Summer’s here, so it’s busy season for travelers and tourists in Budapest. So, here’s a list of the best sights to see during your time in this amazing city.

Buda Castle

Buda Castle is a sprawling fortress on the Buda side of the city, that was home to the kings of Hungary. You can explore the sprawling palace grounds, get great views of the city, and take in the incredible architecture that this castle flaunts. You don’t want to miss this one.

Hospital in the Rock Nuclear Bunker Museum

Deep under Buda Castle, built into the hill that the castle sits on, is a former nuclear bunker from World War II and the Cold War. The vast tunnel network included hospitals, communications stations, barracks, boiler rooms, and more. Now, they’ve constructed scenes in the tunnels with mannequins to show what life was like in the bunker, and they give fantastic tours of the grounds. It’s incredible how far the tunnels stretch, and you have to see it to believe it. The tour guides do a great job of keeping the tour interesting and telling the crazy stories that happened in the bunker. Highly recommend!

P.S. – bring a jacket, it gets pretty cold in there.

Hungarian House of Parliament

Hungary’s parliament building is one of the coolest parliament buildings I’ve seen on my travels. Its gothic style as well as its massive scale make the building an incredible sight, so you’re missing out big time if you don’t stop here and have a look. The old-fashioned cable cars that travel around the grounds were also super cool to me, and the whole area is just a sight to behold.

Matthias Church

Just down the street from the Buda Castle is a breathtaking medieval gothic church, Matthias Church (or the Church of the Assumption of the Buda Castle). It is a beautiful Catholic church with a very rich history, and it’s also a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The church grounds are literally spotless, and I highly recommend wandering around the area and taking in the architecture style.

Walk Along the Danube River

Since most of the aforementioned attractions rest on or not far from the Danube River, I highly recommend going for a stroll along the riverbank. You’ll see Buda Castle on one side, the Hungarian Parliament building on the other, and it’s tough to not fall in love with Budapest at that moment.

I believe they also do a lot of boat tours and parties on the Danube, so watch out for those if you’re interested.

Watch the Sunset from Gellért Hill

Gellért Hill is within walking distance of Buda Castle, and it’s a tall hill that offers incredible views of Budapest and most of the attractions listed. I highly recommend coming here to watch the sunset over the hills outside Budapest and take in the view as the lights of Budapest come to life as the night arrives.

There is also a massive statue that you might see as soon as you lay eyes on Gellért Hill, and that’s Liberty Statue. Unfortunately, it was closed for construction when I was in Budapest, but even under the scaffolding it looked like a very cool sight to see.

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I hope you enjoy your time in Budapest! Let me know in the comments if there’s any spots I missed, or any places you recommend!

Happy travels!