There are a lot of clubs in Budapest; some good, some great and some blinkin’ awful. Allow me to lay it all on the line, so you don’t end up having a nightmare Budapest Stag Do!
As a visitor, it’s difficult to know the good from the bad. This is why we recommend taking one of our guides with you when you go out on the town. If you decide not to have a guide go with you, then please make sure that you follow these guidelines: Never open a tab. Ever. Pay for each round as you drink it, being escorted to the ATM by the Ukranian Mafia is not much fun, trust us. Although it’s tempting to be friendly with girls you meet on the street, never go to the clubs they invite you to. Avoid anywhere that’s recommended by a cabbie.
Travellers have been stung for large amounts of money (and hurt) due to their lack of knowledge about how these clubs operate. So, please avoid these places: Old Man’s Pub, Mercy Club, the striptease bar called ‘JET’ and Madame Pompadour, Vaci Utca. This is not an extensive list, but if you insist on NOT having a guide, then do your homework beforehand!
On the other hand, there are plenty of clubs that aren’t run by criminals. Take a look! At Club Otkert, you’ll find the party people who want to carry on until the break of dawn and they probably will. A brilliant club where you’re better off getting in early, as there are mega queues later in the evening. The music tends to be chart stuff, but it’s fun, full of gorgeous gals and beer is cheap! ‘Kraft’ is unusual as it starts the evening as a restaurant, as the night unfolds, the waiters move the tables around and bring in a moveable wall, creating the setting for a fantastic dance club! It gets busy later on, with party people throwing shapes on the dancefloor, cocktails drunk at every turn and one of the best DJs playing some tip-top tunes!
We will always recommend a guide, no matter how street-savvy you are. In a foreign country, rules are always different and reporting these type of crimes are going to be fraught with mistranslation. Apart from that, your Budapest Stag Do would be ruined, why would you want that? So take our guide, go to all the best clubs and strip clubs and don’t get ripped off, happy days!