The 13 essential things to do in Budapest

The Hungarian Parliament, on the Pest bank facing the Danube, is one of the largest parliament buildings in the world and the emblem of Budapest. Designed by Imre Steindl, it was begun in 1885, inaugurated in 1896 for Hungary's millennium and completed in 1904; Steindl died in 1902, before the work was finished.

Neo-Gothic in style, it rises to 96 metres, a figure that refers to the year 896, the date given for the Magyars' arrival. The visit takes in the grand staircase, the Dome Hall, where the Hungarian Holy Crown and coronation regalia are displayed, and a former session chamber. The façade is even more striking from the Buda bank or a boat once it is lit up.

The Széchenyi Chain Bridge (Széchenyi lánchíd), opened in 1849, was the first permanent bridge across the Danube in Budapest, at a time when Buda and Pest were still separate towns. It is named after Count István Széchenyi, who championed it.

It links Széchenyi Square, on the Pest side, with the foot of Castle Hill on the Buda side, where the funicular starts. Renovated and reopened in August 2023, it gives one of the best views of the Parliament and the castle, especially after dark, when its chains are lit up.

On Castle Hill, on the Buda side, the Royal Palace (Budavári Palota), rebuilt several times since the Middle Ages, now houses the Hungarian National Gallery and the Budapest History Museum. A few minutes' walk away, Matthias Church is easy to spot by its roof of coloured glazed tiles.

Just behind it, Fisherman's Bastion, built from 1895 to 1902 by Frigyes Schulek in neo-Romanesque style, lines up seven towers recalling the seven Magyar tribes. Its terraces look over the Danube and the Parliament; in front stands the equestrian statue of Saint Stephen, Hungary's first king.

Opened in 1913 in City Park, the Széchenyi Baths are one of the largest thermal complexes in Europe, with 18 pools, including the large heated outdoor pools used even in winter, saunas and steam baths, in a yellow neo-Baroque palace.

The other historic baths each have their own character: Rudas, at the foot of Gellért Hill, keeps an Ottoman-era dome; Lukács is more popular with locals. The Gellért Baths, famous for their Art Nouveau decor, have been closed since 1 October 2025 for a full renovation; they are expected to reopen in 2028.

Built from 1854 to 1859, the Dohány Street Synagogue is the largest synagogue in Europe, with around 2,964 seats. Its Moorish style, twin onion-domed towers and richly decorated interior make it one of Pest's major landmarks. The complex includes the Jewish Museum, a cemetery and the Raoul Wallenberg memorial park, with the Tree of Life in memory of the Hungarian victims of the Holocaust.

Around it, the 7th district (Erzsébetváros) was the heart of Jewish life in Budapest, then the ghetto of 1944-1945. It also holds the Rumbach Street and Kazinczy Street synagogues and the Gozsdu passage, now lined with bars and restaurants.

Heroes' Square closes Andrássy Avenue, at the entrance to City Park (Városliget). It is dominated by the Millennium Monument, begun in 1896 for the thousandth anniversary of the Magyars' arrival in the Carpathian Basin and unveiled in 1906: a column topped by the Archangel Gabriel, surrounded by the leaders of the seven tribes, and two colonnades of statues of kings and figures from Hungarian history.

Two museums frame it: the Museum of Fine Arts and the Hall of Art (Műcsarnok), devoted to contemporary art. Behind it, City Park holds Vajdahunyad Castle, the zoo and the Széchenyi Baths.

On Andrássy Avenue, the Hungarian State Opera was designed by Miklós Ybl in neo-Renaissance style and opened in 1884. Its horseshoe auditorium, gilding and grand staircase make it one of the finest opera houses in Central Europe; the season alternates operas and ballets, in their original languages with surtitles.

Outside performances, guided tours of the building run several times a day, in English and other languages, with access to the foyer and the auditorium.

At the foot of Liberty Bridge, on the Pest side, the Great Market Hall (Nagycsarnok) is Budapest's largest covered market. Samu Pecz's building, opened in 1897, stands out for its roof of coloured Zsolnay tiles and its great iron frame.

On the ground floor, stalls of fruit, cured meats, salami and paprika; in the basement, fish and pickles; upstairs, stands selling Hungarian dishes (lángos, goulash) and crafts, more geared to tourists.

Gellért Hill towers over the Danube on the Buda side, between Elisabeth Bridge and Liberty Bridge. It is named after Bishop Gellért, whose statue faces Elisabeth Bridge. At the top stand the Citadel, a fortress built by the Austrians after the 1848-1849 revolution, and the Liberty Statue, visible from all over the city.

Wooded paths climb in twenty to thirty minutes from the bottom of the hill. The view takes in the bridges, the Parliament, the castle and the whole plain of Pest, a favourite viewpoint at sunset.

The Danube runs through Budapest from north to south, and its banks, from the Parliament to Liberty Bridge, are a UNESCO World Heritage Site. A cruise of about an hour passes the Parliament, Buda Castle, Fisherman's Bastion, the Chain Bridge and Gellért Hill.

Boats leave from piers on both banks, notably near the Vigadó and Batthyány Square. Night cruises, when the monuments are lit up, are the most popular; some include dinner or an audioguide.

The Cave Church occupies a natural cavity on the southern side of Gellért Hill, facing Liberty Bridge. The cave is said to have sheltered a hermit, Iván, hence its other name, St Ivan's Cave.

It was turned into a church in 1926 by the Pauline monks, the only monastic order founded in Hungary. The communist regime closed it and walled it up in 1951; it was returned to the Paulines in 1989. Inside are chapels cut into the rock and part of the adjoining monastery.

Ruin bars (romkocsma) appeared in the early 2000s in run-down buildings and courtyards of the 7th district, furnished with odds and ends. Szimpla Kert, on Kazinczy Street, a pioneer of the genre, is the best known: a maze of rooms and courtyards decorated with salvaged objects, with concerts and screenings.

Other venues in the district follow the same formula, around Kazinczy and Király streets and the Gozsdu passage. It is now Budapest's liveliest nightlife area, very popular with tourists at weekends.

Margaret Island (Margitsziget), about 2.5 km long in the middle of the Danube, is a large, largely car-free park, reached by Margaret Bridge to the south and Árpád Bridge to the north. It is named after Saint Margaret of Hungary, daughter of King Béla IV, who lived in the Dominican convent whose ruins can still be seen.

People come for the musical fountain near the southern entrance, the 1911 water tower, the Japanese garden, the running track around the island and, in summer, the outdoor pools of the Palatinus baths.