A lot of people are coming to Budapest for a weekend trip instead for en entire week which these days is easily affordable due to cheap flights and budget hotels. A flight from any European metropolis can be available from 20 Euro per person plus taxes but are averaged at around 100 Euro per person for a round trip. You can find all cheap airlines flying to Budapest here. A hotel can be booked for 20 Euro per night or even below depending on the standard you are expecting. Here are 3 city center hotels in Budapest under 50 Euro per night:
Now once you have done your flight and hotel booking and are set to go you need to decide what is the purpose of your trip. Is it rather sightseeing? Clubbing? A stag weekend? Or just some days off relaxing, maybe in one of the beautiful Budapest Baths? You might want to get a Budapest Card before coming to get a ton of discounts and free public transportation for the weekend – You can get it here.
To cover it all I prepared a little friday afternoon to Sunday evening guide for you. Here we go:
Arrival Friday afternoon:
You get out of the Budapest Airport and take a Taxi to your hotel in the city center, the price is approximately 3.000 HUF, you’re checked in and ready to take off. Starting with a nice dinner at Restaurant VakVarjú (or any other restaurant from my Top 5 restaurant list) which is also in the city center. After the dinner and a few drinks you take a walk on Andrassy út and enjoy the beautiful buildings along the avenue. Your next stop is Liszt Ferenc Square a place full of bars and pubs to get a drink and have a look into Budapests nightlife. If you feel like you can hit the road now for some clubs in Budapest or go back to the hotel to be ready for day 2.
A full Saturday:
Hop on Hop off Bus Budapest
After a nice breakfast in your hotel I recommend to visit the Vásárcsarnok, which is the Central Market Hall, to see what Hungarian culture and cuisine is really like. When I travel I always visit a market because it gives a very good view on culture of a country. In case you have been clubbing the night before you might want to sleep longer and skip this step. After the market visit hop on a half day sightseeing tour in Budapest, this will give you all sightseeing information you need in 3 hours. Alternatively you can buy a ticket for a Hop on Hop off bus in Budapest as well and get around yourself.
For a good lunch in the city center you can either head to Liszt Ferenc Square again or pop into restaurant Két Szerecsen in the heart of Budapest to grab some food. After the lunch I would pick one or two sights in Budapest that I liked on the morning tour e.g. the Opera, the Parliament or the Basilica and check it out from inside and more detailed. Considering it is afternoon I would relax in a bar or a café to rest a bit.
The evening I would kick off with a dinner at Pesti Disznó which is a Tapas style restaurant but with Hungarian cuisine so you can get a very good overview of the tastes of Hungary. After that I would head to the broadway of Budapest, Nagymező utca which is crossing Andrassy út, and check into one of the bars for example Instant which is a hip place to go these days. Get a few drinks there, chat a bit with some locals and have a look around. After that clubbing is what you should do but here I will not give any recommendation because it is too much about the taste of music so check out the clubs in Budapest here. That should finish day 2 somewhen in the middle of the night.
Half day Sunday:
Heroes' Square Budapest
After getting a breakfast in the hotel my first way would lead me to one of the baths in Budapest to relax and enjoy the morning with some hot, natural water springs a whirlpool and maybe a round of sauna or a massage. On the way back to the hotel you might want to check one or the other highlight of Budapest, take a walk along the Danube or have a lunch before it is time for packing and getting ready to take off back home.
That would be my weekend trip to Budapest if I would plan it with my knowledge. Of course you can do it as you like it most if you are more into museums just exchange some parts with a visit in one of Budapests museums. If you are coming to Budapest on budget you might not want to sit in a restaurant all the time but rather grab some food in one of the many fast food possibilities.
There are so many more things to do and therefore I have created a list of 101 things to do in Budapest which you can have a look at and check if there is something interesting for you. Of course you can also check all the restaurants, bars, clubs, cafés and other venues I have written about so far to just pick your favourites.
I hope that this article helps you a bit to plan your trip. Have a nice weekend.
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