Bratislava, Vienna, Budapest!

Four of a kind

hey guys,

Myself and my g.friend are heading over to eastern europe probably the end of Oct this year for 5/6 days. We want to visit the above three cities. We've never been to eastern europe before so we don't know what to expect. We'll do the backpackers thing and stay in hostels etc..rather than hauling a suitcase from city to city.

What do ye think of the 3 cities above? Would 6 days be enough to get a feel/flavour of the 3 or would it be too much/little?

What requirements would be need for travelling around/between these cities..in the form of visas(if any) etc...

I've heard alot both good and bad about Bratislava, Budapest and Vienna. How cheap/expensive are they for accomodation,food,drink etc...

Any info would be greatly appreciated.

cheers in advance.

Coillte_Bhoy

Gang of us heading to Bratislava via Budapest for the Ireland match in a couple of weeks. I'll post when i get back.

Four of a kind

cheers bud.

P. Breathnach

You won't be going to Eastern Europe. The people of Vienna and Budapest (Prague, too) regard themselves as living in Central Europe.

You could fill six days with either Vienna or Budapest and still leave things undone. Both cities have good buildings and look like what they were: the major cities of an empire that lasted into the early years of the twentieth century.

Vienna has great museums and art galleries, the people are polite, prices are not too bad (but not very good either). I don't find much of a buzz there. Cool and a bit dignified, perhaps middle-aged in style.

Budapest has its high culture also, but less of it. Hungarian is an impossible language. I like the people better: they are more friendly. Prices are generally lower -- and can be a lot lower if you need to work at stretching your budget. I could list plenty of good things to see and do. Give me half an excuse, and I'll go there again. Five visits, and I'm still not done with it.

Bratislava is a one-day (or even half-day) visit: see the old town and the castle, have a good cheap meal, and that's just about it. It's close to Vienna, so you could make it a side-trip.

mountaingoat

Hi Four of a Kind,
I can only speak about Budapest, which I visited last winter and loved it. Very cheap and beautiful - not the poor eastern europe I'd expected.

As all countries are in the EU there should be no visas needed just your passport. You could easily spend 6 days in Budapest. Ryanair are flying there now so check them out. Accommodation is very cheap, so you could rent an apartment for about €30/night, which is almost as cheap as a hostel and they are in great locations. Check out budapestlets.com.

If you do nothing else in Budapest, go to the baths. They are amazing. Széchenyi is the best, it is in a park and has some outdoor baths. Architecture is beautiful everywhere in the city. The parliament building is my favorite building in the world, bridges over the wide Danube are amazing too. Also, there is lots of old fashioned (and modern) trams. We got a 3 day ticket so we didn't have to worry about paying each time - it was very cheap. There is an old tram that goes along the river - do that. If you are feeling adventerous try caving http://absolutetours.com/tours/regularly-scheduled-tours/caving-tours.html.

Night life is bit hit or miss. Definitely more suited to a couple sort of holiday. There are some nice bars, but no area with lots of bars - they all seem to be spread out. Lots of sleazy bars also, but some good ones too. Spend your evenings in the baths and go to a nice restaurant.

Have fun and tell us about your experience.

Four of a kind

good info guys cheers. I was thinking about doing the backpackers thing....and not bothering with a suitcase. Whats yer thoughts about going with a rucksack as opposed to a suitcase? Would it be much hassle bringing a rucksack if I was to hop from city to city etc...?? I've only ever gone foreign with a suitcase and have no experience living outa a rucksack!

missmatty

The rucksack thing is grand if you don't book accomodation that's miles away from city centre etc. Just plan ahead and note buses/trams to get there and you'll be fine.

A few years ago we did those three cities while inter-railing.
One day in Bratislava is plenty, the castle is nice and to wander and go sit by the river. It was dirt cheap when i was there but that was 2003.

Budapest and Vienna are big, i would say 3 days Budapest and 2 days Vienna. As was inter-railing I didn't get to see alot of each city but I'm going back to Budapest in October for 4 days so can't wait! There is a lot to do there.

As someone else said, I thought Vienna was a little middle-aged in it's atmosphere but I'd like to return to have another look as we missed a lot of it. Btw it's supposed to have fabulous christmas markets but that's a bit off-topic.