs Elysees of Budapest, Andrassy Avenue felt more to me like Vienna than it did Paris. I had no interest in the brand-name retailers but did peek into several of the historic coffeehouses that line the retail thoroughfare.
We made two sightseeing stops along Andrassy Avenue, one for a quick peek inside the Opera House and the other for the House of Terror museum. Like Parliament, the Opera House was built as part of the 1896 millennial celebrations. The House of Terror is located about two-thirds of the way up the avenue and offers a very compelling glimpse into some of hardships endured by ordinary Hungarians first under Nazi occupation during World War II and then under Soviet rule from 1945 to 1989. The museum does a very good job using the artifacts from these two periods and video clips to tell the story, and it was hard not to be moved by the exhibits and the stories of oppression and torture under two very brutal regimes, especially considering that some of my family experienced similar conditions in China during the Cultural Revolution.
It was nightfall by the time we were finished with the Terror museum, but we still wanted to keep going for a bit. We continued up the last section of Andrassy Avenue. Along this section were several large historic buildings, as well as embassies and consulates. At the end of Andrassy is City Park, with its monuments to some of Hungary's war heroes and political leaders, as well as a handful of museums, zoos, and one of the city's main public baths - the Szechenyi Baths. We did not experience the baths, but did go inside for a glimpse of its beautiful main lobby and outdoor pools.
From here, we made out way to the nearby underground subway station, from where it was a quick ride back to St. Stephen's Church. We grabbed dinner at one of the local Italian restaurants not too far from the basilica and spent the remainder of the evening back at the Christmas market with some mulled wine in hand.
Our second full day in Budapest was also spent on the Pest side of the city. To be continued...
Pest Icons
We began our first full day in Budapest with a light breakfast of pastries and coffee at a bake shop a couple of blocks from our hotel. From there, it was a short hop over to the Parliament complex. We arrived at the building shortly before 9:00 and immediately proceeded to the visitors center, where we purchased our tickets for the 9:45 English tour. The tour lasted approximately one hour and focused upon four rooms including the central hall with its crown jewels and the main legislative chamber. During our visit we witnessed one of the hourly changing of the guards, which was more low-key and sedate than some of the other ones we've seen.
The Hungarian Parliament was heavily damaged by bombs and fire during World War II, but it has since been rebuilt and restored according to the original plans. The interior of the building is as impressive as its exterior. I appreciated the stately appearance and décor of its rooms and connecting hallways. Even the gilded central hall and grand staircase didn't feel over the top, as it can sometimes could.
Following our visit to Parliament, we made our way to St. Stephen's Church on foot, passing through the streets of Leopold Town. Leopold Town reminded me a lot of Paris, with its elegant 19th-century and early-2oth-century buildings. At the center of Leopold Town is Freedom Square, home to a Soviet War Memorial as well as a statue paying homage to Ronald Reagan for his role with the fall of communism in Hungary.
We arrived at St. Stephen's Church around noon and spent close to an hour exploring the beautiful structure. In addition to visiting the interior, we also decided to go up to the dome for a bird's eye view of the city. From here we were treated to wonderful views of the city's main landmarks including the Parliament building, Buda Castle, and the Danube River with its numerous bridges.
Just outside of the church was one of the city's numerous Christmas markets. The market was comprised of numerous stalls selling ornaments, gingerbread cookies, marzipan, and traditional food and beverages. We ate lunch here and spent a little bit of time browsing the wares before heading towards Andrassy Avenue, where we spent a better part of the afternoon.
Andrassy Avenue is the main commercial drag of Budapest. Here you find your typical international brand-name boutiques as well as department stores and some local shops and restaurants. Known as the Champs Elysees of Budapest, Andrassy Avenue felt more to me like Vienna than it did Paris. I had no interest in the brand-name retailers but did peek into several of the historic coffeehouses that line the retail thoroughfare.
We made two sightseeing stops along Andrassy Avenue, one for a quick peek inside the Opera House and the other for the House of Terror museum. Like Parliament, the Opera House was built as part of the 1896 millennial celebrations. The House of Terror is located about two-thirds of the way up the avenue and offers a very compelling glimpse into some of hardships endured by ordinary Hungarians first under Nazi occupation during World War II and then under Soviet rule from 1945 to 1989. The museum does a very good job using the artifacts from these two periods and video clips to tell the story, and it was hard not to be moved by the exhibits and the stories of oppression and torture under two very brutal regimes, especially considering that some of my family experienced similar conditions in China during the Cultural Revolution.
It was nightfall by the time we were finished with the Terror museum, but we still wanted to keep going for a bit. We continued up the last section of Andrassy Avenue. Along this section were several large historic buildings, as well as embassies and consulates. At the end of Andrassy is City Park, with its monuments to some of Hungary's war heroes and political leaders, as well as a handful of museums, zoos, and one of the city's main public baths - the Szechenyi Baths. We did not experience the baths, but did go inside for a glimpse of its beautiful main lobby and outdoor pools.
From here, we made out way to the nearby underground subway station, from where it was a quick ride back to St. Stephen's Church. We grabbed dinner at one of the local Italian restaurants not too far from the basilica and spent the remainder of the evening back at the Christmas market with some mulled wine in hand.
Our second full day in Budapest was also spent on the Pest side of the city. To be continued...
Dec 13th, 2014, 11:20 AM
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Ann, GinnyJo, Analogue, and Cathinjoetown, thank you for coming along for the ride and chiming in. It's encouraging to know that someone's reading this and are enjoying it or finding it useful.
More of Pest, with a Focus on Markets
We began our Saturday with a short walk from our hotel to Gerbeaud for a leisurely breakfast (yes, we had dessert at 9 in the morning; a more detailed review in a separate post), followed by plenty of time at the Christmas market on Vorosmarty Square. There are several Christmas markets set up throughout Budapest, but this is the largest one in the city. The market runs from Vorosmarty Square and spills onto some of the surrounding streets all the way to Deak Square. Other than your typical souvenirs, there were stalls selling ornaments, glassware, pots and jars, clothing, scarves, etc. On the northeast corner of Vorosmarty Square, just outside Gerbeaud, is a stage that featured some local acts in the evening.
By the time we had our fill of the Christmas market and identified a few items for purchase later, we decided to head down Vaci Street, the main drag in the commercial section of Pest. We browsed a couple of shops along the street and made numerous detours to the side streets. We admired two or three cute little squares with complementary cafes and coffeehouses, a few interesting buildings adorned with noteworthy architecture, and one of the city's university districts.
Where Vaci Street meets Kossuth Lagos Street (near the Elizabeth Bridge) is Great Market Hall, the city's main market. The hall is home to stalls selling fruits, vegetables, cured and fresh meats, cheeses, and spices on the first floor; souvenir and restaurant stalls on the second floor; and meats, seafood, and pickles in the basement. We spent about a couple of hours here, browsing the stalls, making a handful of small purchases, and sampling some of the food on offer. As we were here on a Saturday, the market closes early, so we didn't have as much time as we would have wanted.
From the market hall, we made our way back to the Christmas market on Vorosmarty Square, where we made the purchases we identified this morning. We dropped our things back at our hotel and freshened up before heading back out for dinner at a nearby Japanese restaurant and a folk show at the Danube Palace.
The show was a bit disappointing. While it was fun to see the performers in traditional costumes and a couple of the numbers were engaging, there was too much step-dancing, Irish-style, and it felt repetitious very quickly. Perhaps I didn't do enough research and expected more, but I didn't feel it was worth sitting through two hours of what they had put on. The venue is small and intimate though. At least we didn't spend too much money on it.
A full day on the Buda side of the city was on our agenda for Sunday, and we followed through with it. More to come...
More of Pest, with a Focus on Markets
We began our Saturday with a short walk from our hotel to Gerbeaud for a leisurely breakfast (yes, we had dessert at 9 in the morning; a more detailed review in a separate post), followed by plenty of time at the Christmas market on Vorosmarty Square. There are several Christmas markets set up throughout Budapest, but this is the largest one in the city. The market runs from Vorosmarty Square and spills onto some of the surrounding streets all the way to Deak Square. Other than your typical souvenirs, there were stalls selling ornaments, glassware, pots and jars, clothing, scarves, etc. On the northeast corner of Vorosmarty Square, just outside Gerbeaud, is a stage that featured some local acts in the evening.
By the time we had our fill of the Christmas market and identified a few items for purchase later, we decided to head down Vaci Street, the main drag in the commercial section of Pest. We browsed a couple of shops along the street and made numerous detours to the side streets. We admired two or three cute little squares with complementary cafes and coffeehouses, a few interesting buildings adorned with noteworthy architecture, and one of the city's university districts.
Where Vaci Street meets Kossuth Lagos Street (near the Elizabeth Bridge) is Great Market Hall, the city's main market. The hall is home to stalls selling fruits, vegetables, cured and fresh meats, cheeses, and spices on the first floor; souvenir and restaurant stalls on the second floor; and meats, seafood, and pickles in the basement. We spent about a couple of hours here, browsing the stalls, making a handful of small purchases, and sampling some of the food on offer. As we were here on a Saturday, the market closes early, so we didn't have as much time as we would have wanted.
From the market hall, we made our way back to the Christmas market on Vorosmarty Square, where we made the purchases we identified this morning. We dropped our things back at our hotel and freshened up before heading back out for dinner at a nearby Japanese restaurant and a folk show at the Danube Palace.
The show was a bit disappointing. While it was fun to see the performers in traditional costumes and a couple of the numbers were engaging, there was too much step-dancing, Irish-style, and it felt repetitious very quickly. Perhaps I didn't do enough research and expected more, but I didn't feel it was worth sitting through two hours of what they had put on. The venue is small and intimate though. At least we didn't spend too much money on it.
A full day on the Buda side of the city was on our agenda for Sunday, and we followed through with it. More to come...
Dec 13th, 2014, 11:37 AM
#16
tripp - we went to a show at the Budapest palace and perhaps we were luckier than you as the 2nd half in particular was a gipsy-style orchestra which was excellent. Another interesting aspect which we saw elsewhere in Budapest [and in Vienna and Italy as well] is the way in which these places are hidden behind unprepossessing doors, presumably to stop nosy authorities to getting too interested in what's going on behind them.
We also liked the Christmas markets a lot but we had to keep going into museums and galleries in order to warm up as when we were there it was VERY cold!
We also liked the Christmas markets a lot but we had to keep going into museums and galleries in order to warm up as when we were there it was VERY cold!
Dec 14th, 2014, 02:48 AM
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You're bringing back fond memories reinforced because I decorated the tree yesterday with two little felt ornaments we bought on Vaci Street. Did you notice the gorgeous art nouveau florist? I remember some pretty little churches as well.
Dec 14th, 2014, 03:26 AM
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I wanted to share 2 links. The first is a friend's website. He lives in Budapest with his wife who ending a work assignment. His photos are stunning and a great inspiration to visit Budapest. Also see his other work from other cities.
http://patcallahanphotography.com
The second is a photo of a site that everyone who visits Hungary must see. It is barely marked and easy to miss but should not be missed.
http://visitbudapest.travel/articles...on-the-danube/
http://patcallahanphotography.com
The second is a photo of a site that everyone who visits Hungary must see. It is barely marked and easy to miss but should not be missed.
http://visitbudapest.travel/articles...on-the-danube/
Dec 14th, 2014, 03:49 AM
#20
RM67 - I don't know if you like opera, but if you do, the one in Budapest is very good and reasonably priced compared with Covent Garden. otherwise, a guided tour of the opera house would be fun. We stayed at the nearby Hotel Pest which was very nice and not too pricey. It appears to have been done up and renamed the Casati Budapest but the rooms were a reasonable size, the breakfast was all you might expect and the position was excellent - near to a metro but walkable to most of the centre of the city.
http://www.casatibudapesthotel.com
We went between Christmas and New Year which was cold but fun.
http://www.casatibudapesthotel.com
We went between Christmas and New Year which was cold but fun.
