Budapest from the Top: A Local’s Green Day Adventure in Budapest - f602259e943de376186533d897cf9617
4.5

Budapest from the Top: A Local’s Green Day Adventure

  • 8 horas
  • Day Trips
  • Budapest
User image

Your local for this experience

Experience hosted by István

  • Private Tour
  • Carbon Neutral

First or last day in the city? Discover Budapest from above with a passionate local guide and seasoned traveler. You'll explore the city's favorite viewpoints and green spots while hearing stories that bring each place to life

Destination
Budapest, Hungary
Category
Day Trips
Duration
8 horas
Transport mode
Public Transport
Available languages
English, Magyar
Included
  • Entrance tickets
  • Private guide
  • Meals
Excluded
  • Insurance
  • Alcoholic Drinks

5 reasons to book this tour

  • Normafa - the favourit green viewpoint of the city
  • Hidden viewpoint in the forest named after Árpád: the fathe
  • Cable chair
  • Narrow gauge railway
  • Panorama from a ship on Danube

What you can expect

Budapest from the Top: A Local’s Green Day Adventure in Budapest - f602259e943de376186533d897cf9617

Let’s start our adventure at one of the most popular meeting points in Budapest. From there, we’ll head up into the Buda Hills using public transport—just like the locals do! As we walk along scenic trails with stunning views of the city, I’ll share some of my favorite stories about Budapest’s history and hidden corners.

We'll wander through peaceful forest paths and then glide down by chairlift, arriving at a viewpoint only known to locals—a true hidden gem with a breathtaking panorama of the city.

To top off our experience, we’ll hop on a charming narrow-gauge railway, operated with the help of kids—yes, really! And for a final treat, we’ll cruise along the Danube on a local boat, soaking in the iconic sights of central Budapest from the water. By the time we arrive on the Pest side, your journey through Budapest will feel like it's only just begun.

This is the plan

Check out the plan below to see what you'll get up to with your local host. Feel free to personalize this offer with István.

  1. Meeting point

    Meet at Széll Kálmán tér - Budapest to start your journey

  2. Itinerary

    This is what our experience could look like, but it’s not set in stone! Once you book, you can chat directly with your host to make small tweaks to suit your preferences.

  3. Meet Up

    Meet at the clock on Széll Kálmán Square – a popular local meeting spot
  4. Head up into the hills

    take a bus to Normafa, a favorite spot where locals come to admire the stunning views
  5. Elisabeth viewpoint

    Stop at a scenic viewpoint once visited by Empress Sissi, offering breathtaking views over the city
  6. Cable chair

    Enjoy the most breathtaking panoramic view as you make your way down the hill into the peaceful green surroundings
  7. Árpád-viewpoint

    Take a bus to the hidden gem, Árpád Viewpoint—a favorite spot among locals nestled in the forest, offering panoramic views of the entire town
  8. Cold Valley

    Enjoy a ride on the charming narrow-gauge railway, lovingly operated with the help of talented local children
  9. Boarding the ship

    Arrive in Budapest from the city’s highest point, then continue your introduction aboard a scenic boat cruise. Enjoy stunning views of the Castle, Gellért Hill, Parliament, and the city’s famous bridges—all the highlights surround you
  10. Make it yours

    Want to tweak the itinerary? Book directly & chat afterwards with your host to adjust highlights, skip stops, or make small changes to fit your preferences.

    Book risk-free: Cancel within 24 hours for a full refund.

    Need something special? Personalize your experience for more time, alternative locations or a completely tailored plan.

I can personalize this tour for you

Puedo personalizar este tour para ti

  • Dime la fecha de tu viaje y el tamaño del grupo
  • Dime tus preferencias y deseos para que pueda personalizar el tour para ti.
  • Espera mi oferta personal en tu bandeja de entrada!

Flexible cancellation policy

  • Feel confident booking

    Cancel within 24 hours for a full refund. Even up to 7 days before your experience, you’ll receive a refund, minus the service fee.

  • Change of plans?

    Reschedule your experience to a date and time that works best for you.

  • Loved by travelers worldwide

    Simple and flexible – your plans, your way.

Reviews from guests

User image
Thirdy
11 marzo 2025
I was blown away by Istvan, he explained to me well all history behind Hungary. His words is intelligible and on point. Even though I had a short in Budapest, he was able to show me around and see my preferred sites. Highly recommend IstvanFlexible and knowledgeable guide
User image
Brad🇦🇺 Australia
27 diciembre 2024
Istvan was a friendly and flexible guide. As we hadn't seen the Castle Hill (Buda) side of the city, Istvan was willing to change his usual tour to suit and it was informative and entertaining. I did ask how many rivets were in the chain bridge, which he didn't know, but he promised to find out as homework 😁. Great tour with a lovely guy.Warm, friendly and flexible
User image
Judith
18 diciembre 2024
Istvan was great. Met at my Hotel and walked all over this beautiful city. His knowledge of architecture and history is amazing. He’s pleasant and respectful. I highly recommend arranging a tour with him. Wondeful intro
User image
Parmod🇭🇺 Hungary
7 noviembre 2024
I recently hired tour guide and photographer, and while he was polite and friendly, I unfortunately found him ill-suited for the job. He seemed unsure about what to show and missed opportunities for tourists to truly explore the city. Instead of taking me to iconic attractions, he frequently led me through residential streets and metro stations, which felt unproductive. When it became clear that this approach wasn't working, I had to suggest visiting popular tourist spots myself. Additionally, the quality of the photos he took was disappointing, they seemed outdated, as if captured with a basic camera two decades ago. I took a few pictures with my phone during the same time, and they turned out to be far superior to his DSLR shots. Based on this experience, I cannot recommend this service to anyone. It’s all wastage of money and time. Not worth at all
User image
Sarah🇺🇸 United States
6 noviembre 2024
Istvan was a wonderful tour guide! He went at our pace and shared with us so much about Budapest history and culture. He taught us some words in Hungarian as well! He was very kind and patient. As my husband and I were on our honeymoon, he even did a photo session for us! We will never forget our experience and we are thankful for the help Istvan provided us as he also recommended where to have an authentic meal and gave us directions to get around town. We had a great time!Beautiful Budapest
User image
Lawrence
7 octubre 2024
I enjoyed my walking tour very much. It was the full 5 hours. My guide truly understood the city and asked about my interests and then crafted the tour for them. I would use this guide again.Knowledgeable guide
User image
Adam 🇦🇺 Australia
22 septiembre 2024
István was excellent in all respects as a tour guide. He communicated very well with me on the app before the tour started to arrange meet up details, accommodated our change of start time request and then for the tour itself took us to many very interesting sights including some wonderful views of Budapest at the top of Gellért Hill. He has a profound knowledge of the history of Budapest which he shared well. He also stayed on an extra 90 minutes beyond the allotted hours to take us to the Parliament building. Overall the tour was superb and it and István are both highly recommended. Interestjng and insighful tour
User image
Doreen🇺🇸 United States
18 septiembre 2024
User image
Ludgedio Jesus🇲🇽 Mexico
30 julio 2024
We got a very complete introduction of the city. Istvan was very calm, polite and he shows us around good places to visitVery complete introduction
User image
Maximilian🇦🇺 Australia
28 julio 2024
The tour through Budapest was amazing. We walked all the way through Pest looking at the sights and historic buildings. István was very good at explaining the history and current relevance of each of the primary buildings as well as other statues and parks we looked at. The tour then moved onto the Buda side where we looked at castle hill. Overall the tour was greatly detailed and well structured even with a short notice booking and customisation request. I would recommend István for anyone looking for a tour of Budapest.A great tour of Budapest.
User image
Shaun🇬🇧 United Kingdom
19 septiembre 2023
With 2 hours to go we were advised that our cruise ship was not in the normal location and we were some 30 mins from the city centre. Having emailed Istvan he quickly re-arranged the tour including getting subway tickets to get us back to the ship before it sailed. Istvan did everything possible to make the tour a success from a very demanding start position and we can only applaud his professionalism. Budapest by Night
User image
Christoph🇨🇭 Switzerland
4 septiembre 2023
Istvan is a very kind and smart young man, who spontaneously changed his usual tour to my wishes and interests. I felt like going for a city walk with an new friend who‘s telling me interesting things. It was just a wonderful experience and I got to know new places and locations - thank you very much!wonderful experience
User image
Belinda 🇨🇭 Switzerland
10 abril 2023
Wonderful morning wandering the streets of Pest with Istvan and listening to the stories of the different people and communities of Budapest and Hungary. We explored the 7th district, experienced the culture and felt the history of the Jewish community who have made this part of Pest so special and enriched with their stories. A walk all the way to the park from the centre of town to see how Budapest is an amazing mix of old and new and so many cultures coming together. Istvan made the experience special for us.. and we would highly recommend him for anyone who would like the non-touristy experience of Budapest.. thank you and all the best.. Exploring Budapest with Istvan
User image
Mónika🇭🇺 Hungary
25 enero 2023
We would like to thank István's time and dedication as our guide. His experience and knowledge made the tour really enjoyable. We thank all the information and the interesting stories. We recommend him very much!A great afternoon with István
User image
Victoria 🇺🇸 United States
1 diciembre 2022
We had a wonderful time with István! His tour was interesting and informative. He taught us about the highlights of the city and it’s history, and also focused on what we were most interested to learn. At the end of the tour he left us with recommendations of where to visit to continue our exploration of Budapest. He even helped us learn a few words of Hungarian! Budapest highlights
User image
Kelly🇬🇬 Guernsey
9 noviembre 2022
Istvan tailored his tour to us. Nice guy with plenty knowledge. Excellent Tour
User image
Boris🇩🇪 Germany
12 octubre 2022
Istvan is a great guide that knows a lot about the history and culture of Budapest. He arranged the tour according to my interests and he took me to great places in the city. Then we also had a lunch together after the visit in a local restaurant. Thanks again and all the best to you !Very interesting visit, thank you Istvan !
User image
Sarah🇸🇬 Singapore
1 octubre 2022
Istavan was very knowledgeable, kind and and took care of us throughout the day. It was a big tour but at no time did we feel tired or bored. Lovely young man , would recommend to everyone one!! We loved every moment 😊Amazing experience
User image
David🇺🇸 United States
23 agosto 2022
Istvan was a wonderful guide. I spent two days with him. The first day he took me hiking up in the green space west of Buda. It was wonderful to spend time away from the city. The second day was a wonderful day experiencing St. Stephan's Day. Istvan did a great job of readjusting the schedule when needed. He also has a great knowledge of Budapest. I learned a lot from spending time with him. You could tell he was very interested in making my time with him the best. A wonderful two days with Istvan
User image
Adil🇲🇾 Malaysia
16 julio 2022
István was easily contactable and made himself easy to find at the meeting point with a signboard. He was very easy going and friendly. He was knowledgeable about the sights that he brought us too. He set a walking pace that was comfortable to us, and was willing to extend the time of the tour in order to complete all the places he had promised to bring us. This includes obliging our request for a pit stop to get a drink as it was a hot day and teaching a few tips and Hungarian language. He was also very helpful and took photographs of us whenever we requested. We feel like as though we were walking with a friend throughout the tour, which makes it very pleasant for a first timer to the city. We recommend István as a tour guide for the walking tour.Enlightening and Fun walking tour
User image
Thorsten🇩🇪 Germany
25 junio 2022
István has been an amazing guide. We recommend him highly. On time, very friendly, adopted the tour to wheelchair friendliness, very knowledgeable about the city, culture and history. Awesome guide! (Tour with wheelchair)
User image
Vineet🇦🇹 Austria
21 junio 2022
We had another tour with István and it was a great experience again. It was great to hear about Hungarian folk culture while relaxing in the garden of the National Museum on a hot day. He was also very considerate of the people in our group who couldn't walk too fast. Thank you!Great experience again
User image
Anthony🇺🇸 United States
20 junio 2022
Istvan was quite knowledgeable and catered the tour to my interests. This was my first guided tour and I was very impressed
User image
William🇺🇸 United States
28 abril 2022
Istvan was a wonderful guide who we spent the day with on a 5 hour tour of Budapest. He helped us navigate the metro, showed us the sites, and was very eager to give us a great experience. Recommended! Thank you Istvan!
User image
gary 🇺🇸 United States
8 marzo 2022
I spend a great day with Istvan on our walking tour of Budapest. He is very knowledgable and loves his city. We were able to use the public transportation system as well. We crossed both sides of Budapest. Lovely time. ThanksGreat walking tour of Budapest with Istvan
User image
Annelieke
3 enero 2022
User image
Armand🇫🇷 France
22 noviembre 2021
István is great guide, he adapted the visit to my wish. I could feel the budapest feeling and we make the principal tour of the city with the main interesting things. Thanks IstvánNice visited and nice guide
User image
Kazuo🇯🇵 Japan
23 enero 2020
Istvan is informative guide, very attentive about what I am interested in or looking for in the tour. Got better understanding this historical area in Budapest after the tour thanks for Istvan.Informative Jewish quarter walking tour
User image
suleman🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates
6 enero 2020
very pleasant guide, knowledgable , punctual. highly recommended.excellent guide
User image
Chris🇺🇸 United States
22 diciembre 2019
István was the best. Tailored the afternoon to my needs and It was a delightful afternoon exploring the city. Would highly recommend Excellent Tour
User image
KEVIN🇺🇸 United States
11 diciembre 2019
Istvan was a great walking historian of Budapest's present and past. A great introduction to Budapest. I highly recommend.Istvan is more than a tour guide.
User image
Fabrizio
25 noviembre 2019
Istvan is very nice, friendly, and flexible enough to go where you prefer. I just didn't like the fact that he left me more than half an hour before the end of the tour. However, I had stuff to do, so it wasn't a big deal after all. Very friendly
User image
Irma
12 noviembre 2019
I had an amazing time in Budapest! Thank you for the tour yesterday! I was able to gain a deeper insight into certain aspects of the city and in particular learning about the history behind certain monuments like the Liberty Statue was incredibly interesting! Once again, thank you for sharing what you know of Budapest with me!90 minutes kickstart of Budapest
User image
Allen🇬🇧 United Kingdom
4 noviembre 2019
Istvan is a knowledgable guide. He has a great sense of humour and was quite patient with us. He accommodated our idiosyncrasies within reason. Will definitely recommend him to anyone who wants to know Budapest. Knowledgable and great guide
User image
Angel🇭🇰 Hong Kong
26 octubre 2019
First time to be guest of Withlocals tour, interesting route. For the host, a bit shy and not enough energy as a host. Telling fact more than storytelling with mumbling English. Choose him as my host because I saw his profile that he likes photography however he doesn’t really have good skill about it. Anyway I can see he was trying his best. Different than expactation
User image
Edina
25 octubre 2019
Last day we had the best time at tour that I think I've ever had. Our host István was adorable and full of personality plus. He was attentive, entertaining and knowledgeable. We will definitely be back soon!90 minute walking tour
User image
Vineet🇦🇹 Austria
6 octubre 2019
Istavan was a fantastic guide. Great communication, knowledge and attitude. He had to adjust so much because we had a small child with us and that led to a lot of detours and stops. But he never complained and even extended the tour time. I would recommend Istavan to to everyone.Wonderful tour, amazing guide
User image
Kaye🇵🇭 Philippines
27 septiembre 2019
Being a journalist and big reader himself, Istvan knows a lot about culture, history, and many different forms of Trivia about Budapest. He’s also so flexible that he even assisted us when we went to shop for food at the market. Wish we had more time with Istvan! Highly recommended! 😊Istvan is amazing!
User image
Christopher🇨🇦 Canada
26 septiembre 2019
We had completed a different tour the day before with another guide and mentioned to Istvan what we had already seen and experienced and he was able to modify last minute what he had in mind for us so as to not overlap, great flexibility. Two in our group enjoy photography a lot and it was great going out with a professional photographer who has an eye for details, and who made sure we discovered cool and interesting aspects of this fascinating city. Great value for what you get in return, an insiders approach to discovering things you most certainly might have missed otherwise.Great tour through the eye of a photographer!
User image
Jens🇩🇪 Germany
18 julio 2019
Istvan did a great job, we enjoyed so much! Thanks a lot!Great Tour
User image
Nikki
31 mayo 2019
We took the 4 hour “Best of Budapest” tour with Istvan on May 31, 2019, and we were extremely pleased with the tour. The tour was a walking tour. We were very happy about that as we wanted to see the city on foot, and we enjoyed the walking. Istvan did a wonderful job taking us through the city, and he provided us very thorough and interesting information about items of local interest such as Heroes Square, the Opera House, the Jewish Quarter, the Parliament Building, the Chain Bridge and Buda Castle. Based on his recommendation, we crossed the Chain Bridge the next day to see the Hospital in the Rock, which was also very interesting. All in all, Istvan provided us an excellent tour, and I would highly recommend him as a tour guide. Best of Budapest Highlights & Hidden Gems
User image
Bianca🇮🇹 Italy
24 abril 2019
We have done a kick-off tour in Budapest with Istvan. He was really nice and he showed us the main attractions like the covered market, churches and bridges. Even if it rained that day it was fun walking around with Istvan.Kick-off tour with Istvan
User image
Deana🇺🇸 United States
24 febrero 2019
Had a great time walking across the bridges of Budapest with István! This tour is perfect if you’re interested in seeing Budapest by foot and getting some great photos. István was flexible and very knowledgeable about history and other interesting facts. Thanks again István!Perfect picture spots!
User image
Lizzie🇬🇧 United Kingdom
17 febrero 2019
Istvan gave us a brilliant tour of this amazing city. He had a good knowledge of the history and was kind enough to meet us at our hotel. I’m so pleased we did this tour and highly recommend it. Lovely walking tour of Budapest
User image
Carole🇫🇷 France
14 enero 2019
Thank you Istvan for showing us your Budapest ! I highly appreciated our talks on WhatsApp before the tour : Istvan really wanted to tailor the tour, and listened to our expectations. His kindness and patience to answer to all our questions were much appreciated. We would recommend to book more than a 90mn tour with him. 90mn is actually not enough to really discover all the highlights of Budapest ... Budapest’s 90 mins Kickstart Tour
User image
Gabriella
16 octubre 2018
We (my husband, 2 kids and me) both love Budapest and the Danube as well, so that's why we choose that tour. All of we are satishfied after the tour, because we heared lots of new and interesting information about the city and Hungary too - besides of it, we had a nice trip with István, who was kind and maintained our and the kid's attention successfully during the program. He responded kindly onto our questions; even he's a great sense of humour and juvenal personality - these made our tour unforgetable. We're sure that we will book him on our next visit to Budapest! Crossing Budapest: Bridges, Hills & Highlights
User image
Marina🇳🇱 Netherlands
3 septiembre 2018
-Dissapointing tour with Istvan
User image
Laurie🇨🇦 Canada
12 agosto 2018
Istvan was very kind and interested in meeting the needs of our group of 2 families (4 adults, 4 kids). However, his shy and soft-spoken nature meant that it was difficult to hear what he had to say, and we usually had to tease information out of him by asking questions. It wasn’t always clear why he had taken us to a location because he didn’t offer much information or context. Chatting one on one he certainly had more to offer, but unfortunately, he struggled to hold the interest of kids and adults alike. We appreciated him bringing us to the unique cafe, and the fact that he really did try hard, but we didn’t get as much out of the tour that we had hoped. Kind but not engaging
User image
Peter🇳🇱 Netherlands
3 agosto 2018
We booked the tour and István was nicely on time to pick us up from the hotel. István is a very polite and a bit timid guy. He knows his way around. The thing we missed a bit in the tour was a 'story' about Budabest that builds up a bit... István's volume is sometimes a bit low. When we had questions István tried to answer them, especially around politics a small fire lit up within him. István send us some nice additional pictures via mail.Nice walk around the town
User image
Bayli🇺🇸 United States
25 julio 2018
We loved our tour with István! He was very calm and quiet and thoughtful in his approach to tours. He offered information and also left room for us to ask our questions. Once the tour was booked, István immediately sent me a message to ask about any special requests or personalization for the tour. I appreciate the communication. What I love about Withlocals is the opportunity to engage with a local, so if you choose István make sure to ask him about his writing career as well. Relaxed and peaceful tour

Withlocals experiences
are always

Private & personalizedNo strangers, just you. Fully customize your trip to your needs.
With a local expertFrom historical facts to the most up-to-date health regulations.
Without the crowdsExperiences designed to take you away from the crowds towards authentic local spots.

More about me

I am a freelance journalist and photographer.

I can not live without music - especially the electronic styles.

For me, also would be impossible to live without books and my cameras. I'm interested in both of creative and press phtography. My friends are allways wondering my paper modells - the coaches and the trucks too.

And what about you?

Let's get to know each other!

Otras experiencias con István

El contenido de esta página ha sido traducido de manera automatizada. Puedes consultar la versión original en Inglés en este enlace

€140per person
Kids join for free