A Backpacker’s Guide To The Best Hostels in Budapest | Our Favorite Budapest Hostels

Budapest is a vibrant city that’s cheap, has legendary nightlife, and is home to a surprisingly high number of amazing hostels. In fact, it probably has some of the best hostels in Europe and they’re affordable. All-in-all, the city has about 70 hostels — but in this article, we’ve listed what we consider to be the best hostels in Budapest.

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Average Price For A Hostel in Budapest

A bed in a highly-rated Budapest hotel will cost anywhere from about €15-€30/night with an average of around €20/night.

That said, the cheapest hostel you’ll find will cost around €10/night but the quality might be questionable.

Check Hostelworld to get exact prices for your dates.

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Quick Facts About Budapest Hostels

Cheap Beds & Good Hostels Go Early: Hostel prices are fairly standardized (there are a few outliers) but the quality does vary quite a bit. The best options do get booked up quickly — especially in the summer).

Check Location: Most hostels in Budapest are centrally located but there are a few located outside the city. These outliers might be a little cheaper but I’d rather be in the center of the action.

Party City and Party Hostels: Budapest has some of the best nightlife in Europe so many of the hostels cater exclusively to the party crowd. Be sure to read reviews if this is something you’re looking for (or to avoid).

Check-In Times and Cleaning Times: Many hostels have late check-in times (around 2 pm-4 pm) but nearly all will let you store your bags if you arrive before check-in.

New To Hostels? Check out our Hostels 101 Guide to learn everything you need to know about finding the perfect hostel.

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The Best Hostels in Budapest: Our Top Picks

This list of Budapest’s best hostels is based on overall quality, location, price, and guest reviews. We do encourage you to check out Hostelworld to do a bit of searching yourself.

NOTE: All prices listed below are the cheapest option available during the busy (i.e. expensive) season. Prices will often be 20%+ cheaper during the slower seasons.

Hostel One Budapest

Hostel One Budapest is a party hostel. And they’re very upfront about this. It’s also one of the best-rated hostels in Budapest. So yeah, this is the place to stay if you want to have a great time, meet lots of people (and maybe not get much sleep). They have a bar (complete with drinking games), they cook free dinners every night, they organize bar crawls, and they have a chill-out lounge.

We also love that this hostel doesn’t allow groups larger than four people — so you don’t have to worry about annoying school groups or big drunken bachelor party groups. It really is a great place for solo travelers. Ohh, the staff is great, the location is ideal, the hostel is clean, and the amenities are great.

• Price: Starts around €24/night during the week and €29/night on the weekend (via Hostelworld):
• See on Google Maps
• Read More Reviews at Hostelworld

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Hostel One Basilica

Hostel One Basilica is also part of the Hostel One chain of hostels so it’s very similar to Hostel One Budapest (mentioned above). This is also a party hostel so it’s great for meeting people. Each night they provide a free family-style dinner, play drinking games, and then they take guests to ruin bars.

Everything else about the hostel is great — the location is excellent, the staff is friendly and helpful, the rooms are spacious, the beds are comfortable, the hostel is clean… yeah, it’s hard to find something wrong.

• Price: Starts around €23/night during the week and €25/night on the weekend (via Hostelworld):
• See on Google Maps
• Read More Reviews at Hostelworld

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Avenue Hostel

Avenue Hostel is an excellent hostel that’s only a 10-minute walk from the train station and it’s super close to lots of ruin bars and other nightlife. The overall atmosphere is fun and friendly. They offer free breakfast, free dinner twice a week, they organize multiple events every week, and there is a nice common room to meet people.

Avenue Hostel is ideal for light sleepers because they impose quiet time after 10 pm, so stay here if you need your beauty rest.

• Price: Starts around €18/night during the week and €22/night on the weekend (via Hostelworld):
• See on Google Maps
• Read More Reviews at Hostelworld

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Wombats City Hostel Budapest Hostel

Wombats hostels are famous throughout Europe and their Wombats City Hostel Budapest lives up to its excellent reputation — there’s a reason this is the most-booked hostel in Budapest. The staff is super helpful (plus they offer a free drink at check-in), the prices are cheap, the location is ideal, and there is a large kitchen.

The atmosphere is pretty good but it is a large hostel so it can have a bit of a hotel vibe. That said, it has a bar so that helps. Plus, it’s a very affordable hostel.

• Price: Starts around €17/night (via Hostelworld):
• See on Google Maps
• Read More Reviews at Hostelworld

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Retox Party Hostel Budapest

UPDATE: Retox closed during the pandemic but The Hive Party Hostel and Lavender Circus are two other great options.

Retox Party Hostel… well, the name says it all. One past guest said it’s “perfect for the traveler looking to meet new people, experience new things, and have wild nights full of debauchery.”

Retox has an on-site bar and they take you out to bars and clubs at night. You’re guaranteed to meet a ton of people at Retox Party Hostel but don’t expect much sleep.

Want to party but still sleep? This hostel has sister hostels that all meet here to party but you can go back to your quiet hostel to sleep.

• Price: Starts around €10/night during the week and €17/night on the weekend (via Hostelworld):
• See on Google Maps
• Read More Reviews at Hostelworld

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Carpe Noctem Vitae Hostel

Carpe Noctem Vitae is an award-winning hostel that’s part of the same hostel group as Retox (see above) but it’s more mellow — so you can actually get some sleep.

Carpe Noctem Vitae is a friendly hostel with a bit of a party atmosphere but they try to keep the actual party outside the hostel. There is a ton of common space so it’s easy to meet people and they have nightly pub crawls and frequent group dinners. The staff is great, the hostel is clean, and the location is also ideal.

• Price: Starts around €14/night during the week and €17/night on the weekend (via Hostelworld):
• See on Google Maps
• Read More Reviews at Hostelworld

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Maverick Hostel & Ensuites Hostel

Maverick Hostel and Ensuites is located in an impressive fully renovated royal mansion and the hostel is close to lots of great nightlife. We really like how they don’t have any bunk beds — which truly does help the hostel feel more comfortable and livable. They also have a fully-equipped kitchen. The staff is super nice and they offer free Hungarian alcoholic drink tastings twice a week and they put on evening events.

This is a quiet hostel so it’s a nice place if you want to get a good night’s sleep — but it’s not the best place to meet lots of other travelers (although they do organize pub crawls and walking tours).

• Price: Starts around €20/night (via Hostelworld):
• See on Google Maps
• Read More Reviews at Hostelworld

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Grandio Party Hostel Budapest

Grandio Party Hostel is another party hostel (are you starting to see a theme?) that “welcomes alcoholics, lost souls, and party people with talent but no direction.” In fact, it’s probably the wildest hostel in Budapest. 

Grandio is located near many of the city’s best bars — they organize nightly pub crawls. They also have an on-site bar. The staff also goes the extra mile to make sure everyone is having an amazing time.

• Price: Starts around €13/night during the week and €16/night on the weekend (via Hostelworld):
• See on Google Maps
• Read More Reviews at Hostelworld

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Carpe Noctem Original Hostel

Carpe Noctem Original has consistently been voted the best overall hostel in Budapest year after year. It’s a super welcoming hostel so the staff goes out of their way to make sure you’re having a great time. The overall atmosphere is great and it’s easy to meet fellow travelers — especially for solo travelers.

That said, Carpe Noctem Original has a noise curfew at 9 pm so you can actually get some sleep. Don’t worry, they organize plenty of organized nights out. The hostel has nice facilities, it’s clean, and it’s located in a great part of Budapest.

• Price: Starts around €20/night (via Hostelworld):
• See on Google Maps
• Read More Reviews at Hostelworld

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Maverick City Lodge Hostel Budapest

Maverick City Lodge is one of the few really good hostels that aren’t party hostels. We’d call this a mix of a hostel and a hotel so it’s a bit more upscale budget accommodation. They aim to create a “serenity in the sleeping zones and cleanliness” so this is a place to stay if you want to actually sleep in a clean and quiet bed.

That said, Maverick City Lodge does tend to have less of a community vibe. Other than that, it’s located in the hip Jewish neighborhood so you’re super close to all the sights.

• Price: Starts around €20/night (via Hostelworld):
• See on Google Maps
• Read More Reviews at Hostelworld

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Pal’s Hostel Budapest

Pal’s Hostel is like a mix between a hostel, a hotel, and rental apartments. It’s a nice option if you want a cheap, quiet, and clean place to stay but it’s not a place to meet other travelers. There is one dorm room but most options are private rooms and apartments. This is also a good place for small groups traveling together since they have multiple private rooms.

The staff is incredibly helpful, security was great and the location is excellent. They also impose a quiet time at night since you’re living among residents as well as other travelers.

• Price: Starts around €22/night during the week and €29/night on the weekend. (via Hostelworld):
• See on Google Maps
• Read More Reviews at Hostelworld

Photo credits: Hostel One, Avenue Hostel, Wombats City Hostel, Retox Party Hostel, Carpe Noctem Vitae, Maverick Hostel and Ensuites, Grandio Party Hostel, Carpe Noctem Original, Maverick City Lodge, Pal’s Hostel

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MORE HELPFUL TRAVEL ADVICE 

Here are some helpful links to articles that we think you’ll find interesting if you’re staying in hostels and traveling around Europe on a budget.

• Guide to Hostels in Europe: Tips and advice for finding the best hostels in Europe
• Hostel Etiquette: The unwritten rules about staying in a hostel
• How To Be A Good Hostel Guest: The unwritten rules about staying in
• Backpacking Europe Packing List: What you should (and shouldn’t) pack when traveling to Europe.
• The Best Travel Insurance: Tips for choosing travel insurance.
• The Best Travel Shoes: Finding comfortable and stylish shoes for travel.
• The Best Travel Backpacks: Our favorite backpacks designed for traveling Europe.

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LEARN MORE ABOUT BUDAPEST

Visit our Budapest Destination Guide for more tips about visiting Budapest!