Must-see attractions in Budapest

  • Szechenyi Chain Bridge and Castle Hill.

    Castle Hill

    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…

  • Hungary, Budapest, Dohany Street Synagogue

    Great Synagogue

    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…

  • Old Soviet style statue in the Memento Park. Budapest, Hungary; Shutterstock ID 42465316; Your name (First / Last): Josh Vogel; Project no. or GL code: 56530; Network activity no. or Cost Centre: Online-Design; Product or Project: 65050/7529/Josh Vogel/LP.com Destination Galleries

    Memento Park

    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,…

  • St. Stephens basilica in Budapest Hungary

    Basilica of St Stephen

    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…

  • House of Terror Museum on Andrassy Street.

    House of Terror

    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…

  • Parliament building, Lipotvaros.

    Parliament

    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…

  • Exterior of National Museum.

    Hungarian National Museum

    Budapest

    The Hungarian National Museum houses the nation’s most important collection of historical relics in an impressive neoclassical building, purpose built in…

  • Liberty Monument

    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…

  • Ruins Of The Roman Town, Aquincum, Budapest, Hungary

    Aquincum

    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…

  • National Gallery

    Hungarian National Gallery

    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…

  • Hungarian State Opera House

    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…

  • Royal Postal Savings Bank

    Budapest

    East of Szabadság tér, the former Royal Postal Savings Bank is a Secessionist extravaganza of colourful tiles and folk motifs, built by Ödön Lechner in…

  • György Ráth Museum

    Budapest

    The one-time home of the eponymous first director (1828–1905) of the Museum of Applied Arts has recently opened and is a shrine to art nouveau…

  • The Museum of Fine Arts in Budapest

    Museum of Fine Arts

    Budapest

    Housed in a grand Renaissance-style building and once again opened after three years' renovations in late 2018, the Museum of Fine Arts is home to the…

  • Castle Museum

    Castle District

    The Castle Museum, part of the multibranched Budapest History Museum, explores the city's 2000-year history over four floors. Restored palace rooms dating…

  • Royal Palace by night, Budapest

    Royal Palace

    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…

  • Grof Batthyany Lajos Tomb at Kerepes Cemetery.

    Kerepes Cemetery

    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…

  • Vasarely Museum

    Óbuda & Buda Hills

    Installed in the imposing Zichy Mansion (Zichy kastély), built in 1757, this renovated and rehung gallery contains some 150 works of Victor Vasarely (or…

  • House of Houdini

    Castle District

    Dedicated to the famous Hungarian-born magician and escape artist Harry Houdini, who was born Erik Weisz in Budapest's district VII in 1874, this small…

  • Hungarian Museum of Trade & Tourism

    Óbuda & Buda Hills

    This superb museum traces Budapest's catering and hospitality trade through the ages, including the dramatic changes after WWII, with restaurant items,…

  • 500px Photo ID: 103732133 - Vigado Concert Hall and Danube river waterfront in Budapest, Hungary.

    Pesti Vigadó

    Budapest

    This Romantic-style concert hall, built in 1865 but badly damaged during WWII, faces the river to the west of Vörösmarty tér. Reopened in 2014 after a…

  • Heroes' Square

    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…

  • Shopfronts on Vaci utca, Inner Town.

    Váci utca

    Budapest

    The capital’s premier pedestrian shopping street is crammed for the most part with chain stores, touristy restaurants, ripoff bars and a smattering of…

  • Pálvölgy Cave

    Óbuda & Buda Hills

    This 29km-long cave – the second-largest in Hungary – was discovered in 1904 and is noted for both its spectacular stalactites and rock formations. Tours…

  • Fishermen's Bastions, Castle Hill.

    Fishermen’s Bastion

    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…

  • Palace of Art

    Budapest

    The Palace of Art, reminiscent of a Greek temple, is among the city’s largest exhibition spaces. It focuses on contemporary visual arts, with some three…

  • Vörösmarty tér

    Budapest

    At the northern end of Váci utca lies Vörösmarty tér, a large square surrounded by smart shops, galleries and cafes. In the centre is a statue of Mihály…

  • Old historical Museum of applied arts at Budapest Hungary

    Museum of Applied Arts

    Budapest

    Housed in a gorgeous Ödön Lechner–designed building (1896) decorated with Zsolnay ceramic tiles, this museum was closed for renovation at the time of…

  • Liszt Music Academy

    Erzsébetváros & the Jewish Quarter

    The art nouveau Liszt Music Academy, built in 1907, attracts students from all over the world and is Budapest's top classical-music concert hall. The…

  • Szabadság tér

    Budapest

    This square, one of the largest in the city, is a few minutes’ walk northeast of Széchenyi István tér. As you enter you’ll pass a delightful fountain that…

  • Gödöllő Royal Palace

    Budapest

    Gödöllő Royal Palace, the largest baroque manor house in Hungary, was designed by Antal Mayerhoffer for Count Antal Grassalkovich (1694–1771), confidante…

  • Mathias church Budapest

    Matthias Church

    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…

  • Memorial tablets in courtyard at Holocaust Memorial Centre.

    Holocaust Memorial Center

    Budapest

    Housed in a striking modern building, the centre opened in 2004 on the 60th anniversary of the start of the Holocaust in Hungary. The thematic permanent…

  • Hungarian Electrical Engineering Museum

    Erzsébetváros & the Jewish Quarter

    This place might not sound like everyone's cup of tea, but some of the exhibits are unusual (and quirky) enough to warrant a visit. The staff will also…

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    Andrássy út

    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 …

  • Castle Garden Bazaar

    Budapest

    This renovated pleasure park dating from 1893 has added a whole new dimension to Tabán district in recent years. The complex comprises over a dozen neo…

  • Szechenyi Bridge and Castle Hill at twilight.

    Széchenyi Chain Bridge

    Budapest

    Arguably the most striking of all the bridges in Budapest, twin-towered Széchenyi Chain Bridge, which is named in honour of its initiator, István…

  • Zwack Museum & Visitors' Centre

    Budapest

    Unicum, the thick medicinal-tasting aperitif made from 40 herbs and spices, is as bitter as a loser’s tears and a favourite drink in Hungary. To delve…

  • Gul Baba Tomb, Vizivaros.

    Gül Baba’s Tomb

    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…

  • Ervin Szabó Central Library

    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…

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