What to do in Hungary

Bird watching. Hungary is an excellent destination for bird watching (aka birding) holiday. There are wooded hills, vast fish-pond systems and grasslands, the puszta. Particularly good areas include the Kiskunsag and Hortobagy National Parks and the Aggtelek, Bukk and Zemplen Hills.

Horse riding. Vast areas of open countryside coupled with the long traditions of horsemanship make Hungary an ideal country for riding. Wide open plains in the south and forested hills in the north offer varied riding terrain.

Baths. Thermal waters abound in Hungary with over 1000 thermal springs in the country (more than 100 just in the Budapest area) many of which have been turned into baths and spas. The most famous being the Szechenyi baths in Budapest. It was completed in 1913 and built in Modern Renaissance style. This is the biggest thermal bath complex in Europe, its venue is the Budapest City Park. There are, however, hundreds of individual baths all around the country. The cave baths at Miskolc-Tapolca and the spa at Egerszalók are some nice examples. The first thermal baths were erected by the Romans more than 2000 years ago.

“Budapest History Museum” There are three major sections. The Roman Antiquities and Archaeology section (Aquincum Museum). The Medieval section (Castle Museum). And the Modern Age section (Kiscelli Museum).

“Holocaust Memorial Center” It is an interactive exhibition that shows original documents and objects from the Holocaust. There is also a library, bookshop, a coffee shop, and the Braham Information Centre. (also guided tours are available)

“House of Terror Museum” Its exhibitions commemorate the victims of the racist and communist regimes in Hungary in the 20th century. (Including those detained, interrogated, tortured or killed in the building.) It portrays the country’s relationship with Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union during their years of occupation.

“Lake Balaton” The biggest lake in Central Europe and there are numerous villages on its edges catering to tourists. It is one of the most popular holiday destinations.

Money Exchange

Euros are now accepted at most hotels and some of the restaurants and shops. Make sure you check the exchange rate though, sometimes even well-known places (like McDonald’s) will exchange at unrealistic rates.

You can use major credit cards (EuroCard, Visa) in major shops and larger restaurants, but never expect that without checking first. Small places cannot afford to handle cards. ATMs are available even in small cities, the coverage is good.

While completing any monetary transactions, it’s best to pay in forint when you can. Some restaurants and hotels charge a steep rate for euro exchange and often, due to the fluctuation in exchange rates, cost and services stated may vary drastically.

There were 284 forints to the US dollar and 319 forints to the euro. Shopping in Hungary is extremely cheap for people from the US and the euro zone.

What to buy

Apart from classical tourist souvenirs like postcards and trinkets, here are some things unique to Hungary or just hard to find elsewhere.

Cold-smoked sausages

Spices: Paprika and Hungarian Saffron

Gundel set of cheese: aged in Gundel wines or with walnut pieces or seasonings. Most easily found in 350g sets of three kinds in duty-free of Ferihegy Airport in Budapest (at least in Terminal 2), but is likely available in Gundel 1894 Food & Wine Cellar (see Pest#Eat). Keep in mind that shelf life for this cheese is only 2 months.

Wines: Tokaji, Egri Bikavér (see Liquor), red wine from Villány area etc.

Pálinka: very famous and strong brandy made from fruits.

Unicum: a herbal digestive liqueur.

Herend: luxury hand painted and gilded porcelain.

What to eat

Main courses in menus are normally HUF2,500-3,000 in touristy places in Budapest, HUF1,500-1,800 outside it, or in towns like Eger and Szentendre (March 2009).

A lunch in Budapest is HUF900-8000 per person, and half or one third of that outside Budapest. (Chinese fast food menu is around HUF500).

In restaurants, a service charge is frequently included into bill, 10% or even 12%, but this has to be clearly pointed out on the menu. If it’s not mentioned, the place has no right to include a service charge in the bill.

Even if there’s no service charge, unless the service was preposterous most Hungarians tend to leave a generous tip (10% minimum). Unlike in most western countries, tip is usually not left on the table, but rather the amount is specified to the waiting staff when you pay.

In major cities and next to the highways you can find restaurants of the major international chains such as KFC, McDonald’s, Burger King, Pizza Hut, Subway and TGI Friday’s.

Cuisine

Hungarians are quite proud of their cuisine (Magyar konyha), and most of the time not without a reason. Food are usually spicy (but not hot by general standards), and it’s tasty rather than healthy — many dishes are prepared with lard or deep-fried. The national spice is paprika, made from ground sweet bell peppers and which actually has some flavor when fresh. The national dish is, of course, goulash, but Hungarians call the thick paprika-laden stew known as goulash elsewhere by the term pörkölt and reserve the term gulyás for a lighter paprika-flavoured soup.

Meat is popular- especially pork (sertés), beef (marha) and venison (őz). Less common is lamb and mutton. The best fish in Hungary are river fish: Carp (Ponty) and Fogas (Zander), though many restaurants will serve fish from far away. Chicken (csirke) and Turkey (pulyka) and common, and you will also find game birds excellent in smarter restaurants and country areas- Pheasant (Fácán), Partridge (Fogoly) and duck (Kacsa). A typical meal will involve soup, often like a consommé (erőleves), meat with potatoes (burgonya) and a side salad, and a dessert like pancakes (palacsinta).

Paprika

Less well known in the rest of the world are paprikás csirke, chicken in paprika sauce, and halászlé, paprika fish soup often made from carp.

Goose is also quite popular in Hungary. While tourists gorge on goose liver (libamáj), still cheap by Western standards, probably the most common dish is sült libacomb, roast goose leg. Stuffed (töltött) vegetables of all kinds are also popular, and Hungarian pancakes (palacsinta), both savoury and sweet, are a treat. Common snacks include kolbász, a Hungarianized version of the Polish kielbasa sausage, and lángos, deep-fried dough with a variety of toppings (mostly sour cream, cheese and/or garlic).

A Hungarian meal is almost always — even at breakfast — accompanied by Hungarian pickles called savanyúság, literally “sourness”. These are often dubbed saláta on menus, so order a vitamin saláta if you want fresh veggies. Starch is most often served as potatoes, rice or dumplings (galuska’ or nokedli), the primary Hungarian contribution in this field is an unusual type of small couscous-like pasta called tarhonya.

It is worth to visit a “Cukrászda” if you are in Hungary. These are very popular with delicious cakes and coffee. Try the traditional Krémes (with vanila cream), Eszterházy (lots of nuts) or Somlói Galuska.

Another favorite is Lángos, it is basically deep fried bread, similar to “whales-tail or beaver-tail” but in Hungary, it can be served with any fillings imaginable. Most common is plain, with salt, garlic (fokhagyma) and soured cream (tejföl). If you do come across a Langos stand, there are usually a large number of options from pizza langos, or eggs with mayo or nutella and bananas.

A very popular vegetarian dish throughout Eastern Europe is Kaposzta Teszta (kaposhta tasteta) Cabbage with noodles. In Poland, it’s called kapusta z kluski or haluski, in the Czech Republic, it’s known as nudle s zelí, and Slovaks call it haluski. This can be a strictly vegetarian dish, sometimes with mushrooms. This side dish or main-course offering holds up well on a buffet table.

Vegetarian food

Vegetarians and Vegans will have about as much ease eating out as in any other western country. Budapest is not a problem, as there is a wide variety of restaurants to choose from, but in an ordinary Hungarian restaurant the non-meat mains on the menu are pretty much limited to rántott sajt (fried cheese) and gombafejek rántva (fried mushrooms).

However, in recent years, Italian food has become a lot more popular, so as long as you don’t mind a pasta heavy diet as a vegetarian you will find a wider choice.

If one self-caters from supermarkets or local shops and markets, however, the selection of fruits and vegetables is quite good, especially in summer. Hungarian peaches and apricots are delicious (buy from farmers at local markets).

There are plenty of vegetarian and vegan restaurants, and a lot of health food stores that offer all sorts of vegetarian/vegan products (including cosmetics). Regular stores like Groby among other brands sell everything from vegan sausages to mayonnaise.

Overall, apply the same rules as you do at home, and you should be well fed.