Budapest quickly became one of my favourite European cities! After a lot of debate over whether I would actually visit, I’m so glad I did. I enjoyed my stay here for various reasons, the city was beautiful, I absolutely loved the vibe, and the nightlife was great. If I’d had the time, I would have stayed longer.
The city of Budapest reminded me a bit of Christchurch (New Zealand). While it’s beautiful and full of history, it also has a modern and young atmosphere. Especially in the city centre/downtown areas. A fun fact that I didn’t know prior to visiting is that with the Danube River splitting the city in two, the western side of the river is considered “buda” and this encompasses many of the old, historic features, and the eastern side of the river is “pest”. This is where the younger demographic is, with many bars and clubs. Overall, I found that the city felt very safe, both during the day and at night.
I spent some time exploring the well known tourist destinations including the Buda Castle, Fisherman’s Bastion, Parliament Building, St Stephen’s Basilica, and a few parks and shopping centres. It turned freezing cold while I was here, so I had to go shopping for some much needed layers with winter well on its way in the Northern hemisphere. I also enjoyed walking along the river and observing the many bridges that connect the city. The city was reasonably walkable, although public transport is easily available for those who aren’t big walkers. The food options were endless and easily affordable. I loved looking at all the different things on offer. KFC sold poke bowls and rice?? Compared to most of Western Europe, Budapest was very cheap.
I went out most nights I was here. It was hard not to. But I do think I’ll keep many of those stories to myself, I don’t think the internet needs to hear everything lol. The hostel I was in was very social, and drinks were dirt cheap (~$2NZD for a beer). It was really fun, the famous ruins bars were something really different. They provided a neat atmosphere. Along with some people from my hostel, I partook in an unlimited prosecco river cruise. As the name suggests, it’s a river cruise along the Danube, with unlimited prosecco for 1.5hrs. We went early, around 5:30pm, which meant we got awesome sunset views but we were hammered before 7pm! I’m sure you can imagine how that went. However it did mean we were back at the hostel in time to join in on the drinking games from 8pm.
Similarly, but on a seperate night, myself, along with most of the hostel went to a boat party. It was like the prosecco cruise, except on a larger scale. The boat had three bars and a live DJ to enjoy as we made our way up the Danube river. The views along the river in the dark were stunning, specifically the parliament building all lit up and glowing. Did I mention that included with the entry ticket was unlimited mixed drinks for 2hrs? However the catch was that this party took place on Friday night, and on Saturday morning I had a 7.5hr train to catch that would leave at 9am. Not to mention the train station was halfway across the city from my hostel. Did I stitch myself up by going out? Yes. But it was so much fun. Believe it or not, I did make my train, quite frankly, I was still drunk as I boarded it. It made for a very long day, especially as there were no free seats for the first two hours and I had to sit on my backpack in the hallway. I can only imagine how I looked to everyone else. No regrets though!
So while half my fun was had out at night in Budapest, I still strongly advocate that it is a city everyone should visit at least once. It was just as great by day! In summer it is warm, bustling and vibrant, then in winter it has amazing Christmas markets, and it does snow, plus you’ve got the famous spa baths to warm you up. Hopefully, I’ll make it back one day.
~ Nikita’s Nomadic Notes
Nikita’s Nomadic Notes 