Budapest Travel Forum

Hi everyone again,

I'm wondering if my questions was a little vague.Ok, my husband and I are visiting Budapest in May 29th to June 1 for our 3rd year anniversary.

I'm trying to make this trip an unforgetable one and I've not yet found a romantic and best located hotel( near opera,restaurants, cafes and shopping ). My budget for the hotel is about Euros 75. I have looked at some hotels on the website and somehow they just don't look right.

Secondly, can someone tell me how much it cost for a train ticket from Budapest to Prague?

Thirdly, what currency does Hungary trade in? Euro or forint ?

Lastly, please recommend a great restaurant and which is the most popular opera to see?

Please help us make this experience the most romantic one.

Can't wait to get there.

Leng Leng

Most romantic restaurant in B is in my opinion Robinson. ...a table for the both of you , on a little island...the lights , life music...

Thank you belgian choc, thts sounds so romantic. Thanks lots

The island by belgianchocolate


Restaurant Name:
Robinson

Type:
Local

Description:

We had a look at Gündel and we decided that
we didn't want to have dinner there. A bit too
snooty for our taste. The other adress I had
written down was 'Robinson.'

And that was an excellent choise.
The island is on the edge of the parc , it was
created in 1989 by Árpád László to become
something unique. And I think he did that.
Just having dinner near the water is always
a bit magical. The nice thing here you can really
have your own island on the water if you eat
outside. Inside there was life music.

Favorite Dish:

Everything we had here was fantastic...
If this restaurant gets voted restaurant of the
year , that would sound logical to me.
We both had fish in a different way.
I had the balaton peak.
The desserts were fantastic as well.
They had something with 'Belgianchocolate'
in it. Yes they know what is good here.
I had to try it and it was the real thing.

The dishes are all a mixture of traditional and
experimental. Or traditional in a modern way.
I loved it!

Comparative Price:
more expensive than average

Customer Satisfaction:
A Great Experience.

Address:
Városligeti tó

Phone:
422-0222

Website:
http://www.robinsonrestaurant.hu/

Other Contact:
Open: daily 12pm – 4pm and 6pm -

I copy my tip for you...I think it is wise to make a reservation.
If the weather is nice , ask for a table very near the water.(your own island)
Inside is also very cozy.

I found hotel Astoria also very romantic.
The food was ok (a bit heavy. traditional ...)
It is an early 20th century decor. It's like stepping back in time with piano music.

Wow. We are travelling to Budapest for part of our anniversary trip in June and have been recommended to stay at the ArtOtel. It is centrally located and the views from nearly all the rooms are meant to be very good. We are opting for that one, Not cheap but hey it's our third anniversary too. Have a great time.

Lengleng,

pls before you decide of the hotel, have a look at this recommendation (54 EUR per night incl. breakfast): http://www.csaszarhotel.hu/ it is really great and the price is the best. it is 5 min walk from tram #4, #6 that takes you almost everywhere in the city.

if you dont like it i can recommend another, Mercure Korona http://www.mercure-korona.hu/ which is a 4* hotel, i can get it for you for 100 EUR/per night as a special price (it would be around 140 EUR) (im not working there, my colleague offered to use my company's special deal for you)

also for the restaurant (if you want a romantic one! i didnt know, so dont go to Menza, because it is too modern for that, and Lancelot is too busy) then you wish to visit a calm restaurant, rite? so then i would say Robinsons, or Hemingway on Buda side, or if distance is not a problem, go to 'Nancsi Neni', which is in the suburb, but a superb restaurant with a garden, and home made hungarian food!! true you have to travel a little (abt 3000 HUF for the cab from Pest side but i tell you it worth visiting!! turist usually dont know about it, because it is not in walkin distance from the center!!) http://www.nancsineni.hu/ if you decide to go there make a reservation +36 1 397 2742.

happy travels!!
Rea

Thank you Lea,

You are so kind, thank you. Too bad I booked aprtment in iranyi already, the one that you say was a good chioce.
But as for the restaurant Robinson, I made reservation already...too early you think?? ha ha.
Thanks for so much detail, you are the best.

lengleng

Hi Leng Leng,

I just got back yesterday from a few fantastic days in Budapest. Haven't had chance to do reviews yet (but will be by the end of the week hopefully).

My wife and I went to 2 wonderful romantic restaurants.

Spoon - Fixed boat on the Danube by Chain Bridge, picture postcard views, request a riverside window table, great food, great atmosphere. (www.spooncafe.hu - Not in English, but gives you a flavour of the style)

Belcanto - Right beside the Opera house, great experience, very stylish, again great food, live opera singing/classical music accompaniement to the meal made for a truly romantic experience. (www.belcanto.hu)

Just thought you might like some other restaurant options. Robinson is the sister restaurant of Spoon, by the way.

Either of these would not fail to give you a great anniversary setting.

Best regards.
Simon

PS. Reviews to follow soon.

http://www.belcanto.hu/

http://www.spooncafe.hu/Html_hu/home.html

sorry to say this, you might have had a great time, but i dont recommend

Belcanto: because it is fake, it is for the tourists and it is cheap in some way (cheap and uncomfortable chairs, although the prices are very high)
i remembered like this, when i was there and i also read now Wittmann Boys' critique on the restaurent, and i found they write the same. http://www.nol.hu/wittmanfiuk/ (somebody pls have some minute boys, to translate the main thoughts of it?)

also about Spoon (reservation: 411- 0933): beautiful view on the Duna i admit, it is right, but over too trendy, you will see huge guys with audis and plastic surgery-girls...

Hi Shirez,

I take your point that it is for the tourists, but then we are tourists are we not? I thought that it may be a little 'Cheesey' before we went, but it did however have a classy feel about it, and not a 'trashy' tourist fake feel. Everyone there seemed to be enjoying and appreciating a great night out.

The food was expensive, for Budapest (70GBP, 3 courses, wine and coffee for 2), however you would expect to pay twice as much for a similar meal/experience in the UK. Chairs weren't so bad I can't say I noticed.

It may be meant for the tourists, but I would recommend it has good romantic meal venue, purely for it's original experience.

Spoon was a very trendy place, but not in an over impossing way, good relaxed feel to the place. I think I may have noticed the Audi guys and silicone girls, but hey! with that view it was worth it.

Thank you for all your posts and tips (also Attila, Danp and belgianchocolate)I read a lot of them before we left, they gave us some great insight on what to do and where to go.

Best regards,
Simon

Hi Simon,

sorry i feel really bad now, as it seems like im questioning that you went to a great place here in Bp. pls dont take it like that!!
i just wanted to mean, that IF i can recommend sg here, i would recommend some other places to go out, and i think you might have had a great time, but maybe you can explore much better ones.
also i wanted to check my rememberings of both places before posted the comment and because i didnt want to write it without being sure of them, i have checked the Wittmann Boys review which has a good reputation, and we agreed.
im lucky, because of my work i can go to a lot of restaurants (also im a fan of dine and wine out).. i would recommend much more budapesti cafes where you can meet and learn of locals.
ps. if you want to hear great opera singing, a friend of mine who lives in our house, so he sings at the opera! sometimes i can hear it during the night as he sings and it is really great!!!:-))))

ps. 70 GBP for a dinner is (abt 24.000 HUF) is a lot in Budapest!
for this money we had gorgeous food for 7-8 ppl at Menza.
usually for 7000-8000 HUF you can dine as a king.
pls dont forget Budapest is not London:-)

Hi all,

Thanks for the answers.I truly appreciate them. Rea knows I like the local scene and trying to love the life of a local in 4 days and tht's why Rea's making sure I don't get side tracked to places that's too touristic! Thank you and I will certainly try it anyways.
Rea, can you pleae email me a list of restaurants that I should not miss. I have so far
FATA'I'
KARMA
SPOON
MENZA
ROBINSON
LANCELOT
NANCSI NENI
I do have to feed my husband for 4 days 3 meals a day !
Keep the list coming please.
lengleng

Simon,
Did you go to the opera? I'm still not sure which one to pick. Sounds like you had a lovely time with your wife. Was Budapest a place that you fell in love again..sure sounds like it.
lengleng

I went to the opera and loved it.
First tip on my page is about it and the nightlife tip tells you how to book in advance. ;-)

Have fun.

Thank you Glady,

We are staying around the Vaci Street area and was told it's a wonderful choice. Where did you stay where you have the view of Budapest ? I might want to take a night and stay in a high budget hotel.
We are so lucky to be so in love huh ? Congratulations on the love that you both have for each other :-)
Love and sunshine,
lengleng

Morning Shirez,

Don't worry no offence taken, as I said you can't beat local knowledge for the best guidance. I just wanted to make the point that whilst we knew it was a place for tourists, it was an 'original' experience that we enjoyed. We had never eaten anywhere like it before.

Maybe next time we can meet for a drink and your friend can sing in the bar. That too would be an original experience!!! :-)

Hi LengLeng,

We would have liked to have gone to the Opera, but I did not get it organised in time. It would have been our first visit to an opera and I would have wanted to go to a 'light opera'. I know some opera's can be quite 'heavy' and hard to get into, so wasn't sure what to book. Amazing building though, worth doing the tour even if you don't get to a show.

Budapest is a very romantic city in places. We are always in love, but a fresh experience together always brings an added 'spark'. You can't beat just exploring a wonderful city together to emphasize what you love about each other.

Hope you 2 have great 3rd anniversary together and many more to come.

Best regards.
Simon

Thank you for being so wonderful everyone. I'm so excited I could burst and I have 2 months to wait ! That's the hard part !
lengleng

I know, you are right! I can't stop thinkking about it and I am starting to feel that I'm there already. Did you travel to Prague Glady?

For a special place to stay in Budapest, have a look at our apartments in the center of the city: www.budapestrental.uw.hu.
One of them is 130 m2, with high moulded ceilings, gilded wood-paneling, a marble fireplace and beautiful stained glass windows.
The other is smaller, but right on the pedestrian street, Váci utca.
You will have a great time in Budapest!
Eli

egyreszt mar talalt szallast, masreszt meg nem hiszem hogy ez az a forum ahol lehetne hirdetni.