I think the city I visited the most in the last two years was Budapest, the capital of Hungary in Europe. In the last 2 years, I had the chance to visit the city 3 times in different periods.. I have explained in many different articles what you should visit during the day.. I tried to explore as many places as possible in this beautiful city of Central Europe at night as well as during the day.. I guess I wouldn’t be exaggerating if I said that I had a significant knowledge on Budapest nightlife.
First of all, let me say that Budapest nightlife is just like Istanbul mobile and changeable. A place that was very trendy on your previous trip may be closed on your next trip a few months later.. Or the address is changing. I will tell you the most popular places of Budapest nightlife and nightclubs as I updated it on my last visit.. Moreover, I had almost no money in my pocket while visiting many of these places.. If you’re ready to get cheap Budapest nightlife tips from a Kayseri native like me, let’s dive into the lairs of Budapest with you.
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About Budapest Nightlife
There are 4 different concepts that caught my attention in Budapest nightlife.. ruin bars, kerts (gardens), night clubs and sauna parties.
Ruin Bars and Gardens
Ruin pubs is the first thing that comes to mind when it comes to Budapest nightlife coming. Ruined bars are a trend formed by the interesting decoration of abandoned post-communist buildings with scrap items.. Frankly, it’s a concept unique to Budapest and hard to find anywhere else in the world.. While these ruined bars are used as restaurants and even market places during the day, they turn into nightclubs in the evening.. There is no entrance fee to any of them.
Another interesting concept of Budapest is the gardens they call kert.. These gardens are opened especially in the spring and closed towards the winter.. Since many ruin bars have a garden concept, I have gathered these two in one title.
Googlemaps locations of all venues are available in the titles.. I also linked the locations of the venues that are not included in the title above their names.
Budapest’s Most Popular Ruin Bars and Alleys
The heart of Budapest’s nightlife actually beats in a place called the Jewish district.. Many ruin bars are also located on the streets in this area. Here are some streets you should know: Kazinczy Utca, Kiraly Utca, Dob Utca, Akacfa Utca, Klauzal Utca. There are also places outside of these streets, but the majority are located on these.
Szimpla Kert
This is the first place you will come across in all lists of Budapest nightlife.. Even if there are no people everywhere, it happens here.. If there is no one here, understand that you came to Budapest at the wrong time.. It is a room-by-room, 2-storey building.. It is a peaceful place where you can listen to live music during the daytime in this place, which is a public market on Sunday mornings.. At night, it is one of the most lively nightclubs in the city.. Best ruin bar I’ve ever seen by design. This is the right address for you to go to get an answer to the question of what is a ruin bar.. In addition, because it has a courtyard-shaped garden inside, its name is Kert at the end.. There can be a serious queue in front of it on weekends.. no entry fee. Wifi code: szimpla kert
Caravan
If you were intimidated by the queue at Szimpla Kert or you were having fun in the evening, then the Caravan next to Szimpla Kert is just you.. This is the best example of street food concept in Budapest.. There are food options for all tastes.. Free wifi code is also Ilovestreetfood I recommend you to taste the famous Hungarian langoshi here.
Köleves Kert
When you follow the Kazinczy road further north from Szimpla Kert, 5 minutes later you will see a place called Köleves on the right. venue will meet. This place was my favorite kert in Budapest in September 2016. I used to come here a few times a day.. In May 2017, when the weather was a little cold, it was closed for 2 days, but it started to find itself on Thursday and Friday.. When the weather is good it can be very difficult to find a free table here.. This is my favorite garden.. It is open until 1 am. A unique place for those who like to chat while having a drink. Right next to the venue, there are indoor restaurants that are open in winters.
Mika Garden
Köleves’ neighbor is a kerb with the same concept.. Here, you get your drink from the bar and socialize at an empty table.. If there is no space at the tables, you can also hang out standing.
Kuplung
When you exit Mika, turn right at the junction of Kazinczy Street and Kiraly and walk for a few minutes and you will see Kuplung on the left of the road.. There’s a happy hour app on Monday evenings here.. That’s why it’s busy on Mondays. This place also has a garden concept, but there is also live music indoors on the weekends.. As in every place with a garden concept, you can get your drink from the bar yourself.. No credit cards here. You have to pay with HUF.
Anker’t
This is located in the back street of the buildings opposite the Opera House.. It opens at 6pm and is open until 5pm on weekends.. On the one hand, the garden in its courtyard has a classic kert atmosphere, while the indoor area continues as a nightclub on weekends at full speed.
Fogashaz
I learned that it has merged with Fogashaz and moved when I couldn’t find Instant, one of its popular venues, this year.. The new venue is near the intersection of Akacfa Utca and Dob Utca.. Different DJs perform in different rooms here. In the courtyard in the middle, those who drink from the bar hang out standing.. As you change rooms here, you get the feeling of traveling through a different place within the space.. I think this is one of the most entertaining addresses of Budapest nights.
The Hive
One of the places on Dob Utca is The Hive. This is a very entertaining place in the garden of Hive Party Hostel.. It can be difficult to find a standing place due to the DJ performances here on the weekends.. Let me say that God give patience to the friends trying to sleep upstairs.
Gozsdu Udvar
I think it would not be wrong to say that this is a large entertainment passage that you can enter from Kazinczsy, Kiraly and Dob streets.. There are restaurants and nightclubs here.. The most famous of these is the Aether Club. In addition, if you go out from the passage towards Karoly square, you will see that there are many places where people hang out standing in that courtyard.. Konyha and the venue next to it caught my attention with its crowd on weekends.. Mostly locals go to these places.
Other Popular Venues
Doboz, Füge Udvar and on Klauzal Street. There are 3 places named Extra. I went here on recommendation, but frankly, the places I mentioned above caught my attention more.
Budapest’s Most Popular Nightclubs
Entertainment in the city is not limited to ruined bars, of course.. The city is also very rich in terms of nightclubs.. Frankly, according to the advice of the Hungarian receptionist in the hostel I stayed, the most popular nightclubs of the city at the moment Corvinteto Club, Morrison 2 Pub & Club, Hello Baby (They were right next to our hostel, so they didn’t take them because I was wearing shorts.. I was too tired so I didn’t change and go) Also other recommended nightclubs in Otkert and Kraft and Aether near St. Istvan Basilica. All of these are charged an entrance fee after a certain time.
Budapest Pool Parties
They took the bath culture from us when Budapest was under Ottoman rule.. However, they have updated this culture a bit here.. Even in winter, people swim in the thermal pools in the gardens of historical buildings during the day, and there are sauna parties on the weekends. Perhaps the most expensive entertainment in Budapest nightlife is these parties.. If you can buy early tickets, tickets start from 45 Euros.. Since these tickets are sold out quickly, the cheapest ticket is 50 Euros.
We bought tickets last September when these figures were far below these figures.. Honestly, although it looks great from the outside, if you don’t have a body like a Greek statue, there’s no need to compete in such environments.. Frankly, I saw this experience as an expensive lesson.
What are the famous of these places Szechenyi Bath and Gellert Bath. Of these, they organize another 20 Euro event called a beer spa during the day in Szechenyi Bath.. As you know, our Turkish bath and sauna culture has evolved in a completely different place in Budapest.
Bonus: Pub Crawl Budapest
Let me share with you another piece of information I saw in the hostel I stayed in.. All year round, people meet in front of Fogashaz at 9 o’clock every day and visit various ruined bars during the night, and at the end of the night, one can enter a club without waiting in line at the VIP gate without paying an entrance fee.. The fee for those who buy tickets online is 3000 HUF (10 Euros) This fee includes free shots taken at the venues entered.. (Websites) I also found a free version of these on the internet. Its name is Free Pub Crawl Budapest.
As I know most of the places, I did not join them, but it can be an interesting experience for those who say I socialize with people and travel places.
These may be of interest to you as well;
- How I Visited Budapest for 700 TL in 3 Days, Including Flight?
- Budapest Travel Guide (Cheap Vacation Tips)
- Budapest Nightlife Tips A to Z
