Budapest is not a boring graytown, especially if you can do crazy things like scuba diving, caving, or taste the weirdest Hungarian food.
There are so many ways to spend our time in Budapest. Some people like to go secure and go through the compulsory programs as it is written in the book.
A couple of photos on the Heroes’ Square, a plate of goulash in the castle quarters, and finally sunset on the Danube. Don’t get me wrong, these are super cool and really must-see, but there are some other things that might be crazy for others to try in this city as well.
More than 100 tourist sights in Budapest
Here, only our imagination can set a limit on how to spend our time in one of Europe’s, if not the most beautiful city: Budapest.
If we do crazy things, our bodies are filled with adrenaline. Whoever experiences this will always desire it. I help them by collecting the crazy things they can do in Budapest.
Table of Contents
1. Wakeboarding and other goodies
3. Free fall
10. Everything about the Danube
+1. Taste the most special Hungarian dishes
1. On the back of the waves: wakeboarding and other goodies
Are you a lover of water and even the weather is superb? There are many water sports available around Budapest and one of the most exciting is wakeboarding.
Maybe this isn’t the first thing that comes to mind about Budapest — in fact, it’s not the second either — but it certainly promises an unforgettable experience.
Lake Lupa
You can experience this adrenaline rush in several places around the area, but perhaps the best known is Lake Omszk, or Lake Lupa, which has been very popular for a couple of years.
What exactly is a wakeboard? You don’t have to do anything just to climb onto a tow rope and slide over ramps, rails, or even do some tricks through the water, all on a surfboard-like device. Sounds simple, doesn’t it?
If you have never tried it, of course, you have to calculate some foolishness and fall, but then over time, you are guaranteed to fall in love with it.
The wakeboard track at Lake Omszk is a real family-run business and is only-about 20 minutes from Budapest’s city center. Everybody from beginner to advanced wakeboarders can enjoy it here, thanks to the helpful staff.
And if you would like to take a break between the two attempts, you can enjoy the lake and the surrounding area, and enjoy the amazingly delicious homemade and new waved tortillas, burgers, and salads on the terrace.
But there are also delicacies in water sports, such as Stand Up Paddleboarding. Standing on a large surfboard, we must drive ourselves with the help of a paddle, while still staying on top of the board.
Wakeboarding on Lake Omszk 
Wakeboarding on Lake Omszk 
Wakeboarding on Lake Lupa 
Wakeboarding on Lake Lupa
It requires a lot of concentration and a sense of good balance. But if you finally manage to get on your feet, you can either go hiking in the area (on the water, don’t worry), or even practice yoga or maybe race on it. (link).
If Lake Lupa is more sympathetic, it’s worth a visit. The former abandoned mine lake, which has always been popular with the locals, but many of them from downtown, drove out here to enjoy this crystal clear water.
Where and which lake is worth going to around Budapest? Read my article about this.
The lake has been renovated and an amazing beach has been built on it, which not only makes the experience more comfortable, but also safer. Therefore, you can try out all the extreme water sports here like wakeboarding, kayaking, SUP, and diving.
2. Budapest Shooting
If you really want an extreme and a little crazy experience in Budapest, you must visit the Budapest Shooting (link).
Don’t you get scared by a little shooting? If you love the adrenaline rush and heart rate increase, you can get all of these here.
This range has the largest armor, so there will be plenty to choose from. The unique atmosphere of the place is also due to the fact that it is located in an air defense shelter, so the feeling of war is provided. You can choose from nearly sixty weapons from World War I to World War II through to today’s modern pieces.
This way, you can experience history in a completely different way than through the pages of a book, while it’s all very safe, with real professionals helping and taking care of you. This is not a simple shooting range; if you hit the target, you have to expect an adventure shooting.
There is also the possibility of sport shooting or individual training. In two soundproof and well-ventilated rooms, we cannot only try the weapons, but also ourselves.
Certainly, even the bravest man with the biggest mouth will be silent – for at least a moment – when, for example, a real AK47 gets into his hand.
The atmosphere here and the arsenal of weapons is a unique experience that is difficult to describe, but rather to experience. Here, we can really learn and feel the weight of these weapons, both in a true and transposed sense, and perhaps we would deal with it in a greater respect.
3. Free fall
Who would think that even a free fall could be practiced in a room under artificial conditions?
At Skyward (link), they thought it could be easily carried out and how well they thought. This free fall simulator will help you to get ready for the real experience, but if you just don’t dare simply jump out of an airplane but are attracted to the feeling, get on it!
The method is very simple, with the proper protective equipment, you only have to lie on the vertical wind channel, which has nearly 200 km / h air stream. This way, you can experience the weightlessness, flight, and fall all at once without having to apply to NASA.
Of course, as usual, everything seems simpler from the outside than it actually is. Before you throw yourself right into it, you need to attend a 30-minute training session.
Here you will learn the correct posture, sequences of movements, and of course, the communication signals that you can use if a problem arises. However, if you are beyond this mandatory and useful circle, you can enjoy the experience on the backs of the winds.
4. For the craziest – Caving in Budapest
Not only in the city center, but also in the surrounding nature, it is worth looking for some program. If you’re a little crazier, cooler than the average, caving can be a really good idea for you.
There are many cave systems in Budapest, thanks to the many thermal waters. It may be an interesting fact that Budapest is the only capital in the world with complete cave systems under its buildings and streets.
After all this, we walk on the streets of Budapest with a different feeling. There are more than two hundred caves on the Buda side only.
As I mentioned, the thermal water plays a special role in the creation of the caves: these hydrothermal caves were made up of the same thermal springs where people heal and relax in the famous baths of Budapest.
These are specifically UNESCO protected areas too. If you want to be in good hands when you explore the city underground, then I recommend the Caving Under Budapest team (link). They help you discover this strange but beautiful world within a variety of cave tours.
Cave Walk
You can choose from a variety of “routes”, depending on how skilled or brave caveman you are. For example, there is the Cave Walk, which, although less adventurous, can be a good introduction to this world for beginners.
This can be accomplished without a tour guide, there is lighting and the ground is covered: there aren’t very tight spaces, so if you have claustrophobia but would look inside a cave, it is better to choose this.
Geological Tour
For those who are braver, the Geological Tour is where they can crawl and climb. We can get a real insight into the world of underground hot springs, and finally see where the thermal water comes from.
The tour begins with an easy walk in the Szemlő-hill cave, which continues with a real climbing adventure in the Pál Valley cave system.
The tour is about 4 hours long and is better if booked in advance, and it is good to be in good physical condition when we are getting ourselves into hiking. But if we do get started, we certainly will not regret it, as we will have an amazing sight and experience.
Mátyás Mountain Cave Tour
Another interesting formation of the Buda Hills is the Mátyás Mountain Cave, where not only geographic, geological, and historical interest can be found. Such an adventure tour is also a real team-building training because we have to pay attention to each other’s steps and movements, in the interest of ourselves and others.
Because this tour is not so easy: there is no built-up route, so we often have to move on all fours or even on our belly. And when we accomplish all of these together, we will have power more than ourselves and our companions that we would never have thought of that we have.
5. Can you imagine? Diving in Budapest
Have you dived many times? Maybe in really exotic places as well? Now, in Kőbánya, Budapest, I am showing you a place for diving that you have never seen before. Slightly crazy and decent individuals could kill for such an opportunity, so if you are here, don’t miss it.
The cellar system under the Kőbánya Brewery in Budapest is all, but not an ordinary dive site. Not far from the center is a water-flooded limestone quarry, which is interesting as the building of the Parliament, the Castle and the Citadel were built from these stones.
The brewery, which was built here used the crystal-clear karst water pumped from the mine for brewing. Then over time, the pumping stopped and the mine slowly filled with water again.
When the lower parts were submerged, tools, implements, and wrought iron stairs found themselves in a wave tomb.
With this, a special world emerged in the depths, where time stopped over a slowly forgotten era. And now, you have the opportunity to explore this exciting location while diving. An exciting opportunity for both experienced and beginner divers, of course, trained guides will help guide you through the basement system.
If you are not an experienced diver yet, you can dive into the upper levels where you can explore the corridors and sections lit with reflectors. If you are already an experienced diver, you can swim in some places.
Before diving, you will get a taste of the history and curiosity of the place, and then go to the scene. The dive time is approximately 40 minutes, during which time you will be able to look at objects and tools left under water.
And if you’re a safe diver, you can also look into the areas below the spiral staircase. The conditions, which we have to prepare for: the mine is cold, it is about 8 degrees Celsius and the water is about 13 degrees Celsius.
Experience the thrill of diving in a truly mystical and exciting venue: the cellar system of the Kőbánya Brewery. (link)
6. Less crazy – Trampoline parks in Budapest
As a kid, did you love trampoline? Definitely, it is not only entertaining but also stress-relieving too. Luckily, there are several adult (also) trampoline parks in Budapest where you can enjoy yourself on many other devices.
We can finally be kids again: we can somersault (if we can), jump into colorful balls. And if you are interested in extreme sports, there are sweaty skill levels trails, swinging traps, wall climbing, and much more excitement.
Cyberjump
One of such sites is Cyberjump (link), which is one of the largest trampoline parks in Central and Eastern Europe at the Újbuda Center.
A 3000 square meter hall full of better and better games: Do we need more? Make sure to warm up before you start because it’s a bit more than just jumping all the way.
Animators of gymnasts and acrobats accompany us on 12 tracks. The 12 levels are made up of trampolines of different strengths, but if you are very passionate you can try the adventure level-like Ninja Warrior.
Then remember that you can even slackline and land in a sponge pool.
If you want to try a bit of turbocharged team sports together, there are also options for that like: dodge ball, slamball, and boss ball.
Then there’s the interactive wall where you can collect lights while jumping, or can even try the high-performance arena for a flying experience. You can also jump down from a jumping tower without getting hurt and arriving on your back or belly.
Superfly Air Sports
I also recommend Superfly Air Sports (link). The German company has already operated several trampoline parks with unbroken success and is also a worthy representative of the Hungarian facility.
Here, you will find swinging traps, giant slides, and high-throw racing tramps, which you can even climb on the wall. There are dozens of courses and games to choose from, including a water trampoline, a huge sponge pool, or skill courses.
For the real pros, there is the park, our course or the ninja course where we will need all our best skills.
Typically, children, adolescents are the target audience and the park is full of them, but as an adult, we don’t have to be embarrassed when we go there.
All the more, because every Friday night there is an adult-only for those over the age of 16. No kiddie noise, and the atmosphere comes from the light of psychedelic UV lamps and the invited DJ.
This will make the atmosphere even more festive, with the addition of exciting levels. The place on the Váci street in the city center is constantly evolving and awaits adventurous children and adults. We are sure that you will leave the place full of excitement.
7. Paragliding over Budapest
We’ve been under water, underground, so I think it is time to look around in the sky. Surrounded by the Buda Hills, the city is perfect for a small paragliding at many locations, which many people use.
This adventure not only raises the heart rate for the truly determined, but it is also an opportunity to admire the city from a bird’s eye view.
A breathtaking panorama and a lifelong adventure, once for sure. Of course, it is better to rely on the pros: who you can trust in your life is the Tandem Fly team (link).
You can try many different forms of flying with them, and thanks to the skilled pilots, it’s not a problem if you’ve never done it before. They teach you all the little details, and the pilots guide you through the tandem flight, so you really have nothing to do but enjoy the sight of the landscape and the way you defeat gravity, even if it is just for a moment.
This is one of the safest forms of paragliding while you can still experience the freedom of flying. However, there are still many possibilities in the form of tandem flying, especially if you already have some experience.
There is the duration of flying on a mountain: this mountain takes advantage of the lifting effect of the wind blowing up and can rise up to 50-100 meters above the mountain. The aim here is to fly for up to an hour.
We can think much longer than thermal eddy flying, but it also depends a lot on the weather. Under appropriate conditions, we can reach up to 1000 or 2000 meters. But getting thermal eddy (hot air surges) requires sunshine and clear weather, so this is more a seasonal sport.
Perhaps the greatest experience is long-distance flying, and here we are able to glide up to 5, 10, 20 kilometers. This is how long-distance flights begin when we do not land at the same place where we took off.
It is an indescribable experience, not only because of the altitude, the kilometers we flew, but also because of the spectacle that we cannot experience anywhere else when we are in the open air.
8. Wall climbing and rock climbing in Budapest
It is becoming more popular to simulate wall climbing under artificial conditions, so we don’t even have to leave the town if we want to have this experience.
From this year, wall climbing has become an Olympic sport, one of the favorites of extreme athletes. One of the places I can highly recommend is the Gravity Boulder Bar (link).
It can be a good work out if the weather lets us climb on a rock, or climbing actually, or who is afraid to try this sport in reality. Not far from Széll Kálmán Square we find this climbing surface of more than 500 square meters.
What makes the place more interesting is the boulder room: a room designed by architects, sportsmen and professionals, we can’t find much in the area, and we should travel to Vienna until the next.
Boulding is nothing else just climbing without securing ropes at low altitudes, horizontal climbing, which promises even more excitement. Of course, there are varied difficulty wall surfaces, that require more and more tricky gripping techniques, and of course the height increases as does the challenge wit hit.
It’s a pleasure to see how the creators played with the space, creating a track at least as exciting as if we were in nature. We can also go out from the climbing walls to the roof terrace, which creates a real cave effect, making the experience even more natural.
However, if we have enough time and even want to explore the area, nothing can be as good as a real rock climbing. Budapest and its surroundings are full of better and better places, which we can even connect with a pleasant tour. It is no wonder that this sport is so popular: it turns you up at the same time, it helps with concentration and switching off.
Róka Hill
One of the most popular locations is the Róka Hill, which is only 1.5 km from the HÉV stop on the Csillag Hill. Its wall height reaches 22 meters and there are also routes with the strength of 8 and 9.
Most of the routes are located in an abandoned quarry, so some parts are a bit over-used as the place is very popular.
However, for beginners, this climb can also be performed, at the top of which we can see the Hármashatás Mountain, the Storm Mountain, and the Peak Mountain.
Kis-Sváb-hegy (Little Swabian Mountain)
The next location I recommend is the Little Swabian Mountain, which also lies in a quarry. We can talk about roads, which were built by experts, but be careful, in some places it is dangerous because it still collapses.
The wall in the Buda Hills stretches up to 15 meters and has 27 climbing paths. The levels here range from the complete beginners to the true pros, so it’s a highly recommended place.
Kecske Hill
The other adornment of the Buda Hills is Kecske Hill, which is a part of the inner cliff of Hármashatár Mountain, which was built mainly of Upper Triassic dolomite.
There are plenty of climbing paths here, 35 in number, but the wall height is not exactly high, it is only 12 meters. This area can be interesting, especially for beginners, but there are some sections that can be challenging for the more experienced as well.
9. Mountain biking
For those who like to explore places in the most extreme way and a leisure little hike is not enough, then mountain biking is the best choice for them.
The essence of this is to do the distance on most extreme fields, multi-lane forest paths and stony roads. Yes, this can be quite dangerous, so you need to make sure you have the proper protective equipment.
We distinguish two types of mountain biking, which are going uphill and going downhill.
In both cases, the goal is to deal with the elements, the difficult terrains. The best thing about it — besides the adrenaline rush — is that anyone can learn the basics and it doesn’t depend on age or physical aptitude. I recommend it as a location in the Buda Hills.
10. Everything about the Danube
We must not forget the Danube, which divides the city into two and is also an unavoidable symbol of the city. Here we can also do many extreme sports, through the already mentioned SUP, through kayaking, and we can also try canoeing.
In addition to the fact that paddling in the slightly wild waters of the Danube is often an unforgettable experience – although bathing is possible on many parts, it is not dangerous – it is worth it even just for active relaxation.
Only you, the sunlight, the smell of the water, there is no better stress reliever, while not doing the usual tourist programs, and yet you get to know the city.
+1. Taste the most special Hungarian dishes
Here is another idea that seems pretty crazy. You don’t even have to climb a mountain or jump out of a plane, yet it’s a great experience.
Lángos 
Chimney cake 
Fish soup 
Sausage 
Cracklins 
Goulash
Taste all the real Hungarian food, and not only those which are listed in the tourist books. Try lángos and real chimney cake (kürtőskalács), but not the stuff done because it’s totally crap.
Try the cracklins at one of the butcher shops. Some are made of pigs and some are made of geese cracklins. If I had to decide between the two, I would vote for the goose. It is absolutely delicious with fresh bread.
Taste real Hungarian sausages as well. Spicy or plain, according to everyone’s taste.
Eat goulash and fish soup, which is almost a must-try if you get lost in Hungary.
These are absolutely not extreme foods, but they are a must-see.
The craziest Hungarian dishes that make every foreigner freaks out
Rooster testicle stew
Personally, I hardly can imagine when someone really fancy a good rooster testicle stew, but I don’t want to hurt anyone.
This dish of Hungarian gastronomy is available only in a few restaurants. You will find out quickly how much you love crazy things when you accidentally see it on the menu.
Fried blood
This meal is best known to those who have been in a festive pig slaughtering, as we don’t get blood just like that in stores.
There’s really nothing scary about it, in both taste and texture, it is like liver. Eating blood in any form seems so barbaric that we can freak out any foreigner with it. If not, we place a raw pork ear next to the fried blood. 😀
Dishes with Poppy seeds
Let’s start with something that only a few people might think about. While in Hungary poppy seed and all the foods with poppy seed are fully accepted, in other countries it is the original sin itself.
In many European countries, it is still mostly associated with the fact that it is used to make poppy tea and opium. There are some places, for example, where poppy seeds can only be obtained in pharmacies.
That’s why, for example, when my French friend comes to visit us, we can piss him off pretty well if we offer him a nice poppy seed bagel, or say poppy seeds trudel.
Túró Rudi (Chocolate with cottage cheese)
Túró Rudi is perhaps the best known of its kind, which is not typically Hungarian, but it is certainly a very common sweet in Hungary that can frighten foreigners. I’m totally addicted to it. I love it! It is not everyone’s cup of tea.
Some people like it, the Italians specifically like the sour cottage cheese paired with dark chocolate, but besides them we didn’t find anyone in our environment who would have wanted the Hungarian dessert offered to a foreign friend. Make sure to give it a try.
Pasta with potato
The craziest thing in the Hungarian gastronomy. Potato with pasta, called krumplis tészta (pomegranate), is the food, which some Hungarians love and others hate.
I can’t stand it myself. I am one of those who is unable to comprehend what can make an individual eat a side dish with a side dish. Plus, it tells you all about how delicious as a single dish is.
Just imagine, if the Hungarians, who are already the target group, are already confused about it, what a foreigner will say when visiting us!
Crazy things to do in Budapest – Summary
Budapest is an amazingly diverse city, where all types of people are sure to find opportunities for relaxation and entertainment.
Whether it’s the usual or different from the average, or even a little crazy, there is plenty to choose from, in Budapest. And with a little exploration, there are plenty of hidden beauties, exciting programs that you might not have even thought existed.
Step out your comfort zone and discover a new face of Budapest.
