Fodor's Expert Review Váci utca

Immediately north of Erzsébet híd (Elizabeth Bridge) is Budapest's best-known shopping street and most unabashed tourist zone, Váci utca, a pedestrian precinct with electric 19th-century lampposts and smart shops with credit-card emblems on ornate doorways. No bargain basement, Váci utca gets its special flavor from the mix of native furriers, tailors, designers, folk-craft shops, china shops, bookstores, and internationally known boutiques. On Régi Posta utca, just off Váci utca, you'll find Hungary's first McDonald's, which opened in 1988. Váci utca's second half, south of Kossuth Lajos utca, was transformed into another pedestrian-only zone in the 1990s. On both halves of Váci utca, beware of inflated prices and pickpockets. With it's high end retail shops, "Fashion Street," between Vörösmarty tér and Deák tér, now competes with Váci for shoppers' attention.