Budapest districts

Budapest is divided into 23 Districts, which are identified using Roman numerals. Most visitors will be interested in Districts V, VI, VII and VIII in Pest and Buda I and II. The two middle figures in an address give the District. Utca means 'Street'; ter is a Square and hidmeans 'bridge'.

 

Top sights

There's much to see in Budapest on both sides of the Danube. Most of the important sights are located close to each other and even the outlying attractions are easily reached by public transport.

Visiting both Buda and Pest will mean crossing the impressive river on one of four bridges, including the famous Chain Bridge. Further south, the Liberation Bridge is equally as attractive.

Buda Castle District

Most first-time visitors to Budapest will head to Buda's Castle District (Varnegyed) sitting high above the Danube, and reached by the quaint but expensive funicular from the Chain Bridge.

Buda Castle is one of the most most visited sights of Budapest, a Unesco World Heritage location, with plenty of interesting attractions, museums, quaint streets and squares, restaurants and shops.

Near the top of the funicular, the National Dance Theatre sits next to the Hungarian President's residence; then it's Disz ter, once the heart of the district before Tarnok utca, or Treasurer's Street, which is lined with beautiful houses, many now converted to souvenir shops.

The main square is Szentharomsag ter featuring Matthias Church, largely built in the 15th century and used as a mosque during the Turkish occupation. It's full of art and worth the modest entry fee. Nearby are the Hungarian Wine Centre and the Hilton Hotel.

To the right, is the Fisherman's Bastion, a series of ramparts offering sweeping views of the Danube and Pest beyond and a wonderful spot for photography. Do look back too from the Bastion at the magnificent coloured roof of Matthias Church.

Wander to the northern end of the District before returning along Uri utca, a long and quaint road with its Baroque houses and also the entrance to the Labyrinth under the Castle District - see Offbeat sights.

Hungarian Parliament

Similar in style and scale to the British Houses of Parliament, the Budapest neo-Gothic legislature was built from 1885 to 1902. The Hungarian crown is displayed in the central lobby beneath the massive dome.

Statues of historical figures in Hungarian history surround this impressive space. The two debating chambers lead off and can be visited on organised tours. Queue for tickets outside the main entrance. It's well worth the wait.

St Stephen's Basilica

This relatively modern building (1851 -1906) in Pest is colossal and richly decorated. Laid out like a Greek cross, it contains the Chapel of the Sacred Right housing what's said to be St Stephen's right hand.

Budapest Synagogue

In Pest's Jewish quarter, this is the largest synagogue in Europe, built in the 19th century. The design is Byzantine with rich decorations and two wooden galleries.

Next door is the Jewish Museum with a moving display of photographs and exhibits from the wartime ghetto as well as many religious and historic artifacts.

Behind is the cemetery and the remarkable Weeping Willow monument dedicated to Hungarian Jews who died in the war. It's located in the Raul Wallenberg Memorial Park that commemorates the Swedish diplomat who saved many Jews and was later killed, for reasons unknown, by the Soviets.

Andrassy Avenue

Based on Paris' Champs Elysee, this 2.5km avenue took 20 years to complete from 1872. It's lined with fine mansions, luxury shops and cultural attractions like the Opera House. Some buildings still show damage from the 1956 Uprising when the street was called Stalin Avenue.

Many photographs of the victims of the 1956 Uprising are displayed around the exterior walls of the Museum of Terror - the building's awning has the word TERROR cut out of it.

At the northern end of Andrassy Avenue is the vast Heroes' Square with an imposing column and statues of Arpad and the Magyar chiefs that founded Hungary over 1000 years ago. This is city architecture on a grand scale.

To the left of Heroes' Square is the Museum of Fine Arts (Szepuveszeti Muzeum) and to the right, the Museum of Contemporary Art. Beyond the Square is the City Park with large ornamental lakes, the zoo and the famous Szechenyi Baths.

 

 

Tourist trail

There's much to see in Budapest. The city's history has left its mark just about everywhere, from Roman ruins to Turkish baths, from Communist statues to magnificent bridges across the Danube - so much so that Unesco has created two World Heritage Sites in the city

Most Budapest attractions can be reached on foot or you can also hop on a tram. Relax in some of Europe's finest cafés, buy wonderful food from the Central Market or wander the rural oasis of Margaret Island, an extensive landscaped park sitting right in the middle of the Danube.

Vorosmarty Square

Most city break visitors to Budapest will find their way to Vorosmarty Square to see and take coffee at the famous Gerbeaud café. An ultra-modern neon-lit shopping complex now detracts from the atmosphere but the monument in the Square attracts musicians and artists and the café terraces get packed in summer.

The south side leads into Vaci utca, Budapest's main shopping street, also packed in summer with mime artists and musicians.

Budapest Central Market

Built in the late 19th century in Art Nouveau style, and now fully restored, this is where to find good quality food. Paprika, salami and vegetable stalls line the ground floor. Others sell Hungary's celebrated liqueurs such as Apricot Brandy (Barackpalinka).

Shop carefully, however - the bag of saffron Travelsavvy bought in the Market was a great disappointment and far from genuine saffron.

Upstairs, it's Hungarian crafts and clothes plus a selection of bars.

The spacious market is found at the Pest end of Liberty bridge (Szabadság híd) and is also noted for its fine architecture.

Hungarian National Gallery

The Magyar Nemzeti Galeria is near the top of the funicular in the massive Royal Palace that dominates the southern end of the Castle District of Buda. It's packed with Hungarian art and sculptures over four floors.

St Margaret's Island

Margit hid, the Margaret Bridge, is the most northerly of the four central Budapest bridges across the Danube. Halfway across, there's a pedestrian link to Margaret Island.

With its curative thermal waters and landscaped parkland, this has long been a place of relaxation. The middle of the island is packed with trees and flowers while the Buda bank includes the huge Palatinus Baths complex. On the Pest bank there's a small zoo with deer and many species of birds.

Budapest thermal spas

The many thermal springs in Budapest have been popular for hundreds of years. The Turkish occupation saw bath-culture develop and Budapest still has baths built by the Turks.

Today, there are 28 spas and numerous spa hotels. The thermal waters treat arthritis and skin problems. The temperatures of the springs range from a cool 14°C to almost boiling.

The Szechenyi Bath and Spa on the Pest side of the Danube features three large outdoor pools and 12 thermal baths with a range of temperatures.

Over the river, the Gellert baths are a famous attraction. There's both outdoor and indoor baths. The Gellert recalls the age of grand hotels. The exterior is Art Nouveau and it's worth wandering over the fine Liberty Bridge towards the hotel to take in sweeping views of Buda and the Danube.

Chapel in the Rock and Mt Gellert

A short step up from the Gellert Hotel is a large cave that's divided into several chapels. It's well worth the short climb. St Gellert is said to have martyred by being thrown from the top of the hill, now crowned with the Citadella, in a barrel. His monument is half way up the hill.

Cruise on the Danube

One-hour cruises on the Danube are available at Pier No. 8 at Vigado Square, between the Chain and Elizabeth bridges on the Pest bank. There are departures from 10.15am with several evening cruises.

Offbeat sights

It's always worth exploring the more unusual attractions of a city and Budapest has plenty of offbeat sights. Find the famous tongue-less lions at the Chain Bridge or wander way below the streets of Buda in the labyrinth of caves and passageways.

Buda labyrinth

The Baroque street of Uri utcahouses the entrance to Budavari Labarinthus, the labyrinth under Buda's Castle District. Descend the steep stairs for an attraction that will fascinate children and adults alike.

Water drips down the walls of the caverns once used for storage of military equipment. There's a cafe in one of the caverns. It's chilly, as you'd expect, so a sweater is advisable.

Kiraly baths

Built in 1556 during the Turkish occupation, the Kiraly Baths are one of Budapest's oldest bathing pools.The building is still topped by a green cupola and Turkish crescent. It's on the Buda bank south of the Elizabeth bridge.

Chain Bridge or Szechenyi Lanchid

The Chain Bridge is the city's oldest river crossing. It was built in the 1840s by British engineers William Tierney Clark and Adam Clark. Take a close look at the lions decorating the entrance to the bridge. They appear not to have tongues.

It's said that a young apprentice noticed this on the day the bridge was opened and the sculptor threw himself into the Danube and drowned. It's a myth, it seems, but it adds to the interest when walking over the bridge.

If you find the Chain Bridge fascinating, try also the Liberty Bridge a couple of crossings further south. It's an elegant structure painted green with views of the Gellert Hotel and hill topped by the Liberation Monument.

Gresham Palace

A grand building in the Art Nouveau style, Gresham Palace sits at the Pest end of the Chain Bridge and now houses the Four Seasons Hotel. Pop in to see the lobby of this building named after Thomas Gresham who founded the first London Stock Exchange.

Great Boulevard of Pest

This ring road around central Pest is really five streets. Trams 4 and 6 glide along. The boulevards are crammed most of the day and evening with people and traffic.

One of the highlights is the recently restored New York cafe and New York Palace hotel. It's a pricey but eminently stylish spot to eat and worth a look to see where Budapest's artists and literary circle once met daily. It's near Blaha Lujza ter.

Terror House

Even if you do not go in to this startling building on Andrassy Avenue, stop to study the plaques with the faces of the victims of Communist oppression displayed all round the building's base. Most met their deaths in the aftermath of the Hungarian Uprising of 1956.

Memento Park

If you want a taste of the tasteless statues from the Soviet era, take a trip out the XXII District (Tram 49 to Kosztolanyi D. ter and then Bus 150 to Memento Park).

Here you'll find statues that were removed from the city when Communism ended plus Stalin's Tribune Exhibition in the Barrack plus Movies. For motoring enthusiasts, there's a Trabant to inspect - although you can also still see the odd Trabant out on the streets of Budapest.

Stamp Museum

A small but delightful museum with an amazing collection that will attract any stamp collector. It's at Harsfa utca 47.

Nearby trips

There is plenty to see around Budapest city in just about every direction. Budapest is considered the "heart of Hungary" and the region is packed with natural, historical and cultural treasures.

Charming towns are found along the Danube north and south and there are many sites of interest east and west, including royal palaces and restored castles.

Esztergom

Just 40km north-west of Budapest, Esztergom was once a royal residence and is still home to Hungary's Archbishop. It's near the famous Danube bend where the river turns south towards Budapest. Esztergom looks over the river to Slovakia and can be reached by train, bus, boat or hovercraft from Budapest.

A town of 30,000, its Basilica is the largest cathedral in Hungary and the Danube bend can be seen from its cupola. The Royal Castle was covered with earth when the town was conquered by the Turks and only rediscovered in 1930. Excavated rooms can now be visited.

Visegrad

Visegrad is small town of just 1,700, just 30km north of Budapest and visitors flock here for fabulous views of the Danube bend. Fellegvar, or the Castle in the Clouds, has a citadel (Visegrad which means 'high fortress') and the climb to the top is well worth it. The town also boasts a Royal Palace.

Summer sees attractions like archery and tournaments laid on for visitors while a huge restaurant, the Nagyvillam Csarda, provides copious food, particularly game.

Szentendre

This romantic town of 25,000 is just 20km north of Budapest and is an ideal trip out of the capital.There's a man-made beach on the Danube, an artists' colony and the town itself is packed with restaurants, cafes and shops.

The main square features a Plague Cross to commemorate the town being saved from the plague in 1763. Children, and many adults, will enjoy the Marzipan Museum while other museums are dedicated to artists and wine. Just to the north is the Hungarian Open-air museum or rural life, with old peasant houses, a church and handicrafts.

Balaton Lake

The largest lake in Central Europe, Balaton is 100km south-west of Budapest and is easily reached by rail or bus. Despite being shallow, Balaton is dubbed the Hungarian Sea.

The north side of the lake is particularly pretty with small towns, vineyards and walking and cycling routes everywhere. Ferries ply the lake making it easy to get around.

The pretty town of Tihany is on a peninsula on the northern shore while Badacsony has a wine centre and great view over the lake.

The Hungarian Plain

The Great Plain of Hungary, known as the Alföld, covers half of the country and has played an important role in Hungarian culture. Gulyas, or goulash, the famous paprika flavoured soup, is named after the shepherds of the Plain who cooked with kettles over open fires.

There's little of the original steppe left except in two National Parks. Here, herdsmen can still be seen on horseback with their distinctive long-haired sheepdogs.

Birdwatchers will be attracted to the Alföld as it's home to over 230 species including bustards. Many companies provide full-day excursions.

 

 

 

 

At its heart the city of Budapest "Pearl of the Danube" The Danube divides the city in two: Buda on one bank and the Pest plain on the other. Uniquely the Danube panorama is a UNESCO world heritage site and you need to see the city at night to experience its full glory and fully understand why.

Budapest can boast two World Heritage sites: the Danube panorama with Buda Castle and the superb buildings on the Pest embankment, as well as Andrássy Avenue with its magnificent villas and monumental Heroes' Square. In addition there are 837 listed historical monuments, 223 museums and galleries, 40 theatres, seven concert halls, two opera houses and several thousand restaurants, cafés and clubs, cinemas etc. But this is not all: within the bounds of the city there are several natural features of particular interest such as the extensive cave systems in the Buda Hills and the Sas Hill Nature Protection Zone just outside the downtown area. Nature has also endowed Budapest with 80 mineral and medicinal water springs feeding medicinal baths, 10 of them protected historical monuments.

Main sights in Budapest

The Royal Palace and Castle District
The name Buda Castle covers more than a castle or the Royal Palace in the capital city; it extends to the historical quarter full of sites. The Castle District on Castle Hill is one of the most romantic sections in Budapest. It forms a compact medieval town with atmospheric streets, picturesque houses, gas lamps and beautiful monuments.

Fishermen's Bastion
It was completed in 1905 on the site of a former fish market - hence the name. It has never served a defensive purpose, although it is an excellent lookout place. The cityscape opening up from there, including the Fishermen's Bastion, has been part of UNESCO's World Heritage since 1988. The crypt of the ancient St. Michael Cemetery Chapel (the first written record dates from 1443) was opened to the public in 1997.

Matthias Church
The church bears the name of its greatest patron, King Matthias, who married twice in this shrine. It is almost as old as the Royal Palace and has been the venue of several coronation ceremonies. Every king and époque left its mark on the building until the Turks occupied Buda in 1541 and converted the church into a mosque, whitewashing - and thus preserving - its medieval frescos. Matthias Church took on its current form at the turn of the century when several smaller buildings attached to it earlier were pulled down and the church was reconstructed in characteristic neo-Gothic style. In addition to the usual biblical scenes, its frescos relate the most important events in Hungary's history. The magnificent acoustics make it a popular concert venue.

Cave system
Another point of interest on Castle Hill is that almost every house in the quarter has cellars several storeys deep running down into the hill. These cellars were connected into a several-kilometre-long corridor system in the Middle Ages and served a useful purpose in times of war. Local defenders used the casemate system to speedily relocate troops to more threatened points of the district, suggesting far greater numbers to the enemy than they actually were and thus the area could be defended with limited troops. One section of the cellar system was turned into what is known as the Labyrinth of the Buda Castle with remarkable historical walk-through tableaux.

Chain Bridge
The first permanent bridge over the Danube. Budapest owes its construction to Count István Széchenyi who was forced to wait a week before he could cross the river by boat to bury his father. This is when he decided to build a permanent crossing for the city. Architect William Clark and namesake Adam Clark supervised construction works; the bridge was finally completed in 1849. It has since - rightly so - become a symbol of Budapest city, a magnificent sight when illuminated at night. In 1999 a monumental ceremony and the installation of new floodlights marked the 150th anniversary of the bridge.

Margaret Island
Budapest's finest green spot is Margaret Island (Margitsziget) located in the middle of the river Danube between Margaret Bridge and Árpád Bridge. The 100-hectare parkland is kept peaceful and quiet by being sealed off to most vehicular traffic. The park is beautiful and very varied: century-old chestnut avenues, English, Japanese and French gardens alternate with ruins of a nunnery, an old water tower and a wide range of sports facilities.

Parliament
Built at the turn of the century, the building of the National Assembly quickly became a dominant sight and symbol of Budapest and the Danube panorama. A typically Eclectic edifice covered in small crockets and stone tracery ornamentation, it is one of the most decorative structures in the capital. It also ranks as one of the biggest national assemblies in the world.

St. Stephen's Basilica
Construction of the largest church of the capital (seating 8,500 persons) was beset by vicissitudes. No sooner had the groundwork begun when the War of Independence broke out in 1848, then construction was resumed in 1851, followed by the successive deaths of the two architects, and even the dome collapsed during the works. The church with a Greek cross plan was finally consecrated in 1905.

Vörösmarty Square. Váci Street
If anywhere, the city centre starts here on Vörösmarty Square. Váci Street, the pedestrian main street of downtown Budapest, sets out from here and the square holds the two most popular cafés of the capital: old Gerbeaud and trendy Art Café.

Hungarian National Museum
The museum is one of the finest examples of Hungarian neo-Classicism. Hungarian history is presented from the foundation of the state up until 1990. The Hungarian Holy Crown and the Crown Jewels used to be displayed here, but on 1 January 2000 they were moved to Parliament. The museum played a key role in the 1848-49 War of Independence and as such it became one of its symbols; for this reason the National Museum is to this day one of the focal points of celebrations marking the March 15 national holiday.

Opera House
Budapest is proud of possessing one of the most beautiful opera houses in the world. The opening performance of the Opera House was held in the neo-Renaissance building, the jewel of the avenue, in 1884 after nine years of construction.

Millennium Monument - Heroes' Square
Budapest's grandest square stands at the top of Andrássy Avenue, with City Park right behind. Marking the end of stylish Andrássy Avenue, this monumental edifice is a majestic memorial to the thousand-year history of Hungarians in Europe. Each part of the monument represents an important moment in Hungarian history. The solemnity and pomp of the ensemble is further heightened by the two old museums on either side: the Museum of Fine Arts and the Palace of Art.

Vajdahunyad Castle
Probably the most fascinating edifice in City Park. The mock castle was originally built of timber and hardboard for the World Exhibition organized in 1896 to mark the thousandth anniversary of the arrival of the Magyars in the Carpathian Basin.

City Park and the Zoo
The Zoo, which is also a historical monument, recalls the atmosphere of the years around the beginning of the 20th century. One of the oldest zoos in the world, it is home to 500 species of animal and 4000 types of plant.

To go further

Budapest info
Exhaustive tourist information on Budapest and offers of hotel, airline and other tourist services.
http://www.budapestinfo.hu