6 Days in Budapest
We spent 6 days in Budapest in June 2025. We felt that was a good amount of time to see the sights of this historic capital city, while also allowing us time to relax and enjoy our local accommodation and neighbourhood.
How Did We Get There?
We are flashpackers, so we look for the most cost-efficient travel options. This meant we travelled by train to Stansted Airport in London, using the Stansted Express service, in order to fly to Budapest with Ryanair.
Once at Budapest Airport, we used the affordable and easy-to-use 100E airport-to-city bus service. You can pay for the bus with a debit or credit card onboard, and it costs just 2,200 HUF (around USD $6.50) per person. The bus stops at the centrally located Deák Ferenc tér station. From there, it was a 1km walk to our apartment on the Pest side of the city.
We had seen and heard many horror stories about Ryanair and this was our first experience. We were very happy with the budget service, which reflects the price you pay. We made sure to book a separate carry-on bag (up to 10kg) and checked that our Osprey backpacks were within their approved dimensions.
Where to Stay – Buda vs. Pest
We opted for a small apartment on the Pest side of the Danube for a few reasons:
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It’s flat, which makes it easier to get around on foot.
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It was on the same side as the 100E bus stop.
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It was an affordable option. The 7 nights cost us €449 (USD $526), which we thought was great value.
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There were plenty of cafés, restaurants, and small supermarkets nearby.
Here is a link to the apartment we rented via Booking.com:
https://www.booking.com/Share-r4IPtw
Access to the apartment (which we arrived at in the dark), and the general area around it, felt safe. We were comfortable walking around after dark—though we were usually back by 10pm.
Food and Drinks
We mainly self-catered during this stay, as that's what we do to help manage our budget. But we did visit a local pub/bar a few evenings for a pre-dinner drink and found the prices to be great value.
It was called Kiadó Kocsma, and you can find more details here:
https://maps.app.goo.gl/DWcSZFsfwyeHU4ra9
On our last night in Budapest, we also splashed out on a restaurant meal and chose Menza, which came recommended and was not far from our apartment. We made sure to try the Hungarian Goulash Soup—it was super tasty!
https://maps.app.goo.gl/cgKpQZ9PB2xz8Xhp9
Things to See and Do – For Free!
Yes, we love free options! We travel on a budget and prefer to make our travel dollars go further by enjoying the outside architecture rather than paying extravagant amounts for tours or entry to the thousands of attractions Europe offers.
We’ve done paid attractions in the past, but in this flashpacking phase of travel, we’d rather spend an extra month or two away than go into every tour option. If something feels extra special, we’ll definitely fork out the cash—we wouldn’t miss walking the Great Wall of China, visiting Angkor Wat, or the Louvre. But an attraction has to feel worth it to us. We simply ask ourselves: Will we regret not paying the entry fee later? If we both agree the answer is no, then we skip it.
Below are the sights we visited—all for free! These were all part of self-guided walking tours over our six days in the city. We estimate we walked over 50km—and yes, the Buda side has hills!
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Heroes' Square
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Vajdahunyad Castle
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Városligeti KRESZ Park
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Memorial to the 1956 Revolution
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Hungarian State Opera
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St. Stephen's Basilica
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Széchenyi Chain Bridge
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Hungarian Parliament Building
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Buda Castle
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Central Market Hall
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Liberty Bridge
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Fisherman's Bastion
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The Church of Our Lady of Buda Castle
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Margaret Island
If you're into detailed history, there's much more to see and do—we know! You could spend a month here and still not take it all in. This was enough of a taste for us, and we thoroughly enjoyed our time walking around these places. The architectural style and magnificence of the buildings will be something we remember fondly.
Budapest at Night
We highly recommend heading out at least one evening before sunset to see the buildings lit up at night. Many do this from a river cruise, but we felt we’d see more—and have more time to take photos—on foot.
We took the metro to Batthyány tér station and watched the lights go on at the Hungarian Parliament across the river. From there, we walked back across the Chain Bridge to our apartment, taking in the other beautifully lit landmarks like St. Stephen’s Basilica and the Opera House. It was a real highlight of our visit to Budapest.
If you are interested in more details of what we did each day then please refer to our daily Blog posts using the Budapest label. Here is a link we have created to that Label for you. https://wandermoreworkless.blogspot.com/search/label/Budapest
If you have questions about any of our experiences in Budapest please reach out and ask us using the Contact Form at the bottom of the Blog. Thanks, Aaron & Sarah.
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