Psst! The secret is finally out! You might have been wondering why we had a very last minute weekend in Budapest last month and I’m finally able to tell you!
Introducing…… easyJet holidays which is launching this week!
We were honoured to be one of the very first families to try out easyJet holidays and decided to choose a last minute city break to beautiful Budapest using the brand new platform!
Let me tell you all about it……. I’m sure you’ve all travelled by easyJet before and think of them as a fab little orange airline for jetting around Europe at a low cost, however would you ever think to book your entire holiday through them? easyJet holidays is launching a brand new service which allows you to combine any of their famous European routes with a choice of handpicked hotels to make the perfect holiday. This change for easyJet is going to be HUGE – no longer are they just for flights, this is your one-stop shop to the perfect getaway. How amazing is that?
The new website will help you to book the perfect trip, which is ideal if you are travelling with a family like us. It’s the little details that matter, like flexible timings, weekend flights, 23kg luggage allowance per person (as you know children need a LOT of stuff) and plus transfers for beach destinations are included too. Whether you are thinking city or beach – there is a destination for everyone and knowing it’s all taken care of is just priceless.
This was our very first holiday abroad with the girls including a flight so quite a big deal for us – on one hand I felt super excited to get away but on the other hand a bag of nerves about flying with two children so small, Violet being only 2.5 and Pearl just over a year. Before children we loved to travel so I was keen to just embrace the fear and go for it!
Luckily our flight went without a hitch and the girls, although exhausted, loved their first plane journey – especially Violet who spent the majority peering out the window at the clouds below in absolute awe of how high we were!
We arrived in Budapest after dark but were greeted in arrivals by our driver. It was so lovely knowing everything was organised ahead of time – with two tired children I can’t imagine how stressful it would been to have found our own way, exhausted and in a completely new country. Bleary eyed we all got into our taxi and before we knew it we were at our hotel. In the pitch darkness, I didn’t see much of Budapest as the bright lights whizzed by so I knew we’d be in for a total surprise in the morning!
The hotel we stayed at was the Corinthia Budapest, which was perfection. Seeing we were a family with two small children – we were overjoyed when the hotel said they’d upgraded us from a Deluxe Room to a Family Suite, which included 2 bedrooms, a kitchen, living space, dining area and a washing machine. That extra space and facilities with the children made so much difference so I’ll be eternally grateful, plus we had a fridge for the babies milk and washing machine (which I used 3 times in 3 days, mum life never stops!) The hotel itself was just stunning, beautiful both inside and out and located right in the heart of Budapest – perfect for exploring the following day.
DAY ONE – SIGHTSEEING AROUND THE CITY
The following morning after a hearty three course breakfast at the hotel we headed into Budapest to see all the main sights.
We decided to use the Hop-On, Hop-Off Bus to see all the main sights – it’s really popular in Budapest and you’ll see them everywhere! We used the Big Red Bus which did a big loop around the city, you can either see the sights out of the window with commentary or there are lots of stops to hop on/hop off! The buses are all buggy friendly and spacious so really easy to use with children plus elderly or disabled passengers too.
Our first stop we found by accident! We hopped off the bus to this beautiful building which turned out to be Budapest Agricultural Museum – probably the most beautiful agriculture museum I’ve ever seen! We enjoyed a drink in the sunshine while we took in the beautiful architecture against a backdrop of autumnal trees.
We then hopped back on the bus to head to the other side of the city and into Buda. Did you know the city is actually divided into two halves, one called Buda, one called Pest? I didn’t either until I visited!
Violet loved riding the bus, I took her up onto the top deck for a better look out as we crossed over the famous Chain Bridge. It was such a lovely, sunny Autumn day – perfect weather for seeing Budapest in all it’s glory.
We gave the girls a break from sightseeing to play underneath this huge tree! It was so beautiful we watched someone having their wedding photos here just moments before under the falling leaves.
We love to sample as many local dishes as possible so we tried Langos for lunch – a deep fried flatbread, served warm with sour cream and grated cheese. It was probably a bit too oily for my usual tastes, but when in Rome!
Our next sight was the one I’d been waiting for! I’d made a list of all the things I wanted to see in Budapest and this was firmly placed at #1. Time to head up to the Fisherman’s Bastion! To get to the top, we had to hop onto a Castle bus which was like a little golf buggy. Quite hard work to load us all in – the buggy had to be folded down and bags thrown in all available spaces, but the girls loved as we went backwards!
At the top, the views were worth the journey! It really is just a fairytale….
At this point, both girls fell asleep so we stopped to enjoy the view and tried Hungarian Chimney Cake which was warm, rich and delicious.
Exhausted from our long day, we headed back to our room and decided to get room service. The girls crashed out early and I crept out of our room for a late night swim at 9pm at our beautiful hotel spa, with my blistered, tired feet from walking all day it was just bliss and such a treat to have 5 minutes peace!
DAY TWO – RIVER CRUISE
The following morning was bright and crisp so we headed down to the river for a cruise. The girls were struggling to keep up the pace and I could see they wouldn’t be up for a long day out, so we kept it short and sweet. A ride on the water was the perfect option as going on the boat kept them happy and entertained, whilst we got to take in famous landmarks like the Parliament Buildings and Buda Castle, while sipping a well needed coffee.
After a beautiful lunch on the waterfront, we headed back to our hotel to visit the Spa so we can unwind and the girls can splash about and have a swim.
DAY THREE – HOMEWARD BOUND
We spent the rest of our trip pottering about soaking up as much of Budapest and the sunshine as we could. We had an afternoon flight home which was perfect as we really got to maximise our trip with a lazy morning and a bit more of the city.
We had the best time and the girls loved it too – the holiday was made by all the little touches that made it so much easier for us as a family – which is what the new easyJet holidays platform is all about. The easy weekend flight times, the transfers and the luggage allowance made it so easy for us to travel with the girls and made such a difference to our trip to have it all taken care of.
If you’d like to see where easyJet holidays could take you next, check out their brand new platform here…..
And lastly, here is a little vlog with some snippets of our trip…… Enjoy!
