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For the Budapest walk listed below you may/will need:
A decent map of the city (see our choice in essentials m2o)
A valid metro, tram or bus ticket for travel to Deák tér. We recommended the Budapest Card.
Sensible walking shoes and a good sense of direction!
Walking Tour One - The Belvarós (Pest), Time: 2 hours, Starting Point: Deák tér
It's with good reason that walk one covers the 'Inner City' area of Pest as this is likely to be the most convenient option for visitors staying in any of the hotels located on or around the Dunakorzó (Danube Promenade). Starting at the busy transport hub of Deák tér, it's also easily accessible by metro, meaning that visitors travelling in from further afield can familiarise themselves with the layout of the Budapest metro (and also the city itself)!
First stop from Deák tér is east towards the Tourinform (Hungarian Tourist Board) office at Sütö u. 4. Here, you'll be able to equip yourself with free maps, brochures and programmes for cultural events. You can either just go in and browse (grabbing brochures as you go) or ask a member of staff for assistance. As the walk also ends at Deák tér you may prefer to pick up just the bare essentials for now, rather than carrying around reams of paper!
Making our way back along Harmincad utca, we pass Erzsébet tér by which stands the most luxurious hotel in the city the Kempinski Corvinus. Crossing Bécsi utca we arrive at the second stop on our trail Vörösmarty tér. Named after the revered Hungarian poet and writer, Mihály Vörösmarty, the square's central location just behind the major hotels on the Pest Embankment marks the traditional end of the city's most famous shopping street Váci utca. The middle of the square is dominated by Ede Telc's marble statue of Vörösmarty and is flanked on the north by the Gerbeaud café. In the opposite direction is the Luxus Department store and Váci utca. The square's charming fountain features four water spitting lions (which are invariably popular with children who try to squirt passers by).
Walking west from the square we travel on to the Vigadó tér, home to the famous concert hall and ballroom of the same name. Designed by Frigyes Feszl in 1859, the Vigadó makes a bold impression along the Pest embankment. Built to replace another concert hall on the same site (which was destroyed by fire in the 1848 War of Independence) Feszl's Vigadó was also badly damaged, this time during World War II. The post-war reconstruction, which took some thirty-six years to complete, remains faithful to his original design and continues to attract leading conductors and performers from around the world.
Moving along to the Danube Embankment, we walk south passed the Budapest Marriott Hotel. This luxurious (and very expensive) five star hotel was designed by József Finta and opened to guests in 1970. Among the famous names to have stayed here are British rock band Queen (in 1986). Playing at one of the larger venues in town (the 80,000 capacity Népstadion) the band naturally chose the hotel's penthouse suites for their short stay.
Continuing south we come across Petőfi tér. On the eastern side of the square lies the Greek Orthodox Church (designed by architect Jószef Jung). Although partially damaged during World War II, this Baroque structure is still very much in use holding twice weekly services in Hungarian. It's also not surprising that in a square named after Hungary's most famous poet (and favourite son) Sándor Petőfi, stands his own statue together with the open-air-section of the Contra Aquincum (Roman fortress) where Constantin the Great is said to have visited.
Next up is the Inner City Parish Church which proudly faces out onto the Danube embankment at the Pest end of the Elizabeth Bridge. Saved from demolition by popular protest at the time of the original bridge's construction (one of the earliest environmental campaigns) it nonetheless falls under the shadow of the newer version of the same bridge. While the church's origins date back to the 12th century, it's easy to spot how the building has been altered and enlarged over the centuries. Indeed, it was almost completely rebuilt twice in the 14th and 18th centuries. The Turks also used it as a mosque while they occupied the city and you can still see today, a carved Muslim prayer niche on the right side of the main altar.
The Elizabeth bridge is an almost complete rebuild of the original built between 1897 and 1903 (which was too badly damaged by the Germans in 1945 to be reconstructed in its original form). Only the old piers were used as bases for the two towers holding the suspension cables. It took four years to build and was opened in 1964. A great favourite with tourists and locals ever since, its modern structure blends in well with Budapest's older sights.
Heading back into Pest along Március 15 tér, we pass beside the famous Mátyás Pince restaurant (now part of the City Pension Mátyás hotel) before reaching the Klotild Palaces on Szabadsajtó út. Built at the same time as the original Elizabeth bridge, the intricate plaster work and window mouldings of the two (almost identical blocks) naturally encourage the eye upwards to the small towers on each side of the buildings. As a gateway for traffic onto the bridge, they are a magnificent sight.
If it's fast approaching lunch-time on your walk, then a couple of nearby recommendations spring to mind. Of the two, Cyrano would be our preferred option, although the Kárpátia Étterem also offers good value meals and service. The latter restaurant also happens to be located near our next port of call - Párizsi udvar.
Although not the bustling place it once was, this elegant shopping arcade (designed by Henrik Schmahl in 1913) is well-worth a visit. The building which was originally commissioned by a savings bank, contains motifs, mosaics and ornaments of every description, with fragile and intricate woodwork forming part of the roof structure. Although criticized at the time for being too garish, it's a far cry from the bleak functionality of today's Budapest malls. A bit dark for photos inside, but certainly a treat from an architectural standpoint. Also nearby is the Herend shop which displays a wonderful selection of the world famous porcelain from the town of the same name.
The return leg of the walk takes us back along Váci utca, Budapest's most elegant shopping area. Although the street extends across Szabadsajtó út, this is the busier end, chock full of bars, restaurants, tourist shops and expensive boutiques. Heading back towards Vörösmarty tér we take a slight detour en-route to view the picturesque 18th-century Serbian Orthodox Church on Szerb utca.
Continuing along Váci utca, it's time for a well earned treat (providing, of course, you haven't already had lunch). There's really only two choices for a cake and a coffee in this part of Pest. The first being the Zsolnay Café situated in the Taverna Hotel, the second the famous Gerbeaud on the northern side of Vörösmarty tér.
While both offer a mouth-watering selection of cakes, the wonderfully lavish setting of the historic Gerbeaud wins hands down. So, if all has gone to plan, you should be sitting at a table tucking into a highly calorific, cream-filled work of art. Well done!
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