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Budapest · Hotel shortlist

Cheap hotels downtown in Budapest

Daniel Kovac

Daniel Kovac Central Europe

Updated 1 September 2026 · 5 Budapest hotels assessed

These are my five favourites in Budapest, out of the 5 that qualified. I read what other travellers scored them before I picked, so the order follows the guests, 4.4 down to 3.4.

Every one comes in under $130 a night, and the one I would book first is $70.

Maverick Downtown

Highest rated of the five

Maverick Downtown

★★★★★4.4 from 1,038 reviews

Maverick Downtown comes out on top of this list, and not narrowly: 4.4 from 1,038 guest reviews is a score that holds up at that volume, which is the whole test here. A perfect ten from nine people does not beat it.

It is found under downtown and around $70 a night on the dates we checked.

Why it works for this trip

  • Family roomscots and larger rooms rather than a squeeze
  • Airport shuttlethe first hour after landing solved

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All five, ranked

  1. Maverick Downtown1

    Maverick Downtown

    ★★★★★4.4 from 1,038 reviews

    • Kid friendly
    • Airport shuttle

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  2. Flow Spaces2

    Flow Spaces

    ★★★★★4.3 from 1,346 reviews

    • Kitchen
    • Pet friendly
    • Kid friendly
    • Air conditioning
    • Airport shuttle

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  3. Zen Hostel by Central Market3

    Zen Hostel by Central Market

    ★★★★★4.2 from 293 reviews

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    • L4 City Centre Stylish Flat4

      L4 City Centre Stylish Flat

      ★★★★★3.65 from 103 reviews

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      • City Rooms5

        City Rooms

        ★★★★★3.4 from 105 reviews

        • Kitchen
        • Airport shuttle

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      How this list was put together

      5 Budapest hotels qualify for this list. We ranked them on guest rating, then on class, and took the top five.

      Two things decide these lists. The first is my own time in the city: every hotel on this page is one I have stayed in, walked into and looked at, or gone back to check. That is where the shortlist starts, and it is why some well reviewed places are not on it.

      The second is the numbers, and those are what set the order. The rating and review count come from the big travel sites, pooled through Google, so a score here reflects Expedia, Booking, Hotels.com and the rest together rather than any one of them. I also read the review breakdown by topic, which is where the figures on service, breakfast and location come from. Hotels with fewer than forty reviews are left out altogether, because a rating that thin is not a rating. No more than two come from one neighbourhood.

      What I do not do is move anyone up the order. The ranking is the guest score, highest first, and nobody pays to be on the list.

      Distances are straight lines from published coordinates, so the real walk is a little longer. Amenities are as recorded by Google Hotels and can change without notice. Rates are an indicative nightly figure for a midweek autumn stay, not a quote. Check the booking page before you commit.

      Daniel Kovac

      Daniel Kovac Central Europe

      Takes the same two weeks every August and drives somewhere far with his wife and daughter. Twelve countries, all by road, all in one battered estate car. Plans routes on paper maps.

      Trip Grapevine earns a commission on bookings made through the links on this page. It costs you nothing, and it does not change the order of the list, which is set by the measurements above.