Sights worth visiting in Old Buda – Óbuda

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Sights of Óbuda – recommended by the Free Budapest Walking Tours Team

Besides taking some of our free tours in Budapest, it is also worth to wander around some areas where walking tours do not go very often. Let’s see the sights of Old Buda (Óbuda in Hungarian which is also known as the 3rd district of the Hungarian capital).

  • Roman amphitheater and Aquincum Museum: before the Hungarians settled down in this area, there used to be a Roman settlement here called Aquincum. The Aquincum Museum, which has huge a collection (objects and finds), presents the heritage of ancient Rome to those interested in a unique way. Next to the museum is the Romkert, one of the largest Roman archaeological parks in Hungary. During the tour of the area, visitors can get to know a part of the civic city of Aquincum, as well as the most typical public buildings and private houses of the city center, which were built in the 2nd-3rd centuries AD.

 

  • Kiscelli Museum: the building was originally built as a monastery, and was later bought by the furniture manufacturer Miksa Schmidt, who gave the building and its park to the capital. Today’s museum presents the history of Budapest and also has a significant fine art collection. The courtyard of the building complex, reminiscent of the Romantic era, is also a kind of exhibition space where you can see sculptures and works of art. The museum is surrounded by the Kiscelli park forest, recently renovated and expanded with a modern forest playground, where from spring to autumn we can take really pleasant walks and even have a picnic.

 

  • Roman beach (Római part in Hungarian): After Óbudai Island to the north, Római-part is a popular spot for those who want to relax after the hustle and bustle of the city. This stretch of the Danube coast is busy with visitors all year round, whose souls and bellies are taken care of by the cozy restaurants, stalls, and open air places that offer excellent gastronomic experiences. If you can, spend as much time as possible on the Római coast walking, running, cycling, or enjoying the waters of the Danube, you certainly won’t regret it.

Programs for the rest of April in Budapest

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Program recommendations for the rest of April by the Free Budapest Walking Tours Team (Triptobudapest.hu Team)

  • Opening of Budapest Garden, 21st-23rd April: Budapest Garden opens the season with varied and free programs for the whole family between April 21 and 23. This weekend, the Fröccsbár awaits wine lovers (fröccs in the Hungarian wine spritzer = wine and soda water), but you can also tune in to the seaside feeling at the cocktail-making workshop with the panorama of the Danube. On Saturday, you can get to know the world of whiskey, gin and rum at a tasting combined with a performance, and on Sunday, once you’ve set the mood, the Keep Swinging team will teach you a couple of jazz and Charleston steps. Meanwhile, the little people won’t be bored either: a sports field, a fire park and many guided games await them. Location: Buda side, Árpád Fejedelem útja 125.
  • Modern, Gastronomical and Musical Celebration of the 1st of May, 30th April – 1st of May: The following places (restaurants and bars) will have and extended Labor Day celebration starting earlier than the 1st of May: Nemdebár, 101 bistro, Pigrumba, Sárkány, Easy. They will have their stands on the street, on a quite local square on the Buda side, the Széll Kálmán square (on the metro line number 2). There will be good food and music, plus your kids and pets will not be bored either!
  • Budapest Spring Festival (Budapesti Tavaszi Fesztivál) 20th April- 2nd May: In the spring, Budapest’s cultural diversity is again in the spotlight. On the occasion of the 43rd Budapest Spring Festival, programs are organized at nearly 30 locations. The center of the event series, which features more than 50 programs, is the constantly changing artistic and cultural life of the city. You can expect an exciting line-up: the repertoire includes theater performances, round table discussions, digital art reviews, photo exhibitions, film screenings and big band concerts. Here is their website with the programs!

Also, Do not forget to join our daily free tours in Budapest! We are looking forward to seeing you! 🙂

2023 Easter in Budapest

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Dear Travelers,

Let us, the Free Budapest Walking Tours Team (Triptobudapest.hu Team) tell you about what is coming up next weekend (from 7th of April, Friday till the 10th of April, Monday), at Easter time in our capital city 🙂

First of all, OUR FREE WALKING TOURS IN BUDAPEST RUN AS USUAL! Even though on Friday the 7th of April on Sunday the 9th of April, and on Monday the 10th of April it will be a holiday, so banks, shops, shopping malls, markets will be closed, we do not stop! 🙂

Some smaller 0-24 supermarkets will be open, museums (except on Mondays), bathhouses and restaurants will be open, so do not worry, there will be things to do over the holiday as well.

What is more, there is a nice Spring Market (Budapesti Tavaszi Vásár in Hungarian)  going on from the 24th of March till the 16th of April, on Városháza Park (City hall park in English) and Deák Ferenc square. Spring comes to 150-year-old Budapest with colorful music programs, a craft fair, an egg museum (we paint eggs in Hungary  at Easter as a tradition) and a nostalgia carousel. In the heart of the city center, family and children’s programs, a craft fair and gastronomic specialties await you!

See you soon on our free and private tours in Budapest and all the best for the upcoming Easter holidays!

15th March – National Holiday in Hungary

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The 15th of March – National and Bank Holiday in Hungary

Let the Free Budapest Walking Tours Team (a.k.a. Triptobudapest.hu Team) introduce you to the first National Holiday of the year.

First, let us inform you that on this day bigger shops, grocery stores, shopping malls, markets, banks will be closed.

However, tourist attractions, bathhouses, museums, most of the restaurants, smaller non-stop supermarkets will be open and our free tours in Budapest run as usual!

There will be commemorations all over the city center that you can see for free and some museums are also free on national holidays like the 15th of March, for example (including but not limited to): Hungarian Agricultural Museum in the City Park, inside of Vajdahunyad Castle, Hungarian National Museum, Ludwig Museum of contemporary art, Museum of Military History in the Buda castle district, Hungarian Natural History Museum.

What Hungarians commemorate on the 15th of March in a nutshell

For a long time, from the end of the 1600s until the end of the First World War Hungary was part of the Austrian Empire. We organized a number of revolutions and freedom fights to get more rights inside of the empire. In 1848 the biggest and most important revolution happened in Budapest and Hungary. The 15th of March was the day when the freedom fight broke out. Even though this revolution failed, we can say that it is one of the most significant events in Hungary’s modern history, and it forms the cornerstone of modern Hungarian national identity.

You can also find a square in Budapest named after this day of commemoration, in Hungarian it is called Március 15. tér, and its a nice place next to the river Danube, on the Pest side of the city.

Hope to see you soon on our free walking tours in Budapest where you can learn more about Hungarian history! 🙂

 

Programs in Budapest for the rest of February 2023

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Dear Travelers,

let us, the Free Budapest Walking Tours Team (Triptobudapest.hu Team) recommend you a few things to do before/after taking some of our free tours in the Hungarian capital after the 18th of February 2023.

  • Indoor Beer Festival (24-25th February): Once again, unlimited beer will flow from the beer taps at Hungary’s only winter beer festival, the Indoor Beer Festival (link of the Facebook event). In addition to the Danube panorama, the organizers promise a truly multicultural environment: you can celebrate the last weekend of February with Hungarian, Czech, German, English and Belgian beers. The festival experience is rich in effervescent pleasures and is completed by cultural & historical additions, beer gastronomy delicacies, beer dinners and beer drinking competitions. With the tasting glass included in the ticket, this year you can also request as many tastings of the more than 100 types of small and large-scale beer on tap as you can.
  • Plants & Grooves: The Bazaar (25th February): Exhibitors and sellers bring a wide selection of spring flowers and indoor plants as well as plant-based, nature-related designer products, fashion and interior design goods to the Plants & Groove plant fair (link of the Facebook event), and visitors can take part in a florarium workshop, too. The Groove Cartel DJ duo will be responsible for the atmosphere and the good mood of the plants and the visitors and guests; they will provide the audience with music in association with a surprise musician. The event is free and will take place in the place called MANYI.
  • MentesFeszt (25-26th February): The Mentes Festival, which will be held on the weekend of February 25th, welcomes new and returning visitors to the first all- free (gluten free, lactose free, vegan etc…)  meeting of the Carpathian Basin. The health-conscious festival waits for you to the ELTE Gömb Hall with various professional presentations, a small market, a gastropub, vegan wines and cheese specialties.
  • Jazzation – Carnival concert (20th of February): Anything can happen at Jazzation’s carnival concert (link of the Facebook event): the band’s singers know no limits in terms of musical virtuosity, so this time they are pushing the boundaries of effective stage appearance.

Have a nice rest of February & See you soon on our private of free walking tours in Budapest! 🙂

Unique places and programs in Budapest inspired by real cult films

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Besides our free tours in Budapest check out these programs inspired by cult movies

  • Travelling Galaxy: Kecskeméti street 5., till the end of March 2023. This interactive exhibition called Traveling Galaxy in Kecskeméti Street, on the Pest side of the river, which opened in mid-December 2022, is a must-see for Star Wars fans. Hundreds of authentic relics and models from the original (IV, V, VI) parts of the Star Wars trilogy, well-known to many from the films, are presented to the public on site. The rooms, scenery, lighting, interactive equipment and detailed installations evoking movie scenes are of an outstanding standard in Central Europe. In its current form the exhibition can be visited until the end of March 2023, just look for the helmets known from the world of Star Wars before entering.

 

  • Locked Room: Székely Mihály street 4.,  on the Pest side of the Danube. In this new generation escape room called Locked Room, you can participate in the Heisenberg Project, but this time you have to take the role of the bad guy. Now you can finally experience the most shocking situations of the Breaking Bad series in exciting locations. According to the story, your days are numbered, as the police organised a raid on the suppliers of all the notorious drug empires. You get a hint in time, so you have the opportunity to eliminate all incriminating evidence and then escape in time before the commandos get there. An engaging story and lifelike scenery – this will surely make you enjoy yourself!

 

  • Flying broom Experience and Magic Café (Repülő seprű Élmény és Varázs kávézó in Hungarian): Pacsirtamező street 36., on the Buda side. The magical world of The Flying Broom will astonish even the biggest Harry Potter fans with its impressively detailed interiors that almost completely evoke the atmosphere of Hogwarts. Harry Potter relics are everywhere, one shelf holds dragon eggs, while another holds a Sorting Hat or Hedwig. In addition to the breathtaking sight, the restaurant also has other surprises, they complete the experience with color-changing drinks, smoking glasses and magical dishes. And if you arrived at the right time, you can also catch their periodic programs, games, and quizzes.

Hope you enjoy these places and see you soon on our free walking tours in Budapest despite of the chilly weather!

With kind regards: The Triptobudapest.hu – Free Budapest Walking Tours Team

 

Free programs and places to visit in Budapest

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Recommendations about Free programs and places to visit in Budapest

Let us recommend you a few events and places where you can go for free before or after participating in some of our free walking tours in Budapest 🙂

  • Free concerts at the Budapest Jazz Club on the Pest side of the river Danube: besides the beloved free jam sessions on the weekends, there are some free events on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays as well at this location. Besides well known artists, the youngsters of the Franz Liszt Music Academy perform, too. It is worth to have a look at their program to be able to enjoy free music next to your meal or drink at the Budapest Jazz Club. Address is: Budapest, Hollán Ernő street 7.
  • Free ice skating rink in Kőbánya (10th district of Budapest on the Pest side): a tiny bit out of the city center, but definitely a local experience! It is open until the 29th of January 2023 between 9am and 8pm. You can easily take bus number 9 from the very city center and you can be at this 650 square meter big open air ice skating rink next to the Szent László Church. Do not worry if you do not have your ice skates with you, it is possible to rent some at the location.
  • Free events in Pótkulcs pub: it is quite a special place on the Pest side of the capital city, you will not even find a sign outside this bar, but you can look for the address of it in Google maps (A little help: Csengery street 65/b). They have free eclectic music events and folk music and dancing programs usually on Tuesdays. Check out their Facebook page (linked above).
  • Free admission to museums on given days of the month in Budapest for people under the age of 26 OR for children under 18 with their 2 adult parents/caretakers: there is one day/every month when the mentioned people can visit these museums for free, let’s see a couple of examples: first Sunday of each month: Natural History Museum and House of Terror (mainly about the communist dictatorship after WW2 in Hungary) ; 3rd Saturday of each month: Hungarian National Museum, Museum of Fine arts, Hungarian National Gallery, Hungarian Folk Museum ; last Saturday of each month: Budapest History Museum (in the Buda Castle District), Aquincum Museum (on the Buda side about the Roman times and ruins in Hungary), Hungarian Technical and Transport Museum.

We, the Free Budapest Walking Tours Team (Triptobudapest.hu Team) hope that we could help you with this post to participate in useful and entertaining programs while staying in our city! See you soon on our free tours in Budapest!

2022 Christmas and New Year’s free tour schedule

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Dear Travelers, in this blog post let us share our holiday Free Budapest Walking Tours Schedule:

 

HOLIDAY FREE TOUR SCHEDULE

  • Free Budapest Walk: Dec.23; 24; 26; 27; 28; 29; 30; 31 at 10:30 and on Dec.23; 29; 30; 31 at 14:30 on the Pest side, Elisabeth square
  • Free Buda Castle Walk: Dec.23; 26; 27; 28; 29; 30; 31 at 14:30 on the Buda side, Batthyány square metro station
  • Free Jewish District Walk: 23, 29; 30; 31 at 14.30 and Dec.26th at 10.30am on the Pest side, Elisabeth square
  • Free Communism Walk: 23; 30 at 14:30 on the Pest side, Elisabeth square
  • Free Evening Walk: 23 at 17:30 on the Pest side, Elisabeth square

See you soon at our meeting points, we wait for you in our blue free tour flags! Booking is not mandatory at all, but if you feel safer, you can find the ‘Book now’ button at each of our Budapest Free Tours subpage!

 

This is what you can do over the Christmas long weekend:

 

ATTRACTIONS

  • National Museum: Closed on Dec.24-25-26
  • House of Terror: Closed on Dec. 24-25-26
  • National Gallery: Closed on Dec.24-25. Open on Dec.26
  • Hospital in the Rock: Closed on Dec.24-25. Open on Dec.26
  • Museum of Fine Arts Closed on Dec.24-25. Open on Dec.26

 

THERMAL BATHS

  • Széchenyi Thermal Baths: Dec.24: 7am-2pm ; Dec.25: 10am-8pm; Dec.26: 9am-8pm
  • Gellért Thermal Baths:Dec.24:  9am-2pm; Dec. 25: 10am-7pm; Dec.26: 9am-8pm
  • Rudas Thermal Baths: Dec.24:  6am-2pm; Dec. 25: 10am-6pm; Dec.26: 8am-8pm
  • Lukács Thermal Baths: Dec.24:  7am-2pm; Dec. 25: 10am-6pm; Dec.26: 8am-7pm

 

CHURCHES, SYNAGOGUE

  • Matthias Church: Closed for visitors on Dec.24 & 25.

Midnight mass in Hungarian on Dec.24 ; Dec.26: 1pm-5pm open for visitors

  • St. Stephen’s Basilica: Dec.24: 9am-5.45pm; Midnight mass in Hungarian

Dec.25: English mass at 4pm; Dec.26: 9am-4pm

  • Dohany Grand Synagogue: Closed on Dec.24-25; Open on Dec.26: 10am-6pm

 

CHRISTMAS MARKETS

Open with shorter opening hours on Dec.24-25th. See more details about Christmas markets in our previous post.

WISHING YOU ALL HAPPY HOLIDAYS,

THE FREE BUDAPEST WALKING TOURS TEAM

 

photo courtesy: peter rajkai

Christmas Market time in Budapest 2022

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It is that time of the year again! The Christmas Markets in Budapest this year opened their gates on the 18th of November.

After taking one of our paid or free walking tours in Budapest, it is a good idea to have a nice hot cup of mulled wine or try some of the Hungarian dishes like Lángos (Hungarian deep fried “pizza” with sour cream, cheese and other toppings), Töltött káposzta (stuffed cabbage) or Kürtőskalács (Chimney cake) at one of these locations!

The two biggest Christmas Markets in Budapest city center in 2022

  • Vörösmarty square Christmas Market: on the Pest side of the river, open until the 28th of December 2022, from Mon to Thu and Sun 11:00-21:00 & Fri, Sat 11:00-22:00.
  • Saint Stephen’s Basilica Christmas Market /Advent Bazilika: on the Pest side of the river, open until the 1st of January 2023, from Mon to Thu and Sun 11:00-21:00 & Fri, Sat 11:00-23:00.

Two smaller, but more local and intimate Christmas Markets in Budapest

  • Advent in Óbuda (Old Buda): on the Buda side of the river Danube, open until the 23rd of December 2022, from Mon to Thu 14:00-21:00, Fri 14:00-22:00, Sat and Sun 10:00-22:00.
  • Winter Buzz on Hunyadi tér: only 1 day, on Saturday the 3rd of December 2022 from 10:00 till 18:00.

Some other Christmassy delights for your eyes and souls in Budapest 🙂

Budapest will again be decorating some of its trams in festive lights and décor. Take a ride on the Christmas tram (you can use your regular public transport single ticket or pass) from the 25th of November on, until at least the 23rd  of December this year. Our favorite routes are: tram Nr. 2 along the Pest side embankment of the river Danube and trams Nr. 47, 48, 49 across the green Liberty Bridge.

See you soon on our Free tours in Budapest and stay tuned, we are running our tours around the Christmas and New Year’s holidays as well.

 

Current Schedule of our Free Tours in Budapest

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Dear Travelers,

Let the Free Budapest Walking Tours Team / Triptobudapest.hu Team show you the current schedule of our free tours in the Hungarian capital city, Budapest.

  • FREE BUDAPEST TOUR (of the Pest side of the river Danube): every day at 10:30 AM & Thu, Fri, Sat, Sun at 2:30 PM, Meeting point Elisabeth square in front of the Ferris wheel
  • FREE BUDA CASTLE TOUR (of the Buda side): every day at 2:30 PM, Meeting point: Battyhány square metro station
  • FREE JEWISH QUARTER TOUR (Pest side of the river): Thu, Fri, Sat, Sun at 2:30 PM & Mon 10:30 AM, Meeting point Elisabeth square in front of the Ferris wheel
  • FREE COMMUNISM TOUR (Pest side): Fri, Sat at 2:30 PM & Mon 10:30 AM, Meeting point Elisabeth square in front of the Ferris wheel
  • FREE EVENING TOUR (of the Pest side of the river Danube): Fri, Sat at 5:30 PM, Meeting point Elisabeth square in front of the Ferris wheel

Please feel free to join us with or without a reservation! HERE you can find a quick guide on how to book our free tours and you can see our daily free walking tour schedule in a chart as well.

You can find us with our blue uniforms / blue free tour flag at the meeting points in any kind of weather conditions.

If you feel cold after some of our walking tours, it is a great idea to go to one of Budapest’s fabulous bathhouses where you can relax in the hot water 🙂 You can find the collecting page of thermal bathhouses HERE, and you can also ask you free tour guide for recommendations.

See you soon!