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Travelling to Budapest/Krakow - Tips and Advice Welcome (1 Viewer)

Buckychudd

Footballguy
Traveling with my daughter, leaving in about a month.  We're flying in and out of Budapest and also want to hit Krakow and Sibiu (Transylvania).

Anyone been to these cities?  Tips, places to stay, must visit places?

I'm still trying to figure out the best way to get from Sibiu to Krakow, if anyone has advice please let me know.

 
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We spent 4 days in Krakow with our daughters (ages 15 and 19 at the time) a few years ago. We loved our time there.

We stayed in a hotel just off the main square in Krakow Old Town.  Very convenient for walking to many great restaurants and sites. We spent a lot of time just hanging out in the square.  The people are very friendly and most speak English. 

I'd recommend seeing Wawel Castle, Wieliczka salt mine, the Oskar Schindler museum and obviously Auschwitz-Birkenau (a 90 min bus ride from Krakow but a must see).

 
Budapest is one of the most beautiful cities on the planet. The great market is pretty cool. Buda Castle is an obvious must. I just loved the city and think hitting up as many of the standard touristy things will make for a great trip. Just being there and walking around is so impressive. 
Where should we stay?  Close to any particular site or location?

 
We spent 4 days in Krakow with our daughters (ages 15 and 19 at the time) a few years ago. We loved our time there.

We stayed in a hotel just off the main square in Krakow Old Town.  Very convenient for walking to many great restaurants and sites. We spent a lot of time just hanging out in the square.  The people are very friendly and most speak English. 

I'd recommend seeing Wawel Castle, Wieliczka salt mine, the Oskar Schindler museum and obviously Auschwitz-Birkenau (a 90 min bus ride from Krakow but a must see).
Awesome thanks!  How did your daughters like it?  Mine is 13 so a little younger than yours were at the time.

 
Awesome thanks!  How did your daughters like it?  Mine is 13 so a little younger than yours were at the time.
They loved it.  In fact, the only reason we added Krakow to our itinerary (the rest of the trip was all in Germany) was because my younger daughter wanted to visit Auschwitz.  We were all very happy she pushed for that as Krakow turned out to be one of the highlights of that trip.

I think a 13 year old would appreciate all 4 of those sites I mentioned above.  Auschwitz is obviously very sobering but I suspect not too much for a 13 year old to handle. If you're pressed for time I'd say definitely see Auschwitz and the Wieliczka salt mines.  Hopefully you have time to see it all, though.  Have fun!

 
Sibiu was gorgeous and touristy AF (the gypsies there did not mess around).  We visited the city for a walk about and lunch en route from Brasov to Cluj, but I would have liked more time there to explore.  We did make up to the top of a 12th century cathedral in the town center: it was kind of thrilling to me to be in such an old building, every step of the hike up was great. 

While in Brasov, we visited Bran Castle which, while not the real Dracula castle, is the one they push to tourists as such (because the real Dracula castle is not well maintained and very hard to get to). It was a neat village, and the castle tour was great.  Cluj we pretty much went to for the night life more so than the historic sights, it felt like a much younger and fun city than the rest of the country... that is one of the reasons I was so fond of it. 

ETA: all I saw in Budapest was the airport ;)

 
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They loved it.  In fact, the only reason we added Krakow to our itinerary (the rest of the trip was all in Germany) was because my younger daughter wanted to visit Auschwitz.  We were all very happy she pushed for that as Krakow turned out to be one of the highlights of that trip.

I think a 13 year old would appreciate all 4 of those sites I mentioned above.  Auschwitz is obviously very sobering but I suspect not too much for a 13 year old to handle. If you're pressed for time I'd say definitely see Auschwitz and the Wieliczka salt mines.  Hopefully you have time to see it all, though.  Have fun!
Your youngest sounds like mine, she specifically wants to go to Auschwitz.  One of the main reasons we're going to Krakow.

 
Sibiu was gorgeous and touristy AF (the gypsies there did not mess around).  We visited the city for a walk about and lunch en route from Brasov to Cluj, but I would have liked more time there to explore.  We did make up to the top of a 12th cathedral in the town center: it was kind of thrilling to me to be in such an old building, every step of the hike up was great. 

While in Brasov, we visited Bran Castle which, while not the real Dracula castle, is the one they push to tourists as such (because the real Dracula castle is not well maintained and very hard to get to). It was a neat village, and the castle tour was great.  Cluj we pretty much went to for the night life more so than the historic sights, it felt like a much younger and fun city than the rest of the country... that is one of the reasons I was so fond of it. 
Any tips for getting around in Romania?  I'm a little worried I'm going to have to cut it as I'm having trouble figuring out how to get from Krakow to Sibiu.  Did you do train, bus, car?

 
Any tips for getting around in Romania?  I'm a little worried I'm going to have to cut it as I'm having trouble figuring out how to get from Krakow to Sibiu.  Did you do train, bus, car?
I have no travel tips... we were spoiled with a van, a chauffeur, and a translator. The roads were mayhem outside of cities though, so I have to think that you want to avoid renting a car. 

 
Your youngest sounds like mine, she specifically wants to go to Auschwitz.  One of the main reasons we're going to Krakow.
Auschwitz is tough. The room with the suitcases did me in. I was in the lucky (I guess?) position to be able to go from there to Birkenau a few kms from there. Birkenau was the extermination camp attached to Auschwitz and nothing much is left of it, except you get to see/feel/appreciate (if that's the word) the scale of the whole operation. A day for reflection and introspection.

Krakow is beautiful and has a number of relatively cheap Michelin star restaurants - you might want to check that out.

My daughter was in Budapest last summer as the tail end of her Ukraine/Hungary trip with ther boyfriend. Apart from doing a good cooking course she never mentions Budapest when she talks about the trip. Only about Ukraine (both good and bad).

 
Sibiu was gorgeous and touristy AF (the gypsies there did not mess around).  We visited the city for a walk about and lunch en route from Brasov to Cluj, but I would have liked more time there to explore.  We did make up to the top of a 12th century cathedral in the town center: it was kind of thrilling to me to be in such an old building, every step of the hike up was great. 

While in Brasov, we visited Bran Castle which, while not the real Dracula castle, is the one they push to tourists as such (because the real Dracula castle is not well maintained and very hard to get to). It was a neat village, and the castle tour was great.  Cluj we pretty much went to for the night life more so than the historic sights, it felt like a much younger and fun city than the rest of the country... that is one of the reasons I was so fond of it. 

ETA: all I saw in Budapest was the airport ;)
UPDATE:  I just checked my photo album to confirm: I got Sibiu and Sighișoara confused. Sighișoara was the touristy village that we stopped by for lunch and a hike. While we spent a night in Sibiu after Brasov and before Cluj.  

All we did in Sibiu was bar hop, we left town early the next morning.  It was a fairly big city, but it felt much colder than Cluj, Bucharest, and Brasov. 

 
Where should we stay?  Close to any particular site or location?
We stayed in the Castle District which is in Buda. It was nice and relaxed at night once the tourists clear out but more of the sights are in Pest (the other city across the river). The 5th District is probably the best central location for ease to get around the city but it's also the true downtown and can be busy day and night. Given that you and your daughter are probbaly more into the cultural stuff and not so much looking for nightlife, I think the Castle District would be a good choice. 

 
Loved Budapest. It has it's old world charm without being too modernized with Starbucks, etc. 

Make sure to tour the Parliament Building, Great Synagogue and St. Stephen's.

They also have a huge open air market with limited hours that is worth checking out.

We also enjoyed hiking near the Danube river as there are a lot of good viewpoints.

 
Krakow is beautiful and has a number of relatively cheap Michelin star restaurants - you might want to check that out.


I’ll second this. We ate 4 or 5 great meals and they were extremely inexpensive. Dinner for 4 with 2 bottles of wine (both daughters were of drinking age there so we let them have a little vino) for $50. 
Thank you both.  I'm a total foodie and I wouldn't have guessed Krakow is a good spot.

 
Thank you both.  I'm a total foodie and I wouldn't have guessed Krakow is a good spot.
I wish I had some good restaurant recommendations there. Nothing stood out to me. I had better meals in Prague, Vienna, etc when I did my little tour of that part of the world. 

 
Budapest is one of the most beautiful cities on the planet. The great market is pretty cool. Buda Castle is an obvious must. I just loved the city and think hitting up as many of the standard touristy things will make for a great trip. Just being there and walking around is so impressive. 
This.  Spend as much time as you can there. One of my favorite cities in Europe.  

As for restaurants, this one is surprisingly awesome and not gimmicky.  Great food and medieval atmosphere plus the women serving you are 😍.  Family friendly as well.  Good reviews online if you have doubts: 

http://www.sirlancelot.hu/?lang=en

 
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I’ll second this. We ate 4 or 5 great meals and they were extremely inexpensive. Dinner for 4 with 2 bottles of wine (both daughters were of drinking age there so we let them have a little vino) for $50. 
Ditto.   We also drank a lot of vodka.   But that's for a different thread.

Beautiful city, really wonderful people, great food at very reasonable prices.  

I would "second" the salt mine tour.

 
I also really loved Budapest.  Last time, we stayed 4 nights at the Marriott right on the bank of the Danube for like $100/night.  Ridiculously cheap city.  A few of my favorite things that haven't been mentioned are the House of Terror museum (http://www.terrorhaza.hu/en), the food truck market Karavan (https://welovebudapest.com/en/venue/karavan-2/), and any of the ruin pubs,  Only thing I disliked were all the Brit stag parties, so be prepared if you're there on the weekend.  Funny to be in place where the locals always hate on the English but seem to love Americans.

 
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I’ve been to Krakow a few times for work, love it. I’ll get a list of restaurants together.
Here's a list I got from a colleague in Krakow:

Pubs in the city center area:

House of Beer

Wejze Krafta

Viva La Pinta

Ambasada Sledzia [polish tapas]

Restaurants in the City Center area:

Nota Resto [Polish/European]

Szara Resto&Bar [Polish/European]

Kogel Mogel [Polish/European]

Szara Ges [Polish/European]

Beer spots in the Old Jewish quarters (Kazimierz) area:

Omerta Pub

Strefa Piwa

Ursa Maior,

Restaurants in the Old Jewish Quarters area:

Zazie Bistro [French, usually requires a reservation]

Moment Resto Bar [European/polish]

Miodova [European/polish]

Plac Nowy 1[European/polish]

Personal recommendation: go to Dole Mlyny where there’s plenty of different restaurants, pubs, tap houses.

Another great drop zone is Plac Nowy street, which is a center of Old Jewish Quarters, which is the best spot in Cracow to eat and drink well, have fun and still live to see the dawn.

 
scorchy said:
I also really loved Budapest.  Last time, we stayed 4 nights at the Marriott right on the bank of the Danube for like $100/night.  Ridiculously cheap city.  A few of my favorite things that haven't been mentioned are the House of Terror museum (http://www.terrorhaza.hu/en), the food truck market Karavan (https://welovebudapest.com/en/venue/karavan-2/), and any of the ruin pubs,  Only thing I disliked were all the Brit stag parties, so be prepared if you're there on the weekend.  Funny to be in place where the locals always hate on the English but seem to love Americans.
Oh god the Brits are the worst.

 
scorchy said:
I also really loved Budapest.  Last time, we stayed 4 nights at the Marriott right on the bank of the Danube for like $100/night.  Ridiculously cheap city.  A few of my favorite things that haven't been mentioned are the House of Terror museum (http://www.terrorhaza.hu/en), the food truck market Karavan (https://welovebudapest.com/en/venue/karavan-2/), and any of the ruin pubs,  Only thing I disliked were all the Brit stag parties, so be prepared if you're there on the weekend.  Funny to be in place where the locals always hate on the English but seem to love Americans.
Haha, so true.  I had to make sure the women there knew I was from Murica.  And be prepared for your jaw to drop at their inherent beauty.  Outside of Sweden and Scandinavia in general, Budapest has to top the list for most attractive women in Europe.  Your offee 9 in the US is like a 6 over there.  As a result, most are really down to earth and quite friendly if you don't act like a loud obnoxious Brit ;)   

 
Here's a list I got from a colleague in Krakow:

Pubs in the city center area:

House of Beer

Wejze Krafta

Viva La Pinta

Ambasada Sledzia [polish tapas]

Restaurants in the City Center area:

Nota Resto [Polish/European]

Szara Resto&Bar [Polish/European]

Kogel Mogel [Polish/European]

Szara Ges [Polish/European]

Beer spots in the Old Jewish quarters (Kazimierz) area:

Omerta Pub

Strefa Piwa

Ursa Maior,

Restaurants in the Old Jewish Quarters area:

Zazie Bistro [French, usually requires a reservation]

Moment Resto Bar [European/polish]

Miodova [European/polish]

Plac Nowy 1[European/polish]

Personal recommendation: go to Dole Mlyny where there’s plenty of different restaurants, pubs, tap houses.

Another great drop zone is Plac Nowy street, which is a center of Old Jewish Quarters, which is the best spot in Cracow to eat and drink well, have fun and still live to see the dawn.
This is awesome, thank you!

I'll try and check out several of these.

 
Leaving on Saturday!

We had to cut Transylvania from the trip.  I just couldn't make it work time wise.  I added a couple stops in Slovakia instead.

Basic Itinerary

Sat - Leave Charlotte

Sun - Arrive Budapest

Mon - Budapest

Tues - Budapest

Wed - Budapest, early evening train -> Kosice

Thur - Kosice -> Poprad (renting a car)

Fri - Poprad, early evening bus -> Krakow

Sat - Krakow

Sun - Krakow

Mon - Krakow (overnight train to Budapest)

Tues - Budapest -> Charlotte

 
Buckychudd said:
Leaving on Saturday!

We had to cut Transylvania from the trip.  I just couldn't make it work time wise.  I added a couple stops in Slovakia instead.

Basic Itinerary

Sat - Leave Charlotte

Sun - Arrive Budapest

Mon - Budapest

Tues - Budapest

Wed - Budapest, early evening train -> Kosice

Thur - Kosice -> Poprad (renting a car)

Fri - Poprad, early evening bus -> Krakow

Sat - Krakow

Sun - Krakow

Mon - Krakow (overnight train to Budapest)

Tues - Budapest -> Charlotte
Bon voyage.

We will be expecting a full report when you return!

 
Buckychudd said:
Leaving on Saturday!

We had to cut Transylvania from the trip.  I just couldn't make it work time wise.  I added a couple stops in Slovakia instead.

Basic Itinerary

Sat - Leave Charlotte

Sun - Arrive Budapest

Mon - Budapest

Tues - Budapest

Wed - Budapest, early evening train -> Kosice

Thur - Kosice -> Poprad (renting a car)

Fri - Poprad, early evening bus -> Krakow

Sat - Krakow

Sun - Krakow

Mon - Krakow (overnight train to Budapest)

Tues - Budapest -> Charlotte
Looks great. I’m jealous. 

Have fun!

 
Leaving on Saturday!

We had to cut Transylvania from the trip.  I just couldn't make it work time wise.  I added a couple stops in Slovakia instead.

Basic Itinerary

Sat - Leave Charlotte

Sun - Arrive Budapest

Mon - Budapest

Tues - Budapest

Wed - Budapest, early evening train -> Kosice

Thur - Kosice -> Poprad (renting a car)

Fri - Poprad, early evening bus -> Krakow

Sat - Krakow

Sun - Krakow

Mon - Krakow (overnight train to Budapest)

Tues - Budapest -> Charlotte
Solid itinerary, I like that  you're giving yourself a few days in Budapest and Krakow instead of just driving through a bunch of places.  Soak up the scene a bit :thumbup:

 
Hey I saw your other thread, seems like we'll just be missing each other.

My tentative itinerary for Budapest....

Sunday - Arrive at 9:15 AM in Budapest.  Mainly going to do the Buda (castle) side of the city.  Hit up Matyas Church, Buda Castle and National Gallary.  In the evening I booked a dinner cruise on the Danube with Legenda Cruises.

Monday - Planning on doing more of the Pest side of the city.  Hit Parliament, St. Stephens, walk the Vaci Utca and hit up the market.

Tuesday - Might go up river to Vac & Visegrad to see more of Hungary.  Dinner at Onyx above (really excited about this).

Wednesday - Hit the Gellert Hotel & Baths for the thermal baths.  Train departs at 6:05 to Kosice.

 
Hey I saw your other thread, seems like we'll just be missing each other.

My tentative itinerary for Budapest....

Sunday - Arrive at 9:15 AM in Budapest.  Mainly going to do the Buda (castle) side of the city.  Hit up Matyas Church, Buda Castle and National Gallary.  In the evening I booked a dinner cruise on the Danube with Legenda Cruises.

Monday - Planning on doing more of the Pest side of the city.  Hit Parliament, St. Stephens, walk the Vaci Utca and hit up the market.

Tuesday - Might go up river to Vac & Visegrad to see more of Hungary.  Dinner at Onyx above (really excited about this).

Wednesday - Hit the Gellert Hotel & Baths for the thermal baths.  Train departs at 6:05 to Kosice.
Thanks!  

 
In Budapest you really can't go wrong so don't stress over it.

It's worth grabbing a drink after dark at the Leo Rooftop Bar. Really the best nighttime view of the city over the river.

I second the motion for the Szimpla Ruin Pub not to have a drink but just to walk through the the...I'm going to call them shops. It's really just eclectic, interesting and bizarre place. A real slice of local bohemian culture.

If you're looking for the cultural experience off the beaten path I strongly recommend dinner at Rosenstein's Restaurant. It's the real deal Hungarian-Jewish cusine.

If Rosenstein's is too out of the way  the Bock Bisztro in District VII is a great authentic Hungarian restaurant that is comfortable for locals and travellers.

Another great place for a drink/appetizer and an amazing view is the 360 Bar

My strongest recommendation is to find some time to just wander the Pest side of the river. You'll end up seeing some amazing things.

 
In Budapest you really can't go wrong so don't stress over it.

It's worth grabbing a drink after dark at the Leo Rooftop Bar. Really the best nighttime view of the city over the river.

I second the motion for the Szimpla Ruin Pub not to have a drink but just to walk through the the...I'm going to call them shops. It's really just eclectic, interesting and bizarre place. A real slice of local bohemian culture.

If you're looking for the cultural experience off the beaten path I strongly recommend dinner at Rosenstein's Restaurant. It's the real deal Hungarian-Jewish cusine.

If Rosenstein's is too out of the way  the Bock Bisztro in District VII is a great authentic Hungarian restaurant that is comfortable for locals and travellers.

Another great place for a drink/appetizer and an amazing view is the 360 Bar

My strongest recommendation is to find some time to just wander the Pest side of the river. You'll end up seeing some amazing things.
Went to szempla last night... pretty awesome

also did a bike tour in the morning to help me acclimate to the brutal 9 hour change

 

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