NAILSEA
PEOPLE
Budapest is a beautiful and busy city and we had the very best of times when we visited in September 2025.
Grandparents Carol and Rob Deacon were accompanied by favourites Brooke Middleton and Lola Warren on this epic holiday/adventure.
But the Ryanair flight times unfortunately are the worst of timings for this Hungarian city - arriving late at night and departing early morning.
First thoughts are four full days aren’t enough to see everything there is to see in this fabulous Hungarian metropolis.
Then again it is such a good excuse to return perhaps in a different season as September temperatures were a constant 30+ degrees while we were there.
Budapest is the capital, most populous city, and one of the 20 counties or in this case a municipality of Hungary.
With 1.7 million inhabitants, its greater metro area has a population of about 3.3 million, representing one-third of the country's population and producing above 40 per cent of the country's economic output, according to Wikipedia.
We like to fly from Bristol Airport as it is less than half an hour from our North Somerset home but with four travelling and four hold suitcases and four cabin cases it posed a bit of a dilemma booking taxis.
However, it was no problem using Uber from Nailsea and even booking a predetermined time it was less expensive than the £35 quote from one local taxi service.
We chose airport priority bookings which fast tracks you through security.
Checking-in was painless especially as Ryanair has spelt out clearly its luggage weights/sizes and we made our way upstairs to sample the newly opened first floor Escape Lounge.
It was a WOW! even better than the photographs published on Nailsea People as the seating was so comfortable and the view across the Eastern apron mesmerising.
It has been designed with tailored zones for dining, working and relaxing.
In the dining area, customers can enjoy a variety of hot and cold food throughout the day, ranging from breakfast to light suppers, as well as a variety of different West Country alcoholic brands.
Self-serve islands offer a selection of teas, coffees, cold drinks, and freshly prepared dishes.
Cheers for the glass of fizz, and the grandchildren grazed on a light bite pasta dish making the of most of the free Wi-Fi.
Most of the staff were very helpful the receptionist does need to smile more as he didn’t seem to enjoy his job.
Book from £35.99 per person here.
The flight was straightforward, minimal turbulence and landing on time – Budapest is one hour ahead in the summer time.
Well, the airport is complex and we had to join the non-EU queue, embarrassing for a family absolutely opposed to Brexit.
Our animated booking.com driver made no fuss stacking our luggage in his hatchback and we arrived at our hotel a little tired.
Sadly, no-one was available to help us with our non-Louis Vuitton luggage as we struggled towards reception but when I asked why they didn’t employ a doorman several staff rushed to help and I was buoyed by the revelation that the bar was open until 1am on a Monday night.
That was our only hiccup because we will say having stayed in 13 European capitals and many others worldwide was this was the grandest (and most expensive) hotel yet and certainly my favourite.
Kempinski Hotel Corvinus is beyond fabulous.
Spacious and luxurious (as reflected in the room rate) offering every comfort known to man (and woman and child), great attentive staff – from reception to room service; super-duper bathroom plumbing, huge comfortable beds (you can request bed linen is changed daily) and best of all location, it is at the hub of all things happening.
Photos reflect hotel turndown and room service - lush.
The New York Café is fabulous too; ornate ceilings and sense of grandeur. While we were there a fiddler played Phantom of the Opera music and tunes included If I Was A Rich Man.
Budapest's ruin pubs are unique bars in old buildings, primarily in the Jewish Quarter, known for their quirky décor and lively atmosphere. Think Freetown Christiania in Copenhagen.
Budapest is both a lively and ‘relax go to it’ destination for fun, culture, retail therapy and history.
Our highlights included our spa day, aforementioned café and the jeep ride.
The Széchenyi Chain Bridge which spans the river Danube between Buda and Pest is ‘bridged’ (note not twinned) with the one which spans the river Thames in my hometown of Marlow in Buckinghamshire both designed by English engineer William Tierney Clark.
We walked along the dusty river bank to see the shoes memorial, a haunting monument it features 60 pairs of iron shoes to commemorate the thousands of Jewish victims murdered by fascist Arrow Cross militiamen during the winter of 1944-1945, who were forced to remove their shoes before being shot into the river.
It invoked similar feelings to seeing the symbolic empty chairs at Ghetto Heroes Square (Plac Bohaterów Getta) in Kraków.
In the early evening, we took a tuk tuk to marvel at the outside of the Hungarian Parliament building.
Like rickshaw rides I was a little hesitate morally to a manpowered vehicle although one was electric but was persuaded and the men loved talking football with their passengers.
Unfortunately, we didn’t get inside the seat of the National Assembly of Hungary as this writer accidently booked tickets for the Bucharest parliament building! Had to laugh when the Romanian/ Transylvania company asked me to review the experience.
Our booked return Hungarian airport taxi cancelled in the early hours with the driver texting to say he couldn’t accommodate all our luggage but the hotel concierge rebooked an Uber estate vehicle with the minimum of fuss.
Note to self, use local transport and do not book airport pick-ups via booking.com – we have similar problem on our Egypt trip.
Other random observations include the toilets are lower than in UK, don’t think weights & measures are used in bars and glasses are refilled not replaced when reordering.
And seat belts don’t seem to be compulsory for passengers in back seats?
Lots of people buzzing around among the traffic on electric scooters not wearing helmets.
One of the reasons Budapest has an absence of tower blocks are strict planning restrictions in the historic centre.
Budapest is so beautiful
Day One saw us clambering into a Russian made UAZ Hunter Jeep for a three-hour tour of the city.
Our enthusiastic and knowledgeable driver and guide was John, a Budapest native who gave us a comprehensive tour of all the tourist sites on both sides of the Danube including a breathtaking panoramic view of the city from Gellert Hill and a stop at Heroes Square with its colonnades depicting 14 historic Hungarian leaders including King Stephen.
We completed our tour with a delicious apple strudel at Budaveri Retesvar in the Castle District. Later that day we dined at the opulent neo renaissance New York Café with its marble columns and chandeliers.
Day Two started with a Uber to Gellert Baths, an Art Nouveau gem, where we relaxed in the 36-degree thermal bath, admiring the walls, adorned with stained glass windows, colourful mosaics and elegant sculptures.
In the evening, we sampled the quirky and bohemian delights of Szimpla Kert, the first and best ruin bar in the city. We eat at Il Terzo Cerchio, an Italian restaurant in Dohany Utca, where we enjoyed pizzas served by friendly and attentive staff.
Day Three saw us walking to the Basilica of St Stephen, which took fifty years to build and is the largest Catholic church in Hungary. As we entered, we looked up at the splendour of the golden mosaics on the inside of the 96-metre-high dome, awed by its beauty.
We also admired the glass case containing the mummified right hand of King St Stephen, the country’s most revered relic.
Refreshment in the form of thirst-quenching milkshakes were enjoyed at Café Anna before walking down Zrinyi Utca to the banks of the Danube.
We walked along the Pest side of the Danube, stopping to pay homage to the 60 pairs of boots and shoes, made of cast iron in memory of the thousands of Hungarian Jews who were shot and thrown in the river by the fascist Arrow Cross Party in 1944.
On Day Four, I ventured off the tourist trail to find the delightful Massolit Café and Bookstore in Nagy Diofa Utca, picking up The Blonde Hurricane by Jeno Rejto who wrote comic thrillers in the 1930s under the pen name of P. Howard.
Later that day, we walked to the Hard Rock Café where we enjoyed Hugo cocktails and fajitas admiring the walls adorned with rock memorabilia including a guitar of Ronnie Wood and a golden cape worn by Grace Slick of Jefferson Airplane.
We concluded our holiday with a cycle Tuk Tuk Taxi to the Hungarian Parliament to admire the sunset over the Danube.
It was a thoroughly enjoyable holiday in a beautiful and friendly city.
We were impressed not only by the stunning architecture but also by the many Hungarian people we met who embraced life with gusto, positivity and optimism and a friendly welcoming smile.
Bob Deacon
Budapest has different height restrictions depending on the building's location and zoning, with the city generally discouraging skyscrapers to preserve its historic character.
While there's no single blanket ban on heights, a 2018 government decree limits buildings to 90 meters, with projects between 65 and 90 meters requiring complex licensing and aesthetic approval.
However, the hideous office building next to the beautiful Basilica is a black mark.
Overall, it is a safe city, we are told police move on the homeless, illegal street vendors and unlike other cities it does feel relatively crime free.
We mostly used Ubers (our UK App worked brilliantly) but there is a regular tram and train service and unlike London you don’t get the constant beeping from impatient car drivers.
A bonus is there are few bugs – unless you take a river cruise which we avoided for that reason.
I hesitate recommending Budapest to other tourists because although busy it does feel undiscovered by the drunken stag/hen parties and I would hate to spoil the ambience of our favourite European city.
Carol Ann Deacon
