“THE GRAND BUDAPEST” WALK

Julia did an amazing tour of her native Budapest. This was our first experience with a private tour specialist and we would highly recommend Julia. Her passion and knowledge of this historic city was truly enjoyable and enlightening. We spent 7+ hours navigating the city on foot and public transportation but we were never felt rushed and the time went by so quickly!
We were enthralled and educated by her personal stories relating to the city’s past and current memorial controversy. Thank you Julia

Julia was an amazing guide.very knowledgable, easy to be with and flexible with guiding us to all the sites.
We even had lunch at a permanent food truck spot!
Beautiful city, great guide!

We are a couple in our 70’s and spent 3 days touring with Julia. She not only had a pleasant and outgoing personality but was extremely well-informed historically, politically and socially. We would never have seen and learned as much as we did without her.

Julia was a wonderful tour guide. She is extremely knowledgable and ensured that the time we had was had was tailored to our interest and ability. Excellent English. Julia took us to some great places to eat that were not tourist traps. A full day, great value. No hanging around waiting for others. We saw all the places we hoped and more. Extremely worthwhile.

We spent the whole day with our guide Julia; walking and travelling on local buses and the subway. Julia had us enthralled with her huge knowledge of Budapest and could answer any question we threw at her. She had structured the day to encompass all the main sites of interest and gave us the benefit of her broad knowledge of the history of the city. She was a fabulous guide and pitched the whole day just right for our interests and our walking stamina. It was a delight to spend the day with her and I recommend her unreservedly,

I am 60 and a heavy traveller. I had many tour guides in many places. Julia simply is the best. A pure joy from start to end. Perfect English, no qccent at all. The full day walking tour was so packed with great moments, some of them completely unaccepted and off the mainstream, that I cannot imagine how it would have been without her. Probably we would have seen not even half of it. Best money spent ever. Worth every cent. Very highly recommended.

Julia and I had an amazing day together. We explored most of the major sites but it was easy since we used the metro and streetcars to cover ground. I learned a lot about the history, architecture, culture and people of Budapest. Julia also shared many personal and family stories of what life in Hungary has been like over the years. I highly recommend Julia as a guide, given her knowledge, genuine warmth and flexibility.

Awesome tour!!! Juilia was very informative and a wealth of knowledge!! She was a pleasure to be with and loved sharing Budapest sights and history with us. Absolutely recommend using her!!

I couldn’t recommend Julia more. We booked an all day tour for 6, and it felt like we had another friend along with us to guide us through the city. She is from Budapest and has wonderful insight in to the history of the city, as well as the people of Hungary. Her English is impeccable, and she has a lovely sense of humor. Spending a day in Budapest with Julia was one of the highlights of our trip!

When booking a tour in Budapest, Julia is a no-brainer! She made our trip better than we ever expected and we learned so much about this beautiful city. We did the full day walking tour and would book it again if we came back. She was amazing to our child and let us make as many stops as we needed, while giving us recommendations for good places to stop for snacks.

Actually, our rating should be 6 out of a possible 5 stars. Julia was an absolute delight! She is personable and has a very keen sense of her clients interests. We spent 2 full days with her and experienced Budapest in a way that was nothing short of remarkable. Julia truly went above and beyond with us and I wouldn’t hesitate one second to book her again! Thank You Julia!!!

Just back from our trip to Budapest (which by the way is an amazing city). We were so blessed to have THE BEST tour guide in the city to show us around for 1.5 days. We have travelled to cities all over the world and had private guided tours, but nobody has been as good as Julia.

Things we loved about Julia/the tour:

1) Her enthusiasm. She had astounding energy, and a constant and infectious smile. She loves her city, and it rubbed off on us straight away.
2) Her knowledge. She was able to speak in detail about such a range of subjects, from the ancient to the modern, from Christianity to Judaism, to modern politics and the cost of living crisis, Even football!
3) Her flexibility. We made a plan in advance for our time together, but she changed everything at the last minute due to some changeable weather. The result was that we stayed dry, and got to see everything we wanted in the best possible way.
4) Her kindness. I had a bit of time on my own in the city after our tour, and Julia checked in to see if i was okay and even offered to meet up with her family if i wanted,
5) Her English. Well, it’s perfect!

Overall this was a truly memorable tour. Our highlights were actually the places that were off-the-beaten-path, such as the cave church, the amazing strudel, and the powerful and interesting memorials near the parliament.

Thank you Julia. We hope to see you again soon!

Julia is an outstanding tour guide! She is extremely knowledgeable, and very accommodating and flexible. We would highly recommend her tours if you are planning a trip to Hungary!

Julia is a spectacular tour guide – conscientious, courteous, knowledgeable, efficient, adaptive and kind. She knows the city well, and spoke with in-depth knowledge of each of the sights we visited. She had carefully planned our journey to be effective and balanced, retained the romance of this old city while not ignoring the difficulties Budapest or Hungary have faced. She was both well spoken and candid about what we saw and what may be lost to changing social pressures. We would highly recommend her.

Excellent all day tour of Budapest with Julia. The itinerary was perfect and Julia was extremely knowledgeable about the city, it’s history and current attractions, restaurants and events. She was very pleasant, efficient with our time and very inviting of questions and comments. This tour was a highlight of our 2 week vacation and I would highly recommend this to everyone.

Julia was hands-down the key to our Budapest experience! The full day walking tour was full, but it was set at our pace! She made us feel very comfortable and at home in “her” city. She answered our hundreds of questions without hesitation. Her wealth of knowledge is unmatched! We could not have asked for anything more!

Julia was an incredible guide. We only had four hours to see the major sites in Budapest and she arranged everything for us, got us around the city, and explained everything. She was attentive, informative, and extremely professional. I would recommend her to anyone traveling to Budapest. In addition, I needed some help with a cake for my fiances 40th birthday and she gave us a great suggestion.

Julia was great. She kept us all entertained and engaged during our tour of Budapest. We saw so much in the time we had with her. She took us to a traditional Hungarian restaurant and we had a yummy feed too. We highly recommend Julia for your next tour. Thanks Julia.

An outstanding guide. Julia is a very professional guide with a great wealth of information about Budapest, her hometown. Julia is very engaging and personable in nature. She very quickly makes one feel at ease and comfortable. Julia has a great understanding of Budapest and is able to portray this information in a very pleasant and effective way.

We had a wonderful day in Budapest, thanks to Julia. She was able to combine a walking and food tour to make a really great day. She was so knowledgeable and presented the history in such an easy way to understand. While we had a fun day, it was never tiring as we had a driver who would be there right to pick us up when needed. We came off of a river cruiser and they picked us up and handled all of our luggage as well. We were able to use Julia’s recommendations for dinner, and ended up having a great night out after as a result. Thank you again for a great day!

Look no further, Julia is the one!
My wife and I had a wonderful day in Budapest with Julia. The pace was great and included espresso stops and a wonderful lunch. We saw and experienced all we had planned on. Julia is very easy to talk to and that made the day even better. Highly recommend to make you Budapest stop great.

Budapest was amazing because Julia took us all over for two days. Places we would have never found. She was extremely knowledgeable and u can feel the love for Budapest. She did have to put up with my shopping stops but I learned from previous trips if u see it buy it so I did. We also enjoy climbing towers and we had her come with us I think we pooped her out lol I highly recommend her and you need to book her early She will always be part of my memories of Budapest. She has a fabulous fun cheerful personality you can tell she loves taking tourists through Budapest , book her. She is the best !!!!!!

With limited time in Budapest, my wife and I booked a full day tour with Julia and we were thoroughly impressed. From the architectural “highlights” to the unique stories and locations we visited, Julia seamlessly blended a fantastic mixture of sites, historical perspective, and personal narrative that made this a perfect way to explore this magnificent city. Highly recommended!

Julia is an exceptional guide. We had two tours, a 1/2 day food/market tour, followed by a full day walking tour. That’s a lot of time to spend with a “stranger ” but Julia’s personal warmth & charm, excellent English, & engaging style will quickly have you realising you’ve definitely picked the right guide. She’s passionate about her country & her culture but also honest an open about its history. She is informative without lecturing & happy to converse on many topics. Just book her, you won’t regret it.

I am very happy that I chose to hire Julia as our guide. She was knowledgeable, smart, helpful, articulate, honest and all the traits of a great guide. I couldn’t have hired a better guide for Budapest.

A friend and I were in Budapest as part of a Viking Cruise group and we elected to do a private walking tour of Budapest with Julia. She was great to work with in advance to set up what we would like to see that would be different from the excursions provided by Viking. We were curious to learn about what life was like when the city was a communist country, as well as experience some of the local cuisine. The afternoon far exceeded our expectations and we so enjoyed the many stories and insights Julia shared.

Budapest is definitely an underrated gem in Central Europe. Our 2 days spent with Julia helped us all gain an appreciation of the history and culture of the city. We were a varied group, and she was able to accommodate many different personalities and questions. I wish all of our guides had been as knowledgeable and invested in their work as she was! Thanks Julia!

Not sure what I can say that hasn’t already been said.
Had a great day. Fabulous personality. Very knowledgeable of local history with personal life experiences.
Helped plan our itinerary for the following day, making very helpful recommendations.
Highly recommended.

My wife and spent the day with Julia on a full day tour of Budapest. Julia is passionate, incredibly knowledgeable, entertaining and has a great sense of humour.

Not only does Julia have an intricate knowledge of Budapest and its history – but also presents the perspective of a person living through the changes during the 1980s and in contemporary Hungary.

Honestly, it was just like being shown the city by a close friend. A fantastic day in Budapest. Julia is THE GUIDE to book!

A week ago today my husband, eldest daughter, and I were enjoying a guided tour of Budapest with Julia and I can’t speak highly enough about it. We had arrived in the city a couple of days before our tour day with Julia so we had covered a couple of sights on our own and Julia kindly tailored our tour accordingly. She’s knowledgeable, professional, passionate about Hungary and Budapest, and a lot of fun to spend time with thanks to a great sense of humour. She explained much about the history of Hungary, peeling back the layers so that we gained an understanding of how the people of the country were affected by events rather than just dates and data. We also learned about contemporary culture and society, and must thank Julia for introducing us to a restaurant for lunch where we ate the BEST goulash soup and for recommending two excellent restaurants. Budapest is a wonderful city with a fascinating story and you won’t regret having Julia help you experience it to its fullest so go ahead and book her now!

Excellent tour and our best tour of our vacation! Saw all the highlights of Budapest and more!!! When I first contacted Julia to arrange for our two half day tours of Budapest, she was very flexible and attentive to our wish list. As a native of Budapest, Julia customized two perfect half days for us to see all the sights via local transportation (very little walking). Her English is perfect and I would highly recommend her!

My wife and I just spent 4 straight days with Julia, who customized a tour of Budapest and surroundings to our exact specifications. She is a joy to be with, and besides her great personality, she is everything you could ask for in a guide. Her English is excellent, her knowledge comprehensive, her passion for her country evident, her pacing perfect, and she was attentive to our needs and wants. Her pricing is extremely fair. The only downside was having to say goodbye at the end!
In addition, her communications with us prior to our trip were extremely helpful and timely. In short, we were very happy to have met her and to have experienced Budapest with her by our side.

It takes an intelligent person to not only accommodate a travelers’ hope for insight into a new land, culture and pulse of their destination. But it also takes an emotionally wise person to adapt and customize their tour into a memorable experience to carry forward in their lives. THIS IS WHAT JULIA DID FOR US! Thank you for our expert, professional and personable tour! Budapest will be held more profoundly in our hearts and minds!

Niets op aan te merken, zowel programma als tour zelf waren zeer goed. Ook de taal (Engels) was prima. Zeker een aanrader en een van de beste rondleidingen die wij in de laatste jaren hebben gehad.

Julia is the guide for you. My friend and I spent 2 1/2 days with Julia touring Budapest. From the moment we met her we knew we had chosen well. Julia is knowledgeable and professional while being personable and very friendly. We loved her! And we learned so much from her about the history of the city she was born in and loves. We could not have been more pleased and I wish I could give her more than 5 stars!

My wife and I thoroughly enjoyed the day and a half we spent with Julia in Budapest this past May. (Sorry for late review Julia!) Julia is a terrific person, very warm, fun, speaks perfect English, and has a wealth of knowledge about Budapest and Hungary. By the time we parted company, it was a sad moment, as we had come to think of Julia as family. We recommend her in the highest. Steve & Lexie C

Julia was outstanding. She speaks fluent colloquial English, is extremely knowledgeable about Budapest history, and very personable. She easily gauges her clients’ interests and guides accordingly, taking you to places you’re likely to be interested in and not taking you places that probably wouldn’t interest you. She also has good recommendations for restaurants and cafes. We spent 4 hours with her on each of two mornings and saw, among other things, Heroes Square, the Jewish Quarter, and Buda. We saw the Central Market, the National Parliament, and House of Terror on our own.

My wife and I just came back after a spring break to Budapest, and we are now both in love with this beautiful city and the Hungarian people. We are famous for crisscrossing without a serious plan when we do cities, and to avoid this we decided to get some help from a local guide.
And what a help we got!
After this trip, I’m now a true believer in looking at a place with / through local eyes and I can’t believe that there are eyes better to use than the ones belonging to Julia.
We arrived in Budapest at noon, and already the same afternoon Julia took us on a “Foodie” tour to smell and taste the authentic food in Budapest, sausages, cheese, chocolate, ice-cream, cakes etc. Julia also provided “where and what to eat”, so we really could explore the great Hungarian kitchen during our vacation.
We then did a full day walking around in Budapest and by using local transportations, like metro, tramp and buses where it makes sense, we could cover the relative huge area of Pest in one day.
A ½ day following to cover the Castle hill area and Buda with some hidden gems that very few tourists will see without a local guide.
Our last trip with Julia went to a small picturesque city (Szentendre) a real mixed of cultures and a pint on the banks of Donau was our farewell to Julia.
Julia has a very unique view for details and to use them in her storytelling about her beloved city, an old window frame becomes her view of the area and a wooden revolving door becomes a “time machine” between the past and present.
If you want a friend to show you around her city and not just a private guide, I can only suggest you use Julia.

My wife and I travel frequently and have had experience with guides all over the world. This was our first time in Budapest and the 8 hours that we spent on a walking tour with Julia greatly exceeded our expectations. Her knowledge of Hungarian history and culture was extensive. She made the history and features of the places that we visited come alive, and our day flew by quickly. Her knowledge and friendly demeanor, as well as her sensitivity to our needs made her an outstanding guide.

My wife and I had a very full day (8 hours!) around central Pest and Buda on the first warm day of 2018. Lots of fascinating history, with natural beauty in the parks, architecture, interiors, and incredible vistas from high in Pest. Time for a fantastic lunch, a stop by the third best bar in the world, and the national cake of the year to round things out.

Julia claims not to be a historian (an economist by training), but she is encyclopaedic and passionate on every topic related to Budapest and Hungary from Arpad through the elections next month. Especially strong on Popes who crowned Hungarian rulers through the years. Cannot imagine anyone doing a better job, I know Budapest is truly a wonderful place, but I can’t help but feel that our attraction to the city is mostly due to seeing it from Julia’s eyes.

Julia was fantastic! We were provided a perfect day in Budapest complete with history, lots of fun and great food. Thank you for a wonderful day!

Julia nous a accompagné dans sa ville qu’elle sait parfaitement valoriser. un tour rapide dans cette grande ville sans s’attarder sur les choses que l’on peu découvrir soit même. accueillante , souriante , Julia nous a raconté avec beaucoup de détail et de passion l’histoire de son pays et de sa ville. sans elle nous n’aurions certainement pas imaginé se qui ce cache derrière les magnifiques monuments de cette ville surprenantes. Nous aurions aimé découvrir un peu plus les choses insolites, backstage.

Budapest was the highlight of our time in Europe and that is largely due to the two days we spent with Julia. Julia’s knowledge of the history, architecture, wine, food, her willingness to share her personal experiences and incite into current political and social challenges facing her city and country was what made our time there so enjoyable and rewarding. We asked a lot of tough questions 🙂 Julia was understanding of our groups needs and flexible to make sure we got the most of our time together.

We had a wonderful, informative day with Julia touring Buda and Pest. She’s extremely well-informed about history, the sites and the current political situation. It added dimension and depth to our tour and made it very special. She gave us ideas on other things to do when we weren’t touring with her and adapted our day to the things we already done. As others have mentioned, she is fluent in English and very articulate. Well worth the reasonable fee. We’ve already recommended her to others.

Julia gave us what may be the best walking tour I have ever experienced. She is extremely knowledgeable and enthused about the sites, history, and culture of Budapest and Hungary. Although she is quite busy she was able to accommodate our scheduling request and her charges were very reasonable. I am highly recommending Julia as a walking tour guide in Budapest.

We had such a lovely time with Julia! She was so easy to communicate with before and during our tour. Her English was xcellent as was her knowledge. She was interested in us and giving us the best possible experience.Thank you for everything Julia, you are part of our memories of your beautiful country!

Julia Kravianszky’s walking tour of Pest and Buda was as delightful as it was informative. Her knowledge of and passion for her native Budapest were evident throughout. The tour was rich with colorful and interesting insights that made the tumultuous and fascinating history of Hungary compelling beyond anything found in the guidebooks.

My family of eight, including two teenagers, spent two days touring Budapest with Julia. She showed us around the city from 10-4 two days in a row. It was a wonderful experience. She is so easy to be with and so knowledgeable at the same time. She doesn’t give too much information, just the right amount to make it interesting. We all thought she was great! Highly recommended.

Super tour with Julia who accommodated the needs and interests of both my curious teenagers. Thought provoking and entertaining in equal measure, I would certainly recommend Julia.

Julia is a fantastic Tourist Guide! She showed us Budapest for two days and it was extremely interesting, educational and fun. Her English is perfect. She is very sensitive to cost (transportation/coffee breaks/etc). She shows Budapest with great enthusiasm that is really contagious. She take a lot of pride in her work and in her city. We never felt rushed or taken to places we did not want to see. She is extremely punctual and showed up both days 15 minutes ahead of the arranged time. Also very respectful.

Julia’s wealth of knowledge and her lovely personality made for a memorable day in Budapest. My husband and I were with Julia for a full day walking tour of Pest and Buda. We enjoyed a lovely lunch together in the Jewish quarter and then at the end of our time together gelato in Buda. julia also provided us with suggestions of things to do, see and eat for the remainder of our stay in the city.

My husband and I spent a wonderful, informative day with Julia. Her historical knowledge was excellent and her personal stories added a deep layer of richness to our experience. Julia was a delight, she was easy going and completely tuned into how we were feeling, moving at the exact right pace.

Julia was a wonderful tour guide for the 5 of us in Budapest. Julia was highly knowledgable about the city’s history and the people. She knew many “secretive” things that we would have never found on our own. We walked, and took public transportation. This was a great way to see the city. Made you feel like a local. Julia was easy going, and listened to our wants and needs also. It was a very cold day and we all needed something hot to drink and it was not a problem to sit down for a moment, warm up and taste a local treat! We highly recommend Julia. She really knew her stuff!!! Thanks Julia for making a lasting impression on us about your wonderful city of Budapest! Hope our paths cross again sometime in the future!

My wife and I toured Budapest with Julia by four hour walking tours on two consecutive days. We are seasoned travelers and have utilized private guides on many occasions. That said, Julia is one of the best guides that we have hired! We very much enjoyed Budapest because of Julia.
Prior to our holiday, Julia solicited our interests and we planned the specific sight interiors to visit during our tour.
On the days of our visit, Julia both met us and returned us to our hotel.
Her use of public transportation to maximize sight seeing was impressive.
In addition to her many professional qualities, Julia has that great personality to make you feel like your touring with a good friend. We strongly recommend that you tour with Julia!

Julia is the best! We had her as a guide for two consecutive days, and saw the entire city with her. 100% recommend.

We thoroughly enjoyed our tours with Julia. She was a pleasure to spend time with – friendly, engaging, and informative. She was well prepared but also flexible to change destinations on the go based on what we had already seen of Budapest. I would highly recommend her.

We recently completed a 14 day Viking river cruise from Budapest to Amsterdam which was great. That being said, the highlight of our trip was the day that we spent in Budapest before the cruise with Julia. We all have fond memories of Budapest thanks to Julia. She is extremely knowledgeable and very personable. We can’t recommend her enough. !!

This was our first visit to Budapest and we were in need of a personal Guide for the first two days of our six day visit. Our good fortune, thanks Trip Advisor, we found contact with Julia Kravianszky. What a delight. We could not have been more pleased.

Julia spoke excellent English, and her command of Budapest history/culture is amazing. As requested, we ate where the locals ate, and visited historical and cultural/political sights that you will not find in your tourist books, along with the usual top tourist sites. Her suggestions were excellent. After two days with Julia, we felt like Budapesters…Smiling!!

We not only had the best Guide in Budapest, we also make a wonderful new friend….Thanks Julia

Met een groep van 8 gedurende 2 dagen de highlights van Boedapest bezocht als “private tour”. Julia en Katelin lieten ons de mooiste plekken zien en vertelden ons het nodige over de geschiedenis en andere achtergronden. Een geweldige belevenis die ons lang bij zal blijven. 2 geweldige dagen.

Nous sommes une famille de 8 : super contact avec Julia qui s est adaptée à nos envies et nous a fait découvrir avec beaucoup d enthousiasme d humour et de chaleur sa ville !
Julia parle très bien français ce qui était un plus : nous recommandons tous vivement ! Bravo !

The best decision we made while planning for our trip to Budapest was booking with Julia Kravianszky. Julia is all the things you wish and beyond for a guide to be – professional, organized, responsive, knowledgeable, accommodating, excellent English, lovely warm personality and sense of humor. Julia’s upbeat enthusiasm will capture you! She’s a gem!

Our group of 20 people spent 3 enjoyable and meaningful days with Julia. We learned, discovered and retained so much. Julia presented a wealth of information each day in a way that is both interesting and relevant, but not overwhelming. With a group of 20 people she amazed everyone with her ability to make a personal connection and answer everyone’s questions.

During the planning stage, her emails were responsive and informative -filled with details. We simply listed our interest and Julia’s itinerary suggestions was spot-on!

Julia is everything you would expect a top quality guide to be!

Contact her at [email protected], you won’t be disappointed!