Budapest is the capital city of Hungary. With green filled parks full of charming pleasures, museums that will inspire, and a pulsating nightlife that is on par with its European counterparts, Budapest is one of Europe's most delightful and enjoyable cities. Thanks to the perfect location, inhabitants' hospitality and memorable monuments is it mentioned as "Little Paris of Central Europe" and "Pearl of Danube"

St. Stephen (István) Cathedral (the Basilica). Though often called "the Basilica" for short due to its clerical rank as a basilica minor, it actually is shaped like a Greek cross, with two steeples and a dome on top. Designed by Miklós Ybl and József Hild, and built 1851-1905, it is as high as the Parliament building -- it's the highest church in Budapest. Walking in the main entrance, after climbing a series of stairs, the viewer is first greeted with a relief of St Stephen, then a mosaic of Christ's resurrection. There are many notable mosaics in this church, especially those within the dome designed by Károly Lotz, best known for his ceiling frescoes in the State Opera and Ethnographic Museum. While designed here, the mosaics were made in Venice. The foremost Hungarian artists of the day designed the artworks within St Stephen's, among them Bertalan Székely, Gyula Benczúr and two men also known for their work in the Opera, Mór Than and Alajos Stróbl. Here Stróbl contributed the central statue of St Stephen on the main altar. In the left hand chapel is the "Chapel of the sacred right hand" this is pretty surreal as St Stephen's surviving hand in a glass box, lovely. For a fee, you can also climb to the very top of the Basilica to get a wonderful view of the city.

Great Synagogue and the Jewish Museum, Dohány ut. 2-8. This synagogue is unique both because of its size, and its two onion-shaped domes, which are forty-three meters high. Onion domes are typically found on Catholic churches, and Hungary is a very Catholic country. Perhaps Ludwig Förster, the architect, meant for it to blend in a bit.

Ethnographic Museum (Néprajzi Múzeum), Kossuth Lajos tér 12 (across from Parliament). Sometimes said to resemble the Reichstag (parliament) building in Berlin the white neo-Renaissance façade complements the Gothic-style Parliament building just across the square. Do not miss the richly decorated interior, including the ceiling frescoes by Károly Lotz (who also frescoed the State Opera's ceiling). The building was originally used to house the Supreme Court and chief public prosecutor's office, explaining some of the motifs used in the frescoes.
.

Moving around in Budapest is very easy. The communists left the country with an excellent public transport network. Although most sites and places of interest can be reached on foot from the hostel, those of us who are a bit lazy will find the system quite convenient.

Officially you need to validate a new ticket (320 HUF) every time you board the metro, a tram, a bus etc. However, in practice, tickets are rarely controlled outside the metro. If you do use the Metro - Buy a Ticket (the ticket machines are less than reliable so go to the ticket booth) and Validate It at one of the machines before the escalator ... plus keep the ticket in case you are asked for it on exit

We advise guests to stay out of the metro (there is too much to see without going underground). For Trams and Buses - carry one unvalidated ticket. If you see a ticket controller, just validate it before s-he checks you or claim you just forgot to validate it.

No trip to Budapest would be complete without spending a day on the Buda side. There are a few points of interest for travelers on this side. First up, there is the Castle Hill. As you approach Buda from the Szechenyi bridge, you can either huff and puff your way up the side of the hill, or ride the siklo (funicular) up without breaking a sweat. Either way, you'll be rewarded with some amazing views of the Pest side and a beautiful castle up close.

Next is the Gellert Hill and Citadel. You can either walk across the Elizabeth bridge and the stairs to climb the hill will be directly in front of you. Alternatively, you can approach the Buda side from the Liberty bridge and check out Szent Gellert ter and the Gellert Hotel/thermal baths. From here, a 10 minute stroll along the Danube takes you to the stairs that lead to the top. Once you are at the top, again you'll be rewarded with amazing views of Pest plus an up close and personal with the lady Liberty statue.

When the sun goes down, some of Budapest's hottest nightlife can be found on the Buda side. In the south, two massive open air clubs are situated right on the water. The young and lively gather at Zold Pardon, while the more sophisticated show off their stuff at Rio. Near both clubs is A38, an ex Ukrainian navy ship turned into a nightclub.

    *  Parliament (Országház), Kossuth Lajos tér. The Hungarian National Parliament building is the largest in Europe, designed by architect Imre Steindl for the 1896 millennial celebrations, and built 1880-1902. It is based on England's Parliament building, and supposedly is one meter wider and longer than that august building, just a little bit of architectural conceit. The building is so immense, the weak alluvial soil along the Danube had to be reinforced with a 7-foot-deep concrete foundation. Not surprising, as the building is 300 yards long and 140 yards wide, with 691 rooms and 12.5 miles of corridors. The lacy white Gothic froth covering the building is actually educational: 88 statues representing Hungarian rulers, princes and military commanders. These statues are small and cannot be readily distinguished from the ground, but they are there. 

Parliament Under the Parliament's cupola the Hungarian crown jewels are exhibited. After World War II, the medieval crown (last used in 1916) was taken out of the country by escaping Hungarian fascists, ending up in the United States. President Carter returned the crown to the Hungarian state in 1978, accompanied by a large American delegation. It was exhibited in the National Museum until 2000 when it was moved to its present location. The only way inside the building is with an organized tour. The tour lasts ~30 minutes and is free if you are an EU citizen, so bring your passport to prove it. Tours only run on specific times during the day, and you have to get your ticket in advance for a timed slot, you have to use the ticket the day you get it. Tickets are sold out by about 11AM, so arrive early at 8AM when the ticket office opens. Getting to the ticket office is bizarrely confusing and time consuming. Queue up by the security fence where you see the "buy ticket" sign, this is by the front of the Parliament at gate X (the opposite side to the river). There will be no sign of a ticket office or anyone selling tickets. It will seem like you are queueing up in front of a fence. Do not panic - this is OK. There may be people in a separate queue, these may be Hungarians who can visit more frequently, or indeed tourists in the wrong queue - you won't be told where to go or what to do, so it is common for people to wander about. The security guard will open the security fence (there is no gate) and you should walk towards the doorway with an X above it, inside is the cash office and you can get your ticket here. Be warned, there are no signs or explanations anywhere of what to do. They only let 2 people at a time in the cash office, and it can take 2-3 minutes per person to get a ticket. Come back at the specified time on your ticket and join the "with tickets" queue to the right, where, again, you will be left with no one to greet you or explain what's going on, until 1 minute before your tour time, when a guide will appear (not in a uniform)and you can go through the fence and get security screened before starting. The tourist information gives tour times for the various languages (e.g. English is 10AM, 12PM and 2PM), your ticket may have a different time on it, like 10.15AM, this is because there is more than 1 tour around the times listed, so you will not join the 10AM tour, but the 10.15 tour. The end result of this system is that at first glance, there are people standing in a very slow moving queue, with occasional tourists wandering into an unmarked door in the corner of the building. Suddenly, a large group of people will appear and jump the queue and wander through the security fence (this is a timed tour starting), the guards are not tour advisors and will not tell you if they are sold out of tickets, or if a tour is starting, or that you are in the wrong queue. Parliament is in session Monday and Tuesday, but tours still operate. For the time of your language tour get the slip of paper from a tourist information office. Non EU Admission: 800 ft adults, 300 ft children

The #1 thing no one should miss when visiting Budapest is a trip to the thermal baths. And there is NO excuse to miss this experience because Budapest has tons of them. From the posh Gellert baths, to the touristy Szechenyi, or the Hungarian Lukacs, you will find a bath to suit your tastes.

By far the most popular bath for visitors to Budapest is the Szechenyi bath, located in the City Park. This bath has three pools. First up is a fun pool complete with currents, jets and bubbles. The second bath is an Olympic sized swimming pool. The third pool is a giant hot tub. A great place to soak after a long day of sightseeing.

If you fancy a dip in the baths after midnight, Rudas baths are open every Friday and Saturday from 10pm to 4am. During the low season, Rudas puts on a party in the baths called Cinetrip. Its like a wild combo Circ de Soleil and laser show.