Hungary

Hungary, in a few days

From the thermal baths of Budapest to the sunny shores of Lake Balaton, by train: the map, what is worth booking, everything that costs nothing, travel times, and where to sleep at three budgets.

Day by day

1

Budapest

Days 1-4

Two towns joined in 1873: hilly Buda with its castle and flat Pest with its Parliament, facing each other across the Danube. More than a hundred thermal springs rise beneath them.

🎟️ Worth booking

• Széchenyi thermal bathsHalf day · from €25
  One of the largest bath complexes in Europe, in a neo-baroque palace in City Park, with outdoor pools that steam even in winter.
• Danube cruise by night1h · from €20
  An hour on the river once the Parliament, the castle and the bridges are lit up.

✦ Free to visit

• The Parliament (from outside)
• Fisherman's Bastion
• The Chain Bridge
• Gellért Hill

📲 Book things to do in Budapest on GetYourGuide

2

Lake Balaton

Days 5-7 · 🚆 Train 2h

The largest lake in Central Europe, nearly 80 km long and shallow enough to warm up fast in summer. The north shore has the vineyards and the Tihany peninsula, the south shore the long sandy beaches.

🎟️ Worth booking

• Tihany Abbey and a wine tastingHalf day · from €30
  A Benedictine abbey founded in 1055 on the ridge above the lake, whose founding charter holds some of the oldest written Hungarian, then a tasting of the local whites.
• Lake Balaton cruise1h · from €14
  An hour on the water aboard one of the lake's passenger boats.

✦ Free to visit

• The Tihany peninsula
• The beaches of Balatonfüred
• The Badacsony vineyards
• Sunset over the lake

📲 Book things to do in Lake Balaton on GetYourGuide

Worth sorting before you go

The train · Budapest to Lake Balaton takes about two hours. From there, follow the shore by regional train, or by bike on the cycle path that runs all the way round the lake.

📶 eSIM data
Online the moment you land, no roaming bill.
Get one · Holafly

🛡️ Travel insurance
Health, luggage, cancellation.
Cover it · Ekta

🚗 Car hire
Compare the agencies before you land.
Compare · Booking

💳 Fee-free card
Pay at the real rate, with no exchange markup.
Open one · Revolut

🚐 Airport transfer
A private car at a fixed price from the moment you land.
Book it · GetTransfer

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Flavours & local habits

🍽️ Worth tasting

• Gulyás: a thick soup of beef and vegetables with paprika, slowly simmered, the national dish.
• Lángos: fried dough served hot with sour cream, grated cheese and garlic, the snack of markets and beaches.
• Pörkölt: meat stewed with onions and plenty of paprika, often with nokedli, small egg dumplings.
• Halászlé: a fiery river-fish soup with paprika, from the towns along the Danube and the Tisza.
• Dobos torta: layers of sponge and chocolate buttercream under a hard caramel top, created in Budapest in the 1880s.

⚠️ Best avoided

• Do not change money at the airport or at the exchange booths in the centre: the rates are poor. Pay by card or use a bank cash machine.
• Take only licensed taxis (yellow, on a fixed tariff), or book through an app.
• In central Budapest, turn down strangers who invite you into a bar: these places are known for grossly inflated bills.
• Many Hungarians still avoid clinking beer glasses, a habit traced back to 1849.
• Check the bill before tipping: many restaurants already add a service charge.

Words that help

English ↔ Hungarian

✈️ Flight delayed by 3 hours or more, or cancelled? You may be owed up to €600. Check your flight on AirHelp.

The practical page

Scan to open this guide online, always up to date.
https://offwegooo.com/en/guides/hungary

Packing checklist

Have a good trip.
Guide made on offwegooo.com · Photos via Pexels · Details are indicative, check before you leave.