Budapest Ruin Bar & Pálinka Tours
Budapest’s ruin bars are one of Europe’s great nightlife inventions – bars built into the crumbling buildings and courtyards of the old Jewish Quarter, crammed with mismatched furniture, fairy lights and art. Tour them on a guided crawl, usually with shots of pálinka, the Hungarian fruit brandy, and street-food stops. Compare the top-rated ruin-bar and pálinka experiences below, then read our notes.
Top-rated ruin bar tours in Budapest
The best ruin bar tours to book in Budapest
The most booked ruin bar tours in Budapest, compared. The ruin bars are the famous bars in old courtyard buildings of the Jewish Quarter, Szimpla Kert first among them; tours are guided pub crawls with shots and skip-the-line entry.
| Experience | Length | Rating (reviews) | Best for | Book |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pub Crawl and Ruin Bar Tour with Free Shots and VIP Entry | 5 to 5.5 hours | 4.9 (3,509) | The most booked | Check availability |
| Strangers-to-Friends Ruin Pub Crawl with Games | 5 to 6 hours | 4.8 (2,481) | Meeting people | Check availability |
| Ruin Bars Pub Crawl with Free Shots and VIP Entry | 5 hours | 5.0 (1,493) | Top score | Check availability |
| Ruin Pub Crawl with VIP Entry, Games and Photos | 5 to 6 hours | 4.7 (127) | Smaller groups | Check availability |
Our pick: the Pub Crawl and Ruin Bar Tour with Free Shots and VIP Entry, rated 4.9 from 3,509 reviews on GetYourGuide.
Ratings and review counts as shown on GetYourGuide in October 2026. Check the listing for live prices and availability.
How to choose
The pub crawl and ruin bar tour with free shots and VIP entry is the most reviewed, and the night-time ruin bars crawl has a perfect score. If you want to meet people, the strangers-to-friends crawl with games is built for it. For the architecture and history rather than a night out, go to Szimpla Kert in daylight, when it is quieter.
Formats: guided ruin-bar crawls through District VII; pálinka and craft-beer tastings; combined food-and-drink evenings; party and pub-crawl options.
What you’ll drink: pálinka (fruit brandy), Hungarian craft beer and wine, and fröccs (the wine spritzer) in summer.
Read next: The Budapest Ruin Bars Guide.
The ruin bars
After the fall of communism, the derelict buildings of Budapest’s old Jewish Quarter (District VII) filled up with pop-up bars – and the ruin bar (romkocsma) was born. The original and most famous is Szimpla Kert, a warren of rooms and courtyards full of salvaged furniture, a Trabant car turned into seating, and live music. A guided crawl takes you to several, explaining the history of the quarter along the way.
Pálinka and the drinks
The national spirit is pálinka, a potent fruit brandy (plum, apricot and pear are classics) that Hungarians drink as a toast – egészségedre! Tours pair the ruin bars with pálinka tastings, Hungarian craft beer and wine, and often street-food stops. It’s the liveliest way to end a day that might have started with a food tour or a wine tasting.
FAQ about Budapest Ruin Bar & Pálinka Tours
Frequently asked questions
Is a ruin bar tour worth it?
For a first night in Budapest, yes: a guide takes you to several ruin bars without queues or guesswork, explains their history, and most tours include pálinka or drinks. If you just want one drink at Szimpla Kert, you can go on your own.
What is a ruin bar?
A ruin bar is a bar set up in an old, often half-derelict building in Budapest's Jewish Quarter (District VII), with mismatched furniture, courtyards and art. The first and best known is Szimpla Kert, opened in the early 2000s.
What is a ruin bar in Budapest?
A bar set up in a derelict building or courtyard in Budapest's old Jewish Quarter, decorated with salvaged, mismatched furniture and art. Szimpla Kert is the original and most famous.
What is pálinka?
Hungary's national spirit - a strong fruit brandy distilled from plums, apricots, pears and other fruit, drunk as a toast. Many ruin-bar and food tours include a pálinka tasting.
Are ruin bar tours just pub crawls?
Some are lively pub crawls, but many are guided tours that combine the bars with the history of the Jewish Quarter, pálinka tastings and street food - you can pick the style that suits you.
Which ruin bar tour is best in Budapest?
On GetYourGuide the most booked is the Pub Crawl and Ruin Bar Tour with Free Shots and VIP Entry, rated 4.9 from 3,509 reviews. Also highly rated: the Strangers-to-Friends Ruin Pub Crawl with Games and the Ruin Bars Pub Crawl with Free Shots and VIP Entry. The table above compares them by length, rating and who they suit.