credit: We Love Budapest
In my previous post, I mentioned that recently we have a tourist invasion in Budapest. If you are new in town and you would like to know more about this city (not only while strolling from one bar to another), you should definitely check out Free Budapest Walking Tours. Founded in 2007 offers scheduled walking tours 100% free (if you like the tour you can leave a tip). “You get the perfect mix of historical information, fun facts, and practical tips. You visit most of the prominent sights in Buda and Pest and also learn something of the history of the city during this easy walk, with lots of stops for water and information”. I took part in Jewish District Walk and within 2 hours, I got to know many interesting facts about Jewish community living in VII and XIII district. There are many others free tour including – Communism Walk, Evening Walk, or you can even join a tour, where guide will be speaking in Spanish (good for those who would like to practice this language).
credit: The Lovely Drawer
Another type of tour which I would like to truly recommend you, is Street Art Tour around Budapest in partnership with Színes Város. Noemi Nadudvari, who is a guide and the curator of the annual Színes Város (Colorful City) Festival, will show you 18 different murals, where 6 of them will be gone by the end of summer. This 2 hour tour includes the history of the murals and the artists behind them. In the end of the tour, you will get a beer at one of my favorite restaurant in Budapest, DOBRUMBA. If you would like to book a tour (which is every second Saturday) follow events on Színes Város Facebook page.
credit: Arwin Snay
Worth to mention that The Colorful City (Színes Város ) is the first association, which colors public spaces in Budapest. The civil based project has formed itself to be a movement from the very beginning, because coloring up public spaces in a legal way was unknown before 2008, the time when the initiative of Colorful City Project has been launched. The first Colorful City Budapest Festival was initiated in 2014, and in the past 4 years, it comprised 42 different urban art projects (on outdoor firewalls and in other public spaces). Works of Hungarian and foreign (Argentine, British, German, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Spanish, French, Russian) fine artists were complemented with their artistic documentation by filmmakers and video artists. Check out Színes Város YouTube channel to see some of the videos.
The last tour, which I can recommend is Underground Cultural Vibes of Budapest organized by Budapest Flow. This is the walking tour around our shabby VIII district, where you going to discover the cultural and sociological aspects of this neighborhood. The VIII district was once known as an elegant quarter filled with Palatial apartments, which became a run-down, “ghetto” neighborhood. “On the tour, you will see the creative and quirky sides of the VIII District, such as its underground cultural spots and its own real ruin pubs, as well as off-beat flea markets and hidden galleries”. Budapest Flow has created recently great street art map of Budapest, which you can find here.
Walking around Budapest, is always a pleasure and those tours will definitely help you to discover the city, and be more familiar with Hungarian culture.
