Where to actually go in Budapest

Great Market Hall

Market · Fővám tér

A grand 19th-century market: paprika, salami downstairs, lángos and stews upstairs.

Best for: a cheap lunch, trying lángos

Best time: late morning (closed Sunday)

Mazel Tov

Restaurant · Jewish Quarter

Middle Eastern food in a glass-roofed ruin courtyard.

Best for: a dinner before the ruin bars

Booking: Reserve at weekends.

Best time: dinner

Karaván

Market · Jewish Quarter (next to Szimpla)

A street-food yard of trucks; try lángos.

Best for: cheap food before the bars

Best time: evening

Bors GasztroBár

Restaurant · Jewish Quarter

A tiny counter famous for creative soups and toasted baguettes.

Best for: a cheap tasty lunch

Best time: lunch or late

New York Café

Cafe · Erzsébetváros

Often called the most beautiful café in the world: gold, marble and frescoes. Expensive.

Best for: one splurge coffee and the photo

Booking: Expect a queue; reservations help.

Best time: morning

Széchenyi Thermal Baths

Activity · City Park (Városliget)

The huge yellow bath complex with steaming outdoor pools, open in all weather.

Best for: the Budapest experience, a hangover cure

Price: $$ — roughly $35–45

Booking: Buy online ahead to skip the line; bring flip-flops and a towel.

Best time: morning, or evening in winter

Hungarian Parliament

Sight · Lipótváros

The giant Gothic Revival parliament on the Danube. Visits are by guided tour only.

Best for: the most famous building in Budapest

Booking: Interior visits are guided tours; book online in advance.

Best time: a guided-tour slot; the outside at night

Fisherman's Bastion and Castle Hill

Viewpoint · Buda Castle

Fairy-tale white terraces on Castle Hill with the classic view across the river to Parliament.

Best for: the view of Parliament, a walk

Best time: sunrise or after dark

Danube Promenade and the Shoes on the Danube

Walk · Pest riverside

A free riverside walk past the moving Holocaust memorial of iron shoes, with Buda lit up across the water.

Best for: a free evening walk

Best time: evening, when the bridges light up

Rudas Baths

Activity · Buda (by Elisabeth Bridge)

An Ottoman-era bath with a rooftop pool over the Danube.

Best for: a smaller, more local bath

Best time: evening; late nights at weekends

St. Stephen's Basilica

Sight · Lipótváros

The city's largest church; climb or lift up to the dome for the view.

Best for: the best view in Pest

Best time: late afternoon

Gellért Hill and the Citadella

Viewpoint · Buda

A steep hill over the river with the best panorama of the bridges.

Best for: a free sunset

Best time: sunset

Margaret Island

Garden · Danube

A car-free park island with a running track and a musical fountain.

Best for: a free green afternoon

Best time: afternoon

Szimpla Kert

Bar · Jewish Quarter (District VII)

The original ruin bar: a crumbling building filled with junk-shop furniture, many rooms and cheap drinks.

Best for: the ruin-bar experience, a big group

Best time: from about 10 PM

Gozsdu Udvar

Area · Jewish Quarter (District VII)

A passage of linked courtyards packed with bars and restaurants: the easy start to a District VII night.

Best for: dinner and first drinks

Best time: evening

Instant-Fogas

Club · Jewish Quarter (District VII)

A huge ruin-bar complex of many bars and dance floors that goes until morning.

Best for: the big ruin-bar club night

Best time: after midnight

Kőleves Kert

Bar · Jewish Quarter

A colourful garden ruin bar with hammocks, next to the Kőleves restaurant.

Best for: a relaxed outdoor drink

Best time: evening (seasonal)

Ellátó Kert

Bar · Jewish Quarter

A laid-back ruin bar with cheap drinks and Mexican food.

Best for: a cheaper ruin bar

Best time: evening

Anker't

Bar · Jewish Quarter

A big, stark concrete ruin bar with a courtyard and DJs.

Best for: a cooler ruin-bar crowd

Best time: evening

Doboz

Club · Jewish Quarter

A club with a garden and a giant gorilla sculpture in a tree.

Best for: a stylish club night

Best time: after midnight

Akvárium Klub

Club · Erzsébet tér

A concert hall and club under the pond on Erzsébet Square.

Best for: gigs and dancing

Best time: evening gigs, late club nights

360 Bar

Rooftop · Andrássy út

A rooftop bar with a 360-degree view over Pest.

Best for: a sunset drink

Best time: sunset