36 Awesome Hidden Gems in Budapest

Budapest is one of those cities that ruins you, in the best way possible. It’s a city with the audacity to be beautiful, chaotic, affordable, and delicious all at the same time.

Most people arrive with a list. Thermal baths. Ruin bars. Parliament at sunset. The Fisherman’s Bastion. Chimney cake, obviously because you will be physically unable to walk past a kürtőskalács stand without buying one, I don’t make the rules. And look, that list exists for a reason. Those things are incredible, and you should absolutely do all of them.

Budapest, like any big city, has depths, unsettling levels of depth. You can spend several weeks there and feel like you’ve barely scratched the surface (which is exactly what happened to me). Every neighborhood has its own unique personality, and every crumbling building seems to have a story attached to it.

I’ve wandered Budapest the way only a person with zero sense of direction and an unhealthy obsession with finding hidden gems would. I’ve taken wrong turns that led to the most beautiful cafes.

I boarded a train that was run entirely by children. Not only that, but I even came across a restaurant where I got to cook my meal. It was not a cooking class, although I did a lot of those too. I’ve also asked locals for recommendations and was given very specific instructions that I then immediately got lost trying to follow.

The result of all that beautiful chaos? This list. A collection of Budapest hidden gems that should be added to your itinerary. Whether this is your first visit or your fifth, you will have the best time exploring this unique side of the city.

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Historical Hidden Gems in Budapest

Wander Through the Most Beautiful Library

The Metropolitan Ervin Szabó Library | Address: Budapest, Reviczky u. 1, 1088 Hungary

The Metropolitan Ervin Szabó Library is one of Budapest’s best-kept secrets, and to be honest, it feels almost too beautiful to be real. When you walk in, it looks like a standard municipal library. But hidden on the fourth floor are the preserved rooms of the nineteenth-century Wenckheim Palace, now functioning as working reading rooms where anyone can study surrounded by gilt and crystal chandeliers.

The palace was built in 1887 for Count Frigyes Wenckheim and his wife, Countess Krisztina, during the height of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The finished residence contained 48 rooms, including ornate ballrooms, elaborate salons, private boudoirs, and dining rooms.

The Wenckheims were known for throwing lavish parties and charity events. The palace represented everything aristocratic life aspired to be during that era: opulent, refined, and designed to impress.

But the palace’s time as a family residence was brief. When Count Wenckheim died in 1912, he left no heirs. The building went through some hard years, including occupation by the Romanian army, before returning to the Wenckheim family by 1920. They put it up for sale in 1926, and Budapest’s City Council purchased it the following year with plans to convert it into a public library.

Four years of construction followed, and the building opened as a library in 1931. The city named it after Ervin Szabó, a Hungarian social scientist and librarian who had been director of Budapest’s Metropolitan Library from 1911 until his death.

This is a special library. When I was wandering through, I saw students sprawled in velvet armchairs beneath crystal chandeliers, studying for exams. Remote workers set up laptops in rooms where I imagine Budapest’s rich once waltzed. People read novels nestled on hundred-year-old furniture surrounded by stucco, gold frames, and wooden paneling.

My favorite part of the library was the stunning wooden spiral staircase leading to an upper area lined with shelves of old books.

If you’re a Budapest resident or student, you can become a library member and use it for free. For tourists and visitors, there’s a small daily fee, currently around 2,000 Hungarian forints (roughly five US dollars). This ticket is valid for the entire day you purchase it.

Enter from Revicky Street and buy your ticket at the desk. You’ll need to check coats and large bags at the free coat check (this is required). Lockers are available as well. Present your ticket at the control area, then head up the spiral staircase or elevator to the fourth floor. From there, you can explore the palace rooms.

The library has also been featured in numerous Hollywood films and TV shows, including The Phantom of the Opera, The Alienist, Fleming: The Man Who Would Be Bond, Jack Ryan, Spy, Casanova, and Red Sparrow. In 2003, the International Real Estate Federation awarded the Prix d’Excellence to the central building, recognizing the preservation of the building.

I honestly think this is one of the world’s most beautiful libraries and definitely worth a visit.

Visit a Stunning Castle in the Middle of the City

Vajdahunyad Castle | Address: Budapest, Vajdahunyad stny., 1146 Hungary

Vajdahunyad Castle is one of Budapest’s prettiest museums! It’s located in the heart of City Park. The castle was originally built in 1896 as a temporary exhibition pavilion for Hungary’s Millennium Celebration, which marked a thousand years since the Magyar tribes settled in the Carpathian Basin. It was constructed from cardboard and wood, meant to be torn down after the festivities ended, but the city decided to rebuild it as a permanent structure between 1904 and 1908.

Today, the castle houses the Hungarian Agricultural Museum, one of Europe’s largest collections dedicated to farming, hunting, and fishing history. While that might not sound interesting, the building itself is absolutely worth exploring. I, for one, found the museum very fascinating and spent a few hours wandering around.

The rooms are beautiful, the courtyards are dreamy, and the details are incredible. You’ll have to look out for the bronze statue of Anonymous, the unknown medieval chronicler who wrote about Hungarian history. He’s become somewhat of a lucky charm. Locals believe touching his pen brings good fortune.

There are also two towers you can go up. The Gatehouse Tower is the easier of the two. It’s self-guided, open every day, and costs around 400 HUF. As you climb, you’ll find a little photo exhibition about the castle’s history, and there’s a “Siege Corridor” to walk through. There’s also a stunning rose window to peer into, and if you look carefully, you can spot a hidden armored knight from King Matthias’ Black Army in the stained glass.

Then there is the Apostles’ Tower. It’s 150 steps up, and you have to go with a guided tour, but the tour is fascinating. When you reach the top, you get a full 360-degree view of the city.

Tours run on the hour in English and Hungarian, Tuesday to Sunday, with the last one at 4pm. The Apostles’ Tower costs 800 HUF, or you can grab a combined ticket with the museum for 3,000 HUF.

Explore a World War II Hospital in a Rock

Hospital in the Rock | Address: Budapest, Lovas út 4/c, 1012 Hungary

Hospital in the Rock is an interesting museum hidden in plain sight. It’s located deep beneath Castle Hill in a network of natural caves and cellars that most people walking above have no idea even exist. It’s a former secret military hospital and nuclear bunker that’s been preserved almost exactly as it was during some of Hungary’s darkest moments in history.

The space itself has been around for ages, with the caves being used over the centuries, but it was during World War II that it was first converted into a hospital to treat wounded soldiers and civilians during the war.

No photos are allowed, so I will describe it as best I can.

As you explore the museum, you will wander through dimly lit corridors and come across rooms set up with wax figures of doctors, nurses, and patients. They’re positioned as if they’re in the middle of performing surgery, changing bandages, or lying in recovery beds.

You’ll see operating rooms with medical equipment, cramped patient wards lined with metal bed frames, and pharmacy areas stocked with medicine bottles. The conditions weren’t great, with doctors performing amputations and surgeries by candlelight, dealing with severe shortages of everything from anesthesia to basic bandages, and treating far more patients than the facility was ever designed to handle.

After World War II ended, the hospital was maintained and expanded as a Cold War bunker, designed to shelter up to several thousand people in case of nuclear attack. This includes decontamination chambers, air filtration systems, and supplies that were meant to sustain people underground for extended periods. The whole place was kept secret from the public until 2002, and it remained on standby as a potential emergency facility until 2004.

You can only visit Hospital in the Rock as part of a guided tour, which typically lasts about an hour. The temperature underground stays cool year-round, so bring a light jacket.

Tickets are about $30, but make sure you check the site for up to date ticket prices, and I recommend booking tickets in advance, especially if you visit during peak season.

Play 100+ Old School Pinball Games

Flippermúzeum | Address: Budapest, Radnóti Miklós u. 18, 1137 Hungary

Calling this a museum almost feels misleading because no way can playing vintage pinball games be educational, but hey, I am not complaining!

This place is the brainchild of Balázs Pálfi, a lifelong pinball enthusiast who grew up frequenting arcades in the seventies. After years of collecting as a self-described flipper nerd, he finally got the license to open this exhibition back in 2014.

The collection has over 160 pinball machines, arcade video cabinets, and other games spread across 400 square meters of cellar space. This makes it one of Europe’s largest pinball collections. The range spans decades, from unique bagatelles dating back to the 1880s through to modern machines from recent years.

They even have the first pinball machines ever made with flippers from 1947.

You pay one admission fee, and then every single machine is free to play, and you can stay as long as you want. On certain nights they’re even open until midnight.

I guess here is where the museum part comes into the mix. Every machine comes with a small informational sign detailing the manufacturing details: the year it was built, the company that made it, the designer’s name, and how many were produced.

It’s best to visit on a weekday because weekends and evenings do get packed. The ticket also allows you 24-hour access, so you can even come back the next day for round two.

Visit a Church in a Cave

Gellert Hill Cave | Address: Budapest, Szent Gellért rkp. 1, 1114 Hungary

Tucked into the side of Gellért Hill on the Buda side of the city is a church, carved into the rock of the hill, with a small cross above the entrance.

The cave itself has been around forever, and in medieval times a hermit named István supposedly lived there, using the natural thermal waters that bubbled up nearby to heal the sick. Those same waters eventually became the Gellért Baths just across the road, which is a fun connection to make when you’re visiting both in the same day.

The church as it exists today was born in the 1920s, inspired by the famous Lourdes grotto in France. A group of Hungarian pilgrims came back from Lourdes absolutely fired up and decided they wanted something similar at home. The Pauline monks took over the cave, blasted a new entrance into the rock, and consecrated the church in 1926.

Then the communist regime happened. In 1951 the secret police raided the church, arrested all the monks, and had the entrance sealed behind a wall of solid concrete. The head of the order, Ferenc Vezér, was executed following a show trial. The rest of the monks were sent to prison or labor camps. The cave sat sealed for nearly forty years.

When communism fell, the concrete wall was broken down, and the Pauline monks came back. The church was reconsecrated and has been open ever since. There are only around ten monks living there today, but it’s still a functioning church with services held three times a day.

Inside, beautiful in a way that’s difficult to describe. There’s a replica of the Black Madonna of Częstochowa, stunning hand-carved wooden statues in one of the inner rooms (the work of a Transylvanian woodcarver who spent ten years on them and then gifted them to the order), and a small but fascinating collection of rare Russian metal icons.

Entrance costs 1,400 HUF for adults and includes an audio guide. It’s open Monday to Saturday 9:30am to 7:30pm and closed on Sundays. Dress modestly, shoulders covered, and if you forget, they’ll lend you a shawl at the door.

One practical tip: don’t go during a service, as tourists aren’t admitted while services are running. And do watch the short films in the lobby before you head into the cave.

Tour the Largest Synagogue in Europe

Dohany Street Synagogue | Address: Budapest, Dohány u. 2, 1074 Hungary

The Dohány Street Synagogue, or the Great Synagogue, as it’s often called, is the largest synagogue in Europe and the second largest in the entire world.

It was built between 1854 and 1859 by a Viennese architect named Ludwig Förster, who deliberately drew on Islamic and North African design traditions, specifically the Alhambra in Granada, but keep in mind no distinctly Jewish architectural style existed at the time.

The interior is 1,200 square meters of coral reds and gold leaf, with seats for nearly 3,000 people split between the main floor and the women’s galleries above. At the center of it all is a magnificent rose window with a Star of David motif that floods the space with light.

Dohány Street itself formed the border of the Budapest Ghetto in 1944 and 1945, and thousands of Jewish people who took refuge in and around the synagogue died during the brutal winter of that period. Their remains are buried in the courtyard which is pretty unusual, since Jewish tradition doesn’t typically place cemeteries next to synagogues. A small piece of the original ghetto wall is still visible in the garden.

In the courtyard behind the main building, you’ll find the Raoul Wallenberg Memorial Park, named after the Swedish diplomat who saved tens of thousands of Hungarian Jews during the war. The centerpiece is the Tree of Life memorial by sculptor Imre Varga, a weeping willow made entirely of metal, with the name of a Holocaust victim engraved on each leaf.

The complex also includes the Hungarian Jewish Museum, built on the site where Theodor Herzl, the founder of modern Zionism, was born. There is also the Heroes’ Temple, a smaller space built in 1931 to commemorate the 10,000 Hungarian Jewish soldiers who died in the First World War.

The synagogue is still active, which means it’s closed on Saturdays and Jewish holidays. Visits are guided only, with tours running every 30 to 60 minutes in multiple languages. Make sure to dress modestly, shoulders and knees covered, and men will be given a paper kippah at the entrance if they don’t have their own.

One tip: go earlier in the day if you can. It gets busy.

Check Out a Museum Dedicated to the First Underground Railway in Europe

Underground Railway Museum | Address: Budapest, Erzsébet tér 14, 1051 Hungary

If you’ve spent any time in Budapest, you’ve almost certainly used the M1 metro line, the little yellow one that trundles along under Andrássy Avenue between the city center and City Park.

What most people don’t realize is that hidden beneath Deák Ferenc Square station, in a decommissioned section of the original tunnel, there’s a tiny museum dedicated entirely to the history of this line. And why is this exciting, you may ask? It’s the first underground railway in Europe.

London’s underground opened back in 1863, but it originally ran on steam. Budapest’s line, which opened on 2 May 1896, was the first to run entirely on electricity, which made it revolutionary back then. It influenced the design of early metro systems across the world, including the very first subway in the US.

The whole line was built pretty quickly. Construction started in August 1894, and it had to be finished in time for Hungary’s millennium celebrations in 1896.

It’s a small museum, and it can be done in about 30 to 45 minutes. There are three original carriages on display, including cars that ran on the line until 1973. Alongside the carriages, you’ll find a display of original documents, blueprints, maps, old photographs, ticket stubs, vintage advertising posters, and scale models tracing the history of the line from its construction right through to the present day.

A couple of practical notes: entry is very reasonable at around 3 euros, it’s open Tuesday to Sunday from 10am to 5pm and closed on Mondays, and it’s cash only.

Learn about Budapest During Communism

Budapest Retro Élményközpont

Budapest Retro Experience Center | Address: Budapest, Október 6. u. 4, 1051 Hungary

If you’ve ever wondered what everyday life in Hungary looked like during the communist era, the Budapest Retro Élményközpont, or Budapest Retro Experience Centre, is the place to find out.

It’s an interactive museum spread across three floors in the heart of the city, and it’s dedicated entirely to Hungarian life from the 1960s through to the fall of the Iron Curtain in 1989.

The exhibits have thousands of original objects. You’ll walk through recreated rooms: a typical Hungarian living room, a kitchen, a school classroom with the furniture, appliances, toys, propaganda posters, and everyday objects from the period.

There’s a fully functioning period news studio with two authentic TV cameras where you can sit down and read news broadcasts from that time. There are nine vintage motorcycles and three renovated Soviet-era cars on display, including a black Volga, the official vehicle of communist officialdom across Eastern Europe.

My favorite part was the Lada police car that’s been converted into a driving simulator, letting you patrol a virtual recreation of Gazdagrét, one of Budapest’s housing estates made up of endless rows of identical grey apartment blocks.

There’s also a phone box where you can dial a joke and the option to get a retro-style photo taken of yourself. If you need a break from the exhibits, there’s a bistro on site serving food and drinks from the era.

You should plan for one to two hours, though I stayed several hours. There was so much to see and do.

House of Terror

House of Terror | Address: Budapest, Andrássy út 60, 1062 Hungary

The House of Terror is one of the most powerful and unsettling museums in Europe, and if you only have time for one museum in Budapest, this is probably the one.

It served first as the headquarters of the Arrow Cross Party, Hungary’s home-grown fascist movement that collaborated with Nazi Germany and carried out some of the worst atrocities of the Second World War, including the massacre of tens of thousands of Budapest’s Jews.

Then, after the war, the same building was taken over by the ÁVH, the Hungarian secret police, essentially the equivalent of the Soviet KGB, who used it to interrogate, torture, and in many cases execute political prisoners during the communist era.

The exterior alone is worth stopping for even if you don’t go in. The building is painted a stark blue-grey, and the top is ringed by a heavy black overhang with the word “TERROR” cut out of it.

Inside, the museum spreads across multiple floors, moving chronologically through the Nazi occupation and then into the long decades of communist rule. There’s a floor dedicated to the Arrow Cross period, rooms covering the mechanisms of communist control including surveillance, propaganda, forced collectivization, political show trials, and a staircase area displaying socialist statues, murals, and Stalin busts.

The most visceral part of the museum is the basement, where the cells used by the ÁVH for interrogation and torture have been preserved.

It’s worth knowing that the museum has attracted some controversy over the years. It was established in 2002 with involvement from the then-nationalist government, and some historians have argued that it tilts the narrative towards portraying Hungary purely as a victim of foreign occupiers without fully reckoning with the extent to which Hungarians themselves participated in and enabled both regimes.

A very practical but important note: Almost all the written content inside is in Hungarian only. You can pick up printed English summaries in each room, but they’re fairly dry and don’t capture everything. The audio guide, available in English and several other languages, makes an enormous difference to how much you get out of the visit and is absolutely worth the extra cost. Don’t skip it.

Allow at least two hours, more if you’re using the audio guide. It gets busy, so earlier in the day is better.

It’s heavy. You won’t leave feeling good. But it’s an important museum to visit.

Memento Park (Where Communist Statues Went to Die)

Memento Park | Address: Budapest, Balatoni út – Szabadkai utca sarok, 1222 Hungary

When communism collapsed in Hungary after four decades, Budapest was left with a very specific problem: what do you do with all the giant statues? Every public square, every major boulevard, and every prominent corner of the city had been decorated with enormous bronze and stone monuments to Lenin, Marx, Engels, Red Army officers, and Hungarian communist leaders.

Some cities in Eastern Europe simply tore theirs down, and that was that. Budapest took a different approach. Rather than destroying the statues, the city decided to gather them up and put them somewhere, a dedicated park on the outskirts of the city where they could be preserved, studied, and visited.

The architect who designed the space, Ákos Eleőd, put it beautifully: the park is about dictatorship, but precisely because it can be talked about and built and visited freely, it is also about democracy.

Memento Park opened in 1993 and today holds 42 statues, monuments, and plaques collected from the streets of Budapest.

A few of the statues you’ll see are Lenin in bronze, Marx and Engels quarried from Mauthausen, and Hungarian monuments, including a sculpture of the Hungarian communist leader Béla Kun trying to lead a group of soldiers and workers.

There’s a six-meter-tall Soviet soldier that used to stand on top of Gellért Hill. There are allegorical monuments to Hungarian-Soviet friendship showing the two nations shaking hands.

The single most iconic object in the park is the replica of Stalin’s boots. In 1956, when the Hungarian people rose up against Soviet rule, one of their first acts was to tear down the enormous eight-meter bronze statue of Stalin that stood in central Budapest.

They pulled it down to the ground but couldn’t fully destroy it, so they left just the boots standing on the pedestal. The image became one of the defining symbols of the revolution.

There’s also an exhibition hall and a small cinema showing a documentary called The Life of an Agent, which is a montage of training footage made by the Hungarian secret police between 1958 and 1988, showing how agents were taught to conduct surveillance, search properties without being detected, and plant listening devices.

The park is about 6 miles south of central Budapest. Check updated information on how to get there by clicking here.

Ride on a Historic Paddle Steamer

BOOK THIS HISTORIC PADDLE STEAMER BOAT TOUR

Budapest has no shortage of river cruises. On a busy summer day, the Danube can look like a floating traffic jam, with boat after boat of tourists gliding past the same landmarks.

But I would say one of the coolest boat tour you can take is on the paddle steamer! You will probab;y ride the Kisfaludy, which is a recreation of a 19th-century paddle steamer. The original Kisfaludy set sail on 21 September 1846, becoming the very first steamboat to travel on Lake Balaton.

The original boat completed its last journey in 1887, but a replica was built in 2013 and eventually relocated from Lake Balaton to the Danube, where it now operates as a sightseeing vessel. What I loved about riding this boat was the mini museum below deck, which gives you a glimpse into the daily life of those who rode the original.

The cruise lasts around an hour and covers the best part of the Danube. You pass just about every major landmark in the city: the Parliament building, Buda Castle, the Chain Bridge, Fisherman’s Bastion, Matthias Church, Gellért Hill, the Great Market Hall, and Gresham Palace.

On board, a welcome drink is included: a glass of Tokaj Frizzante, which is a Hungarian sparkling wine, or orange juice if you’d prefer. There’s an audio guide available via QR code on your phone in 30 languages, which covers the history of everything you pass, but make sure you bring your own earphones, as they’re not provided.

The boat is heated in winter, so you can tuck inside if the weather turns, but honestly the open deck in any season is where you want to be. It’s so beautiful!

Cultural Hidden Gems in Budapest

Take a Train Run Mostly By Children Through the Buda Mountains

Children’s Train | Address: Budapest, Gyermekvasúthoz vezető út 5, 1021 Hungary

There are quite a few quirky things to do in Budapest, but the Children’s Railway might be the quirkiest of the lot. It’s a fully functioning narrow gauge railway line winding through the Buda Hills, where almost every job is carried out by children between the ages of 10 and 14.

They sell the tickets, manage the signals, make the announcements, inspect the carriages, and run the stations. The only thing they don’t do is drive the train, which is a relief.

The railway was built in 1948 and originally called the Pioneer Railway. The Pioneers were a youth organization designed to instill socialist values, teamwork, and a love of manual labor into Hungarian children from an early age.

The idea of a children’s railway wasn’t unique to Hungary; similar lines existed across the Soviet bloc, but Budapest’s version turned out to be the longest of them all, stretching 7 miles through the Buda Hills across eight stops. When communism fell, rather than shutting the railway down, Hungary simply kept it going and changed the name.

Today it holds an official Guinness World Record as the longest railway line in the world where traffic and commercial services are operated by children which is an extremely specific record to hold, but they hold it.

The children who work on the railway have to earn the position through good academic performance and then complete a rigorous six-month training program before they’re allowed anywhere near the platform.

They volunteer for a year, doing shifts twice a month during term time, and get excused from school on their railway days. In summer, groups spend two weeks at a camp near the Hűvösvölgy station, working every third day and spending the rest of the time on organized activities.

The ride takes around 40 to 50 minutes end to end and passes through beautiful forested hillside scenery. Several of the stops along the route are jumping-off points for hiking trails, viewpoints, and other attractions. Jánoshegy station provides you with access to the Elizabeth Lookout Tower, a stone tower built in 1910 at the highest point in Budapest.

Normafa is a popular picnic and hiking spot with sweeping views over Budapest. There’s also a museum at the Hűvösvölgy station with displays about the railway’s history.

It’s easiest to get the train from Hűvösvölgy Station. You can get your tickets at the ticket window, but to see an up to date timetable, click here.

I have taken this train twice, and it’s always so much fun. You can really tell how much the children love working on the trains.

Cruise the Danube While Dining and Watching Traditional Dancing

BOOK THIS DINNER CRUISE

I’ll be honest, this dinner cruise probably has no business being in an article all about hidden gems. It’s one of the most touristy things you can do, but I think as touristy activities go, this one is actually worth it!

The cruise is about 90 minutes long, and as soon as you board, you will be handed a glass of Hungarian sparkling wine or a soft drink. After the boat takes off and you spend a bit of time outside watching the city pass by, dinner is served.

For dinner, we got to go up and get food from a buffet with a spread of  goulash, Hungarian dumplings, soup, beef stew, and chicken. They had a vegetable tart for the vegetarians as well as salads and dessert.

I find many times the food on these experiences isn’t good, but the food I had on this cruise was great!

The folk dance show is performed after everyone has eaten. Professional dancers in full traditional Hungarian costumes come out and perform local dances from regions all over Hungary.

A few of my favorites were the Women’s Bottle Dance, in which the dancers balance wine bottles on their heads, and the Men’s Stick Dance, which comes from shepherd traditions and involves intricate footwork and incredible coordination.

At the end of the show, people were encouraged to join and learn a few basic steps. I, for one, lack all ability to dance, so I happily sat and watched others struggle with their moves.

Take One of the Most Beautiful Tram Rides in the World

This is one of the best ways to see the city, and it costs less than 2 euros. Tram 2 is a bright yellow tram that goes along the Pest embankment of the Danube, and in 2010, National Geographic included it in their list of the top ten most scenic trolley rides in the world.

The route takes around 20 to 26 minutes end to end. On your left as you head south, you have the Danube and the full sweep of the Castle District with Buda Castle perched on top, Fisherman’s Bastion, the spires of Matthias Church, Gellért Hill, the Liberty Statue, and the Citadel.

On your right, you’ll see the Hungarian Parliament, Gresham Palace, the Chain Bridge, Vigadó Concert Hall, and the Great Market Hall. Along the way you’ll also pass the Shoes on the Danube memorial, 60 pairs of iron shoes fixed to the bank to commemorate the thousands of Jewish people shot into the river by the Arrow Cross Party in 1944.

A couple of bonus tips: taking it at night, when all the landmarks are lit up and reflected on the water, is stunning, and I highly recommend riding it at that time.

And in December, Tram 2 gets wrapped in around 40,000 LED lights, turning it into what’s known as the Fényvillamos, or Light Tram, which runs in the evenings from around 5pm to 9pm throughout Christmas.

For more information about the route, click here. You also can ride the tram for free if you purchase a Budapest card, which gives steep discounts and free entry to tons of attractions and museums in the city as well as free use of public transport.

Explore Cinema Mystica: The Museum of Lights and Magic

BOOK CINEMA MYSTICA TICKETS | Address: Budapest, Ferenciek tere 10, 1052 Hungary

Cinema Mystica is a digital art space spread across two floors. There are ten rooms to explore; each one is filled with light installations, projections, and interactive digital art that responds to you. Some installations react to your movements. Some use AI to interact with you directly. One room lets you experience different simulated heart rates through pulsing visuals.

Another takes you on a fake elevator ride through a futuristic version of Budapest, with floor projections shifting under your feet as you walk. They do change exhibits, and the current exhibition is called Form in Flux, and it’s about consciousness, time, and the nature of reality.

This is not a place to power through. Take your time, use the seats when there are seats, and let the sound and light do their thing. You will feel really relaxed after your visit.

Tour the Craziest Building in Budapest

House of Music | Address: Budapest, Olof Palme stny. 3, 1146 Hungary

If you’re already making the trek out to City Park to see Vajdahunyad Castle or soak at the Széchenyi Baths, you’d be doing yourself a disservice if you walked past the House of Music Hungary without going in.

It opened in 2022, and it’s already won a number of international architecture awards, and it’s one of the most interesting buildings to go up in Budapest in years.

The building was designed by Japanese architect Sou Fujimoto, who was given instructions to create something that felt like a continuation of the park. The walls are almost entirely glass, and the roof curves above the building, punctuated by 100 circular openings, each one a different shape and inspired by a different sound wave form.

Inside, the building has three levels. Underground is where the permanent exhibition lives, and this is the main reason to come. It takes you through the history of music, from the first time humans figured out they could make sounds with their bodies all the way through to what’s being made today, with a big focus on Hungary’s musical legacy.

The first floor is a performance space, a concert hall, a smaller lecture hall, and an open-air stage where you can watch daytime concerts from the grassy slope outside for free.

Then there’s the Sound Dome, which is a cinema-concert hall where you sit in the middle and sound comes at you from every direction at once. There’s also a Creative Sound Space where you can play unusual instruments.

See a Show at the Hungarian State Opera

Hungarian State Opera | Address: Budapest, Andrássy út 22, 1061 Hungary

The building opened in 1884 and was designed by Miklós Ybl, the architect behind the Customs House and a good chunk of Buda Castle. The Opera House is his masterpiece that took nine years to build. It managed to cause a mild scandal on its opening night when the crowd outside got so excited to see the finished building that they broke through the entrance and overwhelmed the security guards.

An interesting fact about the construction is that Emperor Franz Joseph I funded it, but with one condition: it couldn’t be larger than the Vienna State Opera. So Ybl built something slightly smaller and then made it more beautiful to compensate. The Viennese ended up having to concede that Budapest’s Opera House had better acoustics anyway, so that worked out well.

My favorite part of the opera house was the grand staircase with its marble columns,  and above it all, a ceiling fresco depicting the Greek gods on Olympus. The auditorium seats 1,261 people and is a horseshoe of gold leaf, plush red velvet, and tiered boxes. Hanging over it all is a 3-ton bronze chandelier.

You can tour the building without committing to a show. Although, I recommend both the tour and seeing a show if you can. The tours run in English multiple times a day and last about an hour. Every tour ends with a short live operetta performance.

I got to see a show at the opera house, and it was absolutely incredible, so if you have the time to see one, do it. Ticket prices are reasonable, and you can get decent seats for €15-30. The main season runs from autumn through late spring, with a lighter schedule in summer. Check what’s playing by clicking here.

Find Mini Sculptures Hidden Throughout the City

BOOK A TINY SCULPTURES WALKING TOUR

Scattered all over Budapest, tucked onto railings and walls and pavements and on bridges, are dozens of tiny bronze figures that can easily go unnoticed if you aren’t looking.

They’re the work of Mihály Kolodko, a Ukrainian-Hungarian sculptor born in 1978 in Uzhhorod who now lives just north of Budapest and who has been quietly placing these miniature figures around the city since 2010.

Most are no bigger than a clenched fist. Some are smaller, and there is no official announcement for when new ones pop up. They just appear, but if you follow Kolodko’s Instagram, he will announce when he has placed a new sculpture.

There are over 35 mini sculptures, and each one has a story. Kolodko always has a specific location in mind before he makes a piece, because the placement is part of the story.

Some of the more famous sculptures are as follows:

At Liberty Square near Parliament, you’ll find a tiny Kermit the Frog sitting next to the bushes, placed there to commemorate when frog legs became a Hungarian delicacy in the late 19th century.

On Falk Miksa Street there’s a dead squirrel outlined in chalk with a tiny gun in its hand, positioned next to a full-size statue of Columbo.

Near Fővám Square there’s a miniature Rubik’s Cube to honor Ernő Rubik, whose Rubik’s Cube invention has confused everyone on Earth at some point.

Near the Dohány Street Synagogue, there’s a tiny Theodor Herzl on a bicycle, marking the spot where he was born.

There’s a group of little Hungarian dog breeds at Batthyány Street, and locals have been known to leave treats for them.

He also has made quite a few political pieces over the years. He placed a drooping cannon in front of Parliament, a tiny tank on the Bem embankment opposite the Parliament, and a Russian soldier peering into an empty pantry near the Buda riverbank, which was added in 2022 as a response to the war in Ukraine.

Two ways you can go about finding the statues are by guided tour or self-guided tour by using this map. I opted for a guided tour, and I am glad I did because each statue has a story, and I wanted someone there to explain the importance of every sculpture we were looking at.

Once you find one statue, you will want to find them all, and you’ll be more observant walking around the city. You will find yourself looking differently at every railing and wall for the rest of your trip.

One warning: some statues have been stolen over the years. It happens. If you arrive at a location and find nothing, someone may have taken it.

Pay Tribute to the Great Michael Jackson at His Shrine

In Erzsébet Square, there’s a tree that has become one of Budapest’s most unexpectedly touching landmarks. It’s plastered with photos, handwritten letters, plastic roses, printed tributes, and an assortment of fan art, all dedicated to Michael Jackson.

And it’s been there since 2009 and shows no signs of stopping.

This all started when Michael Jackson visited Budapest three times in the 1990s, each time staying in the Royal Suite at the Kempinski Hotel, right across the street from the square.

His first visit was in 1994, when he came to film the promotional video for the HIStory album. He came back twice in 1996, first to scout the venue for his upcoming concert and then again to actually perform it.

During each stay, fans camped out in the park directly opposite the hotel hoping to catch a glimpse of him, and Jackson would regularly appear at the window to wave at them.

When he died in June 2009, his fans went back to that same spot. They lit candles, left flowers, and started pinning photos to the trunk of the tree. Budapest’s city officials let the tributes stay.

More people kept adding to it. And now, more than 15 years later, it’s a permanent landmark maintained by dedicated fans who come regularly to keep the flowers fresh, pull out dead plants, and make sure the shrine looks kept up.

Get Lost in Illusions at The Museum of Illusions

Museums of Illusions | Address: Budapest, Bajcsy-Zsilinszky út 3, 1065 Hungary

If you’ve ever wanted to experience what it feels like to shrink, grow, flip upside down, and question whether your eyes are really working, the Museum of Illusions in Budapest has you covered.

It’s a museum dedicated to optical illusions, perspective tricks, and interactive installations designed to make your brain question everything you think you know.

Inside, you’ll find rooms that play tricks on your perception: a tilted room where nothing sits at an angle, a vortex tunnel that makes you feel like you’re spinning, a reversed room where the whole world is upside down, and a mirror maze.

There are also holograms, optical illusion artworks, and a section of brain teasers and puzzle games at the end. Each exhibit comes with an explanation of the science behind it, which, I am not ashamed to admit, I read a good portion of.

One thing to be aware of: quite a few of the exhibits are designed for two people, so you’ll get more out of it if you go with someone. That said, I went alone, and still had so much fun!

Watch a Movie in the City’s Smallest Theater

Cirko-Gejzírs | Address: Budapest, Balassi Bálint u. 15-17, 1055 Hungary

Cirko-Gejzír is hidden in a basement on Balassi Bálint Street in the 5th district. I read somewhere that it was once the smallest movie theater in Europe but has since expanded. That title has been sadly lost to a different cinema in Rome, but it still holds the title as the smallest movie theater in Budapest, so that’s something.

The theater has been around since the early 90s, started by a group of friends who wanted to show films that weren’t shown in mainstream cinemas, and fast forward to today, the theater is still going strong.

Hungary doesn’t dub their movies, so check the schedule and see if there are any English movies playing. Hungarian movies are occasionally playing and sometimes they have English subtitles, so that is worth checking too.

Take an Alternative Walking Tour

Alternative Budapest Walking Tour

BOOK THIS BUDAPEST ALTERNATIVE WALKING TOUR

Budapest has a way of surprising you if you’re willing to get off the tourist track. The Alternative Budapest Walking Tour is about three hours of exploring the city from an entirely different angle.

You’ll be exploring District VII, the old Jewish Quarter, which has quietly become the beating heart of Budapest’s creative scene. The neighborhood has spent decades being neglected, and then artists, musicians, and locals started filling the empty spaces.

Ruin bars moved into derelict buildings. Murals were painted. Independent galleries and community spaces appeared. It’s now one of the coolest areas to explore in Budapest.

On this tour, you’ll visit ruin bars, see incredible street art, visit independent art galleries, and explore really cool shops. There’s also a stop for a coffee or a drink along the way at a cool ruin bar/cafe.

The guides on this tour are active in Budapest’s creative scene, so it’s interesting learning about this side of Budapest from them, especially hearing the stories behind the street art you will see on the tour.

Buda Castle District Vampires and Myths Night Tour

BOOK THIS VAMPIRE AND MYTHS NIGHT TOUR

Buda Castle at night is stunning and a little spooky. It’s lit up, quiet, almost eerie, and once you add a guide dressed in full Gothic period costume, the atmosphere goes from “beautiful” to unsettling real quick. It feels like something could be lurking just around the corner.

You meet at the Zero Kilometre Stone in Clark Ádám Square, right on the Buda side of the Chain Bridge at the bottom of the castle hill. The tour walks up from there, which means yes, there’s a climb involved. However, if you have mobility issues or don’t want to climb, there’s a funicular nearby (not included in the price) that can take you to the top where you can join the group.

Like most ghost tours, the stories you hear will be unsettling, and I don’t recommend this tour for anyone with a sensitive stomach or anyone under the age of 16.  Hungarian history is dark.  You will hear tales of Elizabeth Báthory, the so-called Blood Countess. Vlad Dracula, who was imprisoned in Buda Castle for a period, and stories of vampires and other creatures who roamed the streets and villages after dark.

Communism Walking Tour

BOOK THIS COMMUNISM WALKING TOUR

The 3-Hour Walking Tour About Communism is led by a local historian who goes deep into the brutal Stalinist years of the late 1940s and 50s, through the 1956 revolution that shook the country into the strange era that followed. It’s what historians call “goulash communism,” where Hungary became known, weirdly, as the happiest place in the Soviet Bloc.

You will visit Kossuth Square in front of Parliament, where some of the craziest moments of the 1956 revolution played out. Liberty Square, where the US Embassy is located, a Soviet Army memorial, and a statue of Ronald Reagan.

You will also pass by the House of Terror, the former headquarters of the secret police, which has a slab of the Berlin Wall outside it. You don’t go inside on this tour, but I do recommend going inside at some point.

At the end of the tour, you stop into a communist-era cafe for a coffee. I actually didn’t realize Budapest had any communist cafes still around, so that was really fun!

Get Spooked at a Year-Round Haunted House

Nightmare in Budapest

If you’re a thrill seeker and you’re looking for something a little out of the ordinary, Nightmare in Budapest may be right up your alley.

Nightmare in Budapest is a haunted house with actors, mazes, and games. You may regret entering, like I did. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed it, but I have never been so scared. Also, I think it was not the best decision to go through it alone.

Anyway, just a fair warning: if you are used to haunted houses in the US where they don’t touch you, well, this one will be very different. The actors will touch you, but they are very gentle, so don’t be alarmed if you get nudged here and there.

The whole experience runs about 25 to 35 minutes, which sounds short until you’re actually inside and those 35 minutes feel like a lifetime.

When you are inside, you move through multiple rooms, and along the way there are smaller tasks you have to solve to find your way through. So it’s part escape room as well. A few games I had to complete were finding spare body parts in a kitchen. I had to find a hidden tunnel that I needed to crawl through. I also had to sing a song to summon a demon.

This honestly was one of the best haunted houses I have ever been in. It was so well done. Although, I probably wouldn’t recommend going in alone. I mean, who does that?

Unfortunately, the haunted house is temporarily closed while they look for a new location. 

Watch a Classical Music Concert at a Church

BOOK A CLASSICAL MUSIC CONCERT

One thing you should know about Budapest is that they have some beautiful churches, and although I am not religious, one of the best things I did when I was there was attend a couple of concerts.

St. Stephen’s Basilica is probably the most well-known. It’s the largest church in Budapest, and the acoustics inside are extraordinary. Concerts run regularly throughout the week on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays, with programs typically featuring works by Bach, Vivaldi, Mozart, Liszt, and Schubert.

Matthias Church, up on the Buda Castle hill, has roots going back to the 11th century, though what stands today is a stunning late Gothic structure that was restored in the 19th century.

The Danube String Orchestra performs here regularly, and organ concerts take place on Sunday evenings as free 30-minute performances. In summer, Friday night organ concerts run through July and August as well. Concerts generally last about 70 minutes.

Beyond those two, St. Michael’s Church runs a string orchestra concert series, and St. Anne’s Church, a beautiful baroque building in the Buda neighborhood of Watertown, also hosts classical concerts throughout the year.

Nature Hidden Gems in Budapest

Explore Budapest’s Cave Network

BOOK A CAVING TOUR

Most people have no idea that underneath Budapest there is an enormous cave system stretching for over 120 miles.

Budapest sits on top of a massive limestone bedrock, and over thousands of years the city’s thermal waters slowly dissolved the rock from below, creating a vast underground cave system.

A good chunk of it sits directly under residential neighborhoods. Budapest is the only capital city in the world with natural caves running beneath it.

There are a few different ways to explore them, depending on how adventurous you’re feeling.

If you are adventurous and you don’t have claustrophobia, the Adventure Caving Tour at Pálvölgyi Cave is the one to go for. You are climbing walls, crawling through narrow passages, squeezing through gaps you are not entirely sure if you are going to fit through, and scrambling over rocks for about two and a half hours.

The groups are small, capped at ten people, and all guides are members of the Hungarian Caving Association, so you are in safe hands even when it feels very much like you are not.  All that climbing will leave you sore, so it’s a good excuse to head straight to a thermal bath afterward.

If you want something less physically demanding, Pálvölgyi Cave also runs regular guided tours along a more accessible route, and tours run more frequently.

The cave was discovered in 1904 and has been open to visitors since 1919, and exploring these caves is truly one of the most unique things you can do. I did it years ago and remember how incredible it was.

Soak Up the Sun on Margaret Island

If you need a break from sightseeing and just want somewhere to breathe for a few hours, Margaret Island is the answer. The island is 1.5 miles and cars are not allowed.

You can walk the whole loop in about an hour and a half, hire a bike, rent a golf cart, or just find a patch of grass and do absolutely nothing for a while. All of those are valid options.

Margaret Island was originally known as Rabbit Island, and for a long time it was used as a royal hunting ground. In the 13th century, King Béla IV sent his young daughter Margaret to live in a Dominican convent there, and the island was eventually renamed after her.

The ruins of that convent are still standing. There is also the Chapel of St. Michael, which contains the oldest surviving bell in Hungary, cast in the 15th century, and the ruins of a Franciscan church nearby.

Don’t miss the musical fountain near the southern entrance. It puts on choreographed water jet shows several times a day, with jets shooting up to 33 feet in the air to everything from Vivaldi to The Rolling Stones.

It’s really cool, especially after dark when it’s lit up. There is also a Japanese garden on the northern end of the island, with lily ponds, a waterfall, and cherry trees that bloom in late March. The Palatinus Strand is a large outdoor water park and thermal baths complex that’s open year-round, so you could easily spend at least half a day here or more.

Take a Chairlift to the Highest Point in the City

Zugliget | Address: Budapest, Zugligeti út 97, 1121 Hungary

The Zugliget chairlift is one of my favorite activities in Budapest, and unfortunately, it is also a place most visitors never get to.

It sits in the Buda Hills in the 12th district, about 30 minutes from the city center. The chairlift runs up to János Hill, the highest point in Budapest. On a clear day you can see the entire city.

At the top there is a cafe, and a short uphill walk of about ten minutes brings you to the Elizabeth Lookout Tower, built in 1910 and named after Empress Elizabeth of Austria. There is so much to explore when you get to the top. I spent almost an entire day up there and wished I would have packed a picnic.

You have two ways to experience Zugliet. You can either get there on your own, which will take a bit of time because it is quite far out of the city center. If you are short on time, this probably won’t be the best option, but here is the schedule and ticket information if you do decide to go on your own.

Your second option is going with a tour! This tour will pick you up from the city center and drive you to the chairlift, so you don’t have to think about any logistics.

If you are short on time but want to do the chairlift, I recommend the latter, but if you have 5-6 hours to spare, I recommend going on your own.

Wander Through the Oldest Botanical Garden in Hungary

Füvészker | Address: Budapest, Illés u. 25, 1083 Hungary

Füvészkert sits in the 8th district and is the oldest botanical garden in Hungary, founded in 1771 by the predecessor of Eötvös Loránd University, which still runs it today. Despite being only about 7.5 acres, it manages to pack in over 8,000 plant species.

It has been a protected nature conservation area since 1960 and was added to Hungary’s Cultural Heritage list in 2006. Inside, you’ll see The Palm House, which was built in 1865 and is one of the oldest greenhouses of its kind in Hungary, filled with tropical and subtropical plants.

Victoria House contains big, flat waterlilies floating on the surface of the water that can apparently hold the weight of a small child. The arboretum has around 3,000 types of trees and shrubs, including ginkgo trees that are over 200 years old.

If you are a reader, Füvészkert shows up as a key location in The Paul Street Boys, a novel by Ferenc Molnár and a classic in Hungarian literature. There is even a statue of one of the characters, Nemecsek, beside the water lily pond where he hid in the book.

Ride a Speedboat on the Danube (You Will Get Wet)

Redjet | Address: Hungary Budapest, Kopaszi gát Unnamed Road, 1117 Hungary

If you are an adrenaline junkie, you will want to book this speedboat tour. I actually just happened to spot it while walking across a bridge, and it looked fun, so I had to book it.

I also should have probably read the fine print because I had no idea I would get soaked, but anyway, when you arrive, you get a safety briefing, everyone gets strapped in, and the boat heads out.

It starts very slowly but then kicks off at an incredible speed. The driver will do several stunts, so if you get queasy, this may not be the tour for you. He will do 360-degree spins, sharp turns, and again, you will get drenched, so make sure you don’t have your phones or cameras.

Bring an extra pair of shoes if they are not waterproof and a change of clothes.

Fly in a Hot Air Balloon Above City Park

Balloonfly | Address: Budapest Mimóza domb, Városliget, 1148 Hungary

Who would have thought that Budapest would have a hot air balloon ride? Not me! It sits in City Park, right next to the Széchenyi Baths and Vajdahunyad Castle, and the only reason I saw it was because the red and white striped balloon is visible from a distance.

It is a tethered helium balloon, so it is anchored to the ground by a thick steel cable the entire time. The balloon carries up to 30 passengers at a time, rises to about 490 feet, and the whole flight takes around 15 to 20 minutes.

On a clear day you can see for roughly 12 miles in every direction.

The attraction actually has roots going back over a century. A balloon called the Ballon Captif operated in the same City Park during Budapest’s Millennium Exhibition in 1896 and was wildly popular, carrying passengers up a dozen or more times a day. BalloonFly is a modern revival, brought back as part of the Liget Budapest Project to restore and upgrade the park.

A few practical tips. The balloon only flies in suitable weather conditions, so it is worth checking the forecast on their website before making a trip out there. Flights run seasonally, generally April through October, and I recommend buying tickets when you get there since flights aren’t always running.

Food & Drink Hidden Gems in Budapest

Soak in a Bathtub Full of Beer

Beer Spa

If you have never heard of a beer spa before, you are not alone. It sounds completely crazy. I mean, who would ever want to bathe in a bathtub of beer?

I should point out that you aren’t actually soaking in beer. You are soaking in a wooden tub filled with thermal water that has been mixed with dry beer ingredients, mainly hops, malt, and beer salt.

These are said to be good for your skin and hair, and while the water itself is not beer, you do have an unlimited beer tap right next to your tub the entire time. I definitely made good use of that.

Sessions last 45 minutes.

Budapest has two locations where you can experience the beer spa: Lukács Baths and Széchenyi Baths. I have done both, but I prefer Lukacs because it is a quieter spa and it’s the newer of the two.

Drool Your Way Through a Chocolate Museum (And Make Your Own Chocolate Bar)

Szamos Chocolate Museum | Address: Budapest, Budapest 1051, Kossuth Lajos tér 10, 1055 Hungary

Szamos is one of Hungary’s oldest confectionery brands. The founder, Mátyás Szamos, was a Serbian-Hungarian boy from the town of Szentendre who got his start as a pastry apprentice under a Danish confectioner.

He went on to work at some of Budapest’s most prestigious cafes, mastered the art of marzipan sculpting, and eventually built his own enterprise in the 1930s, and the brand has been a household name in Hungary ever since.

The museum sits on the second floor of the Szamos Cafe at Kossuth Square, right next to the Parliament building. It takes you through six rooms covering the full arc of chocolate history, from cocoa cultivation and ancient Mesoamerican traditions all the way through to 19th century European chocolate culture.

There are antique chocolate molds, vintage porcelain sets, and an impressive collection of decorative chocolate tins. The best piece is a marzipan sculpture weighing around 170 pounds, a replica of a famous 18th century painting known as The Chocolate Girl.

There is also a scale model of the Hungarian Parliament built entirely out of marzipan.

Throughout the tour you get to taste dark, milk, white, and ruby chocolate; cocoa beans; and marzipan. The final part of the tour is where the magic happens. A chocolatier demonstrates tempering, which is the process of heating and cooling chocolate to give it that smooth, glossy finish.

Then you get to make your own bar. You pour the chocolate, choose your toppings, and take the finished bar home to be devoured.

Tour the Unicum Factory (Traditional Hungarian Liqueur)

Unicum Factory | Address: Dandár utca 1, 1095 Budapest, Hungary

If you have ever ordered a round of shots in Budapest and ended up with something that looked like cough syrup and tasted like a crappy version of Jaegermeister, you have already met Unicum.

Unicum has been made at the same site since the Zwack family founded the factory there in 1840. The distillery was largely destroyed by Allied bombing in 1944, rebuilt after the war, and then nationalized by the communist government in 1948. The Zwack family fled the country that same year, but before they left they took the original recipe with them.

For the next four decades, the state continued producing something called Unicum in the same building, but without the actual formula. When communism collapsed and Péter Zwack returned to buy back the family business in 1990, the real recipe came back with him. To this day, the recipe remains a closely guarded family secret.

Today, you can tour the distillery, which starts with a film about the history of Unicum, and then you will move on to the production hall, which has been restored. It is full of polished copper stills, original equipment, and decorative green Zsolnay tiles.

From there, tours move down into the cellar, which is a labyrinth of more than 500 oak barrels where the spirit is aged.

What is known is that Unicum is made from a blend of more than 40 herbs and botanicals, though exactly which ones and in what proportions nobody outside the family knows.

There are two tour options. The standard tour includes the film, the distillery and cellar walk, and a tasting of Unicum and Unicum Plum poured from the barrel.

The premium tour adds Unicum Barista, Unicum Orange Bitter, and the Riserva, which is aged in barrels that predate the Second World War.

The tour ends at the museum, where you can wander around for as long as you want, and if you decide to buy something from the store, you get a discount!

Indulge in a Medieval Feast

BOOK THIS MEDIEVAL FEAST | Address: Budapest, Podmaniczky u. 14, 1065 Hungary

If you are looking for a night out where you can mingle with some knights and eat chicken or steak with your hands, Sir Lancelot is a dinner you won’t want to miss. The restaurant is decked out in painted banners, carved wooden furniture, dim lighting, and stone walls.

I love a medieval theme, so I had the best time. I was seated at a communal table and pretty quickly got my food. The food served is pretty meat-heavy, although they do have fish and a vegetarian option. The food arrives on wooden boards and silver platters, and the portions are enormous, so come hungry!

The show starts around 7:30pm and runs throughout the meal in shorter segments. Depending on the night, you might see belly dancers, fire spinners, flame eaters, jugglers, and sword fighting.

I recommend making a reservation because walk-in waits can be long. Also, keep in mind if you are coming with a big group, the restaurant does not split bills.  To make a reservation, click here.

Travel the World While Dining at This Unique Immersive Restaurant

Uncensored | Address: Budapest, Erzsébet krt. 43-49, 1073 Hungary

Uncensored is probably one of the most unique restaurants I have ever eaten at. First off, arriving at Uncensored was a bit of a mission because it is a speakeasy and the entrance is hidden inside a hotel restaurant. I won’t give too much away because entering it was fun!

During your dinner, you will have 7 courses, and each course represents a different country. You start in Hungary, move to Russia, Spain, China, USA, Japan, and Brazil. The entire dining space is surrounded by 360-degree projection, so every 20 minutes or so the room shifts and your next course will be served.

The restaurant only has 10 tables, so making a reservation is required. You can do so here. You can also add a Hungarian wine pairing, an international wine pairing, or a cocktail pairing to your meal.

Tour a Gin Distillery

Opera Gin | Address: Budapest, Kiss Ernő u. 3/a, 1046 Hungary

Opera Gin is Hungary’s first gin distillery. Their gin is made in the London Dry style and uses 11 botanicals, two of which are locally sourced: poppy seeds from Debrecen and lavender from the Tihany peninsula on Lake Balaton.

The distillery can only be visited by appointment, which you can make here. The distillery tour lasts around two hours. Before the tour started, we got a gin and tonic, while our guide shared the history of gin, how Opera Gin started, and then we were taken to the area where the distillation magic happens.

After the tour, our guide led us back to the bar where we had the option to order more drinks, which, of course, most of us did. There are different ticket packages you can purchase, and some include a couple of signature drinks. This was really fun, and if you like gin, I highly recommend booking this tour.

Cook Your Dinner at the World’s First DIY Restaurant

Budapest Makery | Address: Budapest, Dob u. 38, 1072 Hungary

Budapest Makery calls itself the world’s first DIY restaurant, and honestly, it’s so cool!

Basically, this restaurant allows you to be the chef. When you make a reservation, you will have a list of dishes and drinks to choose from. You reserve what you want to make ahead of time, and when you show up, everything is ready for you to prepare. You start by making your drink. They had a mix of cocktails and mocktails.

Every ingredient arrives pre-measured and prepped in small bowls, and each table has induction hobs built into the surface. You also get a tablet with a step-by-step video app that walks you through the recipe.

It will take about 25 to 30 minutes to prepare and cook everything, and even if cooking is not your strong suit, like myself, this is still really fun. The staff are also there to help you and answer any questions.

The menu covers so much variety. I made cheeseburger muffins because they looked delicious and it was one of the easier options, but there is a lot to choose from.

Eat & Drink at a Communist-Era Cafe

Bambi Eszpresszó

Website | Address: Budapest, Frankel Leó út 2-4, 1027 Hungary

Bambi is one of the most popular and authentic communist-era cafes still around. It opened in 1961, and almost nothing has changed since. The original socialist furnishings are all still in place: small metal tables, stools, and long banquettes covered in red faux leather.

The food and drinks are classic presszó fare, meaning simple and cheap: toasted sandwiches, frankfurters with mustard, omelets, coffee served in chunky mugs, and beer.

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