Image by András Nagy

Every once in a while you may feel like you want to get out of the city, not too far, just to feel the green love of Mother Nature. Although Buda is greener with all its hills, the Pest side also has a forest to discover – Farkaserdő.

While the name suggests this forest would be the home of wolves, I haven’t met any yet. But there is a variety of tree and forest types ranging from a dark oak forest to a clear, mixed poplar and pine park forest. On the Western side of the forest there is a swampy open area, a nature reserve which you can cross using the network of narrow paths.

Geographically this side of the city belongs to the Pest plain and is built on sand. You can explore all the original natural features of a sandy plain here without having to travel far away.

The forest is just the right place for running, biking, it has a little technical track for mountain bikers (and there’s also a bike park nearby, at the crossing of Farkaserdő and Óceánárok streets). In late spring I usually come here to pick some elderflowers and acacia flowers, put them in water for a few days and they make a wonderful drink. If the weather allows, you can use the fireplaces available for grilling.

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Farkaserdő | Relaxing | Free
Farkaserdő utca | Outer Pest
24 hours daily

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Budapest

Image by Eszter Szilva

A beer garden during spring and summer and an ice rink in the cold months, Jégkert tailors itself to the seasonal needs. This spot is located just opposite Mamut shopping centre in Buda but it’s completely hidden behind a bus station and a restaurant.

Jégkert is a regular ice skating rink with a roofed rink, dressing rooms and, of course, mulled wine. It’s small and not as impressive as Budapest’s main ice skating rink in Városliget, but that’s precisely its charm (by the way, the famous Városliget one is supposed to reopen this winter after a three-year-long renovation!)

I suggest taking a look at the schedule whether the rink is open to the public. Jégkert is home for children hockey teams as well so you might come across a bunch of kindergarten hockey players. Most of the time, early afternoons are free, and you’re free to skate during the whole weekend. It’s possible to rent skates as well. The opening time is flexible: on weekends you can ride your skate as late as two o’ clock in the evening.

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Jégkert | Relaxing | Entrance adults HUF 1250
Széna tér | Central Buda | +36703352553
07:00 – 00:00 daily

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Budapest

Image by Szilva Eszter

Just a corner from busy Múzeum street, the noise of the traffic is suddenly replaced by a happy mix of children’s laughter and clatter. It comes from Károlyi kert, one of the hidden parks of downtown Budapest quite similar to the city garden of Honvéd tér.

This wonderfully kept park has two large groups of regular guests who live side by side without any quarrels. Kids coming from the nearby schools or with their parents enjoy the playgrounds while university students take the benches. Located in the vicinity of the art and law faculties of ELTE university, students often arrive here to breathe some fresh air between the lectures. When I studied at ELTE, I often bought take-out lunch the nearby organic shop and buffet and ate it sitting here.

The park used to be a garden of the neighboring Károlyi palace, now housing The Museum of Literature Petőfi, until it was turned into a public park in the thirties. I was happy to discover that recently, a nice café and vine bar opened at one of the park’s corner, which installed a little terrace in directly at the entrance of the park. It’s nice to continue hanging out there after Károlyi kert closes. Every day strictly at sunset.

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Károlyi kert | Relaxing | Free
Károlyi Mihály utca 16. | Central Pest
Daily from 08.00

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Budapest

Image by Eszter Szilva

For me, one of the best ways of discovering a city is riding a bike on its streets. Recently, Budapest’s biking culture has developed a lot, there are more and more cyclists each year and although the bike lane situation is still far from perfect, the number of cycle paths and lanes have grown significantly. My favorite route is cycling along the Danube from Árpád bridge to Szabadság bridge on the Buda side. This is a designated cycle path (however, shared with pedestrians sometimes), so I can recommend it also for those who are not experienced city bikers.

I like this route because during this approximately seven-kilometer long trip I get a wonderful glimpse of Budapest. I especially like the impressive line of the Danube bridges, each one different but beautiful. After Árpád bridge, first I pass Margit bridge across the new bike tunnel. Arriving to Battyhány square, I can enjoy the nicest panorama of the Parliament. On my other side I already see the Buda Castle and Lánchíd bridge ahead of me. After passing the more modern Erzsébet bridge the route leads to the recently renovated Szabadság bridge next to famous bathes like Rudas and Gellért.

Biking is also good because you can stop whenever you want. There are several nice cafés or restaurants along the route, for example Platán next to Erzsébet bridge, which has a cozy terrace under a huge tree.

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Biking along Danube | Relaxing
Budai alsó rakpart | Central Buda
24 hours daily

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Budapest

Image by Miklos Zsamboki

Rudas Ivócsarnok (“Drinking Hall”) is a place where you can drink very healthy thermal water that comes out of the ground hot.

Located near Rudas, one of Budapest’s thermal baths, the hall is a small, single-room construction where you can often see old ladies and gentlemen waiting for their turn with empty bottles in hand. Inside, you pay at the register to the right, then take your slip of paper to a stand where hot and smelly water is bubbling out of three taps. These are coming directly from three subterranean hot springs, and you can either get a half-liter mug for 30 Forints, or fill your own empty bottle for similar, ridiculously low prices.

Now, all three types of spring water are warm, and the one with high sulfur content also smells like eggs, so it’s not something you probably want to drink to cool yourself down on a blistering summer day. Instead, it’s what you drink if you’re health-conscious and wish to prevent any one of a good dozen ailments from rheumatism to high blood pressure.

The Hall is a bit hard to find. First you should get to the Buda side of Erzsébet bridge (the closest tram stop is Döbrentei tér, or you could walk across from Pest), then look for the entrance on the edge of a wide, circular open-air area, surrounded on several sides by the elevated motorway that leads up onto the bridge.

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Ivócsarnok | Relaxing | Mug of thermal water HUF 30.00
Erzsébet híd (Buda end) | Central Buda
Mon, Wed & Fri 11:00 – 18:00, Tue, Thu 07:00 – 14:00

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Budapest

Image by András Nagy

Right behind the back of Károlyi Gardens lies another green spot in the heart of the city: the garden of Károlyi Palace. The building hosts PIM i.e. Petőfi Literature Museum and also offers the chance for a quiet lunch at Károlyi Restaurant.

So there is culture, gastronomy and chilling, all in one. And one more important thing: no “keep off the grass” signs. Very well, the grass is for chillin’, let the people use it. After walking all day there’s nothing better than sitting in the middle of a green field. Your mom lied to you, grass stains are cool.

You can find the entrance to the garden on Károlyi Mihály street (yet another Károlyi, it’s all about this family) which is part of the new main street project in the 5. district.

I find this project really cool, it looks like the local government is trying to create more livable public space, at least between Kálvin square and Szabadság square. Less cars, wider sidewalks, fountains – I hope the rest of downtown will follow suit.

Until then, let’s enjoy what we have here.

Check out some photos.

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PIM garden | Relaxing | Free
V., Károlyi Mihály utca 16. | Central Pest
10:00 – 22:00 daily

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Budapest

Image by András Nagy

Gang is a German loanword in Hungarian meaning the open corridor that can be found in most of the houses in downtown Budapest. The typical „gang house” was built from the second half of the 19th century to the 1920s-30s and originally served as an apartment building with big flats.

Communist times turned the few big apartments into several smaller ones sometimes resulting in flats without toilets. So people had to visit the common WC at the end of the corridor. These times are (almost) over, what’s left are the flats with their entrance door opening to the inner courtyards.

Some communities care more about these interesting yards, they have removed the clinkers to reveal the soil and plant flowers, lay it down with grass, even create a little kitchen-garden for the residents. But even if the tenants neglect the state of the premises, there is a type of tree that grows tall even in the crack of the wall and could be the symbol of urban survival: sumac.

Walk around in downtown, even further to the outskirts and carefully walk in if you see an open door. I promise, you’ll find real gems inside.

Photos

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Inner courtyards | Art & culture, Relaxing | Free
Central Pest | Central Pest
24 hours daily

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Budapest

Image by András Nagy

Wekerle Estate is a calm, green island in the rushing city, the living example of the garden city movement, with the added spice of Károly Kós‘s “Transsylvanian style”. Some of Budapest’s biggest roads frame the area, but heavy traffic luckily avoids these neat streets.

The end of the 19th century saw a boom in the number of Budapest residents. Housing developments could not keep up with population trends, thus the mayor, István Bárczy created a concept together with the architect Róbert Fleischl to build a separate estate for those in need. Enjoying the support of prime minister Sándor Wekerle, the project was carried out from 1908 to 1925 resulting in the construction of 4412 new apartments. In a few decades the city incorporated the estate, still, the rural atmosphere has been preserved until today.

Lots of trees (50,000 were planted during the constructions), small gardens, beautiful architecture – it is easy to fall in love with the place. Architecturally the area is very compact and integral, yet the buildings don’t look the same. Those were the good old days, when state intervention meant “getting things done properly”. I wish today’s developments would take Wekerle as an example.

Once it counted as the “faraway outskirts”, now it is pretty close to the city center with good transport connections. And you thought you actually had to move out of the city to live in a village?

Check out more photos here.

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Wekerle Estate | Art & culture, Relaxing | Free
Kós Károly tér | Outer Pest
24 hours daily

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Budapest

Image by András Nagy

Whatever signs and parents say, playgrounds are not only for children. Your waist might be a bit too wide for the slide or the swing but does playtime end if you have a grown-up body? Definitely not. Trying out toys, enjoying the sunlight or the green shades under the chestnut trees are serious matters that kids shouldn’t deal with.

There’s this small alley that connects Városligeti fasor with Benczúr utca where the houses encircle a park trapped in a cage. Many parks in the city are surrounded by fences like this e.g. Szent István park or Károlyi Kert, probably to prevent hooligans and homeless people from entering during the night. Makes sense but we don’t care about the sense of it, do we? At least I’m more upset when I face a closed park gate.

The playground is supposed to be open from 07:00 to 19:00 but I didn’t find it closed later in the evening so it’s worth a try, playgrounds without children are much better anyway. (If you think likewise and you’re looking for some chilling, I suggest to avoid the playground in the afternoon hours.)

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Benczúr köz playground | Relaxing | Free
Benczúr köz | Outer Pest
07:00 – 19:00 daily

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Budapest

Image by András Nagy

Just nearby the Keleti Station you’ll find the biggest park of downtown Budapest but don’t be surprised if you find some tombs there too – it is a cemetery after all. I wouldn’t be exaggerating if I compared it to Pere Lachaise in Paris – a spacey, green island where amongst thousands of others the great men of Hungarian history are buried. The cemetery was established in 1847 and officially opened on the 1st of April 1849. Opening times change every month, however, if you go between 07.30 and 17.00 it’ll be open in all seasons.

No wonder it is called a ‘garden’ – the first time I visited the place I was really surprised to find monuments, trees and green fields rather than tombs. Check out some photos here. Such a calm park, and although some might find it odd, I like to hang out there, walk around, sit on a bench contemplating or even enjoying the sun. The cemetery even features a museum that exhibits mourning and burial accessories.

Best time of the year to visit the cemetery is spring or autumn, when nature is at its best to provide beautiful scenery for a long, quiet walk: either harsh green with the colourful spots of blooming trees and flowers or the decadence and last dance of falling leaves. Beauty, not grief makes you cry.

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Fiumei Road Cemetery Garden | Art & culture, Relaxing | Free
Fiumei út 16 | Outer Pest | +3613235100
07:30 – 17:00 daily

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Budapest