Budapest Good value
Goulash here is a soup, not a stew. Try lángos from a market stall and chimney cake for dessert. District VII has the best value dining alongside the ruin bars.
Budget travel in Hungary
What a visitor's money does in Hungary: every guide rated from very cheap to very expensive, cheapest first, then the things that cost travellers money without buying anything — the ATM, the taxi, the SIM.
Good value average across 1 guide · 5 is very cheap
Money
Hungarian Forint (HUF) · 1 EUR = 364 HUF · 1 USD = 318 HUF
Hungary uses the forint, not the euro. Paying in euros is always a bad rate. Exchange offices in the centre are fine if they display a clear buy/sell spread — avoid any that advertise zero commission without showing rates.
ATMs
Avoid: Euronet, machines in the District VII bar streets
Use: OTP Bank, K&H, Erste, Raiffeisen
Euronet dominates the tourist areas and defaults to large withdrawal amounts — check the figure before confirming.
Getting around
A short ride in Budapest: 2,500–4,000 Ft across town — middling
From the airport: Budapest airport to the centre 8,000–11,000 Ft
Level. Budapest fixes one tariff for every taxi in the city, so nobody can undercut.
City by city, cheapest first
The cost rating is this site's own, for a visitor, from the guides' authors and the corrections readers send in. The general rules — the conversion prompt, shoulder season, the airport taxi — are in budget travel tips.
