Explore the Hidden Gems of Budapest

This district, also known as the Palace District, is quickly becoming a hotbed of city life as many people grow increasingly tired of the tourist-filled Jewish district. Named after many winter palaces built by nobilities of the past, it is not as uninviting as you may think.

 

Firstly, it is a place dear to the hearts of many students as more than five student accommodations in Budapest found their home nearby. This, in turn, attracted businesses like restaurants and cafés, for example, Lumen café, Al Dente, or Padron and many more.

 

Part of the district is also the Rákóczi Market which sees many local foods mainly sold to residents. This part of the city has also avoided ample attention from tourists so far, so it presents an excellent opportunity for exploring something new.

The fact that this place is called Mosquito Island by some probably tells you a lot about the general attitude of locals towards this place. Much of it is overgrown industrial architecture and abandoned kiosks with a few cafés like Kabin or the Sziget Sörkert that set up their shops by the Danube to enjoy the waterfront.

 

This place won’t be for everyone for sure, but only a few parts of Budapest give off that strange nostalgic and melancholic vibe of an abandoned place. Lovers of urban spelunking, this place is for you.

Béla Boulevard on the Buda side of the city, the Bartók Béla Boulevard, or BBB as it is called, is both a small historical area of Budapest and a name of a rejuvenation project that stands behind the recent opening up of this district to others. Although this place is no bigger than a single street, it is chock full of galleries, cafés, and restaurants that serves Spanish, Polish, or even Eastern foods.

 

The group behind the rejuvenation project often organises events and art exhibitions, so there are lots to see and enjoy. If you want to experience what everyday life looks like without the disturbance from tourists, this is where you’ll find it.

 

If you’re expecting a small train set or even child-sized trains for kids, you’d be wrong. This is an entire stretch of train tracks (about eleven kilometres) that runs through the beautiful parts of the Buda Hills and is entirely operated by kids between the ages of ten and fourteen (apart from actually driving the train).

 

This relic of the Communist-allied government in Hungary, which launched the project to motivate kids to work, has since been a great place for kids to find community, go to summer camps together, and see their contribution impact on real lives. You can buy a day pass (cash only) that will let you hop on and off on the many stops covering the Children’s Railway Museum, the Elizabeth Lookout Tower with the Zugliget chairlift nearby, the Normafa park, and ends with the panoramic Széchenyi Hill.

 

The Unicum Museum is dedicated to the production and the mysterious origin of the alcohol of the same name. Invented some 225 years ago, the drink has more than forty herbs that together make up the unique taste – though the exact ratio is a closely guarded secret by the Zwack family.

 

You can go on a guided tour, complete with an audio guide in six languages, and learn about the exciting history behind Unicum as a friendly, low-key afternoon activity and still have enough time to meet friends in the evening.

Memento Park is truly a unique place. After 1989, Hungary sought to cleanse itself of the many communist memorabilia it has amassed over the years. The statues, anthems, and small trinkets all found their place in the Memento Park.

 

Find Stalin’s boots next to Lenin and Marx, listen to socialist propaganda songs and buy souvenirs resembling items from the era. At the same time, you learn a bit about the country’s history and culture, which ended not even a generation ago.