good art, good views, good special exhibits. give yourself some time to walk around here even if you aren't huge into art. and if you are into art, block out a good couple of hours because this place is large! cool to get a perspective on hungarian artists as well

great museum, take some time to go through it. budapest has a kind of wild history that you might not expect, and this place does a really good job of bringing it to life. definitely on the pricier side, but if you're going to only a few museums, put this one on the list.

i can't reveal all my secrets but this one was too good to keep... huge portions for kebab, they actually will include vegetables which makes you feel like you aren't just eating 3 cups of meat. good sauces as well but make sure to get napkins. sit up on the little loft and watch soccer/pool/whatever's on the tv.

went here on one of my last nights and regretted not going sooner. fantastic place if you want to hang with friends but would also probably be fun alone - you can play most of the games and they have great merch too

great brunch spot - a nice place if you want to explore this part of the city and see some quieter neighborhoods. there's also a cinema close by (bem mozi) that i never went to... but i wanted to! really enjoyed it here and think i went three times in two weeks once.

a not-so-hidden gem! adorable place that i went to a lot to study and escape my apartment. it's exactly what you want a cafe to be but it can get crowded at times so make sure to get there early. they also usually have good art and some little crafts which make it a nice place to get gifts for your jealous friends. food is good too!

again, obviously you're going to go here, it's a huge destination for the ruin pub scene. again my hot tip is time-related: they have a farmer's market on the weekends and they also do a farmer's market brunch which is buffet-style and it is crazy good. it's more expensive than a typical bp restaurant but is well worth it and still probably less than you'd pay in america. plus then you can check out the whole place without having to deal with one million sweaty and drunk tourists. they also just generally have good events here that aren't necessarily clubby, so definitely look at their website to see what's what.

cute store with local art - good place to get souvenirs that aren't too cheesy but that you'll be fond of (i ❤ the manhole cover art they have)

ok obviously you're going to go here because it's a big tourist place. however my biggest tip is to go at night, after sunset for sure. then you don't have to pay to actually go up on the walls & you get to see the city at night which is so sweet. there's way fewer people and it's great for pictures as well as getting that good travel feeling (yknow when you feel adventurous and independent and all that)

if you can, catch a concert! they have great performances for not so many dollars and it feels pretty fancy. i met an adorable 3 year old here once and we conversed across english and hugarian (maybe one of the best days of my life).

best place to bop around. find the beer garden in the summer, it's an absolute treasure. i always felt like i could disappear into here