Here you'll find the nuts and bolts of practical information for you to use as a reference again and again during your stay in Budapest. There are neighborhood orientation listings, transportation options, and advisories on how to avoid taxi hustlers; and that is just for starters.
Since Budapest continues to undergo rapid changes, much of the tourist information on the Internet is often out-of-date, with the exception of the Frommer's website, where we update the information. The city's best source of visitor information is Tourinform, the official Budapest Tourism offices. They have a booth at each of the airports, plus three offices in the city. The office at V. Liszt Ferenc tér 11, in Pest (tel. 1/322-4098; www.tourinform.hu; metro: Opera, Yellow line; tram: Oktogon, no. 4-6) is open daily from 10am to 6pm. The office at V. Süt? street 2 (Deák Square; metro: Deák tér) is open from 8am to 8pm daily. The office at Buda Palace on Castle Hill (bus no. 10) offers summer and winter hours: From May 5 through October 31, it is open Monday through Sunday 9am to 8pm, and from November 2 through April 30 it is open Monday through Sunday 9am to 6pm. The staff in all offices speak English.
You can also attempt to access city information through the "Touch Info" user-friendly computer terminals located at the airport, Déli railway station, several of the larger metro stations, and in the market hall at Fovám tér; however, many times, the terminal software is corrupted, so attempt is the key word.
Of the various free informational magazines in English that you will find at tourist offices, pubs, restaurants, and elsewhere in the city and the most useful for English speakers are Funzine (www.funzine.com) and Where. Both have a current story of a festival or area to be explored in each issue. In addition they each have extensive listings of events, restaurants, and shopping in and around Budapest. Published every 2 weeks, Funzine is an independent magazine that is fresh, hip, and a fun read with lots of pictures useful to travelers. Each issue has basic Hungarian words and phrases with phonetic pronunciations. Where is a monthly published by the Ministry of Tourism and has excellent information. The listings in Pesti Est and Exit, free weeklies, are in Hungarian only, but are widely available at clubs, bookstores, and many other places. Other useful and free publications are Budapest Passport, a pocket-size guide published monthly, with a map, and the Budapest Guide, both of which are available at tourist offices and some hotels. These contain information on scheduled cultural events. The tourist office also has excellent free maps of the city.
The Budapest Sun (www.budapestsun.com), published every 2 weeks, and the Budapest Times (www.budapesttimes.hu), published weekly, are both English language, which have listings for concerts, theater, dance, film, and other events, along with restaurant reviews and current event happenings. They are available at most hotels and many newsstands. You can get a free copy of both at the Tourinform office at V. Liszt Ferenc tér 11. One website that attempts to map out Budapest's cultural and social scene is www.pestiside.hu, which provides an impertinent and saucy look at the city. Its sister site, www.chew.hu, provides some great restaurant news on new places to eat as they open.
