|
|
 |
|
|
I would most certainly NOT recommend the hotel - Grand Hungaria. The hotel itself was borderline acceptable due to its location. There is massive construction going on near the trainstation (they are putting in a metro system). Which is not the worst part. What was disturbing was the outside of of the hotel. Just a few meters away from the hotel and across the street are all empty shops with graffiti all over. The shops that are open, you would not want to go in. We had to go several blocks away to feel remotely safe. Transportation was difficult with mass transit and taxi cabs were extremely expensive. We found if we asked how much to go to a certain location, we did a lot better and often half of what previous trip was. The hotel lobby is acceptable and clean, the rooms were sparse and depressing looking. The lamps had dust on them otherwise clean. The towels were threadbare and the only toiletry offered was liquid soap dispenser on the wall which was awful. The room had a hair dryer but did not have an iron. The staff was rude at times especially when asked for assistance. The water is awful and we had to resort to bottled water which was very expensive. This was the case not only in Budapest but other cities we visited. When asked for water in restaurant, they automatically brought out a bottle of water and charged accordingly. There were times the wine was less expensive than the water.
On the plus side, Budapest (the sights) were breathtakingly beautiful, full of history and culture. We loved the food (although very pricy). The Parliment was exquisite as was the Fisherman's Bastion, the Basilica along with the castles we visited. I would pass up on hero's square - our tour guide was French and knew little of Hungarian history. There are plenty of crooks around and you have to guard your posessions carefully. We were told not to leave anything in the car we rented and it was clearly understood.
I would certainly recommend Hungary to any visitor regardless of the heritage (I was born in Hungary) but I would be cautious. Most certainly would recommend hotels along the Danube rather than in the city.
Even the New York Palace left a lot to be desired not because of it appearance(although gaudy) but because of its location.
All in all we enjoyed ourselves but would do things differently. Also, we do NOT recommend renting a car. The rules are losely adhered to, split limits are pretty much what you want and they drive crazy.
I would also recommend that whoever goes to go in the fall when its cooler. Many restaurants and mostly all shops are NOT air conditioned (only the hotels) and we had a number of extremely hot days which made things a little difficult and they do not use ice (and when we asked for ice they looked at us like we were crazy) although complied with 1 or 2 ice cubes.
|
Review Provided by:
julie slamka who traveled on 8/30/2008
|
|
Average Rating: (2)
|
 Review this vacation
Go to
Budapest At Its Best
Read reviews of other vacations
|
|
appears,
you will be able to book this vacation at a lower price.