Budapest + Hungary in 6 Days on a Budget
Six days: the Danube Bend, Eger, Balaton, Gödöllő, and Vienna
Six days adds an international hop to the 5-day plan : a Railjet ride to Vienna on top of the Danube Bend, Eger, Balaton, and Gödöllő. Same spine as the shorter versions, one more day trip stacked on, and it extends into the 7-day plan or drops back to 5 , 4 , 3 , or 2 days using the same spine.
Book these before you go
- Check Budapest hotel rates on Booking.com for a 6-night stay before rates climb.
- Book a Danube Bend day tour if you want Visegrád and Esztergom folded into the Szentendre day.
- Book a guided Eger wine tour if you’d rather not plan cellar-hopping around a train timetable.
- Book your Vienna Railjet ticket at least a few days ahead; advance fares run €12-19 versus roughly €32 walk-up on the day.
| 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 4 | Lake Balaton (Siófok, June-August only) | ~1.5h, MÁV from Déli | ~2,000-3,000 HUF each way |
| Day 5 | Gödöllő Palace | ~30-45 min, train or HÉV H8 | a small regional fare, confirm at the station |
| Day 6 | Vienna, Austria | ~2h16-2h37, Railjet | ~€12-19 booked ahead, up to ~€32 walk-up |
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, 2,500 HUF one-way, 1,000 HUF with a valid transit pass. Skip the arrivals-hall taxi touts; a Főtaxi booth fare runs 10,000-13,000 HUF, versus reported “hyena” cab fares five to ten times higher. A hotel near Keleti works well across this trip, since it’s your departure point most mornings. Walk the free sights this afternoon, the Fisherman’s Bastion’s lower terraces and the Clark Ádám tér walk-up to Buda Castle both cost nothing. The full Budapest guide and the 2-day Budapest itinerary cover the city in depth. 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. A 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. Book a Danube Bend day tour (see the booking box above) instead if you want Visegrád and Esztergom in the same day.
Day 3: Eger’s wine cellars
Eger sits about 130km northeast, roughly 2 hours by direct MÁV train from Keleti, second-class fare around 2,290-2,900 HUF each way. The Valley of the Beautiful Women pours Egri Bikavér, Bull’s Blood, by the glass. Consider a guided Eger wine tour (see the booking box above) if you’d rather not plan the tasting around a return train.
Day 4: Lake Balaton, summer only
Siófok sits about 1.5 hours from Budapest-Déli, second-class fare 2,000-3,000 HUF each way plus a 490 HUF seat reservation on InterCity services. The lake is swimmable June through August only, so build this day in inside that window; outside it, swap in a second Gödöllő-style half-day or an extra evening in Budapest instead.
Day 5: Gödöllő Palace
Gödöllő, Empress Elisabeth’s former summer residence, is a 30-45 minute ride from Keleti by regional train or HÉV line H8 from Örs vezér tere. The park is free daily; the 31-room interior exhibition sells its own ticket, worth confirming at kiralyikastely.hu . It’s the shortest ride on the whole week, in by late morning, back for a late lunch.
Day 6: Vienna, a different country by lunchtime
Railjet trains to Vienna run 2h16-2h37 with 12-16+ departures a day from Keleti; advance fares run about €12-19, climbing to roughly €32 for a same-day ticket. No border check inside Schengen and no case for a guided tour over a plain train ticket. Check wien.info for what’s showing before you commit the day, and buy the ticket ahead if you can, since walk-up fares on this route run close to triple the advance price.
Is Vienna doable as a day trip from Budapest, or does it need an overnight?
A day trip works if you take an early Railjet out and a late one back; the ride itself is just over two hours each way, leaving a solid five to six hours in the city. An overnight suits Vienna better if you want an evening at the opera or a slower dinner instead of watching the clock for your return train.
Should Vienna come before or after the Hungary-only day trips?
After. Save the international hop for once you’ve already got a rhythm with MÁV and HÉV tickets from the earlier days; Railjet booking and platform numbers at Keleti are more straightforward once you’re used to buying tickets in Hungarian stations.
Book the Vienna leg as a round trip in one purchase where the fare allows it; splitting it into two one-way tickets on this route usually costs more than the combined fare.