This city has it all – from stunning architecture to cozy cafes, thermal baths, and a nightlife scene that never sleeps!
In this essential guide to Budapest, you get:
🎡 Top attractions and a few hidden gems
🚌 How to get around in Budapest
🍺 Some of the best ruin bars
🥘 Brunch & Dinner suggestions
FAQ and more!
Let's start exploring Budapest!
💸 Hungary has their own currency called Forint (HUF) and €1 is the equivalent of 394 HUF. However most places accepts Euro (if you need change you will get forint back is you pay with euro). Businesses can freely decide on their exchange rates therefore using Euros can make you pay 15-20% extra.However most shops takes card and is the cheapest option for you!
Can you drink the water?
🚿Yes. Drinking tap water is completely safe in all of Budapest.
Is Budapest safe?
YES. Even at 1am, I felt perfectly safe walking the streets. Budapest is just as safe, if not safer than most other European cities, so don’t worry.
When is the best time to visit?
🌸 As for many other European cities, visiting anytime except peak summer is perfect. Spring is a nice time to go as you can avoid the biggest crowds and still get some sunny days, but Hungarian spring is quite unstable, so bring your umbrella.
How long to stay in Budapest?
⏱️ Budapest is bigger than you think and there’s a lot to do here. If you just want to see the main attractions, 3-4 days is enough. If you want to truly experience Budapest I’d recommend staying a week to 10 days.
How to get around
It is super easy to get around using public transportation in Budapest.
Here’s the breakdown:
Budapest’s metro system has four lines categorized into colors that cover all the main touristic attractions of the city. The lines go every 2-5 min.
💛M1: goes through Szechenyi Bath, budapest zoo, state opera
❤️M2: Buda castle, fisherman bastion, parliament, great synagogue
💙M3: the national museum,
💚M4: great market hall, Gellèrt Baths, statue of liberty,
fun fact: Line 1 dates back to 1986 and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site (it has a vintage feel to it)
🚌 Besides the metro there’s also trams and buses which are (almost) always on time, allowing you to reach any corner of the city.
Tram nr. 2: One of the most interesting things to do on your trip to Budapest is experiencing a ride aboard tram 2, which runs along the Danube and allows you to admire one of the main attractions of the city such as the Parliament, the Castle with the Fisherman’s Bastion, Matthias Church, the Chain Bridge, and the Elizabeth Bridge.
🎟️ How to buy tickets
Tickets can be purchased before boarding both metros, trams and buses at vending machines or tobacconists; they must be validated before entering the rail area in small machines inside.
Ticket types:
⏱️Single ticket (450 HUF / ~€1.25) valid on all public transport vehicles for one uninterrupted trip.
⏱️Block of 10 single tickets (4 000 HUF / €10). Costs less than 10 single tickets purchased individually.
⏱️Time-based tickets: You can use time-based tickets for an unlimited number of transfers and trip interruptions, by validating it each time you board (make sure that your last transfer falls within the 30-minute or 90-minute time limit depending on which ticket you bought)
30-minute ticket: 530 HUF / €1,30
90-minute ticket: 750 HUF / €2
⏱️24-Hour Travel Card (2500 HUF / €6,3): Usable on all public transport vehicles for 24 hours starting from when you decide to validate it.
⏱️72-Hour Travel Card (5500 HUF/ €14): Valid on all public transport vehicles for 72 hours starting from the time and date you purchased it.
⏱️15-day Budapest Pass (5950 HUF/ €15): same validity as the travel cards.
⚠️IMPORTANT: Tickets (both paper and digital) need to be validated by scanning the barcode located on the bus and tram doors and the driver's booths or by inserting the ticket in the validation-machine inside trams and buses). Single tickets needs to be validates every single time, where travel cards/passes just need to be validated one time.
If you’re caught without a valid ticket by a ticket inspector, you are to pay a fine which is currently 12 000 HUF / €30,5 paid on the spot
💜BudapestGO App💜
An Absolute game changer! The BudapestGO app can help you in planning your route providing real-time travel information as well as route and service recommendations including the BuBi public bike rental points.In the app you can buy every type of ticket as mentioned above and have the tickets stored in the app for your convenience.
🚲 Alternative transportation:
MOL Bubi is a bicycle sharing system with a huge coverage of the Pest side (Buda's rolling hills are less biker-friendly). To rent a bike, simply download the MOL Bubi app and use the "Pay-as-you-go" option which charges by the minute (but it's cheap; a half-hour bike ride is €3).
🛴You can aslo find Electric scooters all over the city as well - most commonly from Lime. This is used the same way as MOL Bubi, where you download the Lime app and start your ride. (Note that there are several so called "no parking zones" for e-scooters that include parts of downtown (District 5), Margaret Island, and the Castle District.)
🚦Outside of Budapest:
To get around in the rest of Hungary use Mav to plan your trip and buy tickets (otherwise buy tickets at the main train stations)
Discover the Hungarian capital with the Budapest City Pass. Benefit from a range of discounts, free entries to attractions, and unlimited public transportation in Budapest.you can choose between the 24, 48 or 72 hours pass
Included:
🛀🏻Relax at the famous Lukács Thermal Bath with entry included
🎡Free entry to more than 30 attractions
💸 Receive discounts of up to 50% for a number of different attractions and tours
the seat of the National Assembly of Hungary, as well as home to the crown Jewels and a popular tourist attraction. The building is now for it’s stunning exterior as well as impressive interior.
The parliament has been the largest building in Hungary since its completion in 1904. The architectural style of the building was influenced by The Palace of Westminster in London.
A 45-minute guided tour of the Parliament building is available with an audioguide or a professional tour guide
Good to know:
A security check is required prior to entering the House of Parliament. You must not enter the building with large bags, packages or objects capable of causing personal injury
For the protection of the Holy Crown, it is strictly forbidden to take photographs in the great Dome Hall. However, taking pictures or using video cameras is allowed in other parts of the building.
Due to parliamentary or state events, visits may be cancelled even as late as immediately prior to admission.
Opening hours:
Off-season: 8am to 4pm
Peak-season: 8am to 6pm
Prices:
EEA citizens: 6000 HUF / €15
non-EEA citizens: 12000 HUF/ €30,5
The Budapest Opera House is one of the city's most elegant places and was built between 1875 and 1884.
You can only visit the Opera on an official guided tour or by attending a performance.
A 60-minute tour starts every day at 13:30, 15:00 and 16:30 in English.
Price: 9000 huf / €23
Opening hours: every day 10am to 7pm
Also known as the Great Synagogue or Tabakgasse Synagogue
The Budapest Synagogue was built between 1854 and 1859 according to the moorish style and is the largest synagogue in Europe and the second largest synagogue in the world. It can seat 3.000 people and it is located in the Jewish Quarter of Pest.
Price: 10800 huf / €27,5
Opening hours:
Winter season:
Sunday - Thursday: 10:00 am - 4:00 p.m
Friday: 10:00 am - 2:00 p.m
Saturday: closed
Summer season:
Sunday - Thursday: 10:00 a.m - 8:00 p.m
Friday: 10:00 a.m - 4:00 p.m
Saturday: closed
built in 1897, and is the most beautiful and largest of all Budapest market halls (yes, there are more historical market halls in Budapest, like the one in Hold Street called the Downtown Budapest Market Hall). On the ground floor you’ll find everything your food-heart desires from fresh produce and meat to chimney cake. On the second floor there’s plenty of textile and souvenir shops as well as street-food restaurants.
Opening hours:
Monday: 6am to 5pm
Tue-fri: 6am to 6pm
Saturday: 6am to 3pm
Sunday: closed
Play with paint! Here you can momentarily forget about rules and limitations in these paint spray rooms! 45 min of unlimited paint and fun!
Price: 6990 HUF / €18
Opening hours: everyday 10am to 7pm
young and old can learn through play about limestone, bats, cave rescue and many other interesting things when you visit the new exhibition.
How to get here:
Take bus 29
Price: 3400 HUF / €8
Opening hours:
Tuesday to Sunday hourly between 10:15am and 5pm.
LAST TOUR STARTS at 4:15pm.
Closed on Mondays.
Gellèrt Baths have a water temperature that ranges between 27 °C and 40°C. The waters come from 118 springs from Gellert Hill directly to the 12 pools of the complex and is a part of the famous Hotel Gellért.
Opening hours: Every day from 9 am to 7pm
Prices:
Normal ticket: 10500 HUF / €27
Fridays + weekends: 12000 HUF / €30,5
One of the most beautiful and significant churches and tourist attractions of the country. Construction of the church started in 1851 and was dedicated to the holy king St Stephen who was also the founder of the Hungarian state.
You can climb 364 steps to the dome of the church (or take an elevator) for amazing panoramic views of Budapest.
St. Stephen’s Basilica plays a very active role in the Budapest music scene, since its consecration on 1905 - and concerts are often hosted here.
Opening hours of the Basilica:
Mon-sat: 9am to 5.45pm
Sunday: 1pm to 5.45pm
Opening hours of the panoramic terrace:
Every day 9am to 7pm
Price
Basilica: 2300 huf / €6
panoramic terrace: 4300 huf / €11
Both: 6000 huf / €15
With budapest card: 20% off
Matthias Church is one of the finest churches in Budapest. The outside of Matthias Church is of traditional Gothic style but inside you’ll see colorful frescos reaching from floor to ceiling and beautiful stained glass windows.
Price: HUF 2,500 / €6
Opening Hours (Subject to Church Events + Weddings have priority, and will affect regular Opening Hours.)
Weekdays: 9am to 5pm
Saturday: 9am to 12pm
Sunday: 1am to 5pm
A memorial to the Budapest Jews who fell victim to the Arrow Cross militiamen and depicts their shoes left behind on the bank when they fell into the river after having been shot during World War II.
The Fisherman’s Bastion is one of the most visited attractions in Budapest. The Fisherman’s Bastion was built between 1895 and 1902 as part of the series of developments that were to celebrate the 1000th birthday of the Hungarian state. The bastion was built as a viewing terrace and here you get some of the best views of budapest.
Opening hours: 24/7
Price: the Bastion is FREE to visit but the upper towers or turrets have a small entrance fee, which serves to maintain the historic building
Dominating the city from the top of Várhegy hill, Buda Castle is one of the main symbols of Budapest.
Today the Castle, is home to a number of cultural institutes, including two museums: the Hungarian National Gallery, the national library and the Budapest Historical Museum.
Interactive museum and a sensory journey that leads across various new media installations.
Price 5800 HUF / €15
Opening hours: Every day from 10am to 10pm
Once a major savings institution and today home to the Hungarian State Treasury. Instead of the usual façade, here the gable, frieze and the roof are the most ornate parts of the building.
in the heart of the City Park is a unique architectural building with a wavy roof dotted with holes. The House of Music covers the entire history of music, from the evolution of the human voice to contemporary trends, with a focus on Hungarian music.
Opening hours: everyday 10am to 6pm (closed on mondays)
Price
It's free to enter the building and stroll around, but if you wanna visit the actual museum, a ticket will cost you 3900 HUF /€9,60
In the extended Ultimate Budapest guide, we're ditching the stuffy tourist clichés and diving headfirst into the full Budapest experience indcluding 101 recommendations like:
Let's go on a journey of budget-friendly and bucket-list worthy adventures!
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