For Serious Travellers and First Time Visitors Alike.
Budapest: a Critical Guide is an unusual, cult book — possibly the truest, most personal, and funniest insider’s city guide ever written about any major city, updated as often as necessary, by Budapest author/historian András Török.
With 41 “idiotproof” maps, (by András Felvidéki, illustrator), 5 walks, 36 independent restaurant tips, and a lot more.
Price: HUF 4900 (or EUR 16)
(Park Publishers)
‘The Best Travel Guide I have Encountered not just about Budapest but about any city. Passionate, opinionated, deeply in love with his subject, Torok introduces the reader both to the soul of one of the world’s most soulful cities and to its haunts, dives, corners, and backwaters. Read it a week before you go, brush up on the way there, immerse yourself in Torok’s Budapest, and yopu will experience the city in a way that none of the other available guides can begin to convey. This is , in fact, more than a guidebook, it is a work of travel literature, a genre that has perhaps been subordinated to eensy weensy full color photos and plastic covered pull-out maps. It is almost as much of a pleasure to savor the book’s flavor as it is to travel the paths it recommends.’ (By John Farago)
‘Brilliant book. A real insiders guide you can dip in and out of. Very funny too. Greatly enhances my visits to Budapest.’ (By chris44g)
How to Buy it
It is available in all serious bookshops in Budapest. You can order autographed copies from the author, with 20% discount, in case of more than 10 copies. Write to andrAAs.torok@gmail.com.
Its History 1989-2016
A book meant to provide a real portrait of the city was first published in 1989, in the year of the Fall of the Wall. Since then the author has re-written it seven times. It was published, apart from English in German, French, Italian and Hungarian (called Budapest Könyv – “Budapest Book“). Well over a 100.000 copies sold altogether.
Latest edition: in English, May 2016, updated.
Why It is different
It is unlike any other “guidebook”. It is funny patchwork of hard facts and personal, biased opinion, and a very good read — away from the town or on the spot. There are no photos in it, but 41 “foolproof” maps, ones that describe the 5 circular walks, that give you a less and less touristy image of the city.
Invisible Hosting – with a book
To walk around in Budapest with this book in hand gives you the feeling that you have a personal host here. That is the feeling independent-minded tourists always feel. They can discover the city at their own pace. You can also contact the author, add to his experience.