16 ultimate attractions in Budapest

Lending its name to the hill it sits on and the Castle District around it, the former royal palace was turned into a museum by the Communist authorities tasked with rebuilding the area flattened in 1945. Recently revamped as part of the Hauszmann programme to restore its Habsburg glory, Buda Castle has embraced the 21st century with a bright restaurant installed in its Royal Guard and Riding Hall, and modern art featuring at the National Gallery. Even the old-school Budapest History Museum now has a new permanent exhibition.

🤫 Insider tip: visitors to the National Gallery can access its dome for panoramic views of Budapest. 

The most popular spa in a city famed for its baths, the palatial Széchenyi basks in City Park, far from its counterparts of Turkish heritage on the Buda side. Fun in summer, indelibly atmospheric as snowflakes flutter in winter, three large outdoor pools are overlooked by a terrace restaurant and preface a tour of the many indoor pools and saunas just behind. Water and cabin temperatures vary, signs indicating the degrees to which you’re subjecting yourself to. Monthly Sparty pool parties take over after the last bather leaves.

🤫 Insider tip: cabins offer private changing for single visitors and couples alike.

The world’s 24th, and arguably most elegant, Madame Tussauds waxworks museum occupies the 200-year-old Palazzo Dorottya in the heart of Budapest. Using the Hungarian capital as its main theme, this English-friendly attraction takes visitors on an interactive and immersive journey, accompanied by movie stars and famous figures from Hungarian history. Without leaving this spot by the Danube, you can zoom around town on the back of Tom Cruise’s motorbike, accompany Habsburg Empress Elisabeth in her carriage or schmooze with Brad Pitt at a wrap party at the Gellért Baths. Hungarophiles will enjoy the life-like representations of pre-war torch singer Katalin Karády and football star Ferenc Puskás, both showcased in suitable settings.

Time Out tip: Tickets to Madame Tussauds Budapest include entry to Pop&Roll Art Toilet; and underground bathroom featuring 100 works of art and 20 unique cubicles. 

More chilling than any ghost train, the House of Terror fills a large house on Andrássy út once commandeered by the Secret Police during Communism and the Fascist authorities in World War II. Suspects would be brought here for imprisonment, torture and worse, as detailed on four levels of English-friendly exhibits. A video in the lift between floors plays an interview with a former guard who describes ripping up victims’ last letters to loved ones. An essential visit if you want to understand Hungarian history – which is why this is such a popular if sinister attraction.

This 150-year-old zoo on the fringes of City Park is hard to miss. Its striking art nouveau entrance with elephants flanking the gate and polar bears climbing over the arch is a visit-worthy attraction in itself. Once you’re inside, get ready to immerse yourself in a wonderland that’s home to 500 animal and 4,000 plant species. You could spend a good two or three hours exploring enclosures like the 19th-century greenhouses designed by Gustave Eiffel, currently filled with tropical plants and birds, the butterfly house that flutters with a colourful cast of characters, or the ’Australia area’ where boinging wallabies cause havoc. But the real highlight – both inside and out – is the beautiful, temple-like elephant house. 

This domed basilica is Budapest’s most photographed monument and its tallest building at 97 metres (tied with the Hungarian Parliament). Go inside for the spectacular frescoes and the mummified hand of Hungary’s canonised first king. Make sure you head to the viewing platform for 360-degree views over the city. 

Time Out tip: For a truly magical experience, check out an organ concert. 

Get out of the city centre and escape to the Buda Hills on this nostalgic 45-minute train ride through the forest. Why ‘children’s’? It’s not aimed at kids, necessarily – but run by them. This vintage railway is a remnant of a communist youth programme called ‘The Pioneers’, which encouraged children to develop a work ethic and learn about responsibility. These days, a staff of uniformed children still operate the narrow gauge railway, but sans propaganda. Fortunately, the drivers and engineers are grown-ups.

Time Out tip: A Hungarian lunch in an open-air restaurant is included with tickets purchased through the below link.  

Another Danube-side icon, the Hungarian Parliament dominates the Pest side of the river with its neo-gothic spires, gargoyles and a dome that peaks at 97 metres. Tour the building, see it from a boat or simply look over from Buda. If you take a guided tour, climb the golden staircase, and ogle the crown jewels that once belonged to Hungary’s first king (plus the rooms where the Hungarian government now meet). 

Time Out tip: If you don't feel like going in for a tour, at least pass by at night to see the bulding lit up in all its glory. 

It’s hard to miss this neo-oriental building, topped as it is with two gold-dappled onion-dome turrets. Inside, the synagogue dazzles with its rare rose window, lavish gold leaf detailing and carved wood features. A poignant graveyard marks where some 2,000 Jews were killed during the Holocaust, alongside a weeping willow sculpture that bears the name of the victims on each of its leaves. 

Time Out tip: Europe’s largest synagogue definitely merits a visit, but you can only go in with a guide.

Memento Park may be on the city’s outskirts, but its graveyard-like array of communist statues is well worth the trek. Bronze statues of Lenin and Hungarian political figures from the Communist Party are dotted around the vast park alongside monumental pieces of street propaganda. Don’t miss the barracks next to the main gate where you can watch films from the secret service. And make sure to have a go on the time-travelling telephone booth just inside the entrance.

Time Out tip: Wear comfy shoes – you'll be climbing 40 steps to reach the Waving Balcony of Stalin's Grandstand if you join a guided tour.