Things to do and things to avoid in Hungary for tourists – part II.

Here are some good pieces of advice if you stay in Hungary as a tourist. There are some things you should do and other you might want to avoid.

Read here the first part of the list about what to do and avoid in Hungary as a tourist.

Exchange HUF and watch out for ATMs

Although some hotels, restaurants, and shops accept EUR as a means of payment, the official currency of the country is HUF. Therefore, it is highly advised to exchange money when you visit Hungary. In addition, in many shop, they are not happy if the person pays with a larger denomination banknote. When choosing an ATM, you should also be careful, beacuse there are places where they charge particularly high bank fees.

Validate your ticket

Public transport users should pay close attention to the ticketing system in order to stay compliant and avoid heavy fines. Most of the tram and metro stations have vending machines for purchases, and after getting on, you have to validate the tickets, which are either printed or punched by the machine. The buses also deserve special attention, some of which you can board anywhere, while others can only be boarded at the front door, presenting the tickets to the driver as well.

How much to tip

The service fee is charged automatically by some restaurants, but where it is not, tourists are advised to leave a tip of around 10 percent, adding that it is enough if the person tells the waiter the rounded amount from which he requests the change. Also note that when you pay, if you hand out a banknote and say “thank you”, many people interpret it as meaning that the staff can keep the change.

No smiling in Hungary?

According to the latest study, every second Hungarian is unhappy in Hungary. Respondents in Hungary reported the lowest levels of happiness: only 50 percent of them said they were happy. Maybe this is why foreigners do not recommend smiling too much in Hungray to each other. Greetings, on the other hand, are a basic etiquette rule in smaller shops, which is why we recommend saying “Jó napot!” (meaning Good day!).

There are not enough doctors

Insurance is recommended before any trip, but foreigners are not very optimistic about public health in Hungary. They say there are often insufficient staff and it is not easy to find English-speaking nurses and doctors. They prefer private clinics if it is not a vital issue. On the other hand, there are plenty of pharmacies in the city center, they are also open 24 hours a day, which is a plus for us on the list.