This is our third visit to Budapest:
A year ago during the summer we came here with Tom and Shira.
A couple of months after that I came back with Maya.
And this time we came here with Shira and Maya on our way from London to Israel.
This time, like in the last summer, we started our tour at the City Park.
There’s something magical about going back to the familiar places and experiencing them all over again.
On the way to the park I remembered that the idea of writing this blog started here, in Budapest, only a year ago. Up to that point I already acquired 3 years of travels and the adventures just overflowed me.
This visit to Budapest makes me nostalgic… I think about my blog and the tremendous part it takes in my life – I enjoy the process of documenting my travels for my readers, and it is also a personal travel diary.
Other than that, it adds a new kind creativity to my life – I express myself and learn a lot. It excites me every single day!
For example, at the beginning I lacked good pictures. In all my travels up to then I used my phone for photography without bothering with the quality, and the pictures came out… Let’s say it gently… Boring! 😉
And now I’ve got myself a good camera and took photography lessons.
On top of it all, my heart expands with the encounters, letters and phone calls I receive from my ever growing crowd of readers. 🙂
I never managed to finish my first post about Budapest. At the time it was meant to open the blog, but the words just didn’t add up then…
It’s good to be back!
Where were we? The City Park, right!
The City Park is located by the same lake, behind the famous Heroes’ square (Hősök tere).
It alone provides a week worth of attractions for the kids.
You will find in it: a zoo, an amusement park, a circus, a swimming pool, a beautiful ancient castle, an arts museum, a transportation museum, plenty of playgrounds and many restaurants.
Shira remembered the city perfectly! She ran full of excitement towards the circus but was disappointed to find out it’s closed this month.
“Mommy, maybe the internet got it wrong… I want to ask the woman who sold tickets last year…”
Last summer Tom and Shira watched a beautiful circus show that came from Italy. The children still talk about it and even reenact a skit of funny clowns.
Another attraction we went to in the park was the Széchenyi thermal bath.
It’s a full day’s outing. Entrance was around $13 per person.
We were happily surprised with the prices in the restaurant there. We ate very good food that cost $18 for the three of us.
Budapest has many baths. The Hungarians like this kind of activity very much.
At Liberty Square (Szabadság tér) in the center of town, you’ll find a great, and free attraction – the interactive fountain.
The fountain responds to the children's movements by increasing, lowering or stopping the flow.
Tom and Shira, together with the other kids, got in the water and had fun for a long time.
We saw the city from high up on the Budapest Eye ferris wheel – it was fun.
Tickets cost $9 for an adult and $5 for a child.
My kids like boat rides very much. Budapest has a variety of tourist boat options. It’s very cool, but pricey! It’s much cheaper (almost free) to take the boats that are used as public transport.
How much does it cost? Just over a dollar per ride if you haven’t purchased a day/week pass (children under the age of 6 go for no charge).
Working by the same idea, you can skip the expensive tourist bus and take the no. 2 tram that will give you a wonderful tour of the city.
Budapest’s Children’s Railway (Gyermekvasút) is a great attraction for the whole family.
Take a day or even two to enjoy the different points of interest along the trail.
Tropicarium – A tropic park, part zoo part aquarium. Even though it’s a bit far from the center of town, the drive was worth it. Tom and Shira had a great time.
Our half-tour was very good. Why half??
There’s no cafeteria in Tropicarium… The tour was long and the children were starving half way through… So when you go there, remember to bring sandwiches…
In the end hunger triumphed and we had to shorten our visit. To get back in without paying again isn't possible…
That’s ok. As usual, we took it with a smile… Back to the hotel. We chose to look at the half-full tour. 😉
Make sure you visit one of the markets, they are colorful and authentic. Shira and I went to Great Market Hall.
Try the food from the divers on the first floor, where you eat standing. That’s how the locals eat.
The restaurants at the upper level, that let you sit down, are mainly for tourists. 😉
Tom was waiting to visit The Great Synagogue of Budapest. Why?
Because of a reality show he watched on TV where the contestants had to reach the synagogue to complete the task.
The synagogue was near our hotel and we passed it every day. Every time we came close Tom smiled as if he was the one to win that game. 🙂
When I came here with Maya last October we stayed in Hungaria guesthouse (17€ per night) together with young people from all over the world. We slept on a bunk bed.
Traveling with a baby is almost like traveling alone. 😉
In the morning we went wondering around the town.In front of the famous St. Stephen’s Basilica there was a group assembling for a free tour of the city.
Have you ever been on one of these? They’re common in Europe!
The idea is to allow everyone to join in return for a tip (Pay as much as you wish). If you didn’t enjoy it, you don’t have to pay. You can also break off along the way.
But usually these tours are a delight!
So we joined. 🙂
Our group had people from different countries. We became friendly with a guy called Kedar from India and a young girl from South Korea called Jeonwon.
Kedar came to Europe from India with his motorcycle, with nearly no money. He worked in odd jobs along the way and used couchsurfing.org to find people who are willing to host him for free.
This is his Facebook page, look what a journey he had!
Jeongwon is studying education in Norway and takes advantage of cheap flights to visit different European countries.
Recently I received an email from Kedar. He is planning on visiting Israel next year. Cool! He is welcome to stay at our house of course. 🙂
Adam, our guide, didn’t disappoint. We had a fascinating tour, sprinkled with good humor.
From the city center, via Chain Bridge, the most beautiful bridge in Budapest, we went up to Buda Hills where the tour ended in Fisherman’s Bastion.
Going up the steps to Buda Hill with the stroller was an adventure!
Although there’s an elevator (Funicular), but the queue was way too long… We didn’t want to lose the group.
To our delight, our new friends joined the challenge and helped me and Maya to reach the top. 😉
Margaret Island is in the middle of the Danube. It is a stunning place with green parks.
Maya and I went there for a day. We rented a three wheeled car and drove around the beautiful island.
We also had a picnic on the grass.
Last year, Maya and I went from Budapest to Austria by train.
This time we are going back home, but already thinking about the next trip. 🙂
And here, finally, I came full circle – I finished to write the post about Budapest, the one I wanted to start the blog with a year ago… 😉
