Budapest Expat Tips Archives

How to Spend the Best Summer Day at Gellert Baths

July 22, 2018

In case you haven’t been paying attention to my Instagram of late, Hungarians are famous for their bath culture. There are baths all around the country dating back thousands of years. Some of the most beautiful baths in the entire world can be found in Budapest. Our favourite is the Gellert Bath located inside the Gellert Hotel in the 11th District of Budapest.

The historic Gellert Hotel as seen by sitting on the pool deck.

A Brief History

The Romans were the first to take advantage of the thermal springs that were naturally occurring on the surface of the land. Romans built both public and private baths – they had approximately 15 baths in the vicinity of Budapest alone. However, the Hungarian bath culture really started flourishing during the Turkish era. The Turkish introduced Hungarians to to the concept of “wellness” treatments. Massages and the use of different creams and oils were an essential part of Turkish baths. You will continue to find these kinds of treatments available at the baths today.

The Gellert Baths

This gorgeous bath complex was built between 1912 and 1918 in the Art Nouveau style. It was damaged during World War II, but then rebuilt, and finally remodelled again in 2008. Since its opening, it has only ever been closed for one day when a pipe burst. The complex includes thermal pools, saunas, steam rooms, plunge pools, an open-air swimming and wave, and an indoor swimming pool. Masseuse and spa services are also available. That brings me to my first recommendation…

The wave pool at the Gellert Baths. Every hour on the hour during the afternoon, huge waves bring fun and refreshment to the bathers.

Getting a Massage at the Gellert

Since I have bunions on both of my feet, I often get a sore lower back and legs from having to adjust my gait. So when I visit the baths, I often get a massage. The massage “menu” varies in style and price, but I always get the 45 minute Thermal Massage for 12,000 forints ($43 USD). No pretty perfumes or birds chirping, this massage means business.

However, if you have a woman masseuse, prepare yourself to strip down entirely right in front of them before your climb onto the bed. I’m not particularly prudish, so this didn’t bother me, but it was a bit surprising. On other occasions, when I have had a male masseuse, you keep your bathing suit (mostly) on and they work around it. Either way, the massages are fantastic and an essential part of having the best day.

Just off the massage room areas you will find two gorgeous thermal bath areas. The thermal baths are to the left and right with showers straight ahead. (Photo: BathsBudapest.com)

Get There Early

I can’t recommend this highly enough. While the outdoor area is quite large, it’s pretty much impossible to find a spot past 11:00 during the summer. Furthermore, if you want loungers with an umbrella, you definitely need to be there before 10:00 on a weekend. The lounger chairs here are extremely comfortable and make relaxing easy. There is no drink service at your chair, but there are two bars accessible from the pool deck – and you can even bring your own.

My husband found us the perfect shaded spot to start off our relaxing day at the Gellert.

Bring your own Food and Drinks

So this may be slightly controversial, but I do thinks it helps to have the perfect day – and its thrifty too. While the Gellert has two snack bars and a restaurant, the food is just okay. It’s certainly not bad, but compared to the prices, its not really one of our favourite places to eat. Therefore, we have taken to bringing our own little sandwiches, grapes, a couple cans of beer and whatever else we need to get through the day. We still usually end up buying coffee (which is delicious there) and additional beverages when needed. Note: This is quite common with the locals, its not like sneaking food into a movie theatre. No need to feel weird.

Our bill for one pint of draft beer purchased at the bar. Quite expensive for Hungarian prices… $5.15 USD

Sit near the Musicians

Now I assume this only happens on the weekends, but do yourself a favour and find a lounger closer to the indoor area. The Hungarian Folklore band that plays from noon until 3pm is AMAZING. These five talented musicians play jazz standards, show-tunes, classical and Hungarian favourites. I honestly can’t believe you don’t have to pay extra to hear them play. If you are a music lover, this is only another good reason to spend a day at the baths.

The incredible musicians a the Gellert. My husband is always requesting they play Acker Bilk… (sorry for my potato quality photo).

Enjoy the Wave Pool – with Caution

The outdoor wave pool is open from April to October. This pool can be incredibly fun, but also a little dangerous if you don’t take care. At the top of every hour, slightly bizarrely, the song “America” from West Side Story plays across the loudspeakers to let visitors know the waves are about to start. Once in the pool, a lifeguard manually bangs a cow bell that tells you to get prepared.

At first, the small tsunamis seem a little anticlimactic, but within minutes, you are being tossed around in high seas. In fact, if you are quite close to the sides, you risk being taken completely under or slammed into the poolsides. My own mother once had to rescue my father from this exact situation. So for those that want less life-risking fun, stick to the middle in shallower depths.

Waves beginning their swirls and crashes around the pool. Hang on to your bathing suits and small children.

The Best Day

If you follow my advice, you can’t help but have tremendous fun. You will be relaxed, well-nourished, cultured, sun-kissed and water-logged. All this for only 6200 forint per person ($22 USD) – and that even includes a private changing cabin. Of course, if you go on a weekday or stay for a shorter period of time, you can get even lower pricing. Either way, the Gellert Baths are not to be missed.

You’ll find us there every second weekend all summer long….

To read more about what else we do in Budapest this summer, read this.

Budapest Expat Tips

The “Living with No Dryer” Laundry Survival Guide

March 25, 2018

Moving away to Europe is the first time that many people discover that not everyone has a dryer. Practically all classical apartments in Budapest come with washing machines – but not all have dryers. And while our washing machine is much smaller than we had in Canada, we’ve adjusted our loads according. But living with no dryer is much more frustrating.

If you want to see more about our daily life, watch our latest video now live on our YouTube Channel.

Crunchy Towels are No Bueno

Seriously, nothing is worse than a line-dried towel. They are disgustingly crunchy. I hate crunchy. Who wants to fiercely exfoliate your body on a chilly winter morning? You want to be wrapped up in warm, soft, caress like a cuddly bunny. You do not want to feel like you’ve been scraped by a sidewalk after falling off your bike.

As a child I remember my mother occasionally line drying on a summer’s day – I hated those towels too. I would always dig down to the bottom of the pile in the linen closet in hopes of finding something softer.

This may work fine for clothes, but not for my towels.

Things I’ve Tried for Fluffy Towels

Like any normal person, I searched Google for “how to get fluffy towels with no dryer”. I found a bunch of suggestions:

Add vinegar in the final rinse
Wash towels at 40 degrees
Use half the detergent amount
Don’t use fabric softener
Do use fabric softener
Only do a very small load
Shake towels vigorously before hanging to dry

Bottom line: none of these really worked. I still continued to have crispy towels – only now they smelled slightly pickled.

The Solution

The solution is shocking obvious – use a dryer! This means a trip to to local coin laundry. For us this is the Wash Point Kávézó & Mosoda. Located near Kálvin Ter in District 9, this is the best one I have ever been to. Ok, so, maybe I haven’t actually been to a lot of coin laundry places, but this place is awesome.

We continue to wash and line dry our clothes at home, but we always take towels and linens to Wash Point.

Wash Point Kávézó & Mosoda

As the name implies, this is not just a laundromat, but a coffee house too. You can find the coffee house at street level and the laundry in the basement. Watch your towels spin around while sipping on a latte and enjoying a sandwich.

The surroundings are impeccably clean and comfortable. They have free wi-fi, a kid’s corner and cool music videos playing on a TV. Additionally, they are open every day of the year from 7 am until midnight. We tend to go in the mornings around 10am and always find machines to use.

How Much for Laundry Softness?

Each load – a wash or a dry – costs 1000 HUF (about $5 CDN). You can pay by card or cash. All instructions are in Hungarian and English. The best part? You don’t need to worry about bringing detergent – its automatically dispensed in the wash.

If you live around this area, I highly recommend Wash Point for a enjoyable experience whilst performing boring laundry chores.

How about you? Any other tips or tricks for me to try? Do you know of a great laundry service perhaps? Do you iron your sheets (asking for a friend)?

Let me know in the comments below!

Snuggly yours,

Anikó

Budapest Expat Tips

Tourist Alert: What Not to Wear in Budapest, Hungary

March 3, 2018

Budapest is an amazing city. Everywhere you look you’ll find amazing architecture, museums, hotels, bars, nooks, and crannies. And while there are many cultural differences between North America and Hungary, the way people dress is one of them. So unless you want to be immediately identified as a tourist, here is a short list of what not to wear in Budapest, Hungary.

Tourist Alert

Please note that these are my personal observations after 3 months of living in Budapest. I have absolutely done ALL of the things listed below (as I’m sure some of you have too). You (and I) may even continue to do so in the future. Guess what? If that’s what you want, go ahead and be the best tourist you can be! But for those of you who want to blend in a little more with your European surroundings – keep reading.

Dirty Shoes or Trainers

Since we take public transportation practically everyday, we get to see a lot of footwear. Hungarian’s shoes are practically always polished to perfection. Even in wintertime, you would have to look hard to find salt stains on a fellow passenger’s boots. Laces are also neat and clean – with shoes/boots completely tied up.

Now I am not saying that all Canadians have dirty shoes (as I am sure not all Hungarians have clean ones). However, both my husband and I noticed this almost immediately. It prompted us to get to the store to make sure we had some good polish on hand. There is definitely a higher level of respect for an individual’s personal appearance.

Furthermore, wearing trainers/running shoes is definitely a sign that you must be a tourist. You will discover most Europeans wear stylish but comfortable shoes or a higher-end sneaker look. You’ll likely only find running shoes being worn during an actual athletic activity.

A more likely shoe to be seen in winter is something like this comfortable, but stylish, men’s shoe.

While these bright coloured trainers may be perfect for the gym or track, wearing on the street of Budapest simply screams tourist.

Colourful Winter Coats

When the temperatures drop, I’ve always liked to beat the gloom with a bold coloured coat. I have a turquoise coat, a bright pink down vest and my husband has a cobalt blue coat. Unfortunately, these are not looks you find regularly on adults on the streets of Budapest. Most Hungarians above the age of 12 wear black or darker colours. Lucky for us, we own more than one coat.

Note that this doesn’t always stop us from wearing our coats of many colours, but we make a conscious choice to do so. Sometimes, and in certain places, its simply best to fit in and look “Hungarian”. Why be a target for tour operators and pickpockets when you don’t have to be?

Check out our latest video on YouTube to see when we blend in and when we don’t bother…

While we have protected his identity, this man is immediately recognizable as a tourist in this bright blue coat.

Baseball Caps

As someone who has spent the last ten summers of my life on a boat, both my husband and I own more then one baseball cap (even if I did rarely wear one). Baseball caps are often a complete necessity when sailing to keep the sun out of your eyes without losing your sunglasses. On the contrary, you will find few adult Hungarians wearing these on the streets of Budapest.

If you do see this style of cap, its most likely to be devoid of any slogan or sports logo. I’m not really sure why baseball hats get no love? You do see lots other styles of hats – bucket hats, pork pie hats, straw hats, and my husband’s personal favourite, the Trilby. Ps. This does to apply to ladies as well.

Wearing this hat is not only a sign that your are a tourist but a Times Square billboard sized sign that you are a tourist.

Sweatsuits, Tracksuits and Yoga Pants

I love my yoga pants. Who doesn’t love their yoga pants? They can be be both flattering and practical when they fit right. In the past, I never hesitated from wearing them to the mall, out for coffee or grocery shopping. On the other hand, please know that I never wore them to work or to a dinner party. Rarely do you see these anywhere on the streets of Budapest. Sweats? Track suits? Leisure wear? Nope. You won’t find any of those either. Again, this applies to both women and men. Sorry boys! Leave those baggy track suits at home.

Defying all North American logic, these two women are wearing yoga pants to actually do yoga – not to meet at Starbucks for a latte.

Other Tourist Giveaways

Of course clothing is just one part of the tourist puzzle. Carrying selfie sticks, wearing backpacks, multiple cameras, staring at large maps, paying in Euros instead of forints, are all huge “tourist alert” giveaways. Perhaps the most obvious – and the hardest to avoid – is speaking in English.

Perhaps the most obvious of tourist devices – the selfie stick. Not only that – but many popular spots simply ban the use of these nowadays.

In short, no matter how you dress or what language you speak, please don’t hesitate to come and visit this extremely safe and beautiful city that I now call home. Hungarians are fabulous and will fill you to the brim with the best food, wine, weather and entertainment.

What do you think screams tourist? Let me know in the comments below!

Budapest Expat Tips, Expat Life

Discovering Different places to Buy Harder to find Groceries in Budapest

January 17, 2018

My husband and I moved to Budapest seven weeks ago. We live in the 5th district in the “Belvaros” area. Belváros means “inner city”or “downtown” in Hungarian. So while we have lots of little shops around, its not always easy to find exactly what we are craving or looking for. We set off to discover some different places to buy our harder to find groceries in Budapest.

Common Grocery Stores

There are many smaller grocery stores and specialty shops all over the city. Sometimes you will find more than one on the same block. But if you are used to shopping at Whole Foods or Loblaws like I was, these shops are incredibly tiny. Choice in these shops is usually quite limited and stock doesn’t seem to come very regularly. One week you can find the item you are looking for – but then you don’t see it again for another month.

Andrew was very excited to find his favourite cookies at our local SPAR when we first arrived. However, once we bought up the few packages in stock, we never saw them again.

Some of the typical downtown grocery shops:

CBA
Tesco Expressz
SPAR
Prima
ABC
Aldi

Shopping near Kálvin Ter

We live close to the Danube, in the southern part of the 5th district close to Kálvin Ter. We wanted to find more ethnic type foods and some North American & British comfort foods. Our research complete, we decided we would visit the Asia Market, the Great Market Hall (“Nagyvásárcsarnok”) and the USA Candy Store. All 3 stores are no more then 15 minutes walking distance – important on a chilly January afternoon. There are also several metro, tram and bus options to get to this easy to reach spot downtown.

The Asia Market

Located right next door to the Great Market Hall is The Azsia Market . This Asian Market sells all things Asian with generous helping of Mexican and Indian food items. We bought our rice cooker from here along with some other kitchen items. There is row after row of amazing foods, sauces, canned goods, baking goods, teas and more.

They have a massive spice, rice and pasta section made from a wide variety of plants, flours and grains. I would highly recommend this place for vegetarians, vegans or anyone who likes ethnic foods. You can visit their Facebook page to read about their latest offers.

You can find the market at Vámház körút. 5, Budapest 1093. The operating hours are Monday through Friday 8:00 am to 6:30 pm, Saturday 8:00 am to 3 pm and its closed on Sunday.

Groceries purchased:

Black beans, baked beans, variety of curry spices, garlic, soya sauce, sweet and sour sauce, rice noodles, jasmine rice and herbal peach tea.

The Great Market Hall

The Great Market Hall, built in 1897, is the biggest and prettiest of all Budapest market halls. Located beside the Liberty Bridge, the building is 10,000 square meters over 3 floors, covered by a steel structure. A distinctive architectural feature is the roof which was restored to have colourful tiling. And while being a tourist hotspot, it also serves as a functioning and practical place to buy your fresh groceries. You can also find other smaller market halls located in various locations in both Buda and Pest.

The interior of the Great Market Hall (still decorated from the Christmas holiday).

The stalls on the main floor sell fresh fruit, vegetables, nuts, meat, dairy, baked good and booze. Downstairs you’ll find the more pungent fish vendors and butchers, along with an Aldi supermarket. Upstairs you’ll find an incredible amount of souvenir items, Hungarian handicrafts, prepared food stalls and restaurants.

Andrew and I enjoying the relative quiet of the main floor Market Hall on a rainy afternoon.

The Market is closed on Sunday, opens at 6am on other days, and closes at 5pm Monday, 6pm Tue-Fri and 3pm Saturday.

Groceries purchased:

Mandarin oranges, bananas, lemons, avocado, onions, walnuts, eggs, Brie cheese, milk and rye bread.

USA Candy – London Gourmet

Our final stop was USA Candy – London Gourmet. This store stocks not just American candies, but British sweets too. This small shop is just across the main road from the market and on our way home. Here you can find lots of satisfaction for your sweet tooth – but also some familiar and comforting foods. They sell tea, condiments, cereals, marmalades, and more.

Andrew headed straight to the Cadbury section as soon as we walked in…

You will find the USA Candy shop at Királyi Pál u. 13b, Budapest, 1053. The operating hours are Monday through Friday 10:00 am to 6:00 pm, Saturday 10:00 am to 1 pm and its closed on Sunday.

Groceries purchased:

Flake chocolate bars, KitKat mocha bar, M&M Dark Chocolate Mints, Tetley’s Tea and Vegemite (personally a yuck for me).

Additional Grocery Stores

I’m sure there are many more amazing places for groceries that I have yet to discover. In all fairness, we’ve just explored within a very small area near our home. However, I would be remiss not to once again mention the British Pantry – a home delivery grocer that Andrew and I also use. I also spoke about the service in my post about the Best Facebook Groups for Expats.

Is there somewhere fabulous that I missed? Do you have a favourite place I should know about? Is there an awesome market I should check out? Let me know in the comments below!

Budapest Expat Tips, Personal Stories

Considering Home improvement in Budapest? Today’s visit to the Hungarian Home Depot (OBI)

November 27, 2017

As many of our friends and family know, we are considering home improvement in Budapest. We will rent an apartment for our first year, but do plan to buy something we can renovate in the future. My husband, Andrew, is passionate about building and renovating. Today’s visit to the “Hungarian Home Depot” or OBI (as its actually named) was to purchase some extension cords and power bars to run our LED Christmas lights. For those of you that know us best, this should hardly come as a surprise.

The first step’s a doozy…

Our journey south alongside the Danube was fraught with danger. While simply crossing the street outside our front door, I tripped on the curb and did a full ninja body roll onto the sidewalk pavement on the other side. The good news? 1. I did not land in dog shit. 2. I did not land in a puddle. 3. I had leather gloves on that prevented any road rash. 4. My wool winter coat also assisted in cushioning my landing. The bad news? I think I took 5 years off my husband’s life due to panic.

The curb lying in wait to trip me…

Anikó on the Number 2 streetcar – sitting after my fall.

Once I dusted myself off, we continued on southward on the number 2 streetcar. Unfortunately, even though we used our awesome BKK transit app, we still got off at the wrong stop. After ten minutes of wondering around looking puzzled, we got back on the streetcar at the same stop and continued on to OBI.

Welcome to Home Improvement Paradise

OBI is in fact what we expected it to be – the Hungarian version of Home Depot (complete with orange signage). However, unlike our North American Home Depots, OPI divides up its home improvement goods over two massive floors. Andrew did a quick inspection of the main floor tool section, and then we headed upstairs to the electrical department to look for what we needed. No less than two people offered us help. And even more surprisingly, I could actually understand that they were offering it. Perhaps they do have English speaking staff, but we muddled through pretty easily in Hungarian. I suspect if we were after something more elusive, this could get way more complicated.

Once you get off at the right stop, OBI is easy to see due to its large size and 4 flag posts on the street.

We selected one power bar with surge protection and one extension cord. This cost us a total of $2392 forints (about $11.92 CAN). While it is possible to get cheaper versions of both, we will take these with us from our temporary accommodation and wanted to make sure they would last beyond Christmas. Furthermore, we didn’t need to go all the way to OBI for these items – they could have been purchased down the street. However, we wanted to see what OBI had to offer in terms of general home improvement and renovation supplies. From our current location in district 9, the journey took less then 20 minutes.

Our new power bar in action. We purchased all of our convertors from Amazon before we left.

By the time we completed our exploration and purchase, it was time for lunch. We headed back on the number 2 streetcar and ate lunch overlooking the Danube. My lunch was awesome. I randomly choose the “Lunch Menu” that was only listed in Hungarian so I wasn’t really sure what I was going to get. Andrew choose a burger that was a fail.

Tomorrow we begin our apartment search with the assistance of Inter Relocation. Wish us luck!

On the east side of the Danube river. The perfect lunch spot.

Budapest Expat Tips

How to Find the Perfect Pillow in Budapest: Cloud 9 Ahead

November 25, 2017

My husband and I are both light sleepers and consequently, picky pillow people. To help us sleep at night, warm and comfy bedding plays a big part. For anyone that has ever looked for quality linens in Budapest, you know this can be tricky. Yesterday, we set out to find the perfect pillow in Budapest. And guess what? We did.

Some people are very lucky and seemingly have the ability to sleep anywhere at anytime – just like my sister. I need a dark room, a heavy blanket, calm music or total silence. My husband is the same and we always wake up if there is the slightest disturbance in the force.

Armed with the knowledge that most bedding found in rental apartments is from IKEA, we included a good amount of linens in our container shipment from Canada. However, we decided not to waste the container space on pillows, so I began the search online for how to find the perfect pillow in Budapest before we ever left Canada. The once place that kept coming up again and again with amazing reviews is “Elfenbein”,

Keep your eyes out for this sign and then head down the wooden staircase…

Where I found my pillow in Budapest

Located at Teréz krt, 35 in the 6th District of Budapest, Elfenbein is easy to miss. Only a small sign on the street takes you to a door leading down a fairly rickety wooden staircase into a basement filled with feathers. It’s like being in a Victorian snow globe – but one filled with goose down instead of snow!

Our trepidation disappeared in an instant when we received a warm greeting from the owner, Tamás Szántó. This small but perfect workshop was started by his grandfather in 1957. Elfenbein makes custom Hungarian goose feather pillows and comforters – and they are amazing!

The welcoming and knowledgeable Tamás.

The Store/Custom Workshop

Tamás gave us a tour of the workshop and explained the differences in the 3 types of pillows he offers. You are also able to purchase them in various sizes – including any custom sizing you may want. We chose to purchase two standard pillows in the “sandwich” style. The means our pillows are stuffed with Hungarian goose feathers, but then also have a layer of goose down on either side. This method allows the feathers to provide good head and neck support, with the soft down to prevent feathers from sticking into your face while you sleep. Clever.

Luckily, Elfenbein also provides pillow cases, so we didn’t have to go to a separate store on the way home. This is especially important for us since the standard European sized pillow is different then what we use in North America. Any and all of our of our existing pillowcases just wouldn’t fit.

Andrew feeling the very soft Hungarian goose down used in our pillows.

A corkboard with articles and thank you notes from satisfied and some very famous clients (Goldie Hawn being the most recent).

While I understand that feather pillows aren’t for everyone – especially those with allergies. We LOVE them. We can even take ours back to Elfenbein to have them adjusted if required. Tamás said these new ones should last us 30 years before replacement is necessary. It should be noted that we paid more than double for our old feather pillows purchased at The Bay in Toronto five years ago – and those pillows were not hand-made.

Of course, Elfenbein is also famous for their comforters/duvets. We did ship ours from home, but we know where to get a new one when the time comes. We highly recommend Elfenbein for your new pillow in Budapest – and they even ship worldwide.

Budapest Expat Tips, Moving Abroad

Budgeting for Budapest: Avoid these Top 3 Expat Mistakes

October 30, 2017

Budgeting for Budapest is top of mind for my husband – and rightly so. We want to avoid expats mistakes that we’ve heard other people have made. While we are both lucky enough to be able to work remotely and have that work continue – not all of our work is remote. For us, moving to Budapest means a drastic cut in our dual family income – and with that comes a monthly budget.

To tell the truth, neither of us have ever been big budgeters before… but we sure are now. We use resources like Numbeo for Budapest to help us gage our monthly living costs along with other research done on Facebook. To see my recommendation for the best Budapest Facebook Groups, read this post. As of October 2017, the cost of living index in Budapest is 32.21% lower than my hometown of Toronto, Canada.

The 3 Top Expat Mistakes when Budgeting

1. Not budgeting for the cost of international shipping.

If you can fit all your belongings into two suitcases then you don’t have to worry about this too much. If it is a company transfer or job offer, its likely the corporation will pick up the bill. However, if you are moving by your own choice midlife like we are, or you’re moving to retire in Hungary, its likely you have more “stuff” you want with you. Especially if you are planning to be away for more than a year or two.

We had a garage sale in preparation for our move and sold all of our bigger items through online marketplaces, so we will not be moving any furniture or cars. However, the smaller stuff still adds up. We have boxes of china, crystal, decor items, paintings, stereo equipment (yes it will all work with 240v), a bicycle, purses, shoes, clothes, tools and more. In total, we will be moving about 190 cubic feet of precious (to us) cargo.

Our belongings will make the journey via container ship and should arrive about six to eight weeks after we do. The shipment is considered “household goods” and thus duty-free. But don’t be fooled, the total cost of door-to-door shipping with insurance for our smaller amount is around $8000 – even without duty or import taxes. You really need to crunch the numbers to see if its worth it. It may be cheaper to simply purchase everything new on upon arrival. Furthermore, the shipping company will want all the money upfront sent via international bank wire. No putting it on your credit card and worrying about it later!

2. Living like a tourist upon arrival

Hand decorated gingerbread cookies at the Christmas Market Stands.

We are really excited to be arriving in Budapest at the start of the holiday season. We have never been in Budapest for Christmas and are looking forward to the famous Christmas Markets, mulled wine, marzipan and hot pálinka. The temptation to go crazy buying holiday items, food, wine, gifts and attend special events is strong. However, we know we need to keep to our budget for any unexpected items that may creep up. We can not live like we are on holiday. Unexpected charges could be anything from lawyers, rents, visas, permits – not cake and champagne.

Since we know we want to participate in some of the many the holiday events in Budapest, we included those bigger tickets items into our first month’s budget. Moreover, we are able to purchase tickets in advance or make reservations online from Canada for the Nutcracker Ballet, La Bohéme Opera and our Christmas Brunch at the famous Gundel Restaurant.

3. The cost of Health Care

Hungary has a tax-funded universal healthcare system, organized by the state-owned National Health Insurance Fund. But don’t assume that because you are moving to Hungary that you will automatically have access. As mentioned in this post, I am a dual Canadian-Hungarian citizen and my husband is British. You would think this gives us access to a EU health-care system – but if you do, you would be wrong.

Since I have never lived in Hungary, I have not yet paid any taxes. Since the health care system funds itself by taxes, I do not qualify and this requires me to get a private plan. The same goes for my husband. Since he has been in Canada for many years, he does not quality for his EU card which would typically allow British citizens access to the healthcare system. Both of us will need a private plan for this first year or until we perhaps work with a Hungarian employer.

However, if we are employed, the Hungarian company will pay this health care fee for us. Consequently, if we remain independent consultants, we need to foot the bill. The good news is, this cost is not exorbitant and a wide variety of plans and providers are available. After a our first year, we are able to “buy” into the social system and use it like any other citizen.

Interesting: Hungary is one of the main destinations of medical tourism in Europe and has excellent medical and dental services. According to Wikipedia, the most popular medical treatments are dentistry, cosmetic surgery, orthopaedic surgery, cardiac rehabilitation, fertility treatment, dermatology, anti-aging treatment, obesity treatment, addiction programmes and eye surgery.

Of course there are other financial considerations to make – personal, business and property tax rates, pensions, bank accounts, life insurance, etc. If in doubt, speak to your accountant before you leave – and find a good one upon arrival. We are planning to meet with an accountant I found via Facebook. To find out my favourite Budapest Facebook groups, read this post.

Budapest Expat Tips

The Best Facebook Groups for Budapest Expats

October 27, 2017

Moving abroad to Budapest, Hungary… I still can’t believe we are going to do this! It’s scary, exciting, stressful, wonderful – it pretty much covers the gamut of my emotions. Thanks to Facebook Groups for Budapest, we feel like we are well prepared to move to this foreign land – at least as well as we could be – and much of that is thanks to a LOT of research all done on Facebook.

How and where did we get our information?

The “Digital Age” we currently live in makes finding information about our new city life in Budapest only a click away. I’ve said over and over that I think this move is much easier in 2017 then it would have been even ten years earlier (when I first considered moving to Budapest). Google searches and Facebook social networking allow me to get even the most specific of questions quickly answered. I have figured out transportation, real estate services, professional associations, health services, legal services, beauty services, banking, entertainment and more.

I already have appointments booked with nearly all of these – weeks in advance of my arrival. I’m hopeful this will help us reduce our stress and help us integrate into our new lives a little easier then trying to figure it all out “boots on the ground”. And since it will be the end of November, we will definitely need our boots!

Info about moving abroad is only a click away!

The following Facebook Pages and Groups are my favourite resources for those planning to move abroad to Budapest or those that are already living there.

Facebook Groups for Budapest

Expat Info Budapest
Hungary Expats
English Speaking Expat People Living in Budapest
Expats in Hungary
Budapest Entrepreneurs
Women of Budapest (Shout out to me – I designed the logo for this group)
Budapest Digital Nomads
Girl Gone International: Budapest
Used Stuff for Sale in Budapest
Inter Relocation Group
Clarke and White Budapest Real Estate

Not only have I gathered a wealth of information from Facebook, but I have made new friends and business associates. The vast majority of Budapest Facebook Groups and Pages are filled with happy and friendly people who respond quickly to my questions and help me with any confusion. I have recommendations to excellent restaurants, events, apartments, professional services, dog sitting, grocery stores, wine bars and anything else I wanted.

Iced Christmas Fruitcake

Another great discovery is the The British Pantry. Found through Facebook groups for Budapest, this awesome online grocer delivers your favourite British goods right to your door in Budapest. This means my husband will have his Christmas favourite fruitcake while celebrating the holiday for our first time in Budapest. It will also keep us stocked in baked beans, sausages and biscuits as long we are there.

A huge thanks to David at The British Pantry for his quick replies to my emails and great customer service!

Why did we choose to move to Budapest? Read this post to learn more.