Budapest, (Vienna) & Prague

[LesClaypool]

So for several reasons, the trip that my daughter and I were planning to Reykjavik & Copenhagen isn't going to pan out. We're sort of bummed about it, but instead we're now excitedly looking at Budapest and Prague (for sure) and possibly Vienna.

*The trip will be Friday, November 18th - Saturday, November 26th*

Option 1: Budapest & Prague
Fri - overnight flight
Sat - arrive in Budapest at 3:35pm local time. Rest a bit and then head out to dinner
Sun - Budapest
Mon - Budapest
Tue - rent a car and leisurely drive to Prague (~6 hours) arrive at dinner time in Prague.
Wed - Prague
Thu - Prague
Fri - leave Prague in the morning and drive back (maybe a different way) to Budapest for the night.
Sat - Flight home from Budapest at 6am (ouch!)

I don't necessarily love that 2 days will largely be spent in the car, but I looked at taking a train to Prague from Budapest, and the cost for 2 people, round-trip was way more than renting a car for that duration. That and the train takes the same 6 hours, so I'm pretty sold on the car rental. There aren't any cheap Ryanair sort of direct flights between the two cities either. Ends up costing ~$400 and they aren't even nonstop flights, so that option is out. Plus I think it might actually be a cool experience driving through the Hungarian and Czech countryside. Anyone ever made that drive?

Option 2: Budapest, Vienna, Prague
Friday - overnight flight
Saturday - arrive in Budapest at 3:35pm local time. Rest and then head out to dinner
Sunday - Budapest
Monday - Budapest
Tuesday - up early and drive (~3 hours) to Vienna. Arrive around lunchtime and explore the city all day/night.
Wednesday - Vienna in the AM thru lunch time, then drive (~4 hours) on to Prague, arriving around dinner time.
Thursday - Prague
Friday - Prague through early afternoon, then drive the 6 hours back to Budapest in time for bed
Saturday - Flight home from Budapest at 6am

This second option feels pretty hurried to me, but since this will be her first international trip, I really like that she may get to see 3 great Eastern European cities instead of just 2.

Based on the other recent Budapest thread, we're pretty confident that we want Budapest to be the main destination, regardless of how we stack Prague and/or Vienna. What do you guys think about those two options? For those that have been to any of these 3 cities, what would you do?

 

[FreeFlyNole]

Did you see the other Budapest thread? It's an awesome city, check out that thread. Bring your bathing suit. Check out the thermal baths.

Széchenyi Thermal Bath
Rudas
Gellért Thermal Bath

Go to the Buda castle and take a tour.

In Prague, stay near the bridge or the Prague Castle.

How old is your daughter? I loved Prague, I spent a whole day in the castle and the beer there is the best in the world. It's unpasturized and awesome. I could and have drank beer all day there.

I also love the food in both cities, they eat a lot of pork and a lot of gravies with heavy bread dumplings. It's a lot like southern comfort food. It's perfect beer drinking food.

 

[Funk#49]

Have you looked at booking a private driver to take you from Budapest to Prague? there are quite a few and I'm trying to track one down that I've used before. I liked the idea of being able to stop in cities along the way and drinking/relaxing so it was worth it to me to kick back and pay someone else to drive.

My wife and I visited Prague this past December and we loved it. On that trip we went to Amsterdam, Brugge, Prague, and Berlin. Prague was the only one of those four cities that we will plan on going to again in the future. Berlin was awesome with its history but we saw everything there was to see in that regard.

Vienna is beautiful but I didn't feel very welcome there. I just got a weird vibe from many of the people that we interacted with. Kind of strange actually.

 

[LesClaypool]

I did see the other Budapest thread. It's pretty much what made me want to change our trip to include it as a destination. You guys made it sound awesome!

My daughter's 15 (no pics) and she's a vegan. I've done some checking and both cities (Budapest & Prague) have a fair amount of vegan options...we'll probably just have to walk or cab a lot to get to them. (No more Uber in Budapest - bummer! Prague appears to still have it though.)

Haven't checked into food options in Vienna yet, but if we go there it will only be for about 36 hours so not too worried about the food there.

As for me, in Budapest and Prague, I'll definitely be indulging in the fare you've raved about!

 

[LesClaypool]

Have you looked at booking a private driver to take you from Budapest to Prague? there are quite a few and I'm trying to track one down that I've used before. I liked the idea of being able to stop in cities along the way and drinking/relaxing so it was worth it to me to kick back and pay someone else to drive.

i haven't but that's a great idea. Never even thought about it as an option. Thanks for the tip. I'll definitely look into it.

 

[fsUTampa]

Beer (and really good beer at that) is literally cheaper than tap water in Prague. Most of the time it was 500mL for roughly 50cz (slightly more than $2). Tap water was 50-80cz. And I never had a bad beer there, while trying just about every kind available!

 

[Lemon Thrower]

look into flying in and out of Wien, it likely will be cheaper. BUD has huge departure taxes, like $200 a head. private driver sounds crazy but its probably a push with a rental. one-way rentals are usually more, or if you keep the car have to worry about parking and in central prague its pedestrian only.

I would consider a linear itinerary - fly into Bud, train to Wien, train to Prague, fly home. At a minimum, you'll save 6 hours of your vacation and will need the car less. I would plan 3 nts in each city if you can swing it.

you can also check a Hungarian discount airline Wizz air.

In Budapest, check our a Marriott-flagged boutique hotel called the Boscolo Palace. Its over the top opulent and there are a lot of suites so you have a good chance for a free upgrade. Its comparable in price to a regular marriott, about 100 off season 150 high season. If you don't stay there, at least take her to their restaurant, the New York Cafe, for breakfast or a coffee. Google for pics.

In Vienna, we stayed at the Renaissance Imperial riding school for less 89 during the season. Take you daughter to the opera house (tour it at least if you can't catch a performance) and the Schonbrun Palace (on the level of Versaiile). In Prague, take her to a performance at the Estates Theater (opera), the Municipal hall, or the Philharmonic. These are world class venues and bargain prices in prague. I'm cool with subways so we stayed at a Courtyard for 40 bucks in prague that was across from a shopping mall with some decent quick restaurnts, a drug store, and grocer. very convenient. soneone recommended staying near the bridge/oldtown but that is tourist grand central and you'll get tired of it quick.

In Vienna, also take her to the Prater amusement park which is more like a state fair carnival here but is worth going to because its a little different from the U.S.

Budapest is a good place to buy lace table cloths or women's dresses or purses as a souvenir. If you are there on a Sat., go to one of the flea markets rather than the Grand Hall Market (name?) near the river - you'll have better selection and prices. In prague, there are crystal and glassware shops all over the city and that is a good souvenir for your daughter.

 

[LesClaypool]

Appreciate the tips, Lemon, but believe it or not, the round-trip flight to Budapest (out of ATL) is only $700/person. I can't believe how good of a deal that is! (I couldn't find "Wien" listed as an airport on Google Flights.) I definitely looked at flying into Budapest and out of Prague, but it's more like $1,000 person. Worth considering, for sure.

*I see that WIEN is Vienna now. D'oh! LOL

The car rental for 4 days is $200. I know gas is super expensive in Europe but the train tix by contrast, round-trip, were well over $400. So it's no contest there. It's $25/night to park at the hotel I'm going to book in Prague. I'm thinking that I'll just leave the car there the whole time until we drive back to Budapest.

I looked into hiring a private driver. Everything I found appears to ~$500 one-way! So that option, while sounding awesome, is out.

The thing I can't decide is whether or not to try and cram in Vienna for a day and a half, or have a much more leisurely pace while taking in Budapest and Prague, fully.

 

[FSUTribe76]

Appreciate the tips, Lemon, but believe it or not, the round-trip flight to Budapest (out of ATL) is only $700/person. I can't believe how good of a deal that is! (I couldn't find "Wien" listed as an airport on Google Flights.) I definitely looked at flying into Budapest and out of Prague, but it's more like $1,000 person. Worth considering, for sure.

*I see that WIEN is Vienna now. D'oh! LOL

The car rental for 4 days is $200. I know gas is super expensive in Europe but the train tix by contrast, round-trip, were well over $400. So it's no contest there. It's $25/night to park at the hotel I'm going to book in Prague. I'm thinking that I'll just leave the car there the whole time until we drive back to Budapest.

I looked into hiring a private driver. Everything I found appears to ~$500 one-way! So that option, while sounding awesome, is out.

The thing I can't decide is whether or not to try and cram in Vienna for a day and a half, or have a much more leisurely pace while taking in Budapest and Prague, fully.

Flights seem to be cheap at the moment. I just got round trip tickets from Tally to LAX for $305 on American (Delta was $400). I'm pretty sure I paid $600 or so for them two years ago.

 

[Lemon Thrower]

I would do 2 nts in each city, and a third in Budapest if you have extra time.

if you are driving, stopping in Vienna breaks up the drive which is nice. although Vienna is expensive for food and entertainment compared to Budapest and Prague.

also, the non-linear itinerary means you have to return to Budapest, which will cost you time and money. price out flying into Budapest and home from Prague. Its more, but it will save you a 6 hour drive, a $200 car rental, and maybe $100 is gas.

 

[EconSean]

Is it prohibitively more expensive to fly into Budapest, but leave from Prague or Vienna? I've been fortunate enough to go to Europe quite a few times, and I've found that multistop itineraries are usually not that much more expensive (though of course you do have to factor in getting to the other city, but you're already planning to do that anyway, it seems).

 

[LesClaypool]

It's $650 more for both of us to fly out of Prague on the way home.

It's already an expensive trip, so while $650 isn't itself a lot of money, ANOTHER $650 is a lot to me, all things considered.

We'd still have to take the train to Prague too, which was more expensive, one-way, then renting a car is, so there's some additional cost there too.

 

[GE Nole]

First of all, your trip will be a blast regardless, so no wrong choices.

I would do what others suggested and fly into Budapest and out of Prague. Or visa versa. That way you only have to drive one way and avoid the parking costs.

Vienna is incredible...but really expensive and a crap ton to see. I would probably opt for maximizing your time in Budapest and Prague, then doing Vienna another time with Munich or Innsbruck and Salzberg.

Budapest could be an entire day spent at the baths--they are that good.

 

[GE Nole]

It's $650 more for both of us to fly out of Prague on the way home.

It's already an expensive trip, so while $650 isn't itself a lot of money, ANOTHER $650 is a lot to me, all things considered.

We'd still have to take the train to Prague too, which was more expensive, one-way, then renting a car is, so there's some additional cost there too.

So, $650 minus the gas to get back to Budapest, minus the payment for parking, minus the extra days of rental. Looking like maybe an extra $400 to get to spend a lot more time in either Prague or Budapest? Seems worth it to me, but I totally get that everyone's budget ends somewhere.

 

[LesClaypool]

GE & Lemon:

You're probably right, and I'll probably rue the day I decided to go the rental route. LOL - seriously, I'm sure I will.

But alas, I booked the trip today and I'm so glad it's done. Now we only have to wait 85 days to actually go!

 

[GE Nole]

GE & Lemon:

You're probably right, and I'll probably rue the day I decided to go the rental route. LOL - seriously, I'm sure I will.

But alas, I booked the trip today and I'm so glad it's done. Now we only have to wait 85 days to actually go!

You'll have a blast! Pack your bathing suits for sure--or do like me and purchase one from Gellert...of course their idea of a men's bathing suit is a bit different than ours.

Did you pick the two city or three city itinerary?

 

[Lemon Thrower]

it shouldn't cost that much more to fly from prague rather than budapest, in fact it should be cheaper. try chaning you dates. google flights has a great calendar feature where you can see the prices by changing your dates. Also, consider taking easyjet from Prague to london, amsterdam, or paris, and then taking your U.S. carrier home from there; reason to do this is there are more flights from those gateway cities, and therefore likely to be cheaper. However, one thing to look out for is easyjet tends to fly to secondary airports, like London Luton, rather than Heathrow, so you need time and transport to connect. Still, it would be easier than a 6 hour drive back to Budapest.

I also agree with GE that Vienna is expensive and there is a lot to see. But you could probably get a hotel for under $100 and while it is expensive you don't have to go crazy. take public transport and eat at grocery stores. The one reason to go even if you only give it 1 night is because it will break up your 6 hour drive.

 

[LesClaypool]

it shouldn't cost that much more to fly from prague rather than budapest, in fact it should be cheaper. try chaning you dates. google flights has a great calendar feature where you can see the prices by changing your dates.

Trust me. I've spent more time on Google Flights over the past few days than you can imagine. I tried every doable combination and permutation of dates and airports. By far the best deal was flying round-trip ATL-BUD. Hungary, or Budapest proper, must be subsidizing the flights. I don't know. Who's heard of flying round-trip to Eastern Europe for $700 though. That's a steal.

The other great deal I found was flying JAX-DUB. Ireland must be subsidizing their flights too b/c that flight was even cheaper. I just got back from Ireland in June though, and my daughter had no interest in going there, so that was never really a serious contender.

 

[LesClaypool]

You'll have a blast! Pack your bathing suits for sure--or do like me and purchase one from Gellert...of course their idea of a men's bathing suit is a bit different than ours. LOL

Did you pick the two city or three city itinerary?

After talking about it more with my daughter, I think we're going to elect for the slower-paced, 2-city itinerary, where we get to take in both of the cities more fully, as opposed to hopping in the car every other day to make it to all 3. That said, we don't really have to commit to that decision any time soon, so that may change as we get closer to traveling.

I agree with Lemon though that the trip to Vienna would be nice, just to break up the drive. But this trip is for my daughter, so I wanted her to have the final say on the itinerary.

I think we'll (or at least I'll) come back one day to do a more proper Austria/Germany/Switzerland trip. So hopefully I'll still get to see Vienna one day, if we don't end up there on this trip.

 

[GE Nole]

After talking about it more with my daughter, I think we're going to elect for the slower-paced, 2-city itinerary, where we get to take in both of the cities more fully, as opposed to hopping in the car every other day to make it to all 3. That said, we don't really have to commit to that decision any time soon, so that may change as we get closer to traveling.

I agree with Lemon though that the trip to Vienna would be nice, just to break up the drive. But this trip is for my daughter, so I wanted her to have the final say on the itinerary.

I think we'll (or at least I'll) come back one day to do a more proper Austria/Germany/Switzerland trip. So hopefully I'll still get to see Vienna one day, if we don't end up there on this trip.

Sounds good. You're a good dad.

You should check out when the Prague Christmas Market opens. Unfortunately I think you'll just miss it (like Nov. 28 or something) but maybe you'll get lucky.

 

[Lemon Thrower]

if you get to Dublin, then you can use Ryanair. So fly from Jax to Dublin, then Ryanair to Budapest for $50 one way, drive to Vienna, drive to Prague, then Prague to Dublin on Ryanair for another $50.

 

[NoleMoreTears]

All 3 are enjoyable places. Prague has changed a lot since I first went in 1996. It's a bit too touristy for me now.

I'd highly recommend Krakow Poland as a possible replacement. It's also getting tourists but feels more authentic than Prague. Vienna has the least character of the 3 but is still very nice.

 

[Lemon Thrower]

All 3 are enjoyable places. Prague has changed a lot since I first went in 1996. It's a bit too touristy for me now.

I'd highly recommend Krakow Poland as a possible replacement. It's also getting tourists but feels more authentic than Prague. Vienna has the least character of the 3 but is still very nice.

+1 about Prague. Another one to check out is Llubjiana. Its very smaller but the same architect from Vienna and Lake Bled and the Postojna and Skocjan caves are nearby

 

[MIKE_G]

I'd highly recommend Krakow Poland as a possible replacement. It's also getting tourists but feels more authentic than Prague.

I'd go just to see all the ponies.