Budapest, Hungary: Best Weekend Itinerary

Budapest is a city full of history, exceptional food, and beautiful sunsets. A weekend in this city will show its 2 sides – one of modern charm and the other of remnants of its communist past. Oh, and its physical 2 sides separated by the River- Buda & Pest. They were once separate cities, but in 1850 became one city called Budapest. With so much to see and do, you can easily spend longer than a weekend here.

Budapest, in my opinion, felt similar to Prague in the buildings, landscape, and things to do. So, if you like Prague, you will most likely enjoy time in Budapest!

Our 2 Night Budapest Weekend Itinerary:

Getting there: My husband, Andrew, and I flew into Budapest’s airport (BUD) from Frankfurt. We solely rely on public transportation, so we took the 100E Bus to the city center (Deák Ferenc tér). We bought tickets at the airport, but you can buy them on Budapest’s city app called BudapestGO.

Public transportation: The two main modes of transportation we used were bus and metro, but they also have a large tram system. A single ticket on the app, BudapestGO, can be used for any mode of transportation. If you want to ride the bus from Pest to Buda, for example, you will want to either buy your ticket on their app, or buy a Travelcard. We decided to not buy a travel card because we didn’t use the public transport enough for it to be worth it, but many others had it since it was easier than buying single tickets. More information on travelcards can be found on Budapest’s website, here.

Where to Stay: We stayed at Hotel Memories, located next to Dohány Street Synagogue. The location was great, as it was easy to access the main bus hub to get to and from the airport and to the other side of the river. It was also close to metro station, Astoria. I think that generally anywhere in the inner city of Budapest will be a good location, as most of it is tourist friendly. Having enjoyed the Buda side more than the Pest side, I think I would stay near Fisherman’s Bastion for my next visit.

Hungary Information:

Currency: Hungarian Forint (1 USD = 360.17 HUF)

Weather: It was quite cold and very windy in January, around 5 C.

Language: The official language is Hungarian. However, everyone we met spoke English.

Day 1: Great Market Hall; Coffee at Mantra; Lunch at Passata 2.0; Castle Hill – Fisherman’s Bastion & Buda Castle; Széchenyi Chain Bridge; Danube River Cruise

Great Market Hall

Once, and still is, a major trading center, the Great Market Hall (also called Central Market Hall) has multiple restaurants serving traditional food and a variety of shopping options. Fabrics, lace, jewelry, Lángos, and paprika call your name. Find more information about the Great Market Hall here.

After checking into our hotel, we went straight to the Great Market Hall, hoping to find some coffee and food to get our morning started since we had a 7 am flight. My first impressions were that it was larger than I expected with 3 floors, but many stores were closed, surprising for a Saturday. But, if your goal is to buy local Hungarian produce and souvenirs, you have come to the right place!

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Coffee & Cake at Mantra Specialty Coffee

If there is one thing Budapest excels at, it’s their coffee scene. There are so many coffee shops with quality coffee, roasted locally in Hungary. Mantra Specialty Coffee, the coffee shop we visited, was exactly what I was craving. Andrew and I make French press coffee every morning, so we wanted to see how a specialty coffee shop’s French press coffee compared. No sugar and no milk, we drink it black, and it was bursting with flavor. 10/10 recommend. We ordered this chocolate cake roll, which was a highlight of our trip!

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Lunch at Passata 2.0

Typically, we eat the traditional food of the new country we’re in our first day. However, we were so hungry and this pizza shop had amazing reviews. It was so delicious, especially served with house made lemonade! I also saw lemonade on many menus in Budapest, so I am assuming it is a loved drink in Hungary!

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Take the bus from Pest to Buda: Taking the bus across the river was pretty simple. I downloaded the BudapestGO app, bought single tickets, and scanned the QR codes on the outside of the bus to show the bus driver. The concept is great. My phone, however, took forever to load anything on this app, so I would hold up the line and end up only scanning on ticket instead of two.

With that being said, we made it across the river on the bus to Castle Hill!

Castle Hill is composed of Fisherman’s Bastion and Buda Castle. It really is a hill, so getting there can be an uphill journey.

Getting there: If you are coming from Pest, you can walk across the Chain Bridge and uphill from there. We took the bus further up the hill until the Donáti Utca bus stop, which dropped us off at the stairs located below. It was an easy walk from there. If you prefer, you can take the funicular up closer to Buda Castle. The funicular is very popular and quick!

Fisherman’s Bastion (Halászbástya):

One of the sights that makes Budapest so unique is the Fisherman’s Bastion! I felt like I was in a fairytale here. Built originally as a lookout tower, access to see Budapest from the panoramic viewpoints is free! You can pay to go into the building, but the spots we visited were free. There are cafes (& a Starbucks) up here so you can spend hours if you please. This is also a famous photo spot during sunrise, so it wouldn’t be a bad idea to book a hotel near here and see the uncrowded beauty during sunrise.

Matthias Church

Located behind Fisherman’s Bastion, it is a significant part of Castle Hill’s history, with two kings of Hungary being crowned here.

Make your way from Fisherman’s Bastion to Buda Castle. It is an easy walk with paths like these (pictured below).

Buda Castle

Buda Castle, once a Kings’ palace, is now The Hungarian National Gallery and the Budapest History Museum.

There are many tours to see Buda Castle. The only way to see the inside is to book a tour or pay the entrance fee for the museum/gallery. We did not go inside the Castle, but the courtyard and surroundings were free and was an amazing spot to see the sunset.

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Széchenyi Chain Bridge

Walk from Buda to Pest on the Széchenyi Chain Bridge! As we were walking back from Buda Castle, we hit the sunset at the perfect time to see the pastel colors illuminating the city. The walk was shorter than I was expecting, so it was very easy and doable to walk between Buda and Pest.

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Craft beer at First Craft Beer Brewery

Andrew and I are suckers for craft beer. Living in Germany, we don’t find too many nontraditional breweries. So trying local Hungarian craft beer was a must for us! We picked First not only for their beer, but also because bbq & pulled pork was surprisingly a frequent meal all over the city, so we had to try it. Delicious!

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Night time Danube River Cruise with unlimited champagne!

I book a booze cruise in every destination with water. They are one of my favorite ways to see a new city! There are so many different companies to choose from, with options from dinner or just drinks, or during the day or at night. You really can’t go wrong with any option, as they all show the same stunning views of Budapest. In my opinion, there is no better way to see the most beautiful Parliament building lit up at night than while cruising from the water.

I booked a 1.5 hour option with unlimited champagne, and Andrew and I made sure we got our money worth! There was not only Hungarian champagne, but also strawberry and citrus spritzers.

Can you tell this cruise was a highlight for me?

Day 2: Coffee; Parliament Building; Széchenyi Bath; Lángos; Dinner at Tati Farm to Table; Ruin Bars – Szimpla Kert

Grab Coffee at Blue Bird Cafe:

As previously stated, I was surprised by both the quantity and quality of coffee shops in Budapest. This flat white was no exception.

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Parliament Building (Országház):

One of the most unique, memorable, and beautiful buildings in Europe is Budapest’s Parliament Building. It will be a highlight of your visit. It is the 3rd largest Parliament building in the world. This isn’t difficult to believe, since it really looks massive from up close or from afar. A popular activity is to book a guided tour of the inside- more information and tickets found here.

Andrew and I decided not to go inside since it was about $30 each, we were on a really tight budget, and we had limited time. However, I have read that it is completely worth it due to its extensive history, and is so beautiful and detailed inside.

The grounds around the Parliament building are free, so we explored those areas and admired the outside.

There is a metro stop right next to this building, so it is easy to take the metro to and from here.

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Széchenyi Thermal Bath

The vibrant yellow buildings contrasting the bright blue water creates a perfect atmosphere to soak up the medicinal thermal waters.

One of Budapest’s most well known baths, Széchenyi Baths, are the largest medicinal baths in Europe! Minerals including sulfate, calcium, magnesium, and fluoride, are key factors in why this thermal bath is so therapeutic. Don’t worry-you can comfortably swim outdoors even in the winter, as the thermal springs are naturally between 30-34°C.

A ticket price of $29 gets you access all day to all of the baths – indoor and outdoor (except the beer spa), a locker in a shared changing area, and a wristband to pay for items and open your locker. Bring your bathing suit, flip flops, and a towel for this experience. If you don’t bring one of these, you will have to buy them there. There is a restaurant, so you can buy food and drinks to stay here all day! We only stayed for about 2 hours and left because it was so busy. Try to get here earlier if you want a more relaxing experience.

The location of the baths is very convenient for visiting the zoo or exploring the park, Városliget. It is also located next to a hot air balloon ride and a few restaurants.

How to get here: You can take the metro or bus to the Széchenyi fürdő stop.

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Lángos at Ligeti Lángos.

In the same park as the Széchenyi baths are a couple cute restaurants. We ordered this must try Lángos! It is a traditional Hungarian food, complete with a doughy base, cheese, and other toppings. I heard that this restaurant made authentic Lángos. Delicious!

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Dinner at Tati Farm to Table

Budapest has an eye for exceptional food. Tati Farm to Table Restaurant is Michelin Recommended and an outstanding spot for dinner.

This restaurant’s claim to fame is that all of their food is sourced from local Hungarian farms. I ordered a beautiful, locally made merlot, and Andrew ordered a Hungarian beer. We split Cabbage Strudel as an appetizer, and was stunned by the flavor. For my main meal, I ordered the seasonal soup, which was green onion soup with potato “grass.” Andrew ordered the traditional Chicken Paprikash.

I thought that the food was reasonably priced and of high quality. 10/10 experience!

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Ruin Bars – Szimpla Kert

Ruins Bars are considered a must do activity in Budapest. It was an interesting experience, for sure! The most famous ruin bar is called Szimpla Kert, which is the location of the pictures below. Ruin bars are exactly what they sound like – bars in abandoned buildings in the Jewish quarter.

I was shocked by how huge this bar is. There are so many different rooms, many floors, and secret areas-indoor and outdoor. Relax, have fun, and enjoy the rainbow light show.

Try Unicum – a Hungarian liqueur.

Day 3: New York Cafe

New York Cafe is noted to be one of the most beautiful cafes in the world. You can sip your coffee or enjoy lunch here. We slept in too late (I blame the ruin bars!) and didn’t have enough time to wait in the long entrance line, but it was going to be our breakfast spot before flying back to Frankfurt.