For my last week in Europe, at least for this Euro trip, I had two main objectives: 1) explore Budapest, Hungary with my friend Sam, and 2) visit my sister, Emily, who lives in Freiburg, Germany.
My Budapest Adventure and Takeaways
During my travels through Eastern and Central Europe, I ran into many travelers whom raved about Bupadest, so I decided it was time to check out the city. Some travelers even suggested Budapest was their favorite European city. I decided to give Budapest my proper attention and chose to post up in the city for four nights to see if it lived up to all the hype.
My friend, Sam, and I kept busy during our stay in Budapest. We did a thorough job exploring the ins and outs of the capital city of Hungary. Below is a list of my Budapest observations.
Budapest is an inexpensive European city with all the amenities of a Western European capital . Europe can be expensive, especially major cities like Rome and Paris. It is nice change when you can stay in a large and popular European destination for a relatively small amount. In Budapest, it is not difficult to secure hostel accommodations for 10 USD a night and grab a solid dinner for 10 USD. Not to mention, beer is very cheap and a glass of whiskey only sets you back 3 USD!
Budapest food is hearty and astonishingly delicious. Although I thoroughly enjoyed my time traveling in Slovenia, Croatia, and Montenegro, I wasn’t terribly impressed with the food. In contrast, I was startled by the quality of the food in Budapest. Tasty food at a great price is a combination that can be super hard to find!
- Two of my favorite traditional Hungarian dishes are Goulash (Gulyás) and Chicken Parikash ( Paprikás Csirke). Goulash is hearty and homey beef stew made with beef and potatoes. Chicken Paprikash is a chicken dish topped with a creamy paprika sauce and is often served with sour cream and a side of egg noodles.
- There are lots of phenomenal eateries in Budapest. My two favorite spots were the Traktor Restaurant & Bar and Bors Gastro Bar. Traktor Restaurant & Bar is a bit on the fancier side, but it is worth the extra cost. I enjoyed one of the best sandwiches I have had on all of my travels at the Bors Gastro Bar on Kazinczy Street. It is the perfect spot to grab a quick bite on the go, and its location is ideal for a stopover before investigating Budapest’s famous nightlife.
Make no mistake, Budapest is a party city. I stayed in an eight-bed mixed dorm room in a hostel in the heart of Budapest. Every time that I stopped by my room during the daytime, regardless of the hour, the lights were always off and the beds were occupied by hungover guests. Every night, even the night I went out until 3 am, when I returned to my room, the remaining beds in my hostel room were still empty. It became obvious rather quickly that the other guests in the hostel weren’t too focused on seeing the sites; their main objective was checking out the Hungarian parties.
Visiting the Budapest ruin bars is a must. I’ve never seen anything quite like the ruin bars in Budapest, and honestly I had never heard of these bars until I visited the city. In the early 2000’s, a number of bars were opened throughout Budapest. These bars are located in run-down buildings, courtyards, and terraces.
- We visited one of Budapest’s most popular ruin pubs, Szimpla Kert on Kazinczy Street. As soon as I entered the bar, I felt like I had been transported to Alice and Wonderland; it was as if I had walked through a doorway into an alternate reality. The bar is two stories tall and is composed of dozens of tiny rooms that encircle an open-air courtyard. The rooms are dilapidated with chunks of wall missing and all the surfaces are completely covered in graffiti. The odd assortment of decorations was both confusing and psychedelic. Somehow it all worked. For example, in one room, I noted that people were lying in bathtubs smoking hookahs. In another, mangled plastic mannequins hung from wooden support beams and a violent violet lazer beam flashed incessantly. The place was so foreign and unusual that I have a difficult time describing it. You will have to check it out for yourself.
I’m a big fan of the Hungarian bath culture. Budapest has nearly two dozen thermal baths scattered throughout the city. I love that many Hungarians have incorporated a weekly bath visit into their lives. Hungarian bath complexes all have a similar layout comprised of saunas, steam rooms, thermal pools, cold baths, and often, a lap pool. I have even read that Hungarian doctors regularly prescribe treatments that require their patients to visit the baths!
- One day, me and Sam spent a few hours soaking in the Széchenyi Baths. The Széchenyi Baths are arguably the city’s most popular thermal baths. I had an incredible time jumping from one bathing pool to the next, and I even donned a swimming cap and got some exercise by swimming a few laps in the lap pool. The massive outdoor pools at the Széchenyi Baths are the best part; these pools are in the courtyard and are enclosed by a beautiful yellow copper-domed building which is filled with dozens of smaller thermal baths.
- The Széchenyi Baths are some of the city’s nicest, but I must warn that visiting the baths is not like visiting the spa in a 5-star hotel. The public baths are crowded, and due to the high volume of daily visitors, the baths are far from sparkling. Even so, my day at the Széchenyi Baths was a highlight of my time in Budapest, and if I return to the city I hope to visit more of the city’s baths.
Additional notes:
- Budapest is one of the most beautiful cities at night. There are many beautiful old buildings, monuments, and bridges in Budapest. A few of the most impressive, include: the Hungarian Parliament, St. Stephen’s Basilica, The Four Seasons Hotel building, and the Széchenyi Chain Bridge. The architecture is most beautiful to view at night, when it is lit up by lights.
- Climb up Gellért Hill to the base of the Liberty Statue for the best views of Budapest. The base of the Liberty Statue is the best place to hang out around sunset. I visited the location twice, and realized this was the spot to be when I saw hundreds of university students descending on the hill at sunset. Students and locals brought their own bottles of wine, or purchase a pint of beer, and DJ began playing music once twilight arrived.
- Fisherman’s Bastion is a cool spot but it is over-rated and does not live up to its Instagram hype. I have seen many beautiful Instagram pictures of the Fisherman’s Bastion, but I was a bit disappointed by the structure when I paid it a visit.
Budapest Conclusions
Budapest is a fun city with lots to offer, but it did not live up to the hype. Don’t get me wrong, Budapest can still be a special place. If you are looking for a pretty European city to post up and party for a few nights, Budapest is the perfect spot. Enjoy a hearty Goulash stew, rage late into the evening in ruin pubs, and then detox the next day by visiting the thermal baths. In my opinion, that’s how you do Budapest.
Visiting my Sister in Freiburg, Germany
I only visited Emily for a couple of nights, but my stay in Freiburg was memorable and was one of my favorite stops on my European journey. My sister has lived in Germany with her boyfriend for a year and a half and when I visited her, she made me feel at home. This is a special treat for someone who is always on the road and is used to jumping from one unfamiliar hostel dorm room to the next.
I visited Freiburg to see my sister, but the city’s beauty was an unexpected added bonus. Freiburg is a pretty university town located on the southwestern border of Germany and is just a short distance from Basel, Switzerland. The city sits on the southern border of the Black Forest and, as legend has it, this lovely dense forest inspired many of the Brothers Grimm fairy tales. I also learned that Freiburg receives the most sunlight of any city in Germany!
During my short time in Freiburg we accomplished a lot and I feel that I received the full German experience.
- We visited the Schlossberg Lookout Tower for a 360 degree unobstructed view of the entire city.
- We took a beautiful bike ride down city streets and then along nearby fields on the outskirts of town, eventually stopping to visit two popular parks. Trying not to upset the napping and sunbathing locals, we jumped in the lake and swam a quarter of a mile. The lake’s water was surprisingly warm for a late September afternoon.
- We visited a popular university pub, and lastly, we chowed on a delicious classic German schnitzel at the Martin’s Bräu brewery and restaurant.
Thank you for hosting me and sharing an unbelievable day with me Em and Jannik!
