113 Best Sights in Budapest, Hungary

The wondrous porch overlooking the Danube and Pest is the neo-Romanesque Fisherman's Bastion, a merry cluster of white stone towers, arches, and columns above a modern bronze statue of St. Stephen, Hungary's first king. Medieval fishwives once peddled their wares here; today it's the turn of merchants selling souvenirs and crafts. During the day in high season, you must pay to get to the upper lookout level, but the reasonable price is well worth the view. Nevertheless, if you don't want to pay it, you can still access the lower portion of the walkway, or come after 8 pm to freely explore the whole structure.

Spread across four wings (and four floors) of the Royal Palace, this national gallery exhibits Hungarian fine art, from medieval ecclesiastical paintings, statues, and triptychs, through to Gothic, Renaissance, and Baroque art, to a rich collection of 19th- and 20th-century works. Especially notable are the works of the romantic master painter Mihály Munkácsy, the Impressionist Pál Szinyei Merse (who independently pursued a style akin to French Impressionism), and the Surrealist Mihály Tivadar Kosztka Csontváry, who was much admired by Picasso. There is also a large collection of modern Hungarian sculpture, as well as regular (paid) temporary exhibits. Labels and commentary for both permanent and temporary exhibits are in English, and an audio guide is available.

In front of the gallery, facing the Danube, stands an equestrian statue of Prince Eugene of Savoy, a commander of the army that liberated Hungary from the Turks at the end of the 17th century. From here there is a superb view across the river to Pest. For another outdoor artwork, check out the nearby Halászó gyerekek díszkút (Fountain of the Fishing Children).

There is a 1,000 HUF charge to take videos, which are limited to permanent exhibitions.

Széchenyi Thermal Bath, the largest medicinal bathing complex in Europe, is housed in a beautiful neobaroque building in the middle of City Park. There are several thermal pools indoors as well as two outdoor pools, which remain open even in winter, when dense steam hangs thick over the hot water's surface. You can just barely make out the figures of elderly men, submerged shoulder deep, crowded around waterproof chessboards. To use the baths, you pay a standard price (unless you get a doctor's prescription, in which case it's free), plus a surcharge if you prefer having a private changing cabin instead of a locker. Facilities include an outdoor lap pool, Finnish and steam saunas, medical and leisure massage treatments, carbonated bath treatments, and other wellness treatments and wraps. A great way to sweat away last night's pálinka (fruit brandy).

Handsome and massive, this is one of the chief landmarks of Pest and the city's largest church---it can hold 8,500 people. Its very Holy Roman front porch greets you with a tympanum bustling with statuary. The basilica's dome and the dome of Parliament are by far the most visible in the Pest skyline, and this is no accident: with the Magyar Millennium of 1896 in mind (the lavishly celebrated thousandth anniversary of the settling of the Carpathian Basin in 896), both domes were planned to be 315 feet high and to this day city codes specify that no downtown Pest building may exceed this height.

The millennium was not yet in sight when architect József Hild began building the basilica in Neoclassical style in 1851, two years after the revolution was suppressed. After Hild's death, the project was taken over in 1867 by Miklós Ybl, the architect who did the most to transform modern Pest into a monumental metropolis. Wherever he could, Ybl shifted Hild's motifs toward the neo-Renaissance mode that Ybl favored. When the dome collapsed, partly damaging the walls, he made even more drastic changes. Ybl died in 1891, five years before the 1,000-year celebration, and the basilica was completed in neo-Renaissance style by József Kauser---but not until 1905.

Below the cupola is a rich collection of late-19th-century Hungarian art: mosaics, altarpieces, and statuary (what heady days the Magyar Millennium must have meant for local talents). There are 150 kinds of marble, all from Hungary except for the Carrara in the sanctuary's centerpiece: a white statue of King (St.) Stephen I, Hungary's first king and patron saint. Stephen's mummified right hand is preserved as a relic in the Szent Jobb Kápolna (Holy Right Chapel); press a button and it will be illuminated for two minutes. You can also climb the 364 stairs (or take the elevator) to the top of the cupola for a spectacular view of the city. Extensive renovation work here has, among other things, returned the cathedral from a sooty gray to an almost bright tan. Small-group guided tours in English are offered, but must be reserved at least 72 hours in advance.

This fascinating complex comprises the reconstructed, extremely evocative remains of a Roman settlement dating from the first century AD. Careful excavations have unearthed a varied selection of artifacts and mosaics, providing a tantalizing glimpse of what life was like in the provinces of the Roman Empire. A gymnasium and a central heating system have been unearthed, along with the ruins of two baths and a shrine once operated by the mysterious cult of Mithras. The Aquincum múzeum (Aquincum Museum) displays the dig's most notable finds: ceramics; a red-marble sarcophagus showing a triton and flying Eros on one side and on the other, Telesphorus, the angel of death, depicted as a hooded dwarf; and jewelry from a Roman lady's tomb. There are reconstructed Roman board games, interactive video games, and a reconstruction of an ancient Roman musical organ in the basement level. The museum also manages the Thermae Maiores or 'Great Bath' complex as part of the Roman Baths Museum, an ancient spa now incongruously located in a pedestrian underpass by Flórián tér station. It's free to visit.

The largest synagogue in Europe and the second-largest working synagogue in the world, this spectacular Moorish Revival-style building, with hints of northern African Islamic design, is appropriately known as the Great Synagogue. This building complex, completed in 1859, was designed to represent the Jewish community’s lasting place in the nation and its sad, storied history in Hungary. The synagogue was bombed by the Hungarian pro-Nazi Arrow Cross Party during WWII and the building was used by the Nazis as a stable for horses. Attached to the synagogue is the Garden of Remembrance with a mass grave for Jews murdered by Hungarian Nazis. The weeping willow memorial features the names of Hungarian Holocaust victims inscribed on metal leaves while the tomb of Raoul Wallenberg commemorates the Swedish diplomat who saved the lives of thousands of Jews in Budapest during the Holocaust. Severely damaged throughout WWII, the building was used for religious purposes again after the war, but it didn't receive much-needed renovations until 1991, with reconstruction lasting until 1998. The museum, an addition made in 1930, was built on the site of the birthplace of Theodor Herzl, the father of Zionism. It features a decent collection of local religious relics and ritual objects, a Holocaust exhibit, and also hosts visiting exhibitions. A ticket to the Jewish Museum or a full Jewish District tour will grant you access to the synagogue, too.

On the 60th anniversary of the closing off of Budapest's Jewish ghetto, April 15, 2004, Hungary's first major center for Holocaust research and exhibits opened in the presence of Hungarian statesmen and the Israeli president. The stone facade of this one-time synagogue is an eerily high, windowless wall; the entrance comprises two tall, massive iron doors. Just inside the courtyard is a black wall bearing the names of all known Hungarian victims of the Holocaust, including both Jews and many Roma (Gypsies). From there you go downstairs into a cellar, where you proceed through a compelling and haunting blend of family and individual stories told through photos, films, original documents, personal objects, and touch-screen computers (with all text also in English). You are taken from 1938, when the Hungarian state first began depriving Jews and others of their rights; to 1944, by which time these people were being systematically deprived of their freedom and their lives; to liberation in 1945.

On reaching the final space, a small synagogue, you can still hear the wedding music from the first rooms: a poignant reminder of the pre-Holocaust era. Unlike the Terror háza (House of Terror), which honors victims of both Nazism and communism, nothing at all about this feels forced. It is just right. This is a moving and dignified testament to genocide.

A majestic monument akin to Berlin's Brandenburg Gate, the Millennium Monument at the gateway to the city's playground, Városliget, was commissioned to celebrate the country's 1,000th birthday in 1896 but wasn't completed until 1906. Above it all, standing on a 118-foot-tall column, Hungary's patron saint the Archangel Gabriel holds the Hungarian crown in one hand and the apostolic double cross in the other. At the base of the column, the imposing figures of Hungary's founding fathers stand guard on horseback: these are the mythical leaders of the seven tribes whose descendants will one day become the Hungarian nation. Behind them are the full figure statues of their more modern, but equally awe-inspiring counterparts: Hungary's most important rulers since AD 1000, when Szent István allied with the Holy Roman Empire and founded the modern European state of Hungary. The line-up starts on the left with Saint István himself. This square is meant to inspire reverence and it is no coincidence that you can see it from the other end of Andrássy út. The square is a popular meeting point for locals, and is always busy with skateboarders and museum patrons lingering before or after a visit to the surrounding museums. Beware of little old ladies selling imitation furry hats next to the coffin-like memorial for the fallen soldiers of WWI in the middle of the square. However entertaining they may be, their wares are illegal and not the deal they appear to be.

If you are here in the early fall, look out for the Nemzeti Vágta (National Gallop), a horse race around the square featuring equestrian shows throughout the day. You can purchase grandstand tickets for around 4,000–5,000 HUF or just stand to the side for free.

A palace originally built on this spot in the 13th century for the kings of Hungary was reconstructed in the Renaissance style under the supervision of King Matthias during the 15th century. That, in turn, was demolished as Buda was recaptured from the Turks in 1686.

The Habsburg empress Maria Theresa directed the building of a new palace in the 1700s. It was damaged during an unsuccessful attack by revolutionaries in 1849, but the Habsburgs set about building again, completing work in 1905.

Then, near the end of the Soviets' seven-week siege in February 1945, the entire Castle Hill district of palaces, mansions, and churches was reduced to rubble. Decades passed before reconstruction and whatever restoration was possible were completed. Archaeologists were able to recover both the original defensive walls and royal chambers, due in part to still surviving plans and texts from the reigns of Holy Roman Emperor Sigismund and King Matthias.

Freed from mounds of rubble, the foundation walls and medieval castle walls were completed, and the ramparts surrounding the medieval royal residence were re-created as close to their original shape and size as possible. If you want an idea of the Hungarian homelife of Franz Josef and Sissi, however, you'll have to visit the baroque Gödöllő Palace.

Today, the Royal Palace is used as a cultural center. It comprises three main sections set around the Lion Courtyard: the river-facing east wing (A-D) houses the Magyar Nemzeti Galéria (Hungarian National Gallery); the baroque southern wing (E) contains the Vármúzeum és Szent István-terem (Castle Museum and St. Stephen's Hall); and the W-shaped west wing (F) is home to the Országos Széchényi Könyvtár (National Széchenyi Library), which has a copy of more than two million volumes—everything ever published in the Hungarian language—along with well-preserved medieval codices, manuscripts, and even a sound library.

One of the city’s most prominent and iconic landmarks, Budapest's main venue for opera and classical ballet is located in a magnificent neo-Renaissance building dating from 1884. The work of famed architect Miklós Ybl, the exterior features two unique buxom marble sphinxes guarding the driveway that curves upward from the street to the main entrance, a reminder that special guests used to arrive here by horse and carriage. Proceeding inside, the main lobby is flanked by Alajos Strobl's "romantic-realist" limestone statues of Franz Liszt and 19th-century Hungarian composer, Ferenc Erkel, the father of Hungarian opera. The marble staircases and wood-paneled corridors usher guests into gilt lime-green salons, ornate private theater boxes, or the glittering jewel box that is the main auditorium. Helmeted sphinxes bow their heads beneath a dazzling frescoed ceiling by Károly Lotz. Lower down there are frescoes everywhere, with intertwined motifs of Apollo and Dionysus. In its early years the Budapest Opera was conducted by Gustav Mahler (1888–91), and after World War II by Otto Klemperer (1947–50). Badly damaged during the siege of 1944–45, it was restored for its 1984 centenary. Recently reopened after years of renovation, the opera house has completely refreshed its exterior, modernized the orchestra pit and dressing rooms, created more handicap accessibility, and touched up the ceiling seccos and interior facades. This has been the biggest overhaul the building has seen in over thirty years, delivering an even more spectacular experience. It's free to walk into the entrance hall, but if you want to have a proper look inside, daily tours in English with a mini-performance at the end, are best booked online or in-person at the box office. Of course, the finest way to experience the opera house is to see a full opera or ballet, an experience that cannot be recommended highly enough. While the most coveted of tickets could cost you a couple hundred euros, don’t think you are going to have to break the bank to partake; one can regularly find weekday tickets in the back rows for as little as a few euros. The most frequent productions are popular classical operas from Italy and around Europe, but you'll also find guest performances by international troupes as well as occasional Hungarian productions, like Erkel’s patriotic opera Bánk Bán and Béla Bartók’s Blue Beard’s Castle. Most feature subtitles in Hungarian and English, but make sure to double check before purchase.

The permanent collection here takes you on a stimulating journey into the everyday Hungarian experience, from the recent to the more distant past. Among the highlights are the 20th-century exhibit, including an early movie theater replete with films of the era, an old schoolroom, a 1960s apartment interior, and a host of historical posters—all of which lead up to the end of communism and the much-celebrated exodus of Russian troops. Older attractions include masterworks of cabinetmaking and woodcarving (e.g., church pews from Nyírbátor and Transylvania); a piano that belonged to both Beethoven and Liszt; and goldsmithing treasures. The museum also regularly hosts interesting programs, including lectures on historical aspects and showcases on restorations—check website for exact events.

Opened in 2022, Budapest's stunning new museum in the City Park was designed by the well-known Japanese architect Sou Fujimoto. The expertly curated permanent exhibition is dedicated to the history of music, charting its evolution from archaic folk beginnings to the current day. There are detours through Hungary's greats, including Ferenc Liszt, Béla Bartók, and Zoltán Kodály. With the help of wireless headphones, visitors can listen to high-quality musical samples and set their own pace. For those interested in music, this museum is not to be missed.

The ornate white steeple of the Matthias Church is the highest point on Castle Hill. It was added in the 15th century, above a 13th-century Gothic chapel. Officially the Buda Church of Our Lady, it has been known as the Matthias Church since the 15th century, in remembrance of the so-called Just King who greatly added to and embellished it during his reign (though many of these changes were lost when the Turks converted it into a mosque). The intricate white stonework, colorful mosaic roof decorations, and some of its geometric patterned columns seem to suggest Byzantium, yet it was substantially rebuilt in the neo-Baroque style 87 years after the Turkish defeat in 1686. One fortunate survivor of all the changes was perhaps the finest example of Gothic stone carving in Hungary: the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, visible above the door on the side of the church that faces Szentháromság tér.

Inside, the Trinity Chapel holds an encolpion, an enameled casket containing a miniature copy of the gospel to be worn on the chest; it belonged to the 12th-century king Béla III and his wife, Anne of Chatillon. Their burial crowns and a cross, scepter, and rings found in their excavated graves are also displayed here. The church's treasury contains Renaissance and baroque chalices, monstrances, and vestments. Climb the steps in the church's northwest corner to visit the Royal Oratory and the collection of ecclesiastical art, as well as (for an extra fee) the panoramic tower with spectacular views of the city. From here, you can also admire the baroque Trinity Column in the square opposite, erected in 1712–13 as a gesture of thanksgiving by survivors of a plague.

High mass is celebrated every Sunday at 10 am, sometimes with full orchestra and choir and often with major soloists; get here early if you want a seat. During the summer there are classical concerts on Friday (plus some Mondays and Wednesdays) at 7 pm, and organ recitals on Saturday and Sunday at 7:30 pm.

Hailed as one of the first successes of the Liget Budapest Project, the reconstruction of the long abandoned historical Olof Palme House was completed in October 2020 and given its new name: the Millennium House. The original Zsolnay adornments have been painstakingly restored and new additions placed inside and out; the interior structure was entirely rebuilt. The new grounds include a café space, a stage, a full auditorium, and, outside, a rose garden featuring a new Zsolnay water fountain. This exhibition and community space celebrate Hungary’s golden age (1867–1914) under the Dual Monarchy of Austria-Hungary that saw Budapest prosper and a newly blossoming Hungarian cultural elite begin to flourish. This era was also the heyday of the Városliget. Exhibits focus on the arts, history, literature, and gastronomy of that time. Currently, visitors to the Millennium House can book a guided tour of the building or to that of the neighboring Museum of Ethnography and the House of Music.

The city’s premier market hall, with a stunning gilded exterior, is a treasure chest of Hungarian produce and foodstuffs. This is the oldest (over 125 years) and largest market in town, and a great place to wander and sample specialties like Mangalica ham (Hungarian white swine), Szarvaskolbász (deer sausage), Kovászos uborka (fermented cucumber), and a variety of local handmade cheeses, honeys, Hungarian paprika, and other delectables. Follow your nose upstairs to its market eateries for lángos, a Hungarian deep-fried flatbread, and peach strudel from the popular rétes stand. You can stock your suitcase with vacuum-packed products, and look for additional souvenirs on the second floor, where you'll find a mix of lovely and kitsch Hungarian handicrafts, hand-carved chess sets, and Rubik's Cubes.

The most visible symbol of Budapest's left bank is the huge neo-Gothic Parliament, mirrored in the Danube much the way Britain's Parliament is reflected in the Thames. It was designed by the Hungarian architect Imre Steindl and built by 1,000 workers between 1885 and 1902. The grace and dignity of its long facade and 24 slender towers, with spacious arcades and high windows balancing its vast central dome, lend this living landmark a refreshingly Baroque spatial effect. The exterior is lined with 90 statues of great figures from Hungarian history, with corbels ornamented by 242 allegorical statues. Inside are 691 rooms, 10 courtyards, and 29 staircases; some 88 pounds of gold were used for the staircases and halls. These halls are also a gallery of late-19th-century Hungarian art, with frescoes and canvases depicting Hungarian history, starting with Mihály Munkácsy's large painting of the Magyar Conquest of 896.

Parliament's most sacred treasure isn't the Hungarian legislature but rather the Szent Korona (Holy Crown), which reposes with other royal relics under the cupola. The crown sits like a golden soufflé above a Byzantine band of holy scenes in enamel and pearls and other gems. It seems to date from the 12th century, so it could not be the crown that Pope Sylvester II presented to St. Stephen in the year 1000, when he was crowned the first king of Hungary. Nevertheless, it is known as the Crown of St. Stephen and has been regarded---even by communist governments---as the legal symbol of Hungarian sovereignty and unbroken statehood. In 1945 the fleeing Hungarian army handed over the crown and its accompanying regalia to the Americans rather than have them fall into Soviet hands. They were restored to Hungary in 1978.

The only way you can visit the Parliament and see the crown is on one of the daily tours. Lines at the visitor center on the north side of the edifice may be long and tickets are in limited numbers, so it's best to purchase tickets in advance online. A permanent exhibit about the thousand years of Hungarian legislation is available free through the visitor center. Note that Parliament is closed to the public during ceremonial events and when the legislature is in session (usually Monday and Tuesday from late summer to spring).

It requires confidence to give an attraction a name like this, but for families, it delivers. This science-themed, highly interactive amusement park, museum, and playhouse features everything from a 9D virtual reality cinema (that shoots water at "viewers") to live science shows, as well as escape rooms, puzzles, and a mind-bending hall of illusions that will leave the entire party questioning what they know about how the world works.

There are about 200 accessible caves in Budapest (some open, some not) but Pálvölgyi and Szemlőhegyi are the most popular. Both provide a long network of underground walking trails through narrow passages filled with crystal formations, stalactites, and stalagmites. The Pálvölgyi Cave stretches around 18 miles, making it the longest cave network in Budapest and one of the longest in Hungary. It is also one of the most beautiful. Breathe in at Szemlőhegyi as this cave is known for its mineral-infused air. The caves must be visited on a guided tour that lasts just under an hour. Pálvölgyi and Szemlőhegyi can be visited on a combined ticket. Mátyáshegy cave, just opposite Pálvölgyi, is a bit more intense, with some climbing required and caving equipment provided, so it is best suited to the fit (and the brave).

Adventure-seekers should book a three-hour adventure caving tour (21,000 HUF) with Caving Under Budapest (caving.hu), which offers the chance to climb and crawl through these caves.

This bath on the riverbank boasts perhaps the most dramatically beautiful interior of all of Budapest's baths, with the original Turkish pool the star of the show. A high, domed roof admits pinpricks of bluish-green light into the dark, circular stone hall with its austere columns and arches. The central octagonal pool catches the light from the glass-tiled cupola and casts it around the surrounding six pools, capturing the feeling of an ancient Turkish hammam. The highly fluoridated waters here have been known for 1,000 years—and the baths themselves date back to the 16th century. The baths vary in temperature from 16 to 42 degrees Celsius, and you can also drink the water from three springs in the drinking hall (open Tuesday and Thursday only). The thermal part is open to men only on Monday and Wednesday, as well as the mornings of Thursday and Friday; to women only on Tuesday; and to both sexes on Thursday and Friday afternoons and all day weekends. Soak after-hours here on Friday and Saturday nights from 10 pm to 3 am.

Stately on the outside, spectacular on the inside, this ornate library is located in Wenckheim Palace, one of the most grand homes in the Palace District when built by a Hungarian aristocrat in the 1800s, and today the city's most beautiful reading rooms. The library moved in in 1931, after the city bought the neobaroque palace. Head straight to the fourth floor to wander the gilded palatial rooms; take a seat in the former Smoking Room with its carved wood panels and ceiling, ornate spiral staircase, and leather-bound books, or find a velvet chair from which to admire the chandeliers, high ceilings, and elegant finishes in the former Ballroom or the Lady of the House's Room. For bookworms, this is a working library and accessible to the public, so make time to peruse the shelves. Purchase a daily card to get access to some of the library databases and in-house resources or check out their calendar for upcoming public events. It's also just worth coming in to appreciate the setting and have a coffee and a cake at the library café. The library is named for Szabó Ervin, who helped develop the public library system in Budapest.

Across Heroes’ Square from the Műcsarnok and built by the same team of Albert Schickedanz and Fülöp Herzog, the Museum of Fine Arts houses Hungary’s best art collection, rich in Flemish and Dutch old masters. With seven fine El Grecos and five beautiful Goyas as well as paintings by Velázquez and Murillo, the collection of Spanish old masters is probably the best outside Spain. The Italian school is represented by Bellini, Giorgione, Correggio, Tintoretto, Titian, and Caravaggio masterpieces and, above all, two superb Raphael paintings: the Esterházy Madonna and his immortal Portrait of a Youth, rescued after a world-famous art heist. Nineteenth-century French art includes works by Delacroix, Pissarro, Cézanne, Toulouse-Lautrec, Gauguin, Renoir, and Monet. There are also more than 100,000 drawings (including five by Rembrandt and three studies by Leonardo), and Egyptian and Greco-Roman exhibitions. The special exhibits are outstanding and frequent. Labels are in both Hungarian and English; there’s also an English-language booklet for sale about the permanent collection.

Beside the City Park’s lake stands Vajdahunyad Vár, a fantastic medley of Hungary’s historic and architectural past, starting with the Romanesque gateway of the cloister of Ják, in western Hungary. A Gothic castle whose Transylvanian turrets, Renaissance loggia, baroque portico, and Byzantine decorations are all guarded by a spooky bronze statue of the anonymous medieval “chronicler,” who was the first recorder of Hungarian history. Designed for the millennial celebration in 1896, the permanent structure was not completed until 1908. This hodgepodge houses the surprisingly interesting Mezogazdasági Múzeum (Agricultural Museum), which touts itself as Europe’s largest such museum and offers regular arts and crafts events for kids. Plan ahead for tickets to the Vajdahunyad Castle Summer Music Festival featuring some of Hungary's most popular musicians. If time permits, stroll around the castle to spot the Mermaid fountain and the bust of legendary Hollywood B-movie actor and Hungarian-American Béla Lugosi that was placed in an alcove along the southeast corner in 2003; its origins remain a mystery today.

The baroque southern wing of the Royal Palace is home to two of its greatest gems: the Vármúzeum (Castle Museum) and Szent István-terem (St. Stephen's Hall).

The former, which is part of the Budapesti Történeti Múzeum (Budapest History Museum), displays a fascinating permanent exhibit of modern Budapest history, from Buda's liberation from the Turks in 1686 through the 1970s. Viewing the vintage 19th- and 20th-century photos and videos of the castle, the Széchenyi Lánchíd, and other Budapest monuments—and seeing them as the backdrop to the horrors of World War II and the 1956 revolution—helps to put later sightseeing in context.

The latter is one of Budapest's most ornate rooms: an elegantly carved Romanesque masterpiece with a strong Hungarian flavor. You'll be given a tablet with an audiovisual guide to talk you through the history and features of the room, as well as surrounding exhibits like the replica of the Hungarian crown. As there's a lack of seating, you may find yourself skipping through some of the longer-winded commentaries.

Separate tickets are available for the two attractions, but a combined ticket is the best option. Guided tours are available for a small additional fee.

The oldest and most elegant of the road bridges that span the Danube in Budapest—particularly when lit up at night—the Széchenyi Chain Bridge connects Víziváros on the west bank with Lipótváros on the east. Before it was built, the river could be crossed only by ferry or by pontoon bridge that had to be removed when ice blocks began floating downstream in winter. It was constructed at the initiative of the great Hungarian reformer and philanthropist Count István Széchenyi, using an 1839 design by the English civil engineer William Tierney Clark, and was finished by the Scotsman Adam Clark (no relation). After it was destroyed by the Nazis, the bridge was rebuilt in its original, classical and symmetrical form—though widened for traffic—and was reopened in 1949, on the centenary of its inauguration. At the Buda end of the Chain Bridge is Clark Ádám tér (Adam Clark Square), from which you can zip up to Castle Hill on the sikló (funicular); it's 4,000 HUF for a return ticket. The square is also home to the 0 kilométerkő (Zero Kilometer Stone), a sculpture from which all highway distance signs are measured all over the country.

Turn-of-the-century Andrássy út links Erzsébet Square with the Városliget and makes for one of Budapest's most pleasant walks, with lots of places to stop along the way. Modeled after Paris' Champs-Élysées, from its starting point at Bajcsy-Zsilinszky út, you can see all the way up to its end at Hősök tere. Lined with spectacular neo-Renaissance mansions and town houses featuring fine facades and interiors, but also shady green trees, it was recognized as a World Heritage Site in 2002. Today, it’s a high-end promenade filled with cafés and restaurants, embassies, and hotels. It's no accident that the city's oldest metro line goes all the way up it, with direct stops at the Opera House and other significant sites in its vicinity.

Designed by architect Kas Oosterhuis and opened in 2013, this commercial and cultural hub looks pretty much like its name, which means "whale" in English. The interior is largely empty, with temporary cultural exhibits held in spaces meant for retail stores. Outside, though, trendy bars and restaurants lining its periphery make this a popular meeting point to admire the Danube, especially in the summer. The north-facing Esetleg Bisztró is the ideal location from which to catch a stunning sunset over Buda’s Gellért Hill. Just a few meters away at neighborhood hangout Nehru Park, locals play football, basketball, and practice skateboarding, but most of all they chill out with a picnic or drink, enjoying this welcome green zone next to the river. The south-facing Buda view of the Citadella is almost as gorgeous as the one of Gellért.

This lovely square (well, triangle) at the northwestern end of Castle Hill is home to some fine baroque and rococo houses. It's dominated by the enormous neo-Romanesque headquarters of the Országos Levéltár (Hungarian National Archives), a cathedral-like shrine to paperwork built in the 1910s, but there are other gems here, too: check out the house at number eight, with its pink-and-white striped facade and unusual curved windows. Nearby is the medieval stone gateway (rebuilt in 1936) that marks the northern entrance to Castle Hill, and after which the square is named. Literally translated as "Vienna Gate," the archway once sat at the end of a highway that connected Buda Castle to the Austrian capital.

A beautiful botanical garden and park, created in the late 1800s and now part of a university campus, the Buda Arboretum is home to almost 2,000 species of trees, flowers, and plants. It's a very pleasant spot for a stroll or a jog any time of year, but particularly in autumn or spring, when the colors are beautiful. Note that, while the Lower Garden is open every day, the Upper Garden is closed on weekends.

Sitting on a charming little square punctuating Víziváros most strollworthy street, Fő utca, this striking, neo-Gothic church was designed by Samu Pecz and built in 1893–96. Rising above the deep-red brickwork of its facade, both its steeple and a massive dome above the main part of the church are covered with colorful tilework from the famous Zsolnay factory in Pécs.

If you have limited time in the city, this 10-minute ride up and over Erzsébet tér offers lovely bird’s-eye views of the city. Open every day until late, all year-round since 2013, what was supposed to be a temporary promotion for the annual Sziget music festival has become a popular attraction of its own.