Budapest & Vienna in a Weekend

They say the best part of studying abroad in Europe is the ability to hop between countries like they're neighborhoods. After our 72 hours split between Budapest and Vienna, I can confirm this is true, though my sleep schedule and bank account might disagree! Our adventure began early Friday morning with a budget airline flight from Barcelona to Budapest that had us all questioning our life choices at 5 A.M. But trust me, every yawn was worth it once we stepped into the fairy tale that is Central Europe.

Our group of eight managed to snag an incredible apartment in Budapest's Jewish Quarter, right in the heart of the city's famous ruin bar district. Picture this: high ceilings, ornate moldings from another century, massive windows overlooking a bustling street, and enough room for all of us to spread out without stepping on each other's toes. The building itself was a piece of history, complete with an inner courtyard and one of those cage elevators that make you feel like you're in a vintage film (though most of us opted for the stairs after getting stuck between floors that first time!).

Budapest immediately captivated us with its split personality, Buda on one side with its hills and castle, Pest on the other with its flat, urban landscape. Our first stop was the Széchenyi Thermal Baths, because when in Budapest, right? Let me tell you, there's nothing quite like soaking in steaming, mineral-rich waters outdoors while snowflakes gently fall around you. The contrast between the hot water and cold air was incredible, and watching locals play chess on floating boards while tourists snapped endless photos created this perfect cultural intersection.

That evening, we dove into the ruin bar scene, starting with the famous Szimpla Kert. These bars are built in the ruins of abandoned buildings, filled with mismatched furniture, bizarre art installations, and a vibe that's impossible to describe but unforgettable to experience. Imagine drinking local pálinka in a room decorated with an old Trabant car, bicycle parts hanging from the ceiling, and walls covered in years of graffiti. The prices were refreshingly affordable compared to Barcelona, which meant our night stretched longer than planned, filled with conversations with locals and other travelers from across Europe.

Day two started with a proper Hungarian breakfast of lángos before we headed up to Buda Castle. The funicular ride offered breathtaking panoramic views of the Danube River dividing the city, with the magnificent Hungarian Parliament Building dominating the skyline. The Parliament, with its neo-Gothic architecture, looks like something straight out of a fantasy novel.

After exploring the castle district and snapping obligatory photos at Fisherman's Bastion, we rushed back to our apartment to grab our overnight bags. Next stop: Vienna by train!
The three-hour train journey between Budapest and Vienna might be one of the most pleasant travel experiences I've had. Clean, comfortable, and with gorgeous views of the Hungarian and Austrian countryside rolling by, plus time to nap off the previous night's ruin bar adventures.

Vienna greeted us with its imperial grandeur immediately upon arrival. Where Budapest feels raw and edgy with its history displayed in its scars, Vienna wears its past like a well-preserved jewel. Our Airbnb here was considerably more modest than our Budapest palace, but its location near the Museum Quarter made up for it.
Day three had us racing against time to soak in as much Vienna as possible. We started with a morning visit to Schönbrunn Palace, the summer residence of the Habsburg emperors. The sheer scale of the palace and its gardens is mind-boggling, 1,441 rooms and grounds so vast that we barely scratched the surface in our two-hour visit. The yellow against the bright blue spring sky made for photos that look almost too perfect to be real.
No visit to Vienna is complete without sampling its café culture, so we made time for coffee and Sachertorte at Café Central, where the ornate ceilings and piano music transported us back to Vienna's intellectual heyday when figures like Freud, Trotsky, and Lenin were regular patrons. The chocolate cake was divine, though I'm still not sure it deserved the €12 price tag!

Our final hours were spent wandering through Vienna's historic center, passing by St. Stephen's Cathedral with its colorful tiled roof, exploring the Hofburg Palace complex, and finally grabbing dinner at a traditional Austrian restaurant where I tried Wiener Schnitzel so large it hung off the edges of my plate.