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Published: April 30th 2010
Weather finally changed a bit todayand chilly but we were off to Lucerne further North for one night. Stopped here simply to break up the trip as the following day we were heading to Budapest which was some 15 hours away by train.
We arrived to Lucerne early afternoon and stayed at Lucerne Backpackers, this was pretty much the only budget option and was still pretty expensive. (78 Sw Francs) Nice place about 15 mins walk from the station, had a view of the lake from our room as well.
Did all the usual touristy stuff in Lucerne - Chapel Bridge, Lion Monument, old town and City walls on the hill. Not much else to say here except definitely prefered Interlaken but there was nowhere else to stop except Zurich was was really expensive.
Day 9 - Budapest via Vienna by train.
Following morning we had an extra early start as we had a EuroCity train to Zurich (very nice) which is about an hour. From there we took a train to Vienna which was just over 8 hours. This was also a EC train, good value and comfortable trip.
At Vienna we planned to have about 3
Vienna
In and around Vienna in the short time we had!hours but the train was a good 30 minutes late arriving, plus the station we were leaving for Budapest was further away meaning in the end we only had about 1.5 hours to see Vienna.
No way enough to do it justice and to be honest wished we had planned a bit better. We just ended up running around snapping pictures but not really seeing the City while at the same time trying to find a pretzel and sausage for dinner 😊 Not exactly romantic as Ania kept pointing out!! Vienna has some spectacular buildings and in similar style to London, there were also plenty of museums and galleries to keep you occupied if you ever visit. It is also just 1 hour by train to Bratislava, 2 hours to Budapest so well located.
Finally boarded the last part of our journey on the Railjet train (new fancy austrian train) to Budapest. Unfortunately the name does not quite correspond to the service, train left late and was just so slow! It does have all the services with a bistro, power outlets (so you can use your laptop), comfy seats and tv screens so you can watch your journey
Top of Gellhert Hill
Great views of Pest. across the map. Really nice but just slow, also when we finally got off the driver seemed to get lost as we got off and had to ask, is this budapest? We were in a valley somewhere in the middle of nowhere by the looks. We were assured then but after a few minutes one of the attendants said hang on, this isn't buda and we all got back on again. Bit of fun and games but eventually got to Buda around 23:15 at night.
Left us about 5 minutes to get the last metro to our stop which we just made, then a good 15 walk as we trundled around in the dark looking for our hostel.
Also at this time of night there were some really unsavoury characters about, so many homeless people everywhere you have to watch where you are walking as to not trip over them. Also the streets being dirty it was a real change from Switzerland but still the city had a real buzz about it which we instantly liked. Immediately also everything was more affordable with our money going so much further!
So the hostel we stayed at was called Happy
Holiday Hostel. Great name huh, down a really dingy road some 6 floors up (no lifts of course!) and there we were. Inside though really good like our own place, had our own keys and full kitchen for about £11 pp in a double. Cheapest place we stayed at yet and fully recommend.
Day 10 - 11
First day in Budapest was stunning weather. Bright and blue skies so we went exploring.
This is actually my 2nd visit to Budapest, last was back in 2004 and recall walking the entire city in one day and looked to do the same today which Ania was planning 😊
Most of the City can be seen on foot relatively easily, the city is split into Buda (Castle side of river) and Pest (central). Today we managed to see a lot of stuff - The Citadel on Gellert hill overlooking Budapest which has stunning views. Walked down the other side and saw the Castle district including The Royal Palace (free) which has huge gardens and then the old town which is mainly pedestrianised. Had a quick beer and reading up realised of the really old Turkish baths that allows both men and
Heroes Square
Massive square but empty! women, they only do so on Sundays so we had to scamper. As this was our only chance we headed back to the hostel, grabbed our gear and headed for Rudas baths near the Chain Bridge. Had heard some really dodgy stories about thermal baths in Budapest so was a bit apprehensive. The outside of the building was a mess and falling down. Yes it did date from the 16th Century but did not give off a good first impression. Once in the price seemed a bit steeper and they didn't understand us to well but no turning back now. It was around £20 for both of us which gave access to some 7 thermal pools ranging from 28 - 42 degrees, a cold plunge pool (freezing!), steam room (50 degrees+) and sauna ranging from 45 - 70 degrees. You can also take a massage and there is a room where you can have a nap when you are finished, how good is that?
Upon entering the baths there is a central octagon shaped pool with original ceiling, this is dimly lit with different coloured lights adding to the atmosphere and really feels like you are going back in
Rudas in Buda
Original Turkish Baths from 16th Century. time. This pool is surrounded by smaller dome covered pools and more private. These are probably the best baths in Budapest in terms of character and original features, you have to try it if you are here. I've been to several others around the world and only Iceland for it's amazing setting outside in the snow beats it (no different temp pools tho). NZ is pretty high up on the list as well which is full of thermal pools so I'm no stranger to them.
If you do happen to go make sure you go on Sunday (mixed for women/men) to avoid any umcomfortableness. No swimming suit is required on other days so can imagine that being a tad awkward!
The next day we set about seeing Parliament buildings on the river, pretty spectacular and are built in a Gothic style and are just massive. We then headed to Heroes square, one of the largest squares in Europe. This is where the first millenium celebrations took place in 1896 or so. Also there are some spectacular statues of all the famous Hungarian leaders & politicians. From a practical point of view though it is a massive space most of
Bridges of Budapest
Budapest after dusk. it unused and nowhere to even sit down! We ended up sitting by the horses and statues, great.
On my previous visit to Buda I actually managed to see see Sting live here which was a free outdoor show, can't complain but no such luck this time.
In the evening took some night pictures around Budapest and the Chain bridge then prepared for our trip to Bratislava in the morning.
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Mike
non-member comment
Awesome
Awesome pictures Dazz, looks like a really nice place.