Visiting Budapest can be more than a bit overwhelming. It is not just the hustle and bustle of a busy European city. There are lots of fellow tourists, things work differently than what we are used to and there is an immense number of different activities to choose from. With large crowds and too many options availabe, you will have to make choices. The same happens in other Hungarian destinations. We highly recommend properly planning your visit to Hungary. The travel books and travel guides in this post are here to help you on your way. We have hand picked all of these books!
This is one of Europe’s most famous destinations. It is also a city that has become known for overtourism. Over the last years, my wife and myself have traveled to the destination on numerous occasions. We know how crowds can make a city busy but also know where to find the quiet places. All our research has been done using the travel books we recommend here.
- All books have been handpicked by us!
- Books with bad reviews are left out.
- This post includes affiliate marketing links on which we can earn a commission.
We are a big fan of Lonely Planet! We use Lonely Planet Travel Guides for basically every destination that we visit. This Lonely Planet Pocket Budapest is a smaller edition and is purely focused on the Hungarian capital. The book comes with full colour maps, highlights, itineraries and what we like the most about the entire Lonely Planet series: reviews for eating, drinking, hidden gems and going out. All Lonely Planet books from the Pocket series are easy-to-use and -unsurprisingly- fit in your pocket. These books are small enough to handle with ease but big enough to contain all the essential tips and tricks for your perfect trip to Budapest.
With this book you get more than just Budapest. If you need a bit more than just the pocket edition, you can also go for the traditional Lonely Planet guide. This book comes with the colour maps, highlights and itineraries that we are used to from our favourite travel book brand. What is especially useful about Lonely Planet are the reviews for different budgets. The book covers all major areas of Budapest and beyond.
We always try to include a book that is a bit different. A book that takes another approach or views the destinations that we want to visit from another unexpected angle. That is exactly what this book does.
CultureShock! provides a sympathetic and fun-filled crash course on the do’s and don’ts in foreign cultures. Fully updated and sporting a fresh new look, the revised editions of these books enlighten and inform through topics such as language, food and entertaining, social customs, festivals, relationships, and business tips.
Rick Steves is a famous American travel author and TV personality. Steves has published strong and useful travel books for many destinations in Europe. This travel guide for Budapest is most definitely not an exception. The book is written for travellers that stay a week or longer in the city. It includes Steves’ ‘strategic advice’ on how to best spend your time and money during your stay in the capital of Hungary. It also has an overview of top sights and hidden gems. Each book by Rick Steves also comes with a chapter on how to beat the crowds, skip the lines and avoid tourists traps, which we absolutely recommend reading upon. Although the book is written with an American audience in mind, it doesn’t matter where you are from, you will find this book both entertaining and useful.
Fodor’s Budapest 25 Best is a travel guide for the Italian capital. The book comes with a handy pull out map with top attractions that you can’t miss. Most importantly, the book has indispensable planning tools such as major attractions, top itineraries and dining recommendations. Fodor’s local writers vet every recommendation to ensure that you not only make the most of your time, but that you also have all the most up-to-date and essential information you need to plan the perfect trip.
Located in the heart of Europe, Hungary has an exciting and rich history. We believe that by reading up on the history of our travel destinations we can better understand the behaviour of those living in the places that we visit. Every place that we visit has its own unique history. Hungary has a long and rich history. Although the country’s history is too extensive to cover in a single book, this book does a good job in summarizing centuries of history in an easy to read accessable book.
In all our overviews of travel guides, we include a travel book that is made for children. The Travel Book: A journey through every country in the world is easy to use for children and will be really entertaining for kids making the life of parents much easier, even on longer trips. The book will help making any trip more fun, easy and entertaining for you and the kids.
Over the years, more and more people started traveling and overtourism became a growing issue. Although the coronavirus pandemic has forced us to change our travel behavior for now, we believe that we will travel again and that the return of crowds is inevitable. This book helps you to Avoid Crowds and is your guide on what (not) to do when it’s busy. The book includes a special chapter on traveling during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.
