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So on Friday, July 26, 2002 we did not return home from work but instead met at the "Westbahnhof" train station, where we had lunch at Subway and then made ourselves comfortable on the train to Budapest - departure at 14:33. The train stops in Vienna on its way from Munich to Budapest, so seat reservations are recommended.
The ticket (called "Ausflugskarte Wien-Budapest") costs € 46.80 per person and includes unlimited rides on all public transport within the Budapest city limit for four consecutive days. The seat reservations on the train cost € 2.10 per person and direction. So it's a pretty good deal, you do not have to purchase a Hungarian highway sticker for your car and there is no waiting at the border crossing back into Austria - sometimes there are waiting times up to several hours due to the tight controls at the EU outside borders.
When arriving in Budapest via train you should not be scared or disappointed. It's only the train station that looks like time stood still since the communist era. And do not - we repeat - do not go with the friendly men greeting you at the platform with the words "Taxi?" - they aren't licensed taxi drivers. Just take the very fast moving escalators down to the subway system.
Our hotel, the IBIS Centrum, was conveniently located at Kálvin tér just a very short walk from the Grand Market Hall and Váci utca. The rooms at the newly built hotel are tiny, but clean. The breakfast buffet on the other hand wasn't tiny at all. They provide a good variety of cereals, breads, cold cuts, cheeses, fruits and vegetables. The room rate at the time of our visit was € 79.00 - breakfast was € 7.00 per person and day.
Saturday and Sunday we spent sightseeing and shopping. Yes, shops and malls are open on Sunday! We went to "Westend City Center" and "Mammut". The shops (and prices) at those malls are the same as in Vienna. The Grand Market Hall (Nagy vásárcsarnok), located just a few steps from our hotel, built in 1896 and renovated in 1984 provides a sharp contrast to the modern shopping malls. There you get amongst other things all sorts of salami, vegetables, herbs and spices, hand made table cloths and Italian leather bags. The food area is mainly frequented by locals, while the non-food area is more touristy.
The Parliament building (Országház) was completed in 1902 and was designed to represent the wealth and prosperity of the Hungarian nation. The guided tour is very short but nevertheless quite interesting. The few halls and rooms you get to see are really impressive.
Another must-see is the Buda Castle district. The Fishermen's Bastion (Halászbástya) and Matthias Church (Mátyás templom) are definitely the highlights of that area. A place you should avoid is the Dom Café, which, besides an excellent view of the Danube and the Parliament, offers only overpriced and disgusting sandwiches (served in plastic wrap), runny ice cream and grumpy service.
An excellent place for relaxing and people watching, while enjoying delicious snacks, cakes and ice cream is Gerbeaud on Vörösmarty tér, located at the north end of the Váci utca pedestrian zone. In 1884 Emile Gerbeaud, a Swiss native from Geneva, bought this cafe and turned it into Budapest's top high society hang-out. We went there twice during the weekend and were never disappointed.
Monday morning, after an extended stay in the breakfast room of our hotel, it was time to pack our suitcase and head for the railway station. Our train left at 12:50 and around 3 hours later we were back home in our apartment in Vienna.
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