Two Days in Budapest - Access Budapest

The outdoor pools at the Széchenyi thermal baths — A bath is a half-day, not an hour. Photograph by Marc Ryckaert (MJJR), Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0

The second day is the one that makes the trip: a bath as a half-day, not an hour, and the half of the city the first day skipped.

Day one

Exactly the one-day plan — the river, the bridge, Castle Hill by bus and down on foot, the Basilica terrace.

Vajdahunyad Castle reflected in the lake — Vajdahunyad Castle is five minutes from Szechenyi and free to walk around. Photograph by Jakub Hałun, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Day two, morning — the bath

This is the day to do it properly. Szechenyi is the big sociable one in the City Park with outdoor pools open all year; Gellert is the beautiful one, smaller, and the choice if the building matters as much as the water.

Two things are decided at the counter before you are in: locker or cabin, and they cost differently — and weekends cost more than weekdays everywhere. Go early; by early afternoon the outdoor pools are full.

Bathers in the outdoor pools at Szechenyi — Locker or cabin is decided at the counter, before you are in the water. Photograph by Dguendel, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0

Day two, afternoon — the City Park, if you chose Szechenyi

You are already there. Vajdahunyad Castle is five minutes away, free to walk around, and almost empty; Heroes’ Square is at the park’s mouth. Ride the M1 back down Andrassy Avenue.

If you chose Gellert instead, walk out onto Liberty Bridge — the best bridge in the city to stand on — and cross to the Great Market Hall, remembering it is shut on Sunday.

The Great Market Hall from the upper floor — The Great Market Hall is shut on Sunday — put the bath on that day. Photograph by Dimitris Kamaras, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0

Day two, evening

District VII. The Dohany Street Synagogue by day if you have not seen it, the ruin bars after. Check a price before you order — that is the one piece of caution this district genuinely needs.

How the closures fall

Put the bath on the day that is a Sunday (the market is shut) or a Monday (the museums are). Put anything indoors on the other day. If one of your two days is a Saturday, that is the day the synagogue is closed.

Other lengths of trip

One Day in BudapestThe centre on foot Three Days in BudapestAdds the thing you must book Five Days in BudapestAdds a day out of the city

Journey times and opening patterns as published for 2026 and checked on 4 September 2026. Timetables, fares and closing days change without much warning — confirm with the operator or the institution before you travel. All the plans are in Itineraries & Day Plans.