The best day trips from Budapest.

 

Hungary has so much more to offer besides it’s capital Budapest. All around the country you can find the most picturesque little towns and some truly magical places. Below I have listed my personal favourites!

 

 

 

The beautiful castle of Bory-vàr is located in Székesfehérvár, a small town close to Budapest. What makes this castle so special is that it was completely self-built by the Hungarian architect and sculptor Jeno Bory. He built the castle between 1923 and 1959 with the help of several of his students. Almost the entire castle is open to visitors and guests are allowed to walk freely among the towers and gardens.

 

Direct connections from Budapest depart from the Népliget bus station and it will take around 1 hour and 15 minutes to reach Székesfehérvár. Once you arrive you will have to switch to either bus 26 or 26A. Make sure you tell the driver you wish to visit the Bory castle since there is no stop located at the entrance.

All trains depart from the Budapest-Déli station and you can choose between an hourly commuter train or the intercity rail service which only takes 60 minutes. From the train station take bus 23 to reach the Bory castle.

 

The castle is open to the public every day from 9am until 5pm (March 5th – October 27th) and from 9 am until 4pm (October 27th – November 11th)

 

From November 12th until March 4th the castle is closed for their winter break.

 

The entrance price is 1000HUF which is around 3.5USD and they accept cash only at the register.

 

In the little town of Oroszlány you will find little cabins and cottages that are suspended on stilts over the lake Bokod.

These little houses are mostly used by the locals during summertime and make the perfect hide out to go fishing.

Fun fact: the water over the lake rarely freezes over during wintertime cause it is used as a circulation pond for the hydro electric power plant that you can see rising up behind the cottages.

 

In 2014 this hidden gem found it’s 5 minutes of fame thanks to the search engine Bing that used it as one of it’s main images.

 

The lake is located between two villages namely Bokod and Oroszlány. When driving from Budapest the best way is through Oroszlány and make your way from there. You can park close to the lake and then it’s only a short walk to get the best view of the cabins. In total the drive should take around 53 minutes if you take the M1 from Budapest and then take exit 61.

Check the website of Volanbusz to find all of your details. The drive takes around 90 minutes and the bus leaves 5 times a day from Budapest to Oroszlány.

Every hour there is a train that leaves to Oroszlány and the duration of the trip is around 70 minutes. You can find all the necessary information on the website of the Hungarian Railways.

 

Try planning your visit around sunset since the lake is at it’s most magical then.

 

 

Tihany is a small town on the northern shore of lake Balaton and is part of the Balaton Uplands. It’s one of the most picturesque towns around the lake Balaton and is famous for it’s annual lavender festival. Tihany is the perfect place for a romantic walk alongside the lake and is actually a volcanic peninsula.

 

From Budapest it will take around 90 minutes to reach Tihany but you can easily combine this trip with your visit to Bory-vár since you’ll be driving through Székesfehérvar.

The bus ride from Budapest to Tihany takes around 2.5 hours and you can find all of the details on the website of Volanbusz.

If you wish to go by train take into account that there is no direct train to Tihany. You will arrive in Zamardi and will have to take a car ferry to Szántódrév from you take a boat ferry to Tihany.

If you wish to experience the lavender festival while you’re there make sure to check their dates.

 

 

 

The city of Eger is located in the north of Hungary and is mainly known for it’s castle, wineries and thermal baths. It’s the perfect city to explore on foot since a fairly big part of the city is closed of to traffic. One of it’s main attractions is the “valley of the beautiful women” for some exquisite wine tasting. It’s a short walk from the centre but can be a little harder to walk back from ;). Eger is the perfect city to visit for 1 day but if you have a little more time you can stay for 2 nights and explore the surrounding area which includes the fairytale castle of Lillafüred, the cave baths of Miskolctapolca and the forest of Szilvásvárad.

You can find a more detailed description of these places here.

 

The easiest and fastest way to get to Eger is to go on the M3 and take the exit at Füzesabony and continue north on route 25. Around the Basilica there is a lot of parking space and the prices here are lower than in the centre itself. If you are staying for a couple of days and you wish to visit the surrounding area I would definitely advise you to rent a car in Budapest so you have all the freedom to explore at your own pace.

Every half hour there is a bus that leaves from the Stadionok station in Budapest and the trip takes a little over 2 hours.

Every hour there is a train from the Budapest Keleti station. The ones leaving at odd hours are direct while the ones leaving at even hours require you to switch trains in Füzesabony.

Eger is lovely to visit all year round and even in wintertime it’s still nice to enjoy a glass of wine on one of the many terraces thanks to the heaters that are installed everywhere.