Budapest Travel

This lens deals with Budapest. What to see, what to do, what to take care of and so on.

Budapest is the capital of Hungary, a cultural centre of Central Europe with a population of nearly 2 million. The city was established as Budapest in 1872, however it exists as 2 separate cities of Pest and Buda since about thousand years. The two cities are separated by the river Danube, Buda is the hill side with lots of green spots, while Pest is flat and more industrial-like.

The downtown has many interesting spots that worth a visit. The building of the Parliament is a huge and beautiful one, built in neo-gothic style on the turn of the 19-20th century. The Parliament is truly unique and determines the view of the Danube bank.

The medieval Castle is to be found on the Buda side on the Castle-hill, it offers a great panorama of the city. It was the seat of Hungarian rulers for centuries. You can find the baroque Royal Palace, the seat of the President, the National Gallery, the Matthias Church, the Fishermen's Bastion and many more places of interest here. It is also recommended to take a stroll on the medeival streets of the castle district.

The Gellért hill is the highest spot of the Danube bank, it offers a great panorama (perhaps the best one in the whole city). The Citadel is a 19th century fortress built on top of the hill. You can find the famous Gellért bath next to the foot of the hill on Gellért square.

The Heroes' Square is the place for the Hungarian millenial monument, built in 1896 to commemorate the conquest of the territory that is now called Hungary. Next to the monument you can find the Museum of Fine Arts and the Art Gallery. Behind the square the City Park offers many opportunities to have fun, the Budapest Zoo, the funfair and the Budapest Circus are located here. The Vajdahunyad Castle is a remake of an old medeival Hungarian castle, located right behind Heroes' Square

Budapest is a city of spas, there are quite many thermal baths in the city, some of them are centuries old and dates back to the Turkish occupation, see more info on Budapest spas and Budapest thermal hotels.