3 Best Sights in 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.

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.

The steep climb to the lookout tower on Mt. Badacsony’s summit is an integral part of the Badacsony experience and a rewarding bit of exercise. The trek to the tower, which climbs 455 meters—437 for the hill and a further 18 for the tower—begins behind the Kisfaludy Ház, a restaurant just above the Szegedy Róza-ház. Here stands the Rózsakő (Rose Stone), a flat, smooth basalt slab with many carved inscriptions; local legend has it that if a boy and a girl sit on it with their backs to Lake Balaton, they will marry within a year. Follow the trail marked in yellow up to the foot of the columns that stretch to the top. Steep flights of stone steps will take you through a narrow gap between rocks and basalt walls until you reach a tree-lined plateau. From here, simply follow the blue triangular markings along a path to the lookout tower. Even with time out for rests and views, the whole ascent should take less than an hour.