Budapest

Budapest. Perhaps a city for a hen-do or a year 10 school trip, but for me, there is no other way to travel than to take Mummy Suze. Budapest is a city full of history and culture, which we had the pleasure of exploring over one weekend. We found incredible places to eat, see, relax... and shop of course. Budapest really reminded me of London, despite the totally unique language. Alongside the Danube River, which felt very Thames-esque, there was a quirky hipster London vibe within all bars, and the main square felt like Piccadilly Circus. Read on to find out our top recommendations for this beautiful city, which feels like home.

To Shop

Like London, Budapest has all of your classic shopping spots both high street and designer, but what I love about this arty city is how many little independent and vintage shops there were too.

Nanushka is heaven, and having stalked their online shop for many months I was so excited to stumble across it one afternoon. They have incredible pieces of fashion, lifestyle, and they even have space for a little café inside. Hopefully these pictures do this gorgeous place justice. Maybe if this blog takes off one day I’ll be able to afford a pair of socks.

To Eat

So many people recommended Mazel Tov to us for incredible Middle Eastern food. It is definitely worth a visit with the stunning, trendy interiors and delicious food. That is of course, if you manage to find a table. Book a week ahead or bring Mummy Suze to flirt with the waiters to get you in.

Martys is a restaurant and bar in the main square; which served food so delicious we went twice. Alongside the very “instagrammable” interiors, they served classic brunch dishes, and a tres good hot chocolate. It’s worth going along for a cheeky Instagram pic on the pink velvet sofas even if you can only afford an orange juice.

Our Airbnb

Most things we did were in Pest, which is the east side of the Danube River. More of the traditionally touristic sites are across the river in Buda. I would recommend staying there if you prefer to stay in a quiet, peaceful and beautiful part of town. Our AirBnb was in Pest, which is a little more of a lively bustling area.

We stayed in a gorgeous quirky one-bedroom apartment, which had wonderful amenities and a super friendly host. It was quiet and peaceful at night, not something I am used to sleeping in!

Our Airbnb was located in Leher Ter, which is about a 15 minute scoot into the town centre. Scooting; by the way, is the only form of transport worth investing in as a tourist in Budapest. The train system is also easy to use for longer distances.

The Spas

The Szechenyi Bath Spa is the biggest and most famous spa in Budapest. It has a huge outdoor pool, which is used for bathing and nighttime spa parties (not that drunk people and outdoor slippery swimming pools mix but okay) alongside plenty of inside pools and saunas. It definitely lives up to its reputation and is worth a visit. It’s also located in a big park, which has plenty of food options for when you’re feeling peckish after a dip.

The Gellert spa is a little smaller and more traditional if you prefer to visit less touristic spots. It includes incredible interior thermal pools that have been designed so beautifully; they could pass as sacred chapels.

It also features a stunning outside rooftop where I could easily lounge around on a summer’s day (if I could find a deck chair).

To Party

We figured out after the first night that nobody parties in the inner city of Budapest, with most locals and tourists fleeing to the ‘Ruin Bars’ around the skirts of the town centre. This lead us to walking around in the empty streets screaming “IT’S A FRIDAY NIGHT WHERE IS EVERYONE?” only to end up in an Irish bar with an Ed Sheeran look-alike serenading us.

Szimpla Kert is the biggest road of ruin bars in Budapest, and ensured us a super quirky and unusual night of drinking! It’s almost hard to put into words what these places are like, I can only compare it to some of the refurbished car park bars we have in London. But like, in a cool way. Kind of.

To Visit

It is worth to climb the 3,698 (probably an exaggeration) steps to see the Citadella. A statue on the top of the tallest (probably tallest) hill in Budapest; the plethora of steps were worth climbing to see a mini city on the top of this hill, selling food, drinks and featuring a trendy hang out spot for what I assume were the hipsters of Budapest.

St Stephens Basilica is a huge church in the centre of Pest, which is worth visiting for that smoky church smell alone! Doing these cultural activities justifies the amount of time we spend looking in Gucci and drinking Starbucks coffee.