Where to stay in Budapest
In Budapest a rental car meets four parking zones, a three-hour limit in the inner three and payment by app only since July 2026. Where to stay depends on the zone, the residents-only streets and the district rules on apartment lets.
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How the areas differ
Belváros and Lipótváros, District 5, hold St. Stephen's Basilica and the Parliament on Kossuth Lajos tér. Deák Ferenc tér is where three metro lines meet and the 100E airport bus ends its 40-minute run. Terézváros, District 6, follows Andrássy út past the State Opera.
Erzsébetváros, District 7, has the Dohány Street Synagogue and the ruin bars that moved into its empty tenements in the early 2000s. The Palace District lies behind the Hungarian National Museum in District 8.
On the Buda side, the Castle District sits 70 m above the river inside a UNESCO World Heritage Site, with Víziváros beside it. Bartók Béla út in Újbuda, District 11, is a boulevard of galleries, coffee houses and bars that the tourism board calls a local favourite.
Staying with a rental car
Budapest withdrew its parking meters on 1 July 2026. Payment now goes through a mobile app, a text or a call, and the text and call routes work only for customers of the Hungarian networks One, Telekom and Yettel. A visitor downloads a parking app, registers the plate and model, and starts a session with the zone code on the street sign.
Zone A costs HUF 800 an hour on working days from 08:00 to 22:00, zone B HUF 600 to 20:00, and zones C and D HUF 400 and HUF 300 to 18:00. In zones A, B and C a paid stay lasts three hours at most, and paying again does not extend it. Zone D, in Kelenföld and Albertfalva south of Újbuda, has no limit. On the BKK map zone A covers Víziváros, Terézváros, Erzsébetváros and inner Józsefváros.
Named streets are for residents only from the evening, typically 18:00 or 20:00, until 07:00 or 08:00: Kossuth tér and Széchenyi István tér in District 5, part of Andrássy út in District 6, Fő utca and Attila út in District 1, Baross utca in District 8 and Bartók Béla út in District 11. The centre also has about 6,500 spaces in public car parks, and the P+R sites charge HUF 500 per occasion by day.
At Buda Castle a car may drive in to reach an address inside the protected zone, but must leave within 15 minutes or the keeper pays the zone fee. The Chain Bridge has been closed to private cars since December 2022 (via GetCar). GetCar's car rental page for Budapest, getcar.rentals/car-rental/budapest, compares the cars.
Tourist tax and registration for a guest
Hungary's Local Taxes Act lets each municipality, in Budapest each district, charge a tourist tax on every guest night of a non-resident, up to 4 per cent of the accommodation price. Districts 5, 6 and 8 charge that 4 per cent. Guests under 18 are exempt, as are students and people staying for work for a business based in the district. The host collects the tax with the price.
Every accommodation registers with NTAK, the national tourism data centre, and a listing offered through a booking platform must show its NTAK registration number and its accommodation type. At check-in the host scans each guest's ID card or passport into its software and must refuse the stay without it; children under 14 need not show a document.
When to book what
Budapest registers no new private accommodation or other accommodation until 31 December 2026, so the apartments on offer are those already registered. District 6 has banned both categories since 1 January 2026, so a Terézváros stay means a hotel or another licensed category. A listing without an NTAK number is worth questioning before any payment.
The zones charge on working days only, so street parking costs nothing at weekends, except on a Saturday that Hungarian law makes a working day. A car parked after 22:00 on a Friday pays nothing until Monday at 08:00, outside the residents-only streets. Compare prices on this page before booking.
Which area for which trip
A first visit on foot: Belváros and Lipótváros.
The Opera and a hotel on Andrássy út: Terézváros.
Evenings in the ruin bars: Erzsébetváros and the Jewish Quarter.
A resident's street a walk from the centre: the Palace District.
Views over the river and a car left below the hill: the Castle District and Víziváros.
A month with a car, near zone D: Bartók Béla út and Újbuda.
Questions
How much is the tourist tax in Budapest in 2026?
Districts 5, 6 and 8 charge 4 per cent of the accommodation price per night, the ceiling the Local Taxes Act allows. Guests under 18 are exempt.
Can a foreign phone pay for parking in Budapest?
Through an app, yes. Payment by text or call works only on Hungarian networks, and the meters were withdrawn on 1 July 2026.
How long can a car stay in a Budapest parking zone?
Three hours at most in zones A, B and C on working days, and paying again does not extend it. Zone D has no limit.
Is street parking free at weekends in Budapest?
Yes, except on a Saturday made a working day by law. The zones charge on working days only, from 08:00, and residents-only streets stay closed to visitors in the evening and night.
What does an NTAK number on a listing mean?
It is the accommodation's registration with Hungary's national tourism data centre. A listing offered through a booking platform must show it along with the accommodation type.