Budapest

Known as the ‘Pearl of the Danube,’ the Hungarian capital offers visitors a rich mix of architectural beauty, diverse history, and an active food and nightlife scene.

Formed by the 19th-century unification of the independent cities of Buda and Pest, located on the west and east sides of the river, respectively, the city has seen many of Europe’s great powers come and go, from the Romans and the Ottomans to the Austro-Hungarians and the Iron Curtain. Read on for a guide to exploring this fascinating city that sits at both the geographic and cultural center of Western and Eastern Europe.

Hungarian Parliament Building

Known in Hungarian as the Országház (‘House of the Nation’), the seat of Hungary’s National Assembly is an architectural masterpiece that is arguably the most iconic site in the city.

Located along the eastern bank of the Danube, the palace was built at the turn of the 20th century in a Gothic Revival style that sought to emulate London’s Westminster Palace, symbolizing the Hungarians’ commitment to the political ideals of Western Europe at a time when their burgeoning sense of nationalism was being suppressed by the rule of Austria-Hungary.

The palace is visible from all over the city and can be visited up close, but one of the best views is from the similarly iconic Chain Bridge, the monumental bridge across the Danube built in the mid-19th century to link Buda and Pest.

Saint Stephen’s Basilica

This huge basilica is named after Stephen I, founder of the Christian Kingdom of Hungary around 1000 AD, who unified and Christianized the Magyar tribes of the Carpathian Basin to establish Hungary as a modern nation-state. Together with the Parliament House, the basilica is the joint-tallest building in the city; this equal height was an intentional choice to confer equal stature upon the political and the spiritual.

Andrássy Avenue

This long boulevard running through the center of Pest is the beating heart of the city and, since its construction in the 1870s, a symbol of the city’s modernity. Named after Prime Minister Gyula Andrássy, who sought to build a grand avenue to elevate Budapest to the level of Europe’s great capitals, the street developed as the epicenter of city life, lined with fancy cafes, restaurants, and shops as well as luxurious private homes and foreign embassies. Under the street, the city built continental Europe’s first underground railway as the first line of the new Budapest Metro.

Today, the avenue retains its elegance, home to beautifully preserved buildings and high-end boutique shopping. One of the most famous buildings on the street is the Hungarian State Opera House, a sumptuous theater both inside and out.

Széchenyi Thermal Baths

Budapest is considered the ‘spa capital of Europe’ and has been a popular destination for thermal baths since it was first settled by the ancient Romans; the Romans christened their new city Aquincum, which translates to ‘abundant in water.’

The city is home to more than one hundred thermal springs bubbling below the ground, with numerous elegant bathhouses constructed over them for communal use.

One of the best places to get acquainted with Budapest’s spa culture is the Széchenyi Baths, located in the sprawling City Park. The baths are housed in an impressive Neo-Baroque style palace, while the water feeds from two thermal springs with temperatures of 165℉ (74℃) and 171℉ (77℃). The water is rich in minerals that are said to provide physical relief from arthritis and muscle pain, soothing the body as well as the mind.

Dohány Street Synagogue

Built in the 1850s, this synagogue is the largest in Europe and remains the spiritual and cultural epicenter of Budapest’s large Jewish community, even after the devastation of the Holocaust.

Beyond its impressive size and stature, the synagogue’s location is also significant, as it marked the border of the Jewish Ghetto where the Nazis forced Jews to live before sending them to die in concentration camps, with the city’s Jewish population halved from 200,000 to 100,000 over the course of the Second World War. Next door to the synagogue is the birthplace of Theodor Herzl, the founder of modern Zionism, whose family home has been converted into a museum of Jewish history.

Ruin Bars

One of the most famous parts of Budapest’s active nightlife scene are its quintessential ‘ruin bars,’ which began opening in the early 2000s in formerly abandoned buildings in the city’s old Jewish Quarter behind Dohány Street Synagogue.

With unique decor and a bohemian air throughout, the bars have transformed the once derelict buildings and their surrounding area into one of the hippest parts of the city. I recommend visiting Szimpla Kert, the first of the city’s many ruin bars, for an excellent night out—the vibes here are great, as are its charming indoor-outdoor setting, with its name translating as ‘simple garden.’

Buda Castle

Located atop a rocky hill on the west side of the Danube, the Buda Castle was the home of the Hungarian monarchs for seven centuries. Today, the charming Castle Quarter, located inside the old defensive walls that surrounded the medieval royal city, is a beautiful mix of medieval, Baroque, and neoclassical buildings lining cobblestone streets with restaurants, shops, and historical sites to visit.

Be sure to visit the Matthias Church, a soaring Gothic masterpiece built in the 14th century on the site of an earlier church founded by Saint Stephen (whose statue stands outside) that was destroyed during the first Mongol invasion of Hungary. Behind the church stands Fisherman’s Bastion, a portion of the castle walls that was rebuilt in monumental style around the turn of the 20th century. The name pays homage to the community of fishermen who lived below the walls along the river in medieval times. This site offers incredible panoramas of the city with the river in the foreground.