Budapest has several attractions that make this city a perfect tourist destination. Three of these attractions are also sites that are listed as UNESCO World Heritage Sites:
- Banks of the Danube
- Buda Castle Quarter
- Andrássy Avenue
All three are cultural heritage sites meaning they represent a “masterpiece of human creative genius”.
1. Panorama of the banks of the Danube
The cityscape of both banks of the Danube consists of architecture masterpieces that represent key periods of the Hungarian history.
Budapest was born in 1873 when the three settlements, Buda, Pest and Óbuda were unified.
The World Heritage site spans from Margaret Bridge to Liberty Bridge. The natural environment shows great variety: forest covered hills, the Danube with the islands, the lowland of Pest.
These are complemented by grandiose works of engineering (bridges, embankments) and beautiful buildings with perfect harmony.
On the Buda side the building complex of Buda Castle Quarter has its medieval structure to date, while on the Pest promenade stands the neo-gothic Parliament, the neo-renaissance Hungarian Academy of Science, the art nouveau mesterpiece of the Gresham Palace, the Pest Vigadó Concert Hall, with its Hungarian romantic architecture and also the Great Market Hall, one of the most beautiful historicist architecture with its Zsolnay tiles.
Four bridges belong to the site: Margaret Bridge, Széchenyi Chain Bridge, Elisabeth Bridge and Liberty Bridge.
2. Buda Castle Quarter
The Castle District – surrounded by the historic castle walls on the hill – is made up by the Royal Palace and a historic civic district.
Matthias Church was the coronation venue of several kings of Hungary, transformed in a Neo-gothic style in the 19th century.
The sight of the quarter – seen from the Danube or Pest side – is partly dominated by the Neo-romanesque Fishermen’s Bastion, built between 1895 and 1902.
The Buda Castle (Royal Palace of Buda) is a cultural centre, it houses the Budapest History Museum, the National Széchenyi Library and the Hungarian National Gallery.
3. Andrássy Avenue
The elegant mansions and villas along its sides display architectural styles from the second half of the 19th century.
The almost 2.5 km-long Andrássy Avenue was built between 1872 and 1885, using the most state-of-the-art engineering solutions of the era. It helped to transform Budapest into a metropolis while became a gallery showcasing the architectural styles:
- art nouveau Paris Grand Magasin
- neo-renaissance Music Academy and Opera House
- the buildings around Kodály Circus are also remarkable
The Millennium Monument at Heroes’s Square is also part of the World Heritage site.
These attractions are all listed among the prestigious group of World Heritages sites for a good reason.
They not only make the city more beautiful but also raise its value as they present a masterpiece of human creative genius.
Make sure to visit all of them while you are here.
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Thank you for this comprehensive list, I will definitely check these out when I visit Budapest this summer! I can’t wait to be there!
It is great to hear, Anna! 🙂