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Corinthia Grand Lobby StaircaseWe flew Turkish Airlines economy class to Istanbul from JFK and really enjoyed their modern 777 with comfortable seating, constant service with delicious Turkish style meals and drinks and the personal DVD player at each seat with a choice of several movies, TV shows, video games and music channels. The only thing missing, were foot rests. We wished we had chosen the upgrade to business class, where each seat is set in its own little pod area with comfortable reclining and massaging seats. I never felt bored or confined on the flight in my aisle seat with plenty of entertainment options and an easy 5 hour nap.
We chose Turkish Airlines, because our trip route will take us from Budapest, Hungary to Kusadasi, Turkey and Turkish Airlines provided convenient connections for both cities via Istanbul.
Clearing immigration at the Budapest airport was fairly quick and painless. Our luggage was already waiting for us when we arrived at baggage claim and were quickly passed through customs. We found the fixed rate Zona Taxi stand right outside the terminal and were whisked to our hotel in about 20 minutes (Saturday; no traffic) for $23.00 USD.
We arrived at the beautiful
5 star Corinthia Grand Hotel that was faithfully restored to its original opulence back in 2003. The hotel is centrally located on the Pest side of the Danube River. The façade of the hotel resembles a historic palace mansion. Upon entry, we were greeted by friendly bell staff and an awe inspiring lobby in white marble surrounding an amazing carpeted staircase, reminiscent of the one on Titanic. Check-in was a breeze and we were immediately escorted to our room that overlooked one of the two main courtyards. The room was an inviting space with modern décor, comfortable king size pillow top bed and plenty of room to spread out (30 square meters). The bathroom was a masterpiece of white marble with a soak tub and separate glass wall shower. Rooms also come with free cable internet and public area wi-fi.
I headed straight for the hotel’s spa that dates back to 1886. It is a beautiful space with a hot springs pool fit for a queen surrounded by Corinthian columns with hidden coves containing Jacuzzi tubs and tropical rain showers. A quiet area with loungers provided a great place to relax before proceeding to my 60 minute jet lag
cure massage and facial. I floated off to a peaceful place while enjoying the treatments.
After a relaxing tub soak and shower in our room, we dressed and headed down to a reception being hosted by NACTA (National Association of Career Travel Agents) and the Corinthia Hotels Group. We were greeted by Bob Duglin who would be the official host of our group over the next ten days. The reception was held in one of the hotel’s courtyards and was very elegant with white glove service serving local Hungarian wines and canapés. We mingled and met several other travel agents we would get to know over the next couple of weeks.
After the reception, we ventured into Le Bar Royal, adjacent to the courtyard and enjoyed a local Hungarian Pilsen Beer while listening to a trio play live music. We turned in after that to get a good night’s sleep in preparation for the next day’s activities.
We were fortunate to have Executive Lounge privileges included with our stay that entitled us to a lovely daily breakfast buffet and nightly cocktail reception on the mezzanine level.
After a delicious breakfast, we began our morning with a tour
of the hotel. Hidden behind the sweeping staircase in the main lobby, is an amazing frescoed ballroom. The hotel hosts many events here including free evening concerts. We walked across new bridges spanning the courtyard areas of the hotel that connects the buildings together. We also viewed some of their suite rooms; all beautifully arranged.
We loaded up the comfortable coach and met our guide for the day, Naomi. She spoke very good English and was very knowledgeable about the Budapest sights we visited. We drove past some of the fashionable shopping streets and squares of the Pest side as we headed for the stylish Freedom Bridge that provided lovely views up the river towards the Chain Bridge as we crossed the Danube River to the Buda side. We began our exploration there at Citadel Hill, which provided us with panoramic views over the city. The Citadel Fortress ruins date back to the Hapsburg era in the 1840s. It now serves as an open air museum.
From here we headed to the Castle District, where we strolled through the old burgher’s town restored to its former splendor, after unforgiving bombardment during WWII. We followed Naomi up the hill
at a quick step pace to reach Mathyas Church and Fisherman’s Bastion. The medieval looking silhouette and coned turrets were built in 1902 as a tribute to the fishermen’s guild that once defended the hill in past battles. The turrets symbolize the tents of the nomadic Magyar tribes that first settled this area. An equestrian statue of St. Istvan, the country’s first king, founder of the Hungarian state and convert to Christianity. Fabulous views of the river and Pest side presented themselves at every turn.
We dutifully returned to the bus for our drive over the Chain Bridge (reminded us of a smaller version of the Brooklyn Bridge) back to the Pest side. We drove down Andrassy Avenue, a beautiful tree lined boulevard, home to most of the foreign embassies in Hungary.
We visited the Andrassy Boutique Hotel that had nice size rooms with balconies and garden views. It is located in a quiet suburban neighborhood within walking distance of Heroes’ Square and City Park.
We continued on to City Park for a stroll past the zoo and the Szechenyi Baths (Europe’s largest spa) with several indoor and outdoor hot spring pools set in a Neo-Baroque building.
City Park
Szechenyi Baths We continued through the park past the ice skating rink and reflecting pool to the bridge that led us to Vajdahunyard Castle. It looked like something from Busch Gardens Old Country, and its construction was based on a castle in Transylvania, formerly owned by the Hunyadi clan. Across from the castle, sits a statue of Anonymous, famous for chronicling the early history of Hungary. His true identity was never known. His pen is very shiny, since everyone rubs it for good luck.
We walked across a bridge designed by Gustave Eiffel over an artificial lake in order to reach Heroes’ Square. In the center of the square is the Millenium Monument column with Archangel Gabriel on top holding the Holy Crown. Legend says that Gabriel offered the crown to Istvan in a dream. The base of the column is surrounded by the different Magyar tribal chieftains. In front is a marble tablet that covers an empty coffin paying tribute to those killed in the 1856 revolution. A pair of colonnades frames both sides of the monument with statues of the different Hungarian rulers. It starts with Istvan and ends with Lajos Kossuth who led the 1848 revolution against the
City Park
Vajdahunyard Castle Hapsburgs. The Hapsburgs are conspicuously absent from the colonnades. The square is also flanked by the Neo-Classical Museum of Fine Arts and Hall of Arts.
We finished our tour just in time as rain showers began to move in. We hopped back in the bus and headed to Le Meridien for a site inspection. Le Meridien is in a perfect location. Two main metro lines are right outside the front door and it is a 5 minute walk to the Danube River and fashionable Vaci Utca pedestrian zone. The hotel is in the renovated Adria Palace with huge chandeliers, white and brown marble and a Parisian style Brasserie with a stunning art-deco glass dome. The rooms were lovely with minimalist décor that made great use of the space.
The Hotel Sales Manager invited us to enjoy a lovely champagne brunch in the Brasserie Restaurant. It was a delicious buffet of Hungarian and Continental cuisine. A fabulous way to spend a rainy afternoon.
From here, we walked to the largest church in Budapest, St. Istvan (St. Stephen’s) Basilica. The original church was built in 1845, but inferior construction caused the dome to collapse. It was rebuilt and collapsed
again during WWII after a bomb failed to detonate, but suffered a fire instead. After it was restored a second time, Pope John Paul held mass here in 1991. The doors and beams have beautiful hand carved details that lead to an interior in the shape of a Greek cross. Several small altars and sanctuaries display paintings and mosaics that tell the life story of Istvan, including the beautiful dome. Towards the back of the church is a small treasury that houses the relic hand of St. Istvan. It takes on a bit of a carnie atmosphere, when the caretaker places a coin in the box to shed light on the hand inside a crystal and gold box for 90 seconds, to allow for photo ops.
The view from the church steps showed our walking direction as we headed towards Vorosmarty Square to pay a quick visit to the famous Gerbeaud café. The establishment was started by a Swiss patissier who served delectable sweets and drinks. Looking into the display cases made my mouth water for the macaron and other treats calling my name. Unfortunately, I was still full from lunch and elected to skip the sweets and ventured
to the café’s beer cellar instead to sample their local brew which was quite tasty. There was a lot of police activity on the square because they were setting up for the party election results for their parliament seats that would be announced later that evening. Large LED screens were set up around the square.
After 30 minutes on our own, we were summoned to the Marriott Hotel that sits direct on the Danube River. The outside of the hotel is in typical communist era cement block construction, but the inside of the hotel reveals a designer’s dream. Wide open spaces with comfortable leather seating beckons, with modern minimalist design restaurants serving organic cuisine and the largest bottled water menu in Europe (rightfully named Aqua). The guestrooms were a real treat, with every room providing a river view. The executive lounge is worth the extra 30 euro price per day, for daily breakfast and all day house drinks and snacks. The suites were very comfortable and the piece de resistance to our sight inspection was the visit to the Presidential Suite, where a sumptuous cocktail reception awaited us. I was greeted with a flute of cassis champagne that I
enjoyed on the huge outdoor terrace that overlooked the river with a spectacular view of the Parliament building and our AMA river cruise vessel that we would be boarding the next day. Inside there were delectable treats and sweets that I sampled throughout our stay there.
We headed back to the hotel and headed up to the Executive Lounge for cocktails and a light dinner buffet. We had planned on checking out the free concert in the ballroom, but got too comfortable curled up on the leather seating in the lounge chatting up a storm with our travel mates. We ate, drank and socialized until last call at 10 PM.
We had a great night’s sleep and woke up to a very rainy day. We enjoyed a great breakfast at the hotel and filed into the bus to take us to Szentendre (St. Andrew), located 20 km. outside Budapest in the Danube Bend area. It is an old market town turned artist’s colony. It is filled with cobblestone streets and colorful houses. Our guide, Belag (pronounced like Bellagio), explained the marketing and ceramic history of the town. We had some free time to walk around and we enjoyed
our visit to a gourmet shop where we were able to learn about the different types of paprika and taste several different flavors of Hungarian style grappa. I also found a handmade glass shop where I picked up a beautiful handmade glass pendant.
In warmer, sunnier weather, it is best to take a ferry here from Budapest. We returned by bus due to the heavy rainfall. We arrived back in the town center and headed to ONIX restaurant. This is one of the best continental style restaurants in Budapest. We had a lovely salad and chicken dish served with flair in an indoor courtyard area.
We walked through the square to the Grand Kempinski Hotel where we were welcomed with desserts and designer coffee beverages prior to doing a site inspection of their rooms. The hotel is beautifully designed with original artwork displayed everywhere in wide, well lit hallways. Even their revolving doors at the hotel’s main entrance, had beautiful fur coats displayed inside glass cases between the doors. The rooms were beautiful with designer panache, but beware of some rooms with ugly building views. Ask for a room that overlooks the square or park.
We left
Enjoying my cassis and champagne
Presidential Suite Patio at the Marriott the Kempinski with stomachs about to burst and headed to our new home for the next week, the AMA Waterways Amadagio. The river vessel was parked on the Buda side of the river, just north of the Chain Bridge. We drove in rush hour traffic and finally arrived at 5 PM. We bade farewell to our guide and embarked on the next part of our journey which is covered under my blog entitled Danube River Black Sea Voyage.
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Linda
non-member comment
Toni, Great report and pictures on the hotels and Busapest. Can't wait to read your river cruise report.