The Mini Rough Guide to Budapest (Travel Guide eBook)

By Rough Guides

This pocket-sized travel guide to Budapest is a convenient, quick-reference companion to discovering what to do, what to see and how to get around the destination. It covers top attractions like Buda's Castle Hill, the Danube River, Opera House, as well as hidden gems, including the Great Synagogue. Our Budapest guide book will save you time and enhance your exploration of this fascinating city. This Budapest travel guide has been fully updated post-COVID-19.

This Mini Rough Guide to Budapest covers: Buda's Castle Hill and Old Town; Buda riverside; Obuda; Crossing the Danube; Pest; City outskirts and excursions.

In this guide book to Budapest you will find:

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR EVERY TYPE OF TRAVELLER
Experiences selected for every kind of trip to Budapest, from cultural explorations in Buda's Old Town, to family activities in child-friendly places, like City Park or chilled-out breaks in popular tourist areas, like the Hungarian Parliament Building.

TOP TEN ATTRACTIONS
This Budapest travel guide covers the destination's top ten attractions not to miss, including Szechenyi Baths, the House of Terror, St. Stephen's Basilica, Margaret Island and a Perfect Day itinerary suggestion.

COMPACT FORMAT
Compact, concise, and packed with essential information, with a sharp design and colour-coded sections, this guide book to Budapest is the perfect on-the-move companion when you're exploring Budapest.

HISTORICAL AND CULTURAL INSIGHTS
Includes an insightful overview of landscape, history and culture of Budapest

WHAT TO DO
Detailed description of entertainment, shopping, nightlife, festivals and events, and children's activities.

PRACTICAL MAPS
Handy colour maps on the inside cover flaps of this travel guide to Budapest will help you find your way around.

PRACTICAL TRAVEL INFORMATION
Practical information on eating out, including a handy glossary and detailed restaurant listings, as well as a comprehensive A-Z of travel tips on everything from getting around to health and tourist information.

STRIKING PICTURES
Inspirational colour photography throughout.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Insight Guides
• Release date: Oct 1, 2023
• ISBN: 9781839059520

Rough Guides

Rough Guides are written by expert authors who are passionate about both writing and travel. They have detailed knowledge of the areas they write about--having either traveled extensively or lived there--and their expertise shines through on every page. It's priceless information, delivered with wit and insight, providing the down-to-earth, honest read that is the hallmark of Rough Guides.

Book preview

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HOW TO USE THIS E-BOOK

Getting Around this e-Book

This Rough Guide Mini e-book is designed to inspire you and help you plan for your visit to Budapest, and is also the perfect on-the-ground companion for your trip.

The guide begins with our selection of Highlights, plus a Perfect Itinerary feature to help you plan an unforgettable trip. The Introduction and History and Culture chapters give the lowdown on Budapest, past and present, while the Out and About chapter is a comprehensive guide to all the best sights. You will find ideas for getting active in Things to Do, while the Food and Drink chapter introduces you to the local cuisine and gives listings of our favourite restaurants by area. Travel Essentials offers just that; practical information to help you plan your trip. Finally, Where to Stay provides a special selection of hotels for every budget.

In the Table of Contents and throughout this e-book you will see hyperlinked references. Just tap a hyperlink once to skip to the section you would like to read. Practical information and listings are also hyperlinked, so as long as you have an external connection to the internet, you can tap a link to go directly to the website for more information.

Maps

All key attractions and sights in Budapest are numbered and cross-referenced to high-quality maps. Wherever you see the reference [map], tap once to go straight to the related map. You can also double-tap any map for a zoom view.

Images

You’ll find lots of beautiful high-resolution images that capture the essence of Budapest. Simply double-tap an image to see it in full-screen.

About Rough Guides:

Published in 1982, the first Rough Guide – to Greece – was created by Mark Ellingham and a small group of friends who couldn’t find a guidebook to meet their needs. Combining a contemporary, journalistic style with a thoroughly practical approach to travellers’ needs, the immediate success of the book spawned a series that rapidly covered dozens of destinations. These days, Rough Guides include recommendations from budget to luxury and cover more than 120 destinations worldwide, all regularly updated by our team of ever curious, roaming writers. These Rough Guide Minis may be small, but they are packed with information and inspiration and offer amazing value for money.

© 2023 Apa Digital AG and Apa Publications (UK) Ltd.

Table of Contents

10 Things Not To Miss

A Perfect Day In Budapest

Overview

Geography

Contemporary Budapest And Its People

Eminent Hungarians

City Attractions

History and Culture

Enter The Romans

Magyar Migration

Trade And Culture

The Habsburgs

Rapid Growth

The Early Twentieth Century

World War II

Soviet Rule

Into The Eu

Out and About

Buda’s Castle Hill and Old Town

Buda Castle

Hungarian National Gallery

Mátyás Church

Fisherman’s Bastion

Touring the Old Town

Buda riverside

Viziváros (Watertown)

Gellért Hill

Óbuda

Buda Hills

Crossing the Danube

Pest

The Inner City (Belváros)

Churches and university buildings

The Little Boulevard

Leopold Town

Andrássy út

Heroes’ Square

City Park

The Great Boulevard

Holocaust Memorial Centre

An historic café and a panoramic view

Margaret Island

City outskirts

Statue and Rail Heritage Parks

Excursions

Szentendre

Skansen

Visegrád

Esztergom

Lake Balaton

Things To Do

Spas And Baths

Sports

Spectator Sports

Shopping

What To Buy

Entertainment

Opera, Classical Music And Ballet

Theatre

Pop, Rock And Jazz

Traditional Music And Dance

Clubs And Bars

Children’s Budapest

Food and Drink

Where to eat

When to eat

What to eat

Drinks

To Help You Order

Menu Reader

Where To Eat

Buda And Óbuda

Pest

A–Z Travel Tips

A

Accessible travel

Accommodation

Airport

B

Budapest Card

Budgeting for your trip

C

Car hire

Climate

Clothing

Crime and safety

Customs and entry requirements

D

Driving

E

Electricity

Embassies and consulates

Emergencies

G

Getting there

Guides and tours

H

Health and medical care

Holidays

I

Internet

L

Language

Left luggage

LGBTQ+ travellers

M

Maps

Media

Money

O

Opening hours

P

Police

Post offices

Public transport

R

Religion

T

Telephones

Time zones

Tipping

Toilets

Tourist information

W

Websites

Y

Youth hostels

Where To Stay

Buda

Margaret Island

Pest

10 THINGS NOT TO MISS

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1. Parliament Building

Gawp at the stunning neo-Gothic home of democracy and the crown jewels. For more information, click here.

budapestinfo.hu

2. Liszt Museum

Visit the home of Hungary’s greatest composer with its enormous collection of pianos. For more information, click here.

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3. New York Café

Take high tea in grand style and opulent surroundings. For more information, click here.

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4. Opera House

Book seats for a sophisticated night to remember. For more information, click here.

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5. Buda Castle

Visit the castle’s fine museums, including the Hungarian National Gallery and the Budapest Historical Museum. For more information, click here.

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6. Great Synagogue

Explore the city’s Jewish Quarter and Europe’s largest synagogue. For more information, click here.

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7. The Castle District

Wander through cobbled streets and quaint houses that lend the district a fairy-tale feel. For more information, click here.

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8. Széchenyi Baths

Kick back in the iconic yellow surroundings of these palatial baths. For more information, click here.

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9. House of Terror

Learn about the totalitarian regimes of the past at this dramatic memorial-museum to the victims of state repression. For more information, click here.

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10. City Park

Take a day to lose yourself in the park; walk from the castle at one end to the zoo at the other, stopping for a picnic on the grass. For more information, click here.

A PERFECT DAY IN BUDAPEST

9am

Breakfast. Have breakfast in the old-fashioned ambience and warm glow of the Centrál Kávéház at Károlyi Mihály utca 9 in Pest’s Belváros or ‘Inner City’.

10am

Hungarian National Museum. Walk a couple of blocks east to Múzeum körút to find the Hungarian National Museum. Take a quick tour of the nation’s history, marvelling at exhibits of the Avars’ gold jewellery, St Stephen’s coronation mantle and communist propaganda posters.

11am

Food Market. Follow the Belváros ringroad south to the vast Central Market Hall, built by Gustave Eiffel, of Eiffel Tower fame. Only the freshest produce is on sale here.

11.30am

Shopping on Váci utca. Cross the road and stroll up the city’s premier shopping street. Keep your eyes peeled for handicrafts emporium, Folkart Centrum, which stocks a selection of handmade Hungarian delights, and the magical window displays of florist Philanthia. Emerging in Vörösmarty tér at the end, you will find a stylish shopping centre on your left.

1pm

Gerbeaud. Take a light lunch at this café institution on the far side of Vörösmarty tér. Sit in the grand interior, with its chandeliers and fine plasterwork, or lounge on the terrace for some top-quality people-watching. Save room for one of Gerbeaud’s cakes, as these are the café’s speciality.

2.15pm

Great square. Take the metro direct from Vörösmarty tér to Heroes’ Square at the head of Andrássy út and at the gates of City Park. In the centre of the square is the Millennium Monument, crowned by the Archangel Gabriel. Flanking the square are the Museum of Fine Arts and the Palace of Art.

2.30pm

City Park. Entering City Park, you will be faced with a wide choice of amusing diversions; you could pay a visit to the zoo, extravagantly designed in Art Nouveau style, and see the huge, light-flooded Palm House or be wowed by a riotous two-and-a-half-hour show featuring clowns, acrobats and jugglers at the Capital Circus at 3pm on Wednesday to Sunday (also at 11am on Saturday, Sunday and some Fridays).

5pm

Széchenyi Baths. Also within City Park is the iconic neo-Baroque complex of the Széchenyi Baths. Relax in the balmy pools, indoor and outdoor, play a game of chess with the elderly locals in the shallows or treat yourself to a massage. Afterwards, drink a glass of the health-giving waters at the little pavilion just outside.

7pm

Dinner and a show. Feeling fully rested, it’s time to take an easy stroll to Gundel, Hungary’s most famous restaurant, on the eastern edge of the park, where you can dine in style. Alternatively, take the metro a few stops back to the Opera House and catch a performance.

OVERVIEW

Budapest seems a wonderful place…the impression I had was that we were leaving the West and entering the East. The most western of splendid bridges over the Danube, which is here of noble width and depth, took us among the traditions of Turkish rule. The opening lines of Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1897) convey protagonist Jonathan Harker’s sense of entering unknown territory when he reached Budapest on his journey to Transylvania.

Much has changed since Stoker’s day, and Hungary is now very much an integral part of Europe. Its capital, Budapest, is a busy, cosmopolitan city with a mushrooming tourist trade. New routes by budget airlines have