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Budapest
Hungary's capital is blessed with a bounty of art nouveau architecture, quirky ruin bars and gorgeous bathhouses replenished by mineral-rich hot springs.
Attractions
Must-see attractions for your itinerary
Castle District
Castle Hill is a kilometre-long limestone plateau towering 170m above the Danube. It contains some of Budapest’s most important medieval monuments and…
Erzsébetváros & the Jewish Quarter
Budapest's stunning Great Synagogue is the world's largest Jewish house of worship outside New York City. Built in 1859, the synagogue has both Romantic…
Budapest
Home to more than 40 statues, busts and plaques of Lenin, Marx, Béla Kun and others whose likenesses have ended up on trash heaps elsewhere, Memento Park,…
Budapest
Budapest’s neoclassical cathedral is the most sacred Catholic church in all of Hungary and contains its most revered relic: the mummified right hand of…
Erzsébetváros & the Jewish Quarter
The headquarters of the dreaded ÁVH secret police houses the disturbing House of Terror, focusing on the crimes and atrocities of Hungary's fascist and…
Budapest
The Eclectic-style Parliament, designed by Imre Steindl and completed in 1902, has 691 sumptuously decorated rooms. You’ll get to see several of these and…
Budapest
The Hungarian National Museum houses the nation’s most important collection of historical relics in an impressive neoclassical building, purpose built in…
Budapest
The Liberty Monument, the lovely lady with the palm frond in her outstretched arms, proclaiming freedom throughout the city, is southeast of the Citadella…
Attractions
Top picks from our travel experts
Castle District
Parts of Matthias Church date back 500 years, notably the carvings above the southern entrance, but essentially the church (named after King Matthias…
Budapest
This grande dame of a traditional cafe dates back to 1887. Awash with leather and dark wood inside, it's also a great spot for people-watching. It serves…
Budapest
Home to more than 40 statues, busts and plaques of Lenin, Marx, Béla Kun and others whose likenesses have ended up on trash heaps elsewhere, Memento Park,…
Budapest
The top of Basilica of St Stephen dome offers some of the best views in Budapest. It can be reached via a lift and 42 steps (or 302 steps if you want to…
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Erzsébetváros & the Jewish Quarter
Andrássy út starts a short distance northeast of Deák Ferenc tér and stretches for 2.5km, ending at Heroes’ Sq (Hősök tere) and the sprawling City Park …
Budapest
Along the banks of the river between Széchenyi István tér and Parliament is a monument to Hungarian Jews shot and thrown into the Danube by members of the…
Erzsébetváros & the Jewish Quarter
Budapest's first romkocsma (ruin pub), Szimpla Kert is firmly on the tourist trail but remains a landmark place for a drink. It's a huge complex with…
Castle District
The former Royal Palace has been razed and rebuilt at least half a dozen times over the past seven centuries. Béla IV established a royal residence here…
Budapest
Erected for the 1896 millenary celebrations originally in canvas and later built in stone, the castle was modelled after a fortress in Transylvania – but…
Budapest
The neo-Renaissance Hungarian State Opera House was designed by Miklós Ybl in 1884 and is among the most beautiful buildings in Budapest. Its facade is…
Óbuda & Buda Hills
North of Szilágyi Erzsébet fasor, this house (1924) is where the great composer resided from 1932 until 1940, when he emigrated to the USA. Visits are by…
Castle District
The Hungarian National Gallery is an overwhelming collection spread across four floors and four wings of the palace that traces Hungarian art from the…
Castle District
The bastion, a neo-Gothic masquerade that looks medieval and offers some of the best views in Budapest, was built as a viewing platform in 1905 by Frigyes…
Hospital in the Rock Nuclear Bunker Museum
Castle District
Part of the Castle Hill caves network, this subterranean hospital was used extensively during the WWII siege of Budapest and during the 1956 Uprising. It…
Budapest
City Park is Pest’s green lung, an open space measuring almost a square kilometre that hosted most of the events during Hungary’s 1000th anniversary…
Budapest
Located on the northern side of Pest’s busiest square, Gerbeaud has been the most fashionable meeting place for the city’s elite since 1870. Along with…
Budapest
This place has brought history back to Bartók Béla út. The Hadik is a revived old-world cafe that pulled in the punters for more than four decades before…
Budapest
The Citadella is a fortress that never saw battle. Built by the Habsburgs after the 1848–49 War of Independence to defend the city from further…
Erzsébetváros & the Jewish Quarter
Considered the most beautiful cafe in the world when it opened in 1894, this neo-Renaissance-style place on the ground floor of the New York Palace Hotel…
Erzsébetváros & the Jewish Quarter
The headquarters of the dreaded ÁVH secret police houses the disturbing House of Terror, focusing on the crimes and atrocities of Hungary's fascist and…
Budapest
Heroes’ Sq is the largest and most symbolic square in Budapest. It is dominated by the Millenary Monument (Ezeréves emlékmű), a 36m-high pillar topped by…
Budapest
The Eclectic-style Parliament, designed by Imre Steindl and completed in 1902, has 691 sumptuously decorated rooms. You’ll get to see several of these and…
Castle District
This diminutive cafe dating from 1827 is the perfect place for coffee and cakes (550Ft to 750Ft) in the Castle District. Be warned: in high season it’s…
Budapest
Budapest’s neoclassical cathedral is the most sacred Catholic church in all of Hungary and contains its most revered relic: the mummified right hand of…
Erzsébetváros & the Jewish Quarter
Budapest's stunning Great Synagogue is the world's largest Jewish house of worship outside New York City. Built in 1859, the synagogue has both Romantic…
Holocaust Tree of Life Memorial
Erzsébetváros & the Jewish Quarter
In the Raul Wallenberg Memorial Garden on the Great Synagogue’s north side, the Holocaust (or Emanuel) Tree of Life Memorial, designed by Imre Varga in…
Óbuda & Buda Hills
The Roman Civilian Amphitheatre is about half the size of the one reserved for the military to the south. Much is left to the imagination, but you can…
Óbuda & Buda Hills
This renovated tomb contains the mortal remains of one Gül Baba, an Ottoman dervish who took part in the capture of Buda in 1541 and is known in Hungary…
Óbuda & Buda Hills
Built in the 2nd century for the Roman garrisons, this amphitheatre, about 800m south of Flórián tér. It's not especially impressive but will give you an…
Erzsébetváros & the Jewish Quarter
This basement bar, presided over by Gizi néni (Aunt Gizi), is the place to come to listen to Gypsy music, as Roma musicians play the real deal from about…
Erzsébetváros & the Jewish Quarter
Budapest's first romkocsma (ruin pub), Szimpla Kert is firmly on the tourist trail but remains a landmark place for a drink. It's a huge complex with…
Castle District
The former Royal Palace has been razed and rebuilt at least half a dozen times over the past seven centuries. Béla IV established a royal residence here…
Budapest
The Liberty Monument, the lovely lady with the palm frond in her outstretched arms, proclaiming freedom throughout the city, is southeast of the Citadella…
Óbuda & Buda Hills
North of Szilágyi Erzsébet fasor, this house (1924) is where the great composer resided from 1932 until 1940, when he emigrated to the USA. Visits are by…
Erzsébetváros & the Jewish Quarter
An Israeli restaurant with an enormous courtyard that comes into its own in the warmer months, 'Good Luck' serves lots of grilled meats like merguez…
Budapest
Completed in 1897, this is Budapest's biggest market, though it has become a tourist magnet since its renovation for the millecentenary celebrations in…
Budapest
This lovely and uber-chilled old-style cafe and restaurant at the southern end of XI Ráday utca turns into a great music venue at night, focusing on jazz,…
Budapest
Southeast of the Hungarian National Museum is the main repository of Budapest’s public library system, which holds some 2.4 million books and bound…
Budapest
These ruins – no more than a tower and a wall dating back to the late 13th century – are in the centre of the island. Habsburg Archduke Joseph built a…
Budapest
City Park is Pest’s green lung, an open space measuring almost a square kilometre that hosted most of the events during Hungary’s 1000th anniversary…
Budapest
The Citadella is a fortress that never saw battle. Built by the Habsburgs after the 1848–49 War of Independence to defend the city from further…
Budapest
A ruin is all that remains of the 13th-century convent built by Béla IV where his daughter St Margaret (1242–71) took the veil. According to the story,…
Budapest
Also known as the Fiume St Graveyard (Fiumei uti sírkert), this is Budapest’s equivalent of London's Highgate or Père Lachaise in Paris. Established in…
Erzsébetváros & the Jewish Quarter
Every Sunday, ruin pub Szimpla Kert holds a charming farmers' market where you can buy all manner of local jams, honey, yoghurt, cheese and bread from…
Óbuda & Buda Hills
The most complete Roman civilian town in Hungary was built around 100 AD and became the seat of the Roman province of Pannonia Inferior in AD 106…
Budapest
Heroes’ Sq is the largest and most symbolic square in Budapest. It is dominated by the Millenary Monument (Ezeréves emlékmű), a 36m-high pillar topped by…
Castle District
Castle Hill is a kilometre-long limestone plateau towering 170m above the Danube. It contains some of Budapest’s most important medieval monuments and…
Budapest
Under Plexiglas in V Március 15 tér you'll find the remains of a Roman fortress – an outpost of the Roman town of Aquincum – dating back to the 3rd…
Budapest
Budapest’s neoclassical cathedral is the most sacred Catholic church in all of Hungary and contains its most revered relic: the mummified right hand of…
Planning Tools
Expert guidance to help you plan your trip
Things to Know
Pronounce “é” correctly. It's the difference between toasting "good health" and toasting "your whole ass." Plus 20 more hints and cheats.
Read articleBest Neighborhoods
Get to know Budapest's distinct neighborhoods with this guide to the best districts for tourists.
Read articleDay Trips
Go beyond the capital and see what else Hungary has to offer on these top day trips from Budapest.
Read articleMoney and Costs
Budapest is a popular destination for budget travelers. Here’s our handy guide to visiting the capital of Hungary in a low-cost way.
Read articleTransportation
Thanks to plentiful buses, boats, trams and metro trains, getting around Budapest is easy. Here are the best ways to navigate the Hungarian capital.
Read articleFree Things to Do
You can see Hungary's capital city on a budget with these experiences that won't cost a single forint.
Read articleTraveling with Kids
Budapest serves up two cities for the price of one, meaning there's plenty to keep families busy. Here are our best tips for exploring Budapest with kids.
Read articleArticles
Latest stories from Budapest
Public TransportTop tips for getting around Budapest (on both sides of the river)Mar 28, 2023 • 7 min read
LGBTQIA+21 things only Budapest locals know (that you really should know, too)Feb 26, 2023 • 8 min read
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