I had a last minute, no-planning trip to Budapest two years ago, and this year, made that same conference a part of my travel plans to Europe. I still had a planning issue, as I arrived with two nights before the official event started, thinking I would have a free day to adjust, but instead, I ended up with an extra day of events and meetings. 

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The joy of these types of conferences is that all the vendor events are held in unique and scenic locations, so I still did get the chance to see some new parts of the city. I got to check out the city from venues including a docked boat on the Danube, the opulent W Hotel opposite the Opera House, and a former Hapsburg manion. 

Several took me to the old Jewish quarter of Pest, full of street art and what are called ‘Ruin Bars’ inside of repurposed old factories. Lots of random performers appear at the events too.

One was in a literal castle, Vajdahunyad Castle inside the City Park. I went running in this park every morning during my last stay, as it was right next door, but unfortunately that is still off the table for me, ever since the Great Monkey Attack of 2025. 

My favorite venue, though, was a rooftop overlooking the whole city, next to the Baroque Buda Castle and overlooking the whole city.

One vendor wanted to schedule a fancy lunch, but reluctantly agreed to my choice of walking through the city’s food market and getting some local fare. I can’t say I loved my lángos, a heavy fried bread topped with what even I know to be too much cheese, but the building and all the specialty food shops in this market were right up my alley. 

To walk off that meal, I took a short but hot walk across a bridge to the Buda side of the river and climbed to the Citadel for some daytime views and communist era-inspired statuary. 

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It turned out to be one of the most successful conferences I have ever attended, and as a bonus, made a great jumping off point for meeting Nathan in France to start our abridged but exciting summer of home exchanges.