Our Budapest Adventure!

We are back from 5 days and 4 nights of the greatest BabyMoon anyone could have asked for.  Budapest straight up stole my heart.  I also ate some of the best food I’ve ever had in my life, and am actually afraid to step on the scale after 5 days of pure straight binge eating.

Where to Stay:

Hotel Parlament****  which is part of the Continental Group. The Continental Group also owns Palazzo Zichy, and Hotel Moments Budapest. 

Hotel Parlament is located on the Pest side of Budapest, which is the ‘fun’ and more lively side, so obviously a perfect fit for me 😉 

This is the nicest hotel we have ever stayed in and we had the most beautiful room.

Funny story, Jeremy put the wrong address in the GPS , and when we arrived at what we thought was the hotel, we were terrified because it was in a super rundown area with houses with bars on the windows.  I was like, NO CHANCE we are staying anywhere near this area.  Finally we were smart enough to check the address again, and realized we weren’t even close to the hotel. I’ve never been so relieved haha.  When we finally pulled up to the real Hotel Parlament, we were SO happy.  The staff was so friendly, the breakfasts every morning were delicious (and free!)

and the location was perfect to tour all of the best areas of Budapest without having to drive anywhere.  If you are ever in Budapest, you HAVE to stay here!

What to Eat:

Breakfast: 

I found our Hotel Parlament**** breakfast to be better than any place we went, including a Michelin Star Restaurant.  

Lunch: 

Hotel Araz (Araz Restaurant):  The Hotel itself is really cool, and located in District 7 (the Pest Broadway Area).  It was an old bath house from the 1900s that they redid, but yet still managed to keep some of the original decor.  We took a tour of the Hotel and it was gorgeous, with a cafe, infinity pool and spa, gym, and delicious restaurant.  Jeremy was brave and tried the Hungarian Specials:

Goulash Soup

Mangalitza (Traditional Hungarian Pork)

I had:

Farm Chicken with Creamy Potatoes

Both of us LOVED the lunch so much that we even asked for a picture with the Chef (who just happened to have the coolest hat on I’d ever seen)

We would definitely have come back here for dinner had we had more time, but the lunch is perfect because it is quick, has great prices, and incredible food.

Lucky 7 Burgers: Although we didn’t have time to eat here, I really wanted to check it out and have heard amazing things.  Next time we go, we will definitely make it in for lunch.

Dinner:

If you are in Budapest, you MUST eat at Es Bisztro at the Kempinski Hotel.  Firstly, the location is amazing, and right outside there are lots of high end shops, as well as little local sellers with different foods, drinks, and souvenirs.  

Jeremy again was more adventurous than I was and had:

Spring Pea Veloute with Goat Cheese Crisp

Herb Rib eye Steak. (this was the best steak he has ever had)

I opted for a much more Americanized meal:

Burrata and Heirloom Tomato for my starter

… So I got Fried Chicken Fingers and Fries. Don’t judge me.  It was amazing.

The atmosphere is really cool in Es Bisztro.  It is casual, hip, but also had live classical music playing.  A really cool vibe!

Dessert:

BITE: The closest thing I have found to Cinnabun in Europe.  It was so good, that we got 8 to go the day we left.  The workers actually had to ask us several times how many we wanted, because I’m pretty sure they’ve never seen two people ask for 8 of them before.  I don’t regret that decision at all.

What to Do:

Our absolute favourite was our Authentic Hungarian Cooking Class with Kitchen Pixie.  We were picked up at our hotel by Gabor, and taken to a beautiful building from the 1900’s.  Inside we met Marti, and for the next 5 hours we made great friends with these two, while learning to cook real Hungarian food.  I am not a huge fan of cooking, but somehow these two made it one of the most fun experiences we have had!  

Our Menu

We were supposed to be cooking….

Us and Marti

Us and Gabor

I currently hold the record for highest crepe toss at Kitchen Pixie.  I dare any of you to go and beat it!

Finished Product!

We will truly never forget this experience.  If you are in Budapest, I highly suggest doing this.  It is so amazing to sit and talk with Hungarians about their culture, and lives, and we truly felt like this was the truest Hungarian experience we could have had.  They also do Market Tours, Wine Tastings, and will also make private lunch or dinners for you and your guests.

Szechenyi Baths and Palmahaz Spa: The Szechenyi Baths are one of the most famous things to do in Budapest.  There are 15 indoor pools heated naturally from an underground well, and two giant outdoor pools.

The gorgeous building was built in 1903 and has a rich history, especially of pools, that were built specifically for aristocrats.  

Because I’m pregnant, I couldn’t go in the pools because I didn’t want to risk hurting the babe, but Jeremy had an amazing time switching from pool to pool, and trying out the many different Saunas.

The highlight for me, was the Palmahaz Spa.  They have a gorgeous relaxation room upstairs which is covered in greenery.  You almost feel like you are in a jungle.  

Here we relaxed in hammocks, and got massages together.  The whole day was truly blissful.  If you want to experience a Hungarian gem, you must go to the Szechenyi Baths and Palmahaz Spa, and ask for the tour from Palmahaz!

Silverline Cruise with Folklore Dancing: Budapest at night might be the most beautiful time.  

Jeremy and I had a blast on this cruise.  The music was beautiful, food was really good, and my favourite part (of course) was the Folklore Dancers.  I love seeing different cultures style of dance, since I grew up as a dancer.  

It was super entertaining and they even had Jeremy and I up on stage dancing at one point!  I’m sure the audience loved seeing a 6 month pregnant girl in a tight black dress and 6 inch heels bouncing around hahaha.

EUrama Tour: Your classic city tour, but with a more personal feel.  Our guide Aggie, was knowledgeable, funny, and spent 3 hours telling us all about the city and answering any questions we had.  I’d suggest doing this the first day of your trip so you know what areas you want to spend more time exploring!

At the beautiful Chain Bridge on our tour

Royal Thai Massage: Another fantastic afternoon spent relaxing.  Jeremy and I got traditional Thai massages, and it was romantic, and soothing.  They were really gentle with me and conscious of my pregnancy, and I felt like a million dollars after.

The Spa is located in a mall as well, so you can get some shopping in before you get pampered. Best of both worlds!

All in all, I give Budapest a 10/10.  Aside from a minor knee injury (which actually had me limping around for 2 days and then magically got better… so bizarre, I will tell you about it in my 23 Week Pregnant Video Diary) the trip was perfect.  I will definitely be seeing Budapest again, and hope that this inspires some of you world travellers to go visit it yourself!

Love Ash

xx