Tell me about Budapset
Discussion
There's a few Budapest GP guides on the web but I would love to here any opinion, tips or insight. I am going this year for the first time (Gold 4 grandstand) and would love to make my journey as straightforward as I can.
Any cover from the searing heat out there pre-race?
Travel back from the circuit - is grabbing a cab possible after an hour or two hanging around trackside?
Do they open the track up?
All that kind of stuff.
Thanks so much.
Pauly
Any cover from the searing heat out there pre-race?
Travel back from the circuit - is grabbing a cab possible after an hour or two hanging around trackside?
Do they open the track up?
All that kind of stuff.
Thanks so much.
Pauly
I did Hungary in 2014 with my son. Stayed in the city, rented a small car for about £60 and drove to and fro. An easy trip to the circuit, cheaper than taxiing and much more convenient than the buses.
Can be hot. Some covered refreshment places but make sure you have a good hat, sun screen etc. It can also rain. Heavily!
IMO a good track to visit. Plenty of good viewing spots and never feels too crowded. We were in Gold 4 for the race (and Friday/Saturday of course though we spent a fair bit of those in the paddock and the back of the MB pits).
Lots of good places to eat back in the city. Nice place.
Hotels push the prices up, of course, for the weekend but not usually too hard to find somewhere.
Can be hot. Some covered refreshment places but make sure you have a good hat, sun screen etc. It can also rain. Heavily!
IMO a good track to visit. Plenty of good viewing spots and never feels too crowded. We were in Gold 4 for the race (and Friday/Saturday of course though we spent a fair bit of those in the paddock and the back of the MB pits).
Lots of good places to eat back in the city. Nice place.
Hotels push the prices up, of course, for the weekend but not usually too hard to find somewhere.
Wanted to do Budapest this year but working. But the main reason was i now work with one of the grid girls from 2015/16 and i was going to get access all areas with her contacts.
If she was back home she was going to "work" on this years but she is also away. Did not know about this line of work until recently and she told me to Google "grid girls Hungarian Grand Prix 2016" and there she was!
If she was back home she was going to "work" on this years but she is also away. Did not know about this line of work until recently and she told me to Google "grid girls Hungarian Grand Prix 2016" and there she was!
Stayed there in 2012, a few days before the GP, and it was a lovely city. Momento Park is a must see in my opinion, full of Soviet era statues that were removed but now put somewhere you can see in a proper sort of context.
Hotel Charles was where I stayed and the room was nice, I also notice they do GP shuttle bus runs from that hotel. Was cheap enough too, but never ever pay in Euros. Always pay in the Hungarian Forint, as you'll be ripped off using Euros.
Hotel Charles was where I stayed and the room was nice, I also notice they do GP shuttle bus runs from that hotel. Was cheap enough too, but never ever pay in Euros. Always pay in the Hungarian Forint, as you'll be ripped off using Euros.
Worth my finishing this thread off for future reference, and thanks again for all your input.
Budapest is indeed a good city. Lots of buildings that have seen better days on the outside and reek of history. We stayed on 'O Utca' which was central and it was about 550 euros for the week which was good value. It had aircon which is a must - some days it was 33 degrees by 10.30am and only got hotter from there.
Did a few touristy things - the bus, the cruise, lots of good eating, the public baths and the bars.
As for the race we took a pre-booked taxi out there for about £25. Picked us up at 9.30 and we were trackside less than an hour later. The circuit is compact and there's plenty to do. The hill overlooking the circuit was a car park so for all the support races we sat up there under the shade of a Ford Transit with beers and food and could see a big TV screen and 50% of the circuit.
Gold 4 was the perfect spot to watch the race as almost all the action happened on that first corner. Many thanks to Mr Ricciardo for making it thrilling. The race really came alive near the end and the Finns can really drink. The Dutch got their own grandstand. Great crowd and no trouble as one would expect of motorsport.
We decided to prebook a helicopter back given that the cost is relatively low in Hungary. We had it booked for 7pm and given the length of the queue for taxis I think it a very good decision, although one I admit was rather indulgent. Took us 12 minutes to get back into town and was a thrill to boot.
Scores on the Doors:
F1 venue - 8/10
City - 7/10
Value for Money - 9/10
Budapest is indeed a good city. Lots of buildings that have seen better days on the outside and reek of history. We stayed on 'O Utca' which was central and it was about 550 euros for the week which was good value. It had aircon which is a must - some days it was 33 degrees by 10.30am and only got hotter from there.
Did a few touristy things - the bus, the cruise, lots of good eating, the public baths and the bars.
As for the race we took a pre-booked taxi out there for about £25. Picked us up at 9.30 and we were trackside less than an hour later. The circuit is compact and there's plenty to do. The hill overlooking the circuit was a car park so for all the support races we sat up there under the shade of a Ford Transit with beers and food and could see a big TV screen and 50% of the circuit.
Gold 4 was the perfect spot to watch the race as almost all the action happened on that first corner. Many thanks to Mr Ricciardo for making it thrilling. The race really came alive near the end and the Finns can really drink. The Dutch got their own grandstand. Great crowd and no trouble as one would expect of motorsport.
We decided to prebook a helicopter back given that the cost is relatively low in Hungary. We had it booked for 7pm and given the length of the queue for taxis I think it a very good decision, although one I admit was rather indulgent. Took us 12 minutes to get back into town and was a thrill to boot.
Scores on the Doors:
F1 venue - 8/10
City - 7/10
Value for Money - 9/10
Edited by paulyv on Monday 6th August 13:30
Thanks OP, good read. Did an organised tour with Circuit Days to Monza last year, awesome time but we got sh*tty 'general access' tickets and couldnt see a bl00dy thing. Doing the Hungarian Grand Prix this year with Grand Prix Grand Tours. Grandstand seats plus the hotels they've booked seem to be pretty decent. will post more when back
M5 Guy said:
Thanks OP, good read. Did an organised tour with Circuit Days to Monza last year, awesome time but we got sh*tty 'general access' tickets and couldnt see a bl00dy thing. Doing the Hungarian Grand Prix this year with Grand Prix Grand Tours. Grandstand seats plus the hotels they've booked seem to be pretty decent. will post more when back
Just saw this. I am doing Monza again this year, with seats on the first corner. It must have been very frustrating not being able to see much. I have done General Access at Silverstone in 2009 and we had to be at the gate by about 5.30am. We did GA at Spa in 2012 and got a good place, but once you're in place you really cannot move. Not sure I could do GA again now - would rather save up and limit the races I see.
I really hope you enjoy Budapest - they cram plenty into the circuit given its small size. Sometimes I wish all circuits were that size as there's plenty of Silverstone, Monza and Spa that I will likely never get to!
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