Parks
Budapest has more trees than any other capital city in Central Europe. This is not due to the large number of public parks (although there are 3 major ones) but to the fact that the Buda Hills protrude into the capital of Hungary from the West, providing constant clean air when the wind blows from the North-West, as it often does.
Népliget
This park, named the People's Park, is the biggest one of Budapest, but not your best bet, as it is located to the southeast of the city centre. The 110-hectare park has statues and memorials.
The ‘Centenary' park - established to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the unification of Pest, Buda and Óbuda - is now a part of Népliget.
The Planetarium, which is a laser theatre, is also sited here, along with the E-klub, the biggest youth night club in Budapest.
Margaret Island
Located on a 2,5 km-long central Island on the Danube, the historical Margaret Island is a special landmark of Budapest. It was a wise decision from the city fathers of Budapest to ban all motorized traffic on this island (except for a single bus line and police cars), as it is the primary place of recreation in Budapest.
Complete with an outdoor summer thermal spa, and a professional swimming pool where the Olympic champion water polo team trains tirelessly, the island also features a small wildlife park, the ruins of a 13th century Dominican cloister, a Japanese garden with sunbathing turtles, an 5 km-long professional jogging circle along the sides of the island, several nice restaurants, two luxury thermal hotels and a rose garden.
Cyclists, in winter and summer, appreciate the car-free and oxygen-rich environment too, as well as families with children. When the weather is hot, scores of people lay around the biggest fountain of Budapest, which plays pleasant music every 30 minutes.
The island is bordered by the Margaret Bridge from the south, and by Budapest's longest bridge, the Árpád Bridge from the north.
City Park
Unlike Margaret Island, the City Park behind Heroes' Square is a man-made park, built in the 18th century, and traffic is allowed in the park. There is an ice-skating rink which gets turned into a lake with boats for rent in the summer.
Along Állatkerti körút (Zoo Boulevard), to the left from Heroes' Square, the first building is the Gundel Restaurant, built in 1894 (until 1910, it was called Wampetics Restaurant). Next to the Gundel is the ornate Art Nouveau entrance to the Budapest Zoo, which opened in 1866. The most beautiful building inside the Zoo complex is the Elephant House.
Walking past the Zoo walls, the domes and towers of the Széchenyi Thermal Bath come into view; the bathhouse is one of the largest bath complexes in Europe. Across from the bath is the Municipal Circus, where the first performance was held in 1891 - since then, 125 shows were held, with 15500 performances and over 25 million viewers.
Next to the Circus is the Amusement Park, which in today's form has been operational since the 1950's. The Vajdahunyad Castle, originally built of cardboard and wood for the 1896 World Expo, was rebuilt from stone at the end of the expo.
Buda Hills - Normafa Area
Normafa is part of the Buda Hills area, on the Svábhegy (Schwab Hill), close to János-hegy (Janos Hill), the highest point of the city.
It's known for its panoramic scenery and fresh air. There are a number of excursions we can take from here, but it's best to carry a tourist map or GPS device, as the tourist path signs on the trees are not always in good condition and therefore sometimes not visible.
One can use the Fogaskerekű (Cogwheel Railway) to get there, whose lower station is at the Városmajor, two tram stops from Moszva tér Metro stop. The upper station is on Széchenyi-hegy (Széchenyi Hill), close to the Panorama Hotel.
