Buda Castle Walking Tour: A Kingdom of Many Nations
Description
Embark on a 3-hour, small group tour of Castle Hill, the oldest part of Budapest. In the company of a historian, explore Buda’s Castle and the surrounding district of narrow and cobbled streets full of baroque and Gothic facades of historic villas and churches as well as the remains of a synagogue from the middle ages.
Tour Options
Itinerary
Two buildings stand out on Castle Hill, the oldest part of Budapest, known for its narrow and cobbled streets and its baroque and Gothic facades: the massive and imposing palace on the southern tip of the hill and the colored roof of Matthias Church in the middle, with its rank steeple pointing towards the heavens.
We start our tour at the palace, the ancient seat of royal power. It was rebuilt, extended, changed, burned down and rebuilt again several times over and it got its current eclectic appearances only after World War II. The first to build on Castle Hill was King Béla IV. He erected a fortress on this spot around 1250 after a devastating invasion by Mongolian hordes. In the Renaissance period, King Matthias made it into the most famous court in Europe at the end of the 15th century. Then came the Turkish pashas who ruled the country for over 150 years, followed by a succession of Hapsburg emperors.
Discuss the changing function of the building throughout its history.
The Sándor Palace is the official residence of the President of Hungary, and the seat of the Office of the President. It has served as both since 2003. The original palace was build in Neoclassical style in 1806. It was commissioned by Count Vincent Sándor, an aristocrat and a philosopher of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
A highlight of the tour is Matthias Church with its abundantly decorated roof and amazing interior. The church is a very finely executed Neogothic reconstruction fantasy from the end of the 19th century and it is a strikingly beautiful building.
Fisherman's Bastion is an architectural fantasy in neo-Gothic and neo-Romanesque styles designed and built between 1895 and 1902. Its seven towers represent the seven Magyar tribes that settled in the Carpathian Basin at the end of the 9th c. The terrace provides one of the most famous panoramic views of the Danube, Margaret Island, Pest and the Gellért Hill.
Our tour ends at the Vienna Gate, from where you can see all the way to Obuda (Old Buda), where the Romans founded the city then called Aquincum.
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Not recommended for travelers with spinal injuries
- Not recommended for pregnant travelers
- Not recommended for travelers with poor cardiovascular health
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- A maximum of 6 people per booking
Reviews(33)
Last Saturday we did this tour. Led by our guide Eszter. We were the only ones on this tour, so it was a private tour. This allowed Eszter to give all the attention to our questions. Eszter knows a lot about the history and that gave us a good idea of the area and the city. Also nice that we witnessed a historic moment together with her (the road past the residence of the president that had been reopened after 16 years). I can recommend this tour to everyone if you want to know more about Budapest.
Hartelijk dank voor de fantastische recensie. We zijn erg blij dat u van uw reis heeft genoten. We hopen u te mogen verwelkomen op een andere Insight Cities-reis in Praag, Berlijn, Boedapest, Wenen of Salzburg. Goede reis!
Well worth it. Our guide Peter was very knowledgeable There were only four in our tour group he was able to adapt tour to our interest.
Thank you so much for the great feedback. We'll definitely pass that on to your guide. Safe travels.
Absolutely terrific. Judith was above wonderful . Friendly, knowledgeable and even helped us figure out the public transportation system. She went above and beyond. Thank you Viacom Tor sending her to us.
Thanks for the warm feedback. That makes our day. And thanks for recommending Insight Cities tour to your friends traveling to Prague, Berlin, Vienna, Budapest and Salzburg. Safe travels!
Gergely (Gregory), our Buda Castle tour guide was fantastic! He was incredibly knowledgeable about the castle, the history of Budapest and his home country, Hungary, as well as about the world and life in general. He was thoughtful about making the tour fit our needs and interests. My wife and I would highly recommend this tour and especially Gregory.
Thank you for taking the time to review. We're proud to work with such terrific guides. Hope to see you again on Insight Cities tours in Berlin, Prague, Vienna, and Salzburg. Please tell your friends!
Absolutely loved this tour with our tour guide, Kata! She did an amazing job showing us many interesting aspects of the Buda Castle district. This was by far one of the best tours that we took in Budapest! We got great value for our money. Greatly recommend this tour and especially Kata as the tour guide!
Thank you for taking the time to review. We're proud to work with such terrific guides. Hope to see you again on Insight Cities tours in Berlin, Prague, Vienna, and Salzburg. Please tell your friends!
Super disappointed with this tour. Really didn't learn much at all, and didn't seem like our tour guide, Valeria was very passionate for what she was doing. She would point to things and more/less say you can go visit these places later. We could hardly hear what she was saying and that's standing close to her. She used a little speaker thing that hung around her neck, but again really couldn't hear. Seems like she also always stopped at places that were noisy to talk (ie, a band playing loudly in the background, church bells going off. Would have been better if she stood elsewhere to deliver what ever she had to say). I felt it was a total waste of our time, and I have been on free walking tours before that have been wonderful. PS. the 2nd sentence out of her mouth when we met her is how we should tip, that was a turn off to address right out of the shoot.
While we're sorry to read of your bad experience, we need to inform you that did not tour with our company. You mention in your review that you took a free walking tour. Our tours are not free but prepaid. We don't have any guide named Valeria on our team and none of our guides would ever ask for tips! You have left a review for the wrong company. We only wish that you had booked with us since we are proud of the consistent, excellent, deeply insightly and knowledgeable tours we offer. Best -- Insight Cities Team
We had a great experience on our walking tour of Buda with Kata. She was full of historical information and blended what we were seeing on our walk with the history of the area. Additionally we visited many sites (e.g. art exhibit, hidden memorials) which we never would have found on our own. Highly recommend.
We're so glad you had a wonderful tour with Kata! She is truly a fantastic guide. Thanks for your review!
We had a great walking tour around the Buda Castle district. Our tour guide was knowledgeable and was actually from the Buda district. We were even shown his Grandmother's house and learned the story behind the scene. Very friendly and informative tour. I'd highly recommend it.
Thanks very much! We hope to see you on another Insight Cities tour in the future!
This was such an amazing tour. Kata was the most educational guide we have had in a long time. We really felt like we absorbed the culture and we learned so much. It truly was a great experience and made our vacation so much better.
Thank you so much. We're glad Kata was able to make your time in Budapest so memorable. Safe travels! Insight Cities
Áron Mozes is my go-to Budapest tour guide because of his knack for engaging my overseas visitors and also myself, a resident ex-pat, in the ongoing transformation of his fascinating country from ancient times to the present. This tour of the Buda Castle district focused on the historically important defensive role of this hill on the Buda side of the Danube and revealed the backstories of the most prominent features and of hidden corners as well. This was a very authentic, interactive experience—highly recommended!
