By Air

Budapest’s Ferihegy International Airport is situated 10 miles southeast of the city centre. It has two terminals: Terminal 1 handles budget carriers and Terminal 2 is divided into two sections, with 2A handling departures and arrivals for Malév (the national carrier) and 2B hosting the flights of all other international carriers.

By Rail

More than 50 trains each day provide direct links between Budapest and more than 25 other European capital cities. Train links with Vienna run every 3 hours and there is also a network of InterCity trains connecting Budapest with the main Hungarian centres.

International trains operate from the city’s three main stations: Keleti Pályaudvar, at VIII, Baross tér; Nyugati Pályaudvar, located at VI, Nyugati tér; and Déli Pályaudvar, at I, Krisztina krt. These railway stations also have Metro stations. The Déli and Keleti stations are on the red (number 2) line and the Nyugati is on the blue (number 3) line.

By Bus

International bus services arrive at and depart from Népliget Coach Station, which is also the domestic terminus for a number of routes. There are also domestic terminus’ located at Árpád híd, Stadionok in Pest and at Etele tér, in Buda.

Castle Hill, Roman ruins of Aquincum, Matthias Church, Trinity Square, Margaret Island, Hungarian National Museum

Castle Hill

The Castle district, including Castle Hill, are UNESCO World Heritage sites. Within the district are three churches, six museums and an array of other historic buildings and squares. The former Royal Palace is here and now houses two museums and the national library. The offices and official residence of Hungary’s president are in the nearby Sándor Palace. You’ll also find the Matthias Church in this area, considered to be one of the jewels of the city, and there is a lookout point at the back of the church, offering a panoramic view of the entire area.

Roman ruins of Aquincum

Several Roman ruins have been opened in Óbuda since excavations began in 1778, when the ruins of a major Roman bath were discovered by accident. Ruins that have been opened include: those of Aquincum Town; Hercules Villa; a Christian tomb-chapel; the impressive ruins of the amphitheatre; and the governor’s palace. There is a museum here also worth visiting, which houses murals and mosaic floors, and a reconstructed water organ and diorama showing the lifestyle of the Roman nobility.

Matthias Church

The Church of Our Lady in Buda is one of the principal sights of the Hungarian capital. It is the successor to a church built in the time of King Béla IV between 1255 and 1269, which was rebuilt on several occasions. Its side aisles were extended and given polygonal ends in the 14th C; the magnificent south doorway with its relief in the tympanum depicting the "Death of Mary" also dates from that period. In 1309 Charles Robert of Anjou was crowned King Charles I of Hungary in this church. Under King Matthias, after whom the church is named, side-chapels were added, together with an oratory for the royal family and a new south tower, which bears the arms of Matthias Corvinus, dated 1470 (the original arms are now to be found inside the church). In 1526 the building was destroyed by fire and fifteen years later was converted into a mosque. When the Turks were driven out by the Austrians the Jesuits made themselves responsible for the Church of our Lady and renovated it in Baroque style. In 1867 Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria and his consort Elisabeth ("Sissi") were crowned rulers of Hungary here; Franz Liszt composed the famous coronation mass.

Trinity Square

The central square in the Castle Quarter is Szentháromság tér (Trinity Square), with a large Baroque plague column designed by Barbier and Ungleich (1714). A number of particularly noteworthy buildings are grouped around the square.

Margaret Island

Margaret Island (Margit-sziget), barely 2.5km (1 1/2mi.) long and up to 0.5km (1650ft) long, is undoubtedly the main local recreation and recuperative center for the people of Budapest. Thermal springs, feeding the medicinal and swimming baths, space for sports and games, carefully tended gardens and paths, and not least the remains of buildings which play a significant part in the history of the town all serve to attract many visitors every day.

The island gets its name from the canonized Princess Margit (1252-71), daughter of the Hungarian King Béla IV; as the result of a vow made by her father she became a nun in the Dominican convent on the island

Hungarian National Museum

The name of the Széchenyi family is one that occurs again and again in the history of Budapest in the 19th C, and it was Count Ferenc Széchenyi who founded the National Museum in 1802. However, it was 1847 before the building, designed by M. Pollack, was finally completed. Its major exhibits include the Royal Regalia.

The museum is housed in a large classical building surrounding two courtyards. The massive portico is very impressive. In front of the museum stands a monument to the famous Hungarian poet János Arany (1817--82), which was created by A. Stróbl in 1893.

In the park-like museum garden can be seen other busts and monuments of famous people

The exhibits on the ground floor cover Hungary's pre- and early history from the Old Stone Age through Roman times to the early Middle Ages. Notable among the items displayed in the Department of Pre- and Early History are finds from Vértesszolos and Sümeg. The outstanding item of the Bronze Age collection is the Pécel cart. Among the Roman finds note the various grave-reliefs and, above all, the 3rd C B.C. floor mosaic which was found in Baláca near Veszprém and is on display in the Round Hall. Visitors can also admire some valuable items from the time of the migration of the peoples, including jewelry belonging to the Huns, as well as a Carolingian sword and utensils used by Slav tribes.

May - October

July - August -> 27(°C) - Summer
January - February -> 0(°C) - Spring

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