Want to "feel" Hungary
Posted by TemperatureHot8915@reddit | budapest | View on Reddit | 74 comments
Yeah, stupid title, I agree.
My grandfather emigrated in '56, and as my mother stopped contact with her parents, I did not really know him very well. I just remember our relatives visiting us, wearing blouses with embroidery and bringing us honey-bears. Later, in '91, we visited our relatives once and they told us not to visit Budapest as it was dirty and dangerous.
Now I'm visiting Budapest first time in june. I don't know, what I'm looking for. Maybe a little bit of my heritage. Kind of "this is how we are and what we do and where we live". Just meeting the normal people, not visiting insta places or tourist traps.
So, a naive question: what should I do, where should I go to avoid tourist recommendations and to feel real Budapest?
About me: 45 F, into history, architecture, culture, politics, law, social work, punk music.
Zederikus@reddit
I have an itinerary I wrote up for friends on how to get the most out of a short trip to Budapest, can send you if you want
DullWhole5847@reddit
Found this BBC video about Hungary and Budapest from 1989 the other day. I was born and raised in Budapest around the same time (a little bit later), and I found this video fascinating. You can feel the vibe. Some of the places still exist.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PO2dgKpbD4s
ThatIsWhatSheShaid@reddit
Bp100 is just on this weeked: https://budapest100.hu/en/ You can explore 100 year old buildings and talk with residents. Sadly there are only a few programs are in english, the app has an english friendly sections.
Also there are walks if you interested, like this:
https://imagine.hu/tura/secret-gardens-and-squares-downtown-in-english
utsuriga@reddit
Honest opinion: if it's your first time here, just walk around, at least for the first couple of days. Then you can do museums & stuff if you want but if you really want to get a feel of the place then just walking around is the best IMO.
Don't book cruises, don't buy passes, don't visit the baths (relatively locals do that anymore, anyway), don't eat in tourist-heavy areas. I won't say don't see the famous sights because those are worth seeing, but see them from the "outside" so to speak. Read the inscriptions, etc. Just grab Google Maps and walk around downtown, do a tour of the bridges, eat stuff you buy at grocery stores or restaurants off the tourist path (again, Google Maps is your friend).
Thin_Win2311@reddit
I respectfully disagree re visiting bath. I, as local, love Rudas and since OP wrote he was into history, Rudas definitely worth visiting with all its centuries old walls and pools.
utsuriga@reddit
OK, but you're one of the very very few locals who visit baths, let alone regularly. Most of us don't, I would say the baths are not exactly an essential part of Dat Real Budapest Vibe. (Also, OP said they would like to avoid touristy spots, and well, baths are exactly that.)
Avocado_SIut@reddit
We can argue about it being touristy but I'd join the above commenter in his disagreement about locals not visiting the baths.
I and many others I know have been going to the baths at least once every couple of months.
Some do so on a weekly basis.
They ARE touristy but not exclusively frequented by tourists.
utsuriga@reddit
Again: I'm not saying no locals go to the baths. I'm saying that most locals don't go to the baths. (Hell, most locals couldn't afford it even if they wanted to go.) It's simply not a very popular thing, that doesn't mean nobody does it, just that it's not an essential part of living in Budapest.
TemperatureHot8915@reddit (OP)
Thank you. Yes, I wasn't planning to do the tourist things and walking around a lot.
sukha_para@reddit
While I do think Rudas is worth it — it has the best quality thermal waters compared to Széchenyi and Gellért (closed) — but if you’re specifically looking for a local experience you can still get that at a couple baths:
Beyond that, another alternative local bath experience go to Csillaghegyi Strandfürdő on the Buda side. It’s 30-40 mins from the city center and the outdoor hot tub has beautiful views of the wooded hills. You will not likely meet any foreigners there. You can take the H5 suburban rail line from Margit bridge to get there. It’ll take you past the ruins of an old Roman aqueduct.
vahokif@reddit
I agree with this although I would disagree about the baths, lots of local people still go there.
Try to talk to people if you can, if you say your grandparents left in 56 they'll probably relate.
Tilos Maraton will be June 5 - 14 and is good shout if you like punk, especially the bicycle and punk day on June 11.
TemperatureHot8915@reddit (OP)
Oh, that's great!
VszVszVsz@reddit
hunyadi piac is undergoing renovations. has been for a while. it's open but not advisable except maybe on saturday mornings when there's more outdoor sellers.
Spiritual-Low-5288@reddit
Giant big up to Tilos Marathon, OP, try it! It's boheme, colourful and free!! I'm a Hungarian living abroad, but the two cultural events I'm missing the most are Tilos Marathon and Mediawave 🥹
LaurestineHUN@reddit
Yes. Try Pesterzsébet Bath or Dandár Bath, locals visit those more than the big 3.
Girderland@reddit
I'm sorry to say but if I had to describe being Hungarian in one word, it would be "suffering".
Alcohol is not something people drink here for fun, but rather to make life here bearable.
People are smart and most of them aren't assholes. But the whole country is highly conformist, brainwashed by 45 years of communism to think that all there is to life are profit and personal gain.
Avocado_SIut@reddit
Never try to give me another pep talk dude
Girderland@reddit
Experience the real Hungary... well, you could go for a 6 hour long walk and explore Budapest, just go into whatever direction feels nice. But Budapest is not the real Hungary - it is the rich, elte region.
If you go a bit further from the capital often all you'll see are towns with like, a pub to get drunk and a shop to buy food. Then you'll see gypsy women pushing 4 strollers, stray dogs and derelict houses.
There are no artists, no rebels, not even a drug culture. It's pure misery.
Girderland@reddit
Good thing your family left. It's better elsewhere.
"Nice place to visit, shitty place to live."
priestoferis@reddit
You should definitely go into the Parliament though and take a look at the Holy Crown.
Quick-Measurement858@reddit
I am Hungarian and I’ve been living in Budapest for 10 years and these are the places where I’ve felt most connected to my heritage (although please note I’m weird and not the best example of a typical Hungarian):
- reading and people watching next to the lake of Vajdahunyad vár (I recommend reading a Hungarian novel in English, like Pál utcai fiúk)
- touring the Unicum Museum, drinking the national liquor in the original cellar and learning about the family’s history intertwined with the history of Hungary
- drinking and playing foosball at a 4es 6os pub
- walking along the Danube
- walking around Práter street where some houses still have bullet holes from 56
Avocado_SIut@reddit
> - drinking and playing foosball at a 4es 6os pub
Care to explain this one?
On my list of "places to avoid this year", 4-es 6-os pubs are currently tied for third place with the Kremlin.
Quick-Measurement858@reddit
Haven’t been there since my university years but they always felt very “Budapest” when I was young. Bunch of drunk people even on weekdays not caring about anything.
TemperatureHot8915@reddit (OP)
Oh, I remember that I didn't like Unicum. But I was a child when I tried... (But I liked grandads wine)
Quick-Measurement858@reddit
No one likes Unicum first, but you can get used to it
TemperatureHot8915@reddit (OP)
I'll give it a second try
Raddens@reddit
Just don’t expect to like it significantly more, getting used to takes repeated drinking :)
ConvictedHobo@reddit
There are more tame tasting variants as well. Plum, orange, and coffee flavored ones. They are sweeter and a bit less alcoholic
ManfredMammuth@reddit
You have to mature to like it, that's what my dad always said :) Also, there are flavoured ones now, like plum, coffee...etc.
CommunicationOk8361@reddit
Check out Gólya, it's a nice place, sometimes have punk music. There is another underground place called Kripta but for that you kinda need to know people to get in.
Otherwise visit Dunyi, frequently there are concerts next to the Danube, eat at a butcher shop, just walk around Budapest, sit down breathe in the inner city. The architecture is so good, you wont get bored.
Futile-Clothes867@reddit
Why don't you go to the house where your grandfather lived? Try to find out the address, most likely the house will still be there. (In case you don't find the street name it might have been renamed, but I'm pretty people of reddit will help you to find it).
FovarosiBlog@reddit
Feel free to contact me at my gmail: 7788fido
I can show you around...
neat_hairclip@reddit
I’d recommend visiting some not that central districts.
Budafok has some wine cellars you may want to check out (or go to Páty, they will have open cellars on the 13th I believe)
Visit Wekerle-telep and József Attila lakótelep. Just walk around these areas, they will show you quite different faces of Budapest.
Get a day trip to Velence or the lake Balaton.
You may want to visit Szentendre and/or Visegrád as well.
Check out some 3rd district restaurants (I reconmend Gigler or Zöld Kapu)
There is a museum not far, of commerce and hospitaliy. It shows some old shop interiors that I find very nostalgic. You may want yo check out the óbuda market too. But someone mentioned Lehel market - that is fine as well!
The lángos at flórián tér is very much loved.
Chill at the Margaret Island and/or Vàrosliget.
Visit Mátra borozó, eat at places called kifőzde or vendéglő.
Walk around the 13th district and the inner part of the 8th and 9th.
Go to a Kávéház (like Central, Astoria or Művész).
Visit an art cinema like Puskin and Bem.
These are all very budapest things I think. I hope you will enjoy your stay.
miaulait@reddit
Szabó Ervin library might be a good option, it's a beautiful historical building and many locals visit it . The surrounding area is very nice as well, I think Mikszáth Kálmán square is not a very touristy place and it's filled with cafés, bars and restaurants. You can take a walk to Károlyi garden, it's a lovely public garden, not too crowded (as far as I remember).
sohajobban@reddit
Great recommendation! And because of the universities and the library the bars and restaurants are not at all touristy but absolultely local, sometimes with good priced lunch menu. I live in the suburb but my all time favourit walking path is: Gellert Square, Liberty bridge, Fővám square, Kálvin Square (sometimes going all the way to Astoria and Deák). I take this walk whenever I can to enjoy the essence of my beloved Budapest.
TemperatureHot8915@reddit (OP)
Thanks, these seem good places
kretenallat@reddit
Imo if you want Hungary, get out of Budapest. I might be downvoted, but as someone from "videk" visiting Budapest is like another country to me. There is nothing wrong with it, just different. Get to a small town, chill a day or two, try to see that way of life. Imo Budapest is very international and metropolisy. There are nice parts and lots of history, obv. but its far from telling the whole story and is a heavily distorting lens.
TemperatureHot8915@reddit (OP)
Can you recommend a village I can reach by train by 2-3h that could give this impression? I would have loved a kind of homestay or a b&b in a village, but I didn't know how to start. So a recommendation for 1 or 2 day's is very estimated
kretenallat@reddit
What are your exact dates? Tomorrow i can have a good look. Im from the north east and i am obviously biased. But the south west of the country is also lovely imo. Too many good places :)
TemperatureHot8915@reddit (OP)
From June 8 to June 16
Previous-Quit8156@reddit
Go to Hortobágy. 1
sometimes_angery@reddit
Go rent an apartment where smoking is forbidden, then start smoking and wait for them to tell on you to the housekeeper.
Then find something you dislike about what they do, and tell the housekeeper on them. Get drunk on cheap pálinka.
Doesn't get more authentic than that
TemperatureHot8915@reddit (OP)
😂
fpeterHUN@reddit
Get a minimum wage job, pay 27% tax, drive 20 years old manual cars, learn how to swear, drink can wine, eat gulash, dobos cake. You have to learn a lot as a padawan.
TemperatureHot8915@reddit (OP)
Oh, I remember in '91, I was crying because my relatives told me that I can have their old baby blue Lada or Trabant because they already got a Opel and my parents didn't want to drive home with a second car.
Raddens@reddit
As someone who had extended family in somewhat similar journeys: does it matter to you where your family is from and would you want to visit that part/that social context? Or are you trying to see any particular aspect of life in Budapest that might relate to them?
General things that come to mind either way: go to Mansfeld Péter park, don’t use the Sikló to the castle, don’t go to a ruin pub unless you make some Hungarian friends who take you to somewhere real (like Pótkulcs), walk around near Mikszáth tér.
TemperatureHot8915@reddit (OP)
It's not really clear what I am searching for. It started last summer with holiday in France where I visited a church in the Camargue that is an important place for travelling people of eastern Europe. In this area, there is a roma family that came once from Hungary. Long story short, there was a woman that wanted to read my hand and I told her, that I was not interested. She got angry and told me not to be so posh as I was "one of ours". Then, some weeks ago, my uncle died and I was thinking of "family" in a larger way. Then, there where the elections and then, I knew, that it is time to visit Hungary. And starting with the Capital seemed logical to me.
trebibi@reddit
Visit Lehel Piac (ugliest building ever) and eat a Lángos there and drink a beer.
TemperatureHot8915@reddit (OP)
Haha, looks great. Something between a nepalesian temple, mountains with montain lodge, a bit of Centre Pompidou and a dry waterpark.
rantotthus2@reddit
Honestly, public drinking in general is a very local thing, though some districts now started to fine people for doing so, so one has to be careful. But drinking a beer at Margaret Island or somewhere at the Danube's bank (maybe other than right next to the Parliament) is still safe.
trebibi@reddit
Oh thats true, i meant drinkin in Lehel Piac
rottingratatouille@reddit
I suggest checking out “Terror Háza” (House of Terror) its a museum (but kind of unusual) of the era your relatives escaped, it might be interesting to see and bring experiences a bit closer to you.
rantotthus2@reddit
Also if OP has some spare time, Memento Park. After the fall of the socialist regime, some of the regime's more significant statues were saved and put in that park. It's one of the few things regarding Hungarian memorial politics that we did well.
TemperatureHot8915@reddit (OP)
Well these two are on my list!
FoxWithBoots@reddit
I’m not sure what you mean by the “real Budapest”, each part of Budapest is important and a part of it. Even the taxi tourist traps, or the Soviet cement block flats. To get a feel, ride on the 4-6 tram, metro line 3, and eat in small menu restaurants.
But know that the real Hungary you might be searching for is in the small villages, where older grannies still wear headscarves, and there are more horse drawn carriages than cars, and when you visit a relative there you leave with crates of apples and jars of koviubi.
TemperatureHot8915@reddit (OP)
Well, of course, the grannies in the villages would be great, but I'm realistic enough that I won't fund them in the city 🙃
Grimk@reddit
It's kind of touristy, but if you'd like to experience a bit of Hungary outside of Budapest, but don't have a lot of time, I think Skanzen could give you a condesed experience: https://skanzen.hu/en
It's a bit on the outskirts of Budapest, but I think it's worth to spend at least a day on that trip. As far as I can tell your relatives didn't live in Budapest so if you'd like to connect with your heritage I think you should spend some time not in Budapest.
nivikiwi_hun@reddit
I advice you to visit Kispest and Wekerle Estate :) There will be concerts in June. You can use metro line 3 and just walk.
https://www.facebook.com/share/17He9hcXxC/?mibextid=wwXIfr
No_Nectarines@reddit
Collect / send a package or simply step inside a Magyar posta it makes me feel the old days of Hungary as time stood still
miklosp@reddit
First of all, this is your first time in Hungary. Do the touristy things, most of them are popular because they’re nice and unique.
I’ve done the touristy things many times as a kid and as an adult. My grandfather used to take me to the Castle district and I still like it occasionally (especially winter).
Gellert is closed now, but Rudas, Veli Bej are great options.
Party district is not my vibe anymore, but a I still go for a fröccs in Kőleves Kert any time.
A ride on the tram line 2 is always a treat. Just been to Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music the first time recently and was absolutely blown away. Same for Fiumei cemetery. Smaller museums in the Diplomat quarter are amazing as well.
lilything@reddit
Krumplis Langos in Florian square
rantotthus2@reddit
I'm gonna throw in my favourite café/bar, Macska at Bérkocsis street. It's this alternative-artsy type place, they have nice Czech beer on tap, their prices are alright and it's very much not a touristy place. They also have good food, I'd suggest their bean soup. I mean, Hungarians eat soups in the summer as well, so that would also be a local experience.
Massive-Tank-7185@reddit
My husband's (45, Canadian) grandparents fled Hungary in 1956 and his mom was already born in Canada. We met by chance in Germany and the first time we visited Hungary together he really wanted to see the places that were meaningful to his grandparents and might have visited while still living in Budapest. He knew their old address which made it easier to get started. We went to Bambi Eszpresszo which looks very much the same like it did in the 60’s, some ruined pubs, Gellért fürdő as it’s also mainly untouched and sand ered aimlessly in district 6,7,8 where you still often see billent holes. A very much not touristy bar is Nemdebár at Széll Kálmán tér if you want some people watching or hop on a trolley bus at the synagogue and ride it for a while. Go to Vásárcsarnok on early Saturday morning and I’d recommend checking out some beautiful Art Deco houses in district 13.
redemptiondong@reddit
Eat lunch in a butcher's shop! You'll feel like a local in no time.
Kiff88@reddit
This! Pedro at Szell Kalman square. Fresh sausages with kilo of mustard and almapaprika
Kiff88@reddit
Go hiking on Buda side
PetiB@reddit
Random idea: buy some BKK pass then commute a lot. Take off at stops, look around what kind of buildings and people are there. For example with metro 2 you can see a lot of different parts of the city. But buses like 7, 8E or 9 can give you a kind of a tour too.
bacondesign@reddit
Riding bus 133E from one end to the other and getting off at every other stop could give a huge cross section of the city.
spartaqmv@reddit
If you are looking to feel the traditional Hungary, the folk costumes and such, then look for some event in a small town/village. But if it's the "real" feeling your grandad had that you're going for, look no further than the 10th district. This gives the most "50s" Hungarian vibe I have felt in the city. Tram 28 from Blaha Lujza tér.
DDarog@reddit
Besides what other people have said, based on your 'about you' I would recommend that you go to the Gólya cooperative pub, and try to chat with the people there.
In any case, I think you need to have at least three things, to truly "feel like a hungarian", and you need time for that:
1) Live in the country for a while, at least a couple of years, on a budget that forces you out of the typical tourist/expat lifestyle. Go to cheap pubs, restaurants with a daily menu, live in a modest house or apartment, etc.
2) Be interested in discovering not just the pretty parts of Budapest, but the ugly and boring parts as well. Also visit other cities and towns besides the capital. (Although there are hungarians as well who barely leave their neighborhood to be honest, so it's up to you I guess)
3) speak the language. I don't think you can truly feel as if you belong to a group if, when speaking to it's members, both of you need to resort to layers of translation, and expressing your feelings in the idioms and metaphors of a foreign language.
Solemn_Penance2552@reddit
Here's some honeybear, if you'd like some: https://termeszetadta.hu/termek/macis-mez/
Also come to the countryside, you're more than welcome here!
Gold_Combination_520@reddit
If you want to feel Hungary, let go of the idea that you have to do things right. Visit the Fisherman's bastion, even if it's very touristy. Go on a sunset Danube cruise with all the other tourists. Get a beer at Szimpla and enjoy the vibe. Go up with the funicular just to take pictures as everyone does. Take the HÉV to Szentendre. Try out one of the baths. Rent a Bubi bike and go to Margaret Island. Tourists do these things because they are fun and go to these places because they are really pretty. So don't worry and enjoy being a tourist!
There's an guy on instagram called khazibula, he captures the essence of just strolling Budapest in a very nice way.
Working-Level-2041@reddit
I don’t think you will find what you’re looking for. Real Budapest is what you will see. Margaret island is nice and Hungarians go there, walk around the outer districts, rent a car and drive to a beach club on lake Balaton.
AutoModerator@reddit
Welcome to r/Budapest! Please check out our Unnecessarily Long Guide to Budapest for general information and recommendations!
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.