Three more sights of Budapest

As promised, in the previous article, it is time to list three more sights of Budapest, which anyone can visit at any time, 365 days a year. With our hop on hop off buses you can easily get from one place to another, sightseeing is so much fun with us. Let's explore Budapest together!

You can always count on us wherever you roam in the city, you can hop on and hop off on our routes and pay for a forever experience.

It is worth exploring the Hungarian capital, and we are not only talking about the sights in Buda, but also the hidden treasures on the other side of the Danube, many of which are not as hidden as you might think.

In this article we will be adventuring in Pest, we will look around Andrássy avenue, around the Basilica and around the Parliament.

ST. STEPHEN BASILICA

Around the main dome of the Basilica, there is a stone-fenced terrace at a height of 65 meters. The highest lookout point in Pest, with a unique 360 ​​° panoramic view of the entire city. It is also accessible by stairs and a lift. The Knight's Hall between the two elevator levels is a venue for temporary exhibitions, conferences and performances.

You can find amazing shops, restaurants, bars and many more around the building. It is worth a try to taste the famous Hungarian dishes, while you are in downtown Budapest.

ANDRÁSSY AVENUE 

Andrássy Avenue is a 2,310-metre boulevard lined with buildings in varied architecture, constantly widening from the city center towards the City Park.

The area was long occupied by small cottages and gardens, but in the second half of the 19th century, Prime Minister Count Gyula Andrássy decided to have a new boulevard built here. After the 1848-1849 revolution, the statesman fled to Paris, where he was dubbed “le beau pendu” (the handsome hanged man) by the ladies. He received amnesty upon his return to Hungary and continued his important political career.

Where did he get the inspiration from?

He brought new ideas and examples, primarily from Paris, but all the architects were either Hungarian or based in Hungary. Over a few years, out of virtually nothing, an opulent boulevard was built, becoming the symbol of the country’s strength and also of the era known as the “happy peacetime”.

How did it look before?

Originally, the surface of the street was paved with wooden cubes and was shared by carriages, pedestrians and riders on horseback. It was bordered with elegant shops, glamorous palaces and ornamental gardens, which is still the case today. The most important building on the avenue is the State Opera House, designed by Miklós Ybl, but we can also find the secessionist-style Párizsi Nagy Áruház, the House of Terror museum, the Hungarian University of Fine Arts, the Ferenc Liszt Memorial Museum, and the Ferenc Hopp Museum of Asiatic Arts. The boulevard can be divided into three parts, delimited by the eight-sided Oktogon, and by the circular Kodály körönd. Under this street, stretching over nearly 2,300 metres, lies Europe’s second-oldest underground railway, the elegant stations of which are frequented by locals and international visitors alike. Andrássy Avenue is a UNESCO World Heritage site.

PARLIAMENT

The Hungarian Parliament, richly decorated both inside and out, was inspired by the Houses of Parliament in London, thus it was designed in Neo-Gothic style, although it also bears Renaissance and Baroque stylistic flourishes.

The third largest parliament in the world, it was built on the 1000th anniversary of the foundation of the state of Hungary. During the 45—50 minute tour of Parliament, visitors are shown the session chamber of the Upper House, the lounge of the Upper House, Dome Hall – including the Hungarian royal crown and coronation regalia – as well as the ornamented staircase covered with red carpet.

Tourists and locals alike marvel at the monumental jewel on the banks of the Danube.

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