The Empire State Building and Midtown Manhattan at sunset, seen from Rockefeller Center
The Danube, Elisabeth Bridge and Pest seen from Gellért Hill in Budapest

New York City vs. Hungary (Budapest)

Manhattan's skyline or the Danube's thermal baths and grand cafés?

City🗓 7 nights👥 2 adults✈ Round trip from Los Angeles📅 Checked October 2026

Flying from

Photos: New York City: Dllu, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Budapest: Visions of Domino, CC BY 2.0 · via Wikimedia Commons · Photo credits

Heads up: every price on this page is a sample estimate, not live pricing or a quote. Ranges are based on published typical fares and rates plus our own assumptions (see sources below). Switch the departure airport above to recalculate. Use the buttons to check today's real prices.

. Flight fares and all totals are estimates, not live pricing.

New York City

≈ $5,280

$3,864–$6,694

Budapest comes out about $1,000 cheaper for 2 adults at the midpoint.

Flying from Los Angeles (LAX)

Sample estimate, not live pricing

Budapest

≈ $4,270

$3,246–$5,289

The Empire State Building and Midtown Manhattan at sunset, seen from Rockefeller Center
US trip

New York City

USA · JFK

All-in total, 7 nights for 2 adults, round trip from Los Angeles (LAX)

$3,864–$6,694

Midpoint ≈ $5,280 · ≈ $2,640 per person

Sample estimate, not live pricing
Cost breakdown (sample estimate, not live pricing)
ItemEstimate
Round-trip flights from LAX2 × $322–$547 per person$644–$1,094
Lodging7 nights × $250–$400 per night$1,750–$2,800
Food & drink7 days × $130–$220 per day$910–$1,540
Local transport7 days × $20–$40 per day$140–$280
Activities7 days × $60–$140 per day$420–$980
Total Sample estimate, not live pricing$3,864–$6,694
Flight time from Los Angeles
About 5.5 hr nonstop
Best time to go
April–June and September–early November. January–February is cheapest but cold.
Entry
No passport needed for US citizens.
Watch for
NYC hotel taxes plus 'facility' or 'destination' fees; Broadway tickets and observation decks add up fast.
Best for
Broadway, food, short flight

Book flights, tours & more for New York City ↓ (affiliate links)

The Danube, Elisabeth Bridge and Pest seen from Gellért Hill in Budapest
Abroad

Hungary (Budapest)

Hungary · BUD

All-in total, 7 nights for 2 adults, round trip from Los Angeles (LAX)

$3,246–$5,289

Midpoint ≈ $4,270 · ≈ $2,130 per person

Sample estimate, not live pricing
Cost breakdown (sample estimate, not live pricing)
ItemEstimate
Round-trip flights from LAX2 × $748–$1,122 per person$1,496–$2,244
Lodging7 nights × $110–$180 per night$770–$1,260
Food & drink7 days × $80–$140 per day$560–$980
Local transport7 days × $20–$35 per day$140–$245
Activities7 days × $40–$80 per day$280–$560
Total Sample estimate, not live pricing$3,246–$5,289
Flight time from Los Angeles
About 13–16 hr with 1 stop
Best time to go
April–June and September–October; December for Christmas markets.
Entry
Passport required (Schengen). Check whether the EU's ETIAS travel authorization is in effect before you go.
Watch for
Hungary uses forints (decline "dynamic currency conversion" at ATMs/cards); thermal bath tickets (Széchenyi, Gellért) are a notable per-person cost; service charge often added to bills.
Best for
Thermal baths, architecture, value

Book flights, tours & more for Budapest ↓ (affiliate links)

All-in totals by departure city

7 nights for 2 adults, round-trip flights from each city included. Midpoint of our estimate range, with the full range below it. Sample estimate, not live pricing.

Flying fromNew York CityBudapestResult
Los Angeles (LAX)≈ $5,280$3,864–$6,694≈ $4,270$3,246–$5,289Budapest ~$1,000 cheaper
Las Vegas (LAS)≈ $5,130$3,770–$6,490≈ $4,290$3,260–$5,325Budapest ~$850 cheaper
Phoenix (PHX)≈ $5,130$3,798–$6,468≈ $4,520$3,510–$5,537Budapest ~$600 cheaper
Denver (DEN)≈ $5,020$3,740–$6,302≈ $4,170$3,264–$5,067Budapest ~$850 cheaper
Dallas (DFW)≈ $4,950$3,630–$6,274≈ $4,380$3,310–$5,443Budapest ~$600 cheaper
Seattle (SEA)≈ $5,280$3,926–$6,642≈ $4,040$3,092–$4,997Budapest ~$1,250 cheaper
Chicago (CHI)≈ $4,970$3,666–$6,266≈ $4,060$3,102–$5,011Budapest ~$900 cheaper
New York (NYC)≈ $4,410$3,220–$5,600 · no flight≈ $3,870$2,866–$4,875Budapest ~$550 cheaper

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Flights search from Los Angeles (LAX) for a 7-night trip; switch the departure city above to update. Prices on partner sites are live and may differ from our estimates.

New York City

Flights from LAXAviasalesThings to doTiqetsCity attraction passGo City

Hungary (Budapest)

Flights from LAXAviasalesThings to doTiqetseSIM dataAiraloAirport transferWelcome Pickups

New York City vs Budapest cost breakdown: where the money goes

Midpoint of each estimate range, 2 adults, 7 nights, flying from Los Angeles (LAX). Sample estimate, not live pricing.

Round-trip flights from Los Angeles

New York City ≈ $870
Budapest ≈ $1,870

Lodging

New York City ≈ $2,280
Budapest ≈ $1,020

Food & drink

New York City ≈ $1,230
Budapest ≈ $770

Local transport

New York City ≈ $210
Budapest ≈ $190

Activities

New York City ≈ $700
Budapest ≈ $420

The verdict: is Budapest cheaper than New York City?

Budapest comes out about $1,000 cheaper for 2 adults at the midpoint. (from Los Angeles, sample estimate, not live pricing)

Budapest is the cheaper week from every departure city we cover, by roughly $550–$1,250 for two, including New York itself, where the NYC side needs no flight. The transatlantic fare costs more, but Budapest hotels run around half of New York's and meals and sightseeing cost less. Choose New York for Broadway and a short travel day; Budapest for thermal baths, Danube views and café culture.

New York City vs Budapest: common questions

Answers use flights from Los Angeles unless a city is named; see the table above for every departure city.

Is Budapest cheaper than New York City?

Yes. Flying from Los Angeles, Budapest comes out about $1,000 cheaper for 2 adults and 7 nights (≈ $4,270 vs ≈ $5,280 all-in, flights included). Budapest is cheaper from all 8 US departure cities we cover, by $550–$1,250. These are midpoints of our sample estimates, not live prices.

Is Budapest cheaper than New York City from Seattle?

Yes. Flying from Seattle, Budapest comes out about $1,250 cheaper for 2 adults and 7 nights (≈ $4,040 vs ≈ $5,280 all-in, flights included).

How much does a week in Budapest cost for two?

About $3,246–$5,289 all-in (midpoint ≈ $4,270, ≈ $2,130 per person) for 7 nights for 2 adults with round-trip flights from Los Angeles: flights $1,496–$2,244, lodging $770–$1,260, food & drink $560–$980, local transport $140–$245, activities $280–$560. The same week in New York City runs about $3,864–$6,694.

How long is the flight from Los Angeles to Budapest?

About 13–16 hr with 1 stop. For comparison, New York City: About 5.5 hr nonstop.

When is the best time to visit New York City or Budapest?

New York City: April–June and September–early November. January–February is cheapest but cold. Budapest: April–June and September–October; December for Christmas markets.

Sources, notes & assumptions

Flight ranges come from typical round-trip economy fares that fare-search sites (KAYAK, Google Flights, Priceline, momondo, Expedia, airline fare pages) published for each route from each departure airport we cover (currently LAS and LAX), viewed October 2026. Lodging uses published hotel averages where we found them (Engine's August 2026 US city averages; Budget Your Trip traveler averages abroad), adjusted to a mid-range room; otherwise it is an editor estimate. Daily food, local transport and activity budgets are editor estimates for a mid-range couple; where a Budget Your Trip average exists we set the range around it, but the range bounds are our own judgment and have NOT been verified against a single published source. Ski lift tickets use published 2025/26 (or 2026/27) resort prices; euro and yen prices are converted at editor-assumed exchange rates. Taxes, resort fees, baggage fees and tips may not be fully included. Flight ranges marked "Travelpayouts (Aviasales) Data API" in the sources are refreshed automatically from cached round-trip economy fares that Aviasales users found recently for departures about 1–4 months out (low = cheapest fare found, high = roughly the 75th percentile); routes without enough fresh data keep their previous published-fare range.

New York City

Last checked: 2026-10-18

Lodging assumes a mid-range Manhattan hotel; Brooklyn/Queens or Jersey City can be cheaper. Some hotel-price aggregators put NYC averages around $250–$336/night.

Hungary (Budapest)

Last checked: 2026-10-17

Lodging and daily ranges are editor-set around Budget Your Trip mid-range averages (room ~$118/night for 2, food ~$45 per person/day).

Assumptions: economy fares, 1 mid-range room, 7 nights / 7 days of spending, 2 adults. Excludes passports, travel insurance, checked-bag fees and souvenirs unless noted. Found a better number? Tell us.

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US New York City ≈ $5,280
Abroad London ≈ $5,970

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Big-city food, architecture and museums: the Windy City or CDMX?

US Chicago ≈ $4,280
Abroad Mexico City ≈ $2,870

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Hills, trams, a big red bridge and fog: the two cities even look alike. Which week costs less?

US San Francisco ≈ $4,070
Abroad Lisbon ≈ $4,090

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