3 day itinerary in Budapest

Posted by johnnymacaroni2@reddit | budapest | View on Reddit | 34 comments

Hey guys, I made an itinerary for my 3 day trip to Budapest next february, what do you think? Doable? Would you suggest any changes or do you have any tips in general for these locations? Or bar/restaurants recommendations?

I'll be staying close to House of Terror to help you understand logistics on this one.

PS: really wanted to visit Arena Puskas, but I don't think I'll get time for that

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NeighborhoodRude2669@reddit

Hey,

A bit late here, but I am curious about how was your trip? I am also going for three whole days and wanted to know if you recommend any more places which are better than the ones you mentioned or want to change something :)

If you cannot remember the name of it, then just give me an idea haha, I will do the search

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Warm_Day_5241@reddit

Doable with proper planning ! Enjoy your trip

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Lordsab@reddit

check if Gellért Hill is available, it's been under construction for a few years now
I'd give the Museum of Fine Arts a bit more time than 2 hours, it's a deceptively large building with a lot of stuff. 2.5 hrs on the Margaret Island in February sounds a bit much, so I'd probably adjust that: 1.5 for the island, 3 hours for the museum

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ClementineMandarin@reddit

Hi, im going to Budapest in 2 weeks, and want to eat some local food while im there. When looking around at restaurants I usually find Goulash under soups/stews and not main course. Do you know if this is because just the goulash usually wouldn’t fill you up, and you should order something more in addition? I.e on Kőleves menu

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Lordsab@reddit

Gulyás is generally understood as a soup. The stews are called pörkölt (which is a main course)

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ClementineMandarin@reddit

I see, thank you!

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johnnymacaroni2@reddit (OP)

Nice, I’ll do a deeper research on Gellért Hill and adjust Island + Fine Arts time, it makes sense what you said!

Thanks for the restaurants recommendations, I’m looking for “as cheap as possible” and “not toxic food” combination for eating options

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AntalRyder@reddit

I can also recommend Gettó Gulyás on Wesselényi utca!

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picurebeka@reddit

Put things on a map. For example if you go from Várkert Bazár to Halászbástya, You have to walk through the Castle. Why go back and forth, if you can "streamline it?

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Rebuluksz@reddit

People don’t realise that there are an escalator and a lift to Buda castle in Várkertbazár

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picurebeka@reddit

And stairs, and ramps.

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johnnymacaroni2@reddit (OP)

I thought Halászbástya would be better to visit first thing in the morning, so probably switch and leave it after Buda Castle?

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picurebeka@reddit

Like I said. Put it on the map, so your visiting order would make sense. Personally, I would do Halászbástya in the very early morning (don't pay for the top floor, the view is the same), so not a lot of tourists around. Then Mathias church, then walk to the Castle. Check what you want to check there, then go to the Várkert Bazár (there are stairs, escalators and lifts around the Maria statue). Then Gellért Hill's sights. I would skip the Mária Magdolna-templom entirely, unless you want to go way out of your way to see the leftovers of a 13. century gothic temple. If you don't want to skip it, start with that, and go from there.

Or, start with the Central Market, Gellért Hill, Várkert Bazár, Castle, Matthias Church, Halászbástya, Mária Magdolna-templom.

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johnnymacaroni2@reddit (OP)

Thanks, that makes a lot more sense!

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habel_marton@reddit

Gellért Hill: the Citadel is under reconstruction, check if the top of the Hill is still reachable.

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johnnymacaroni2@reddit (OP)

Oh good to know, I’ll check that

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Inglejuice@reddit

That part at the very top is still closed but you can still walk around all the paths below that, still very high up and get all the good views.

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johnnymacaroni2@reddit (OP)

Nice, so maybe not so much time in Gellért Hill after all

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FarbatosXD@reddit

The time for Gellért-hegy seems a bit excessive, I'd suggest maybe cutting some of that for the market hall, or afternoon tea/coffee, if that's your thing.

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johnnymacaroni2@reddit (OP)

That makes sense, since a lot of people said it is partially closed and I might enjoy the market for more time

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papayadog64@reddit

You may only get 30 minutes at Grand Central Market

https://piaconline.hu/en/central-market-hall/

When I was in Budapest in October, I arrived in the evening and walked along the banks and took in all the sights by night. Beautiful city when it is all lit up!

I would also do a search of some of the other subreddits such as r/solotravel many others have posted itineraries and great ideas such as you can go up Fisheman's Bastion at night and it is free.

There is also a cave tour under the castle that was pretty good.

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johnnymacaroni2@reddit (OP)

Yeah, maybe I should spend less time in Gellért Hill since many people said the highest peak is closed. So I could get earlier to the Market and enjoy it better.

Thanks! I’ll definitely check that subreddit!

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VszVszVsz@reddit

use google maps in public transport mode to plan your journeys between sites.

buda castle is the national gallery (along with the budapest history museum and the national library) for the most part the building itself is meh. its more about the atmosphere up on castle hill.

parlament tours last nowhere near 2 hours.

lunch specials at most restaurants are between 1100-1400 and are normally served efficiently. but if popular they can run out. most office workers tend to start their lunch around noon.

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picurebeka@reddit

Lunch specials are more like 2500-3500 HUF in restaurants. In bistros or in a "kifőzde" you might find something for that price, but not in a proper restaurant.

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VszVszVsz@reddit

i meant the time where they are served, not the price

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picurebeka@reddit

Then you missed a : or two, that caused the misunderstanding on my part. My bad.

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johnnymacaroni2@reddit (OP)

I’ve seen somewhere that central market hall only closes like at 9pm, but that might’ve been wrong since I just saw on google that they close at 6pm, I’ll have to adjust that so I can visit it more calmly.

I know parliament yours take around 45-60 minutes, but I saved 2 hours for it because I might be in love with the architecture there (admiring outside and taking photos of it hahaha).

Thanks!!

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TheWalrusMann@reddit

you should definitely leave more time for the museum of fine arts, at least as much as for the national gallery, although even that's gonna be a rush for both

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