BUDAPEST is a fascinating city to spend a few days. From learning about its dark days behind the Iron Curtain to indulging yourself in a warm thermal spa; from experiencing the contemporary glamour of its funky hotels and trendy restaurants to treating yourself to some high culture at the Opera House. The city that is split into two halves – the Buda and the Pest side – treats its visitors to a unique and refreshing city break that will leave you wanting to come back for more.
For the Fashionista
10am: Wake up to the launch of a new Budapest that is fast starting to compete with other European cities with its growing number of boutique hotels. The fresh, new fashion hotel, the Atrium, is part of the Mellow Mood Group that is also opening the five star Buda Castle this summer and the five star deluxe Klotild Palace in 2009, that will include the world famous Buddha Bar.
The hotel is tucked away just behind the Blaha L tér metro on the Pest side and is easy walking distance from all the main sights. With a bright and stylish interior this four star hotel is well suited to young city slickers and features luxury rooms plus its fantastic Atrium Café and bar, complete with a massive oversized, lime green clock and pendulum swinging the full height of the wall.
Visit the Communist Era’s Statues
11am: Walk off a delicious breakfast at the Atrium with a 30 minute stroll, or take the metro two stops to Deak tér, to catch the daily bus that departs at 11am (plus 3pm in July and August) for Statue Park. This is the park on the outskirts of town where the old communist statues were taken from various spots in the city centre after the fall of Communism in 1989. Don’t expect a pretty park with a few statues dotted around in well tended flower gardens though.
This park is fittingly in a desolate wasteland that adds to the overwhelming oppressive atmosphere that is dictated by these massive monuments and stands as a harsh reminder of what the Hungarian people had to endure for 40 years under the communist regime. Many of the statues are enormous, especially Lenin’s statue that stands in the brick archway at the entrance, and impressive in design if not in sentiment. There is also a small exhibition room that takes people on a journey through those years and is an excellent introduction to Hungary’s communist past.
The bus takes about 25 minutes and allows visitors one and half hours to visit the park before returning to the city. You can pay either on the bus or at the park itself and you can also buy a guide in English. This is well worth buying as it tells the history of each statue and where it originally stood in the city and really helps you to understand the significance of these great monuments to communism.
An Elegant Coffee Stop
2pm: The guidebooks say it can be a tad touristy but that doesn’t detract from the enjoyment of having a coffee and a delicious cake at one of Hungary’s oldest cafes, the Gerbeaud. The café has been a favourite rendezvous spot since 1884 and its opulent decoration complete with chandeliers will take you back to a by-gone era. Try one of the exquisite cakes that have made the café such an institution. For ease they are labelled in English along the counter that makes ordering with your waiter much easier. There is also a beer cellar in the basement of this café that serves home brewed drinks plus good Hungarian food if you want something more substantial.
House of Terror Museum (& History!)
3pm: The main avenue in the city is the elegant Andrássy út that leads all the way through the city to Hero’s Square and the city park. Nestled amongst the buildings along this leafy boulevard though is one address that use to provoke fear into Hungarians – 60 Andrássy út. This is now the House Of Terror Museum (www.houseofterror.hu) and where some of the blackest acts in Hungary’s history took place.
In 1944 the Hungarian Nazis set up their head quarters here, torturing and murdering Jews in the former coal cellars and it was later home to the communist police and used for interrogations and executions. The museum is designed in an atmospheric way with music and subtle lighting add to the sombre mood, that make it as much a statement of artistic design as a chilling reminder of the brutality that ordinary Hungarian’s had to endure.
Dinner With a View
8pm: Lighten your mood after a day learning about the city’s harrowing past by having dinner at the Spoon Café and Lounge, a fairly new restaurant on a boat near the Chain Bridge. Its view is one in a million, overlooking the Castle District, the food is delicious and it has a great vibe as its always full of Budapest’s trendy set, as well a smattering of ex pats and tourists. Try the Hungarian specialities such as Hungarian paprika veal, saddle of deer or Balaton pike-perch for a great introduction to hearty Hungarian cuisine and also an aperitif of delicious ‘Hungarian champagne’ for a special treat!
After-Dinner Drinks
11pm: Head to Liszt tér just off Andrássy út and pick one of the many café-bars that line either side of the street for an after dinner drink. In the summer months there are tables outside to enjoy people watching and many of the bars have DJ’s if you want to get your fix of dance music. Or perhaps head to the Merlin International Theater in the heart of Pest, where one of the city’s hippest lounge bar/night clubs has opened. This venue is well known as Budapest’s premier English-language drama venue but recently it has debuted as a major nightlife venue with a broad range of DJ’s spinning everything from funk to soul to Brazilian samba.
Morning #2
10am: Walk over the Chain Bridge to the Buda side and take the short funicular railway up to the picturesque Castle District. This whole area is a World Heritage site so take your time to explore the cobbled streets, the magnificent Buda Castle Palace, the colourful Mátyás Church plus the fabulous views over the city from the Fisherman’s Bastion. Include a coffee stop at Budapest’s official oldest café, Ruszwurm cukrászda, which has been serving cakes and coffee since 1827.
Shop ‘Til You Drop
1pm: Walk down from the Castle District and back over Chain Bridge for a stroll down Budapest’s main shopping street, Váci út, as well as the new Fashion Street which is helping to secure Budapest’s position as a place to come to shop. Upmarket brands such as Tommy Hilfiger, Boss, Mexx and Ralph Lauren can be found along this street that is structured along the lines of London’s Regent Street.
Heroes’ Square
2pm: Continue the walk along the grand Andrássy út, admiring the stately buildings, perhaps stopping at one of the tiny cafés hidden in the entrance of one of these buildings for a caffeine break and something to eat before to reaching Heroes’ Square. This large square was constructed to celebrate the anniversary of the Hungarian’s arrival in the Carpathian Basin and is also where the Museum of Fine Arts and the Palace of Arts are situated, to the north and south of the square.
Visit the Szecheni Baths & Spa
3pm: The city park is just behind the square and is home to the fairy-tale Vajdahunyad Castle, where you can ice-state in the winter months, and the fabulous Széchenyi Baths. These baths were built in 1913 and the yellow, neo-baroque buildings now house one of Europe’s largest spa complexes with nine pools into total, including three outdoors.
Allow at least a couple of hours here to wallow in the steaming hot waters of varying temperatures and ease your tired muscles after all the sightseeing. Budapest is known for its medicinal thermal spas, with around 100 natural springs in the city, and it’s a national pastime for many Hungarians, some of which you will see enjoying a game of chess with a floating board whilst they bath.
The outdoor pools are lots of fun so be brave, even if the weather is cold. The temperatures range from 27ºC to a very warm 38ºC at one of the outdoor pools. The outside pool even features a fun play area where you can be swept round and round by the extremely strong water current to the hysterics of everyone watching.
A Night at the Opera
7pm: No visit to Budapest is complete without taking in a performance at the splendid Hungarian State Opera House. This building was completed in 1884 under the proviso from Austria that it was smaller than the opera house in Vienna. It fulfilled this criteria but this in no means detracts from the grandness of this neo-Renaissance building and opulent interior.
Opera may not be your cup of tea but it’s worth seeing one of the spectacular performances just to take a glimpse inside and pretend you are one of the cultured classes. Prices are amongst the cheapest in Europe and tickets can often be picked up on the day for less than £2 and a box only costs around £40.
This perhaps explains why Hungarians are such lovers of culture and music as venues like this are priced to be assessable by the masses and not just the elite. Children grow up in Hungary with regular visits to the opera and classical concerts, as children in Britain would the cinema.
Fine Dining Overlooking the Danube
10pm: Continue with the feeling of grandeur and end the night with dinner or just drinks at the wonderful Four Seasons Gresham Palace. The hotel’s fabulous Páva restaurant overlooks the Chain Bridge and the Danube and offers some of the best cuisine in Budapest. Or just take a drink in the bar and admire the amazing architecture and decoration.
This hotel started life in 1907 as the building for the London Gresham Life Assurance Society and was one of the finest examples of art-nouveau architecture in the world, with offices and luxury apartments. During the Soviet occupation of 1944 soldiers took over the place and wrecked it, burning furniture to keep warm during the winter months.
It went into serious decline after 1948 for around 50 years, until it was painstakingly restored to its former glory at a cost of around US$110 million. It opened in 2004 and is now one of the country’s most luxurious hotels. It’s well worth a visit to soak up the atmosphere of this historical building and admire how the other half live.
Don’t Forget to Come Back for a Return Visit!
Budapest is an intriguing city that leaves you wanting more. It’s complex and bloody history draws you in as you imagine what it was like when the Iron Curtain was down and seek out the reminders that are still evident throughout the city.
It’s not just the history, stunning architecture and cultural heritage though that makes this a great place to spend a few days. Much of its charm lies in how the city is evolving and becoming a chic and trendy city break destination as it rids itself of its Communist past.
And despite Hungary now being part of the EU Budapest is still one of the most affordable cities to visit and you can treat yourself to upmarket boutique hotels and top-notch restaurants for half the price of the equivalent back in the UK.
For more information on Hungary, please visit: www.gotohungary.co.uk .