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Post by SteveC on Nov 11, 2017 20:00:18 GMT
For my birthday this year (61) Irene and I flew to Budapest for a 5 night stay (1st to 6th November) at the 5 * Corinthia Royal Grand Hotel. I can highly recommend this hotel, which offers the last word in luxury and is centrally located in Pest for easy travel around the city. I booked an "Executive Room" which gave access to the hotel's Spa and pool as well as the Executive Club, which has a 3 hour "Happy Hour" every evening from 5pm, although in practice, this went on until 10pm, where FREE unlimited beers, wines and spirits are available together with an excellent selection of FREE "snacks" which included sandwiches, soup, cheeses, fruit, pastries, cakes etc. During the morning, lunchtime and afternoon, FREE drinks and snacks are also available in the Executive Club. Apart from my birthday itself, when we dined in one of the hotel's four restaurants, we never bought an evening meal, as the Executive Club had various promotions on. On the Wednesday we arrived, a chef was on hand, cooking sweet or savoury pancakes and on the Friday, the Chinese chef from Rickskaw restaurant cooked and distributed Peking Duck to the guests! The included breakfast in the Brasserie was the most extensive and luxurious I have ever encountered in any hotel in the world! People were drinking fizz with their breakfast FFS! The whole deal including direct BA flights from Heathrow and transfers to and from Budapest airport, came to £1254.00 for two of us for 5 nights. Incredible value for money IMHO. It would have been £300 cheaper, but I was not prepared to fly Ryanair with a connection and elected to upgrade to BA! This picture is of me at The Fishermen's Bastion in Buda (the other side of the Danube). More photos to follow!  fullsizeoutput_a61 by Steve Coward, on Flickr |
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Post by SteveC on Nov 11, 2017 20:06:54 GMT
Budapest Bus Wankers ha ha! The 48 hr Budapest Big Bus ticket is well worth purchasing and offers a "hop on, hop off" service on two routes (red and blue) on both sides of the Danube. We did a complete circuit to see the sights from the open top bus, before deciding where to explore further. The ticket included an evening bus tour of the city, a daytime Danube river cruise and the "hop on, hop off" Golf Buggy transport up and down to the Fishermen's Bastion on the Buda side of the river. I purchased this ticket, plus a Danube evening cruise with drinks ticket for £72.00 through Viator, before leaving UK.  fullsizeoutput_a2b by Steve Coward, on Flickr |
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Post by SteveC on Nov 11, 2017 20:12:38 GMT
The evening Danube cruise was quite magical, with all of the buildings illuminated, they offered quite a different perspective than when viewed in daylight. While we quaffed Champagne, a trio of musicians kept us entertained with Strauss Waltzes and Hungarian folk tunes. I did get concerned when they played the theme from "Titanic" however! I got some great shots from the upper deck on what was a calm, clear evening under a full moon!  fullsizeoutput_a19 by Steve Coward, on Flickr |
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Post by SteveC on Nov 11, 2017 20:13:56 GMT
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Post by SteveC on Nov 11, 2017 20:16:36 GMT
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Post by SteveC on Nov 11, 2017 20:18:43 GMT
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Post by SteveC on Nov 11, 2017 20:20:42 GMT
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Post by SteveC on Nov 11, 2017 20:22:36 GMT
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Post by SteveC on Nov 11, 2017 20:24:10 GMT
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Post by SteveC on Nov 11, 2017 20:30:31 GMT
A link to our hotel for anyone interested. I really cannot recommend this hotel highly enough for anyone considering a trip to Budapest. We were lucky to enjoy lovely sunny weather with a daytime temperature around 14 degrees. There is a lot to see and do in Budapest and we felt that anything less than 5 nights would be an injustice. There is so much to do within The Corinthia Hotel without ever going outside, with a fantastic pool, jacuzzi, steam rooms, sauna and spa. The staff were friendly and nothing was too much trouble. A nice touch was a bottle of bubbly and birthday cake delivered to our room, probably because they noticed it was my birthday on the 4th when we checked in. www.corinthia.com/en/hotels/budapest?gclid=EAIaIQobChMItaa_m6231wIVOCjTCh223wp_EAAYASAAEgL4uvD_BwE |
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Post by brian2957 on Nov 11, 2017 21:49:33 GMT
Hi Steve , we'll be going to Budapest on the 4th of December . Really looking forward to it . Thanks for posting details of your visit .
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Post by ChrisB on Nov 11, 2017 21:53:44 GMT
Great photos Steve.
Just returned from a week in Prague, Budapest was my second choice for a trip, so thanks for giving me more even reason to go there myself soon.
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Post by SteveC on Nov 11, 2017 22:59:46 GMT
Brian/Chris
Thanks and glad to be of help.
Brian - One thing to be wary of is taxi drivers in Budapest!
Both 'official' and 'private' taxis look identical. They are both yellow, with black battenburg decaling. The 'official' taxis generally pool around the better class hotels and can be distinguished by the number '280' on the side. The private taxis have the word "Freelancer" in very small print near the door. They tend to gather at tourist traps, like beside the Danube river, in the hope of catching the unwary tourist, coming off one of the river cruises and looking for a taxi back to the hotel. The 'official' taxis will tell you the fare up front and take you directly to your destination, whereas the "Freelancer" will often take the roundabout route to the specified destination and overcharge!
Something to look out for!
Enjoy your trip!
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Post by DaveC on Nov 11, 2017 23:49:48 GMT
transfers to and from Budapest airport, came to £1254.00 for two of us for 5 nights.
That looks great, I would very much like to do that. You seem to have done all the research !!
How did the transfers work ? Also the Executive room for 5 nights, when I just looked it seemed higher that the whole amount you paid ? What's the secret ?
Thanks Dave
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Post by SteveC on Nov 12, 2017 9:15:21 GMT
transfers to and from Budapest airport, came to £1254.00 for two of us for 5 nights.That looks great, I would very much like to do that. You seem to have done all the research !! How did the transfers work ? Also the Executive room for 5 nights when I just looked seems higher that the whole amount you paid ? What's the secret ? Thanks Dave Hi Dave, The "deal" was booked through Voyage Prive, with a 70% discount! I selected Superior Airport transfers and we were met at Budapest Airport by a nice man driving a Mercedes, who had our name on a board. It was a 40 minute journey to our hotel. The same man met us in the hotel lobby for the return dive to the airport. All Hungarians are crazy drivers. There doesn't appear to be a speed limit and it is mandatory to talk on your mobile phone, while hugging the bumper of the vehicle in front! |
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Post by DaveC on Nov 12, 2017 9:22:41 GMT
Wow, wow, wow ! That would account for it then !
Have you used Voyage Prive before and would you use them again ?
I'm working with The New York Public Library on a complex project right now, but very early next year would be good.
Thanks Dave
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Post by brian2957 on Nov 12, 2017 9:23:28 GMT
Thanks Steve , our hotel is near the city centre , however , if we need a taxi this is good info .
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Post by SteveC on Nov 12, 2017 9:25:42 GMT
Hungary, although part of the EU, uses it's own currency, the Forint.
Exchange rate at our time of travel was 325 Forints to the Pound, so a 1000 Forint note, which was the smallest denomination I could get from a UK Post Office, was about £3.
We took £500 worth (162,000 Forints) with us as walking about money, but due to the FREE food and drink in the Executive Club, we brought 60,000 Forints back home, which I cashed in at the Post Office (keep your original receipt and they don't charge commission) for £143.32.
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Post by SteveC on Nov 12, 2017 9:28:05 GMT
Thanks Steve , our hotel is near the city centre , however , if we need a taxi this is good info . Brian, Budapest is a BIG city and taxi is the easiest and cheap way to get around. Where we had to be somewhere at a specific time, like the meet for the evening river cruise, we got a taxi from the hotel, otherwise we walked when we could. |
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Post by SteveC on Nov 12, 2017 12:27:37 GMT
Wow, wow, wow ! That would account for it then ! Have you used Voyage Prive before and would you use them again ? I'm working with The New York Public Library on a complex project right now, but very early next year would be good. Thanks Dave Dave, I haven't used Voyage Prive before, but I would definitely book with them again. There are some very good deals available! |
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