The Corinthians

The Corinthia!

At £800 per night, on the night we stayed, and £500 if you're truly lucky, this 5* corporate hotel leaves you with little change in your pocket.

That said, I think I'd pay £500 for the breakfast alone...

 The fruit was the nicest of any I've tasted anywhere - so sweet and fresh and cold and delicious!

 And who knew you could make a poached egg look like a pair of pearls on a plate! (With yellow mush)

And yes, I'm ashamed (and proud) to say, I did eat everything in each picture above.. :o

He seemed to enjoy it too......

Needless to say, we didn't need lunch.

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Now back to the room itself... We were greeted with a lovely 'Happy Birthday' cake for the birthday boy:

The decor was minimalistic and neutral; tailored perfectly to the tastes of a luxury business traveller more than the weekend galavanters....

But then the bathroom - that was something else. Complete with a walk in marble rainfall shower, a separate toilet, two marble sinks, ESPA bath salts and toiletries...

 It also had a very comfortable bath, and incase you got bored in your lavish marble bath, there was a flat screen waterproof TV!

The spa - which we were too busy enjoying to take pictures of - was incredible. It has been voted the #1 spa in London. With an ice-fountain, a fire pit, two pools, a Jacuzzi, steam room, fresh towels everywhere and lemon water; I'm not surprised really.

All in all, a very luxurious, clean, and pampered stay; without too much over-attention or fuss. Great quality materials and furnishings in the rooms, and an exquisite attention to detail. We didn't want for one mod-con while at The Corinthia that wasn't already thought of!

And oh my... the beds were so comfy, it made you want to jump for joy in the morning!!

Buda or Pest?

One city; two personalities. 

Did you know that Buda and Pest are two different places within Budapest? They're divided by the Danube (river)...

Buda is old; worldly, historic and adorned with castles and statues upon hills.

Pest is new, on even ground, bustling and bourgeois - and brilliant for a night out.

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The jewish quarter, oddly, is the most vibrant hub of all youth, booze and music. It has everything from 'Yo Yiddisha Mammas Bakery' and 'Hummus Brothers Falafel' to traditional Hungarian restaurants with late night live music, clubs and ruin bars. Shout out to my brethren.

Ruin bars are mad cool. They are formed from the disused atrium in an abandoned building - also known as a 'ruin'.

They're decorated by someone who has an imagination like a tripping-out, drunk and disorderly Lewis Carroll.

The ruin bar we went to had the token scary bouncer on the door, a nice array of beers including the Wheat Beer of my choosing, and an old car in the middle with a place for your drinks.

There were rooms hidden within rooms; adorned with televisions for lights, telephone units stuck to doors for door handles, graffiti, wire, lights, a giant moving bunny in a cage and an endless sea of clutter stuck to the walls in the most profoundly baffling attempt at art that somehow worked. Somehow.

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Our hotel was a must stay. Called The Aria, it was music themed and 5*. It was rated No.1 on trip advisor in the whole of Budapest at the time - and boy was it deserved.

The James Brown Suite, where my partner and I stayed, had a huge print of the soul man himself on the headboard. The Nespresso machine, touch operated electric blinds, apple TV, iPad, were all fabulous touches. My favourite 2 things were the recordings of a fireplace coming from the the plasma that was set into a fireplace frame, and the bath. OH EM GEE the bath. It was big enough to fit my 5.8ft self, and my 6.5ft boyfriend in at once, with so much space to spare we could get away with not touching each other! They offered a turn down service with chocolates and water every night. 

The spa was HEAVENLY. We fell asleep in the poolside beds with the free cucumber water more than once. Then awoke to the sound of the jacuzzi bubbling away, and decided to wonder into the steam room after a dip in the pool. 

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We went to one of Budapest's inamous Exit Games, called MindCrime.It was honestly so fun I would recommend going to Budapest just to do all their Exit Games.

We were shut in a small room with 60 minutes to find the password to set us free. And we escaped with 52 seconds to spare.

I won't ruin it for you - but take my recommendation; if you are in any way excited by challenges, adventure, puzzle solving or escapes you will have the time of your life at an Exit Game in Budapest. And for £6-8 each. Ideal. 

Click here for their website

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My last two recommendations from Budapest are:
1. A restaurant called Kacsa - their website is here and they do the best butterfish and duck in Hungary.

2. An ice cream shop, right near the Basilica, called Gelarto Rosa - That makes ice cream roses!

That is all from Budapest...goodbye for now and Happy Travelling! 

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