Europe

Weekend trips to Budapest

Budapest Szechenyi spa

Widely viewed as one of the most beautiful cities in Europe, Budapest, ‘The Pearl of the Danube’ is growing increasingly popular with visitors from the UK. The capital of Hungary provides a truly stunning blend of old and new, the mixture of grand historical buildings and bustling bars and restaurants along the famous river demonstrate this most of all.

The leafy hills that surround the city and open air thermal baths create an incredibly relaxing atmosphere. Even as a thriving capital city it has managed to keep prices low (this applies to food and drink) and you can find all types of accommodation from cheap, well kept hostels, to five star hotels.

Budapest Szechenyi spa
Budapest Szechenyi spa

With all this to tempt tourists away from the ‘typical’ holiday or city break destinations you will find there are an increasing number of low cost carriers flying directly to Ferihegy International Airport. This battle to provide the cheapest flights means you can now choose from a larger number of UK airports; Aberdeen, Bristol, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Manchester, Liverpool, Heathrow, Gatwick, Luton, Nottingham and Newcastle are all currently operating direct flights to Budapest.

Once you arrive in Ferihegy International Airport the extensive transport network surrounding Budapest comes to your aid. There are a number of options available for getting into the city (16km) if you have not already arranged transfers. For 300HUF you can jump on the local train service which delivers you directly to the Western Railway Station in roughly 30 minutes. There are recommended Taxi and Mini Bus operators that offer competitive prices from the International Terminal and local bus services which also run later into the night. Once within the city, the easy to use tram, bus and metro services make getting around and seeing these great sights very easy, with pre-pay tickets readily available.

As the number of tourists rise people in the UK are becoming even more aware of what places like Budapest has to offer, so take advantage of the great deals available and embrace the city where East meets West and old meets new.