Budapest feels grand and elegant, historical yet full of modern life. Home to a number of Unesco World Heritage Sites, delicious flavors, boutique shops, and riverside luxuries, there are many different ways to experience the city, each dependent upon your interests. Your Workation representative will meet you at the airport and take you to your accommodations. Relax and enjoy the modern amenities that will help you succeed during your Hungary Workation. 

You can step out into the city for a quick introduction to your neighborhood or beyond, starting in District V.  The old city walls are visible around Belváros and Lipótváros. Cafes keep their doors open late with the smells of cinnamon and sugar mixing with the fresh coffee. Scars from contemporary history emerge through visible bullet holes that tell unique stories near the MONO Art and Design and vintage stationary shop giving you an impressive view of the city’s past, present, and future.  

Focus: Pay attention to your breath as it goes in and out. You can count your breaths or focus on the sensation as you settle into your space. 

Suggestion: There are plenty of Michelin-starred restaurants in Budapest, including one in District V, where you can enjoy the upscale food and ambiance but for far less than in the US.

You will have a full day to explore Pest and visiting with a guide can give you a better connection to the monuments, architecture, and cultural significance of the section of Budapest. You can start walking along the Danube Promenade between the Chain and Elizabeth bridges. 

Upscale hotels speak to the elegant 19th-century history and feature terraces overlooking the water, the riverbanks, and the hill to the looming Buda Castle. Enjoy the view of the bridge and the interesting bronze shoes lining the banks that speak to the Holocaust and how the city, and greater nation, was affected.  You also have time to visit Heroes’ Square, where the statues commemorate the seven chieftains of the Magyar tribes. They were constructed to commemorate the 1,000th anniversary of Hungary and depict the significance of the square.

Focus: Reflect on the things that catch your attention as you explore Pest, what positive feelings are you associating with them?

Suggestion: You can walk the length of Andrassy Avenue for the ambiance of the wide street and the way it frames Heroes’ Square between the museums, exhibition halls, and entrance to City Park. 

With another full day to explore, you can visit Budapest’s nearby weekend getaway, Lake Balaton. Often referred to as the nation’s “inner sea,” the bucolic landscape opens to fantastic views of ancient fortresses, historic towns, and also underwater caves. You can spend the day exploring the countryside and history however you’d like. 

At Szigliget Fortress, you have a view over the lake’s north shore. The structure rises nearly 800 feet on a hill above the surrounding landscape with a mixture of houses and walls marking the edge of a 13th-century Benedictine order. The castle stood as a great defender during Tartar and Turkish invasions through the centuries. In Tihany Town, you can walk down the medieval cobblestone streets that lead to unforgettable views over the turquoise lake and green valley. 

Focus: As you go about your day, take a moment to pause and simply note what you are experiencing in the present moment, such as “thinking” or “feeling anxious.”

Suggestion: Visit the abbey in Tihany for a great look at the Baroque interior against the exterior town’s medieval preservation. 

Your first day of work during your Hungary Workation package will come easy as you implement a ritual to start your day. The ritual is a combination of routine with intention, and could be as simple as grabbing a coffee from a local cafe or performing breathing exercises. The ritual is important for creating a structure that encourages and enables you to focus on work no matter where you are in the world. 

After work ends, you can step away from the computer by performing another ritual that will draw a line between work and life to further the balance. Explore Buda on your own or with a guide to learn more about the city, its history, and culture. Before visiting Buda Castle, you can wander through the elegant Fisherman’s Bastion. The neo-Gothic architecture lends into the romantic with terraces overlooking the water. It is named for the fishermen who helped defend the city in the Middle Ages. The seven towers are great for panoramic views.

Focus: As you settle into working in your new space, practice progressive muscle relaxation by tensing and relaxing your muscles one by one, starting with your feet and working your way up to your head.

Suggestion: The views of Pest and over the water are great around Castle Hill, so you generally don’t need to pay to climb the Fisherman’s Bastion towers. 

With another day of work, you can practice your ritual to make sure it resonates with you and help you get into the right mindset. At the end of the day, practice removing yourself from your projects by implementing a way to disconnect. When you are ready, your Workation representative will meet you at your accommodations and take you to Eger, a city full of charm, where Baroque buildings turn the streets into a jewelry box, a history of Turkish occupations creates monuments out of street corners, and the grand basilica becomes a gateway to the past. Once you settle in, you can easily find access to the amenities that will help you succeed as you enjoy your Workation in Eger. 

Focus: Focus your attention on the sounds around you, without judging or analyzing them. What do you hear? What do they sound like? Is it a song or a bird’s call? 

Suggestion: If you haven’t tried a chimney cake by now, Eger is a great place to eat the traditional pastry that resembles a chimney and is often topped with cinnamon and sugar. 

With your ritual firmly settled, you can set a task for work for the day, easily starting and stopping, even though you are in a new city. At the end of your workday, you can venture out to explore Eger further, starting with the castle. 

The stronghold was originally built in the 13th century as a defense against the Mongol invasion and has been reconstructed in various forms, with the current iteration stemming from a 15th-century Gothic fortress. The different structures inside the larger complex host museums speaking to sieges, fortified gun placements, and even a minting museum dedicated to the history of coins. 

Focus: Focus on the sensation of your feet touching the ground, the movement of your legs and arms, and your breathing as you walk through the castle.

Suggestion: If you want a great view of Ereg, you can climb to the top of the Eger Minaret but the spiral staircase is extremely tight. 

You can focus on work throughout the day but after work, you can take part in a Hungarian tradition by relaxing with a thermal bath. Eger has 13 pools in total and the different waters offer natural minerals that can soothe your body and mind. Eger is known for having some of the nicest town baths in Hungary, with many located near the city center. 

You can sink into the smooth, warm water and feel the medicinal properties with naturally occurring amounts of radon. You may find a Renaissance atmosphere with floating water lilies, the sound of cascades, and decorative shells. It is an experience that can calm your mind and rejuvenate your muscles at the same time. 

Focus: Take a moment to pause and focus on your breath, checking in with your body and your surroundings.

Suggestion: The different baths around Eger have different personalities and properties, so you can choose the one right for you. 

On your last day of work for your Hungary Workation, you can follow your ritual, step away from the computer and travel out into Eger to enjoy discovering a new way to see the city. Next to the Eger Basilica entrance, you can find the archbishop’s cellars taking you into the City Under the City. 

Visit with a guide for better orientation on the caverns and their purpose as you explore the system running nearly two miles beneath Eger. The network of cellars date back to the 17th century and are in part connected to the invasion of the Turks. When you return to the surface, you can continue exploring the Eger Basilica and see the neoclassical monolith’s effect on the surrounding town’s atmosphere. 

Focus: Use your imagination to visualize the scene in front of you, the history that has taken place here, and the stories you can create.

Suggestion: Try a palacsinta, a Hungarian sweet, flat cake similar to a crepe and filled with both savry and sweet options. 

Outside of Eger, you can visit the famous Valley of the Beautiful Women, where vineyards carve into the hills and wine cellars hide beneath the landscape. Restaurants serve traditional Hungarian specialties with the smell of spices like sweet paprika added layered flavors to dishes like goulash. 

Wine bars fill a central park and add to the cozy atmosphere amidst the 200 different wine cellars cut into the mountainside. The network of cellars can span nearly 62 miles outside of Eger. Try the different wines grown in the region and see which ones you like the most. You may taste the famous Bull’s Blood wine and find aromas of the forest floor, chocolate, and blue fruits.

Focus: Taste your wine slowly and pay attention to the taste, texture, and smell of the wines you try.

Suggestion: Visiting the Valley of Beautiful Women is interactive, giving you the fun of wine tasting while walking around the pathway to find and enjoy new wines. 

Your Workation representative will meet you at your accommodation and take you to your airport of choice for your departure flight. If you have the time, visit your favorite cafe once more in the morning, enjoy a coffee, and sit in the beauty of the town’s medieval architecture before leaving. Beyond the castle, you can revisit the leafy streets of Kossuth Lajos utca and pass by the Orthodox synagogue and baroque buildings and the rococo Provost Palace. At the end of your Workation, you can return home, decide to spend more time in Hungary, or continue your work-life balance in another one of the countries in which Workation operates. 

Focus: Take a few deep breaths and focus on the sensation of the breath moving in and out of your body before you head to the airport. Has it changed? How does it make you feel?