Good morning Budapest!

The bells of Matthias Church early in the morning right after sunrise on a beautiful day of autumn.

Autumn in Budapest

It really is a great time to visit Budapest, the colours of autumn are simply magnificent and there aren’t big crowds of tourists at the hot spots. Book a tour or let me know if you’re interested in a custom itinerary!

Travellers’ reviews

It’s always great to read reviews and to learn about how much travellers enjoyed their tours with me. Here are a few ones from September.

FULL-DAY BUDAPEST TOUR BY CAR

Having Julia show us around Budapest was the experience of a lifetime. She was so knowledgeable, so interesting, and so much fun we didn’t want the tour to end. It is obvious that she loves her city, and her enthusiasm and insight made us love it too. I cannot recommend Julia more. She is a gem. Get her if you can. Richard E. U.S.A.

Thus was a fantastic tour by a Budapest local. Julia was an amazing guide…prompt, friendly, courteous and full of information about her hometown. She took us to a local hangout for a traditional lunch and to “off the beaten path” sights to see. Definitely recommend Julia….5+ stars!!!

DANUBE BEND TOUR BY CAR

Julia was an exellent tour guide.We would rate her a high 5 and recommend her without reservation.

ON-THE-SPOT LIVE VIRTUAL BUDAPEST TOUR

What a real pleasure to meet Julia via her virtual tour of Budapest. My sister and i were introduced to the Buda side of Budapest and Julia did an amazing job of being our virtual tour guide. Her detailed knowledge of history and her city was excellent and we felt we were walking along with her on the tour. Plenty of time for questions and she is a beautiful person….thanks so much Julia ��

It was informative and interesting. Participants were positively surprised how good a virtual guided tour can be.

Fisherman’s Bastion Budapest

This is probably the number one Instagram spot in Budapest, a cool place to take your selfie when you visit my beautiful city. It’s usually very crowded and sometimes you have to wait to get to the best photo spot but there are times of the day when it’s really quiet and you can have it all for yourself. Visiting the Fisherman’s Bastion is part of my Buda Castle walk and can be included in the itinerary of other tours as well.

Update on travelling to Hungary from the US

I’ve had received today some inquiries about how the new recommendations issued by the European Union might affect travels from the US to Hungary. The US is one of the five countries that have been removed from the EU safe travel list.

What is important is that this is a guidance and each EU countries decide individually about travel restrictions. As for Hungary, you can enter Hungary if you come from the US with a negative PCR test not older than 72 hours – no PCR test is needed when you get to Hungary by road, rail or waterway.

What is even more important is that Budapest is as beautiful as always, it’s not overcrowded with tourists, so it’s still a great time to come and see. Let me know if you have questions, or book a tour! Also, don’t forget that a private tour is safer than being in large tour groups, myself and the drivers I work with are fully vaccinated and can’t wait to meet you!

Beautiful Budapest - Fiseherman's Bastion
Beautiful Budapest – Fiseherman’s Bastion

Visiting the Gödöllő Palace

I love my Gödöllő-Hollókő tour for many reasons, one of those being that I’m truly fascinated by the beauty of the Baroque Palace of Gödöllő. There are so many things to fall in love with: the architecture, the style, the colours, the details. It really is special because throughout the tour one has the impression to travel back in time to the 19th century.

On our very last visit earlier this month we were being guided by Queen Sissi – the wife of the Austrian Emperor Franz Josef which has made our tour even more remarkable.

Rumbach street synagogue is now open for visitors

Rumbach street synagogue, one pillar of the famous synagogue triangle in Budapest was closed for renovation works for almost three years. From the 19th of July the synagogue is open for visitors, so that you can admire the interior of the building designed by Otto Wagner in the 1860’s.

The synagogue is of moorish architecture and surely you’ll be amazed by the abundance of colours: blue, purple and golden. There will be concerts, performances, exhibitions and conferences held in the building and you can also have some coffee and snack in the cafeteria.

I’m happy to show you the building when you book a Jewish Quarter walking tour with me.

 

Budapest Jewish Quarter Private Walking Tour
€180

BUDAPEST JEWISH QUARTER WALK

Easy
4 hours
view

Goodbye Chain Bridge, see you soon!

The iconic Chain Bridge is closed for renovation works and will hopefully reopen at the end of 2022. We’ll of course miss it and our walking and driving tours will be a little bit different but we all agree that our Old Lady has needed these renovation works for a very long time.

Tips and tricks for football fans – Budapest, host city of UEFA EURO 2020-2021

I know that many football lovers arrive to Budapest to watch the matches. There are of course several restrictions regarding border entry (more details here). Once you comply with all requirements and have your EURO 2020 wristband, it’s time to discover Beautiful Budapest! I’m happy to offer you a customised tour or help you with tips and recommendations, get in touch with me for more details!

If you’re about to explore Budapest on your own, don’t miss any of these beautiful parts of the city:

Ticket holders who have their EURO 2020 wristband can visit all monuments, museums and bathhouses, it’s really a unique chance to see Budapest as you’ve never seen it before.

Matches at Puskás Aréna, Budapest:
Tuesday 15 June 2021 – Group F: Hungary vs Portugal (18:00, local time)
Saturday 19 June 2021 – Group F: Hungary vs France (15:00, local time)
Wednesday 23 June 2021 – Group F: Portugal vs France (21:00, local time)
Sunday 27 June 2021 – R16: 1C vs 3D/E/F (18:00, local time)

Parliament reopens – reduced ticket prices until September 2021

Great news from Budapest: from the 14th of May the fascinating building of the Parliament of Hungary can be visited again, there are tours every day between 9.00 AM and 3.00 PM. What’s more important is that the ticket prices have been reduced by 50%:

EU citizens: HUF 1600 / person

non-EU citizens: HUF 3200 / person

I think it’s a great opportunity to visit the Parliament now, I often tell that this really is one of the most spectacular buildings of Beautiful Budapest and definitely is a must-see when you visit my city.

As for now the COVID regulations are very strict: “The House of Parliament is open for visitors with an immunity certificate or immunity certificate application as well as for minors under their supervision; after their body temperatures are taken. The use of hand sanitisers installed in the Parliament building and the Visitor Centre is mandatory. Wearing a mask covering the nose and mouth is recommended. Please observe the social distancing rule and keep a 1.5-metre distance from others. Visits are to be undertaken on the sole responsibility of the visitors.”

The only problem is that it’s impossible for individuals to book a tour in advance, tickets can only be purchased on the spot on the day of the visit. I’m an official Tour Guide partner of the Parliament Visitor Center with special permissions so if you book a Full-day tour with Parliament visit with me I can book your Parliament tickets in advance. The Parliament visit can be incorporated in other tours, too, just let me know about your preferences!

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