Budapest + Hungary in 3 Days on a Budget
Three days: Budapest, the Danube Bend, then Eger’s wine cellars
Three days adds a second real day trip to the 2-day plan : still one day in the city and one on the Danube Bend, but now a third day out to Eger’s wine country on a direct MÁV train. It’s a cheaper, less scripted spine than a guided multi-country package, and it nests directly into the 4-day , 5-day , 6-day , and 7-day versions if you have more time to spend.
Book these before you go
- Check Budapest hotel rates on Booking.com before your dates get more expensive.
- Book a Danube Bend day tour if you’d rather see Visegrád and Esztergom too instead of just Szentendre.
- Book a guided Eger wine tour if you’d rather not plan cellar-hopping around a train timetable.
| Day | Focus | Distance/train time | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Day 1 | Land, check in, walk the free Pest and Buda sights | - | Hotel from ~15,000 HUF/night plus a 500 HUF transit ticket |
| Day 2 | Szentendre and the Danube Bend | ~40 min, HÉV line H5 | ~800 HUF each way combined fare |
| Day 3 | Eger wine country | ~1h50-2h20, direct MÁV train | ~2,290-2,900 HUF each way |
Day 1: land, settle in, keep it cheap
Fly into Ferenc Liszt International (BUD) and take the 100E Airport Express bus to Deák Ferenc tér for a 2,500 HUF shuttle fare, 1,000 HUF if you already hold a valid transit pass. Avoid the unlicensed taxi touts in arrivals; a Főtaxi booth fare runs 10,000-13,000 HUF to the center, and reported “hyena” cab fares for the same ride run five to ten times higher. A hotel near Keleti station sets up both of the next two days well, since that’s where the Eger train leaves from. Walk the free sights this afternoon: the Fisherman’s Bastion’s lower terraces cost nothing, and the free walk up from Clark Ádám tér to Buda Castle beats paying 5,000 HUF for the funicular. The full Budapest guide and the 2-day Budapest itinerary cover the in-city sights in depth if you want more than a walking tour on day one. Decline dynamic currency conversion at any card terminal and pay in HUF.
Day 2: Szentendre and the Danube Bend
HÉV line H5 leaves Batthyány tér roughly every 20 minutes for the 40-minute ride to Szentendre. A standard BKK single ticket (500 HUF) covers you only to Békásmegyer; the onward leg needs a separate fare, commonly cited around 300 HUF (confirm the current breakdown on bkk.hu ), for a combined one-way cost near 800 HUF. Szentendre’s Old Town, cobbled streets, galleries, riverside cafes, is a short walk from the station and fills three to four hours comfortably. If you want Visegrád’s citadel and Esztergom’s basilica in the mix as well, that’s a fuller day best handled as a guided Danube Bend tour (see the booking box above); on a three-day trip, Szentendre alone keeps the day relaxed and leaves you fresh for Eger tomorrow.
Day 3: Eger’s wine cellars on a MÁV ticket
Eger sits about 130km northeast, roughly 2 hours by direct MÁV train from Keleti, though a couple of the seven daily direct services run closer to 1h50. Second-class fare lands around 2,290-2,900 HUF each way. Head straight for the Valley of the Beautiful Women, a row of wine cellars pouring Egri Bikavér, Bull’s Blood, by the glass, then walk up to the hilltop castle for its own ticketed entry. A day trip works, but the tasting slows down if you’re clock-watching for a return train, so consider a guided Eger wine tour (see the booking box above) if you’d rather not plan cellar-hopping around a timetable. Check current departures on visiteger.com or mavcsoport.hu before you commit to a return train time.
Is three days enough to see Eger properly?
It’s enough for the castle and a focused round of cellar tasting in the Valley of the Beautiful Women, but not for both at a relaxed pace on the same afternoon. Pick one focus for the day, wine or the castle, and treat the other as a reason to come back on an overnight trip.
Should you do Szentendre or Eger first?
Szentendre first. It’s the shorter, cheaper trip, and doing it on day two keeps day three free for Eger’s longer round-trip train time without a late finish stacked on top of an early one.
Buy your Eger return ticket before boarding at Keleti if you can, since the ticket hall lines run long right before the popular late-morning departures.