If you find yourself mesmerising with the idea of a weekend trip away from London, someplace full of culture, history, good food and so many other things to do, Budapest is absolutely the place I would recommend you to go!
Barely 2 hours by flight, and a city easy enough to explore on a single weekend and VERY affordable in comparison to other European destinations, I felt it was the perfect getaway. If you’re interested in visiting Budapest, or simply would like to discover what this picturesque city can offer, you’re at the right place, and I’m going to share my weekend agenda of the wonderful places we went and experienced.
To begin our trip, we flew to Budapest via Wizzair, a Hungarian charter airline which has many operations from the U.K to most major European cities and beyond. It was my first time flying with them, and I have to say that I was very impressed. I didn’t experience any delays nor any other negative experiences, I sometimes get sceptical when I fly other airlines other than my usual airline British Airways, but I will absolutely fly with them again, considering the return ticket was only £48!
Shortly afterwards we arrived in Budapest, and stayed just around the corner of the Hungarian Parliament Building (Orszaghaz), this was the first landmark we came to see and we were in awe of its grandiose beauty!
Alongside this, we discovered a Trianon monument. It was inaugurated in August 2020 and it’s located directly across the street from the Hungarian Parliament Building. It’s completely free to enter, and it’s very moving to explore.
Later on in the evening, we were on our way to our booked River Cruise! I was so excited for this, It was a surprise excursion which I wasn’t expecting!
Upon arriving, we got to our table and received our free sparkling wine- it was very busy so my recommendation would be to arrive early to this, just to ensure you can get a table and settle before the cruise sets off!
We embarked and as you can see from the photos, the views of Budapest’s landmarks were utterly magnificent. The lights of the city were magical, and wonderfully captured the essence of the city.
As our river cruise experience came to an end, it was time for us to attend our reserved dinner at ‘Trattoria Pomo D’Oro’, an elegant Italian restaurant a short distance from the River Daube. It was an interesting walk to the restaurant from the river cruise.
Within that 20 minutes I whacked my head almost into concussion when disembarking the boat, got extremely drenched in the sudden downpour of rain, lost my boyfriend inside the restaurant then had to dry my dripping hair with a paper towel. But we made it in the end.
Trattoria Pomo D’Oro was one of the finest restaurants I’ve dined at. Its authenticity was like no other I have been to. The staff were so lovely and attentive, and the food was incredible! I was
craving a fulfilling stone cooked quattro formaggi pizza, and my boyfriend got the Frutti di Mare, both dishes were unbelievably delicious.
Day 2 of our weekend trip began with a visit to St Stephen’s Basilica (Szent Istvan Bazilika), a Roman Catholic place of worship built between 1851 and 1905. We got tickets to view the inside of the basilica and it was breathtaking. Me and my boyfriend were discussing how amazing it must be to experience a service here.
Around midday, we made our way across the bridge to the west side of the Danube, known as ‘Buddha’, to walk up Gellert Hill to reach the Citadella. The views we were able to see upon reaching the top were stunning, we were able to see the whole city! Although the views were nice, we made it to the Citadella only to discover it was CLOSED! Such a shame, although we enjoyed the journey up!
Afterwards, we continued our walk northwards to the Fisherman’s Bastion (Halaszbastya). The Fisherman’s Bastion is a noticeable 19th century fortress which offers astonishing panoramic views of Budapest. The view facing eastwards was extraordinary, it looked as if it was pulled out from a painting. It was well worth the long walk and it’s one place you have to come whenever you visit the city!
Fastforwarding into the day, we were eager to try some traditional Hungarian food. We were recommended to visit ‘Paprika’ from a friend who has visited Hungary beforehand, so that is where we went and tried this enormous platter of authentic Hungarian food! It was more than enough when shared between 2 of us!
On Day 3 (our last day) it was cut short as we had to leave around midday to make our way to the airport. Due to this we left early and travelled on the metro to the City Park (Varosliget) which is home to Budapest’s Museum of Fine Arts. It was certainly one of the most beautiful museums I have visited, home to a number of unique, spectacular paintings. The entry fee was around £7, and I highly recommend a visit here!
Overall, Budapest was such an incredible city to explore. enriched with history and remarkable landmarks, you will be awe-inspired. For what we paid for our trip, we were amazed with how much we did for the little amount we felt we paid. All in all, it must’ve cost around £400. Budapest is certainly a city you need to explore if you haven’t already, I hope this has inspired you to book the trip for yourself!
