Ticket Hall

Communist Budapest Private Walking Tour

5.07 reviewsHouse of Parliament (Országház)

  • 3 hours
  • Free cancellation up to 24h before
  • Guided in English
  • Instant confirmation

Highlights

With the help of a historian, this 3 hour private walking tour allows you to grasp the “goulash communism” of Budapest’s decades under totalitarianism, the soft dictatorship in which Hungarians had certain liberties in exchange for obedience on major issues. Learn why, for all the suffering of Budapest’s citizens under the communist regime, Hungary was called “the happiest barrack in the Soviet Bloc.”

Inclusions

What's included

  • 3-hour guided walk with private historian guide

What's not

  • Tram and metro tickets (Your guide will assist you in purchasing the required tickets if you do not already have a transport pass)

Itinerary

  1. Traveling by subway to Kossuth Square in front of Parliament, we explore monuments from the 1956 revolution, before continuing to Liberty Square where we discuss aspects of the Cold War before the US Embassy, the monument to the Soviet Army, the statue of Ronald Reagan and an atomic shelter.

    25 min

  2. We conclude outside the House of Terror, the imposing museum housed in the former headquarters of the communist secret services with a slab of the Berlin Wall in front. (Although the exhibit within is not included in the tour, this is the perfect endpoint for those interested in delving deeper into Hungary’s Cold War experience)

    15 min

  3. Dropping by the former People’s Stadium (now Puskas Soccer Stadium), with classic socialist realist statues still standing, we can explore the heavy-handed propaganda favored by the regime.

    20 min

  4. Discover the Ronald Reagan statue and the Hungarian sense of obligation to this US president for his efforts to bring down the Iron Curtain.

    10 min

  5. Explore Bem József Square, where the first big demonstration of the 1956 uprising started. On the square is also a coffeehouse that has retained its original interior from the 1960s.

    25 min

Cancellation

Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the experience starts, for a full refund.

Reviews

5.0

  • 57
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Ratings come from 7 reviews collected by our booking partner. They are travellers' own words, in the order they were written — never reordered to flatter the experience.

Know before you go

Meeting point
Bambi Eszpresszó, Frankel Leó út 2/4, 1027 Budapest
Pickup
Pickup is offered, or you can meet at the starting point.
Ticket type
Mobile or paper ticket accepted
Group size
Up to 8 travellers
Operated by
Insight Cities
  • Public transportation options are available nearby
  • Suitable for all physical fitness levels
  • Your guides are local historians who are also enthusiastic hosts and passionate storytellers. We love helping travelers from all over the world discover Budapest.

How it compares in Budapest

  • Its from-price is 160% above the median of the 1255 experiences we list in Budapest.
  • Its length is typical for the group.
  • By number of reviews it ranks 430 of 1255.
  • The operator lists free cancellation on it.

About Budapest

Budapest joins hilly Buda and flat Pest across the Danube, a grand capital of thermal baths, riverside palaces and lively ruin bars.

On the Buda side, Castle Hill holds Buda Castle, the Matthias Church and the white turrets of Fishermen's Bastion, all looking down on the river. The Chain Bridge crosses to Pest, where the Hungarian Parliament Building stretches along the bank and St Stephen's Basilica rises a few streets inland. Gellért Hill and its Citadella give the widest views.

Top-ranked sights in Budapest: House of Parliament (Országház), Buda Castle (Budai Vár), Chain Bridge (Széchenyi Lanchid) .

See all 1255 experiences in Budapest

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