Imre Guest House — Hotel in Budapest

Never had such an unwelcoming experience in my life. ||We turned up at the Imre Guest House shortly after our plane landed in Budapest. We were visibly wet and slightly breathless from carrying two 10 litre backpacks from the nearest Metro station in poor weather conditions.||On pressing the buzzer, the owner seemed quizzical and for some reason needed several reassurances we were the guests booking in for the night.||Once we were in, he did a short tour of the guest house and asked me to fill in some paperwork.||We then discovered he was unable (or unwilling for reasons only I suspect) to take payment by card despite the reservation being made through booking.com and there not being any indication this would be a problem.||As I wasn't expecting this to be an issue in 2019, I hadn't yet had chance to get any cash. I assured him I would go out and get some currency, by which point he had led us to the room we were staying in.||Me and my wife then put our cases down and my wife wanted to get changed out of her wet clothes.||A couple of minutes later the owner knocked on the door asking us to go and get his money, to which I explained we were planning to do as soon as my wife had changed.||A couple of minutes had barely passed and he was knocking again, this time more insistent we went to get his money that minute with no regard for my wife's privacy. He stated bluntly that we could not stay in the room without paying and made several metaphors in broken English to drum home his point, despite the fact he had invited us into the room we were staying in.||Once again I told him we were going and that as regular travellers we weren't in the busines of conning hoteliers out of any money. I then offered to give him my passport as insurance however he reacted badly to this and suggested it was worthless to him.||The man then became incessant about giving him his money on the spot that we were forced with no other option than to tell him we weren't prepared to stay there.||My wife was visibly upset by the experience and I felt humiliated by this man who could not have more unwelcoming if he tried. I would urge anyone who is considering booking this place to reconsider and get an Air B&B - as we eventually did with far less hassle.||The short time we spent at the property was enough time for us to realise we would be entitled to little privacy and with no locks on any doors, I was not not willing to sacrifice this. The property itself is one of many appartments in a tall multi storey building with a well presented courtyard however these are ten-a-penny in Budapest. On reflection I would have also felt uncomfortable staying in a room with as many dusty stuffed animals as were present and despite the initial inconvenience of losing our accomodation, we are grateful we did not stay here a minute later. Avoid....

The Imre Guest House was selected due to being situated at the eastern end of the Budapest Central District. Located within the local community on the third floor of either a late 19th or early 20th century apartment block.||||Only five minutes walk from the Central Market (Vasarcsamok), ten minutes from the Danube & the Szabadsag bridge this accommodation is great base for exploring all of central Budapest. Even Margaret Island (Margitsziget) is only about an hour at a slow pace passing the impressive Parliament building. There is also a bus stop nearby which the 100E service from the airport stops at. The next street across, Raday, there are sufficient restaurants to make an informed choice. Also just a few yards further up Lonyay is a great Pizzeria, 'the pizza manufakturer'.||||This reviewer found the accommodation more than acceptable, but remember this is some ones home NOT a 4* or 5* hotel. The huge room was in 'period' or 'baroque' style, difficult to make ones mind up. The room was en suite & included a fridge.||||Continental breakfast was flexible, 07:00 to 10:00 & was basic but substantial. Due to a lack of room in the breakfast area the meal was taken in the room sitting at a large table.||||Shandor the owner was welcoming & full of information if required. ||||If one wants to immerse themselves with the local community at an affordable price but wants to be in easy reach of the Budapest sights then this is the...

We spent 3 nights at this great little guest house with traditional character. We were greeted by a very friendly owners father who couldn't have been more helpful. We got up late on our first morning & after showering & about to leave he came out saying we hadn't had breakfast & told us to eat which was so kind because we'd actually missed the breakfast time slot..||||The bed was comfy, shower was hot & breakfast was fresh.||||We were about a 20 minute walk to the main city centre but very central to everything.||||There's a great cosy little bar just around the corner called Cafe Mezes that sells local Hungarian beer for £1.19 a pint & Czech beer Staropramen only £1.47 a pint. BARGAIN!!||||Guest house is approx 40 minute journey by car from the airport. We pre-booked a taxi through Hoppa which was about £40 return. Drivers were friendly & a brilliant service.||||Lots of restaurants, bars, attractions etc. One restaurant we liked was The Hungarian...