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Budapest’s Top 10<br />
42<br />
Left The Chain Bridge Centre Cruise boat Right Sculpture by Adolphe Thabart, Margaret Bridge<br />
Danube Sights<br />
Chain Bridge<br />
Completed in 1848, the Chain<br />
Bridge (Széchenyi Lánchíd) was<br />
the first permanent crossing<br />
between Buda and Pest. On<br />
either side of the Bridge are two<br />
huge towers that support the<br />
mammoth chains from which the<br />
bridge takes its name. The<br />
towers are superbly lit at<br />
night, which makes the<br />
bridge one of the city’s<br />
most photographed sights.<br />
In summer, the bridge<br />
closes at weekends to<br />
host a cultural festival<br />
(see p49). d Map J3<br />
River Cruises<br />
A number of companies run<br />
tours along the Danube during<br />
the summer, beginning from<br />
Vigadó tér. Mahart Passnave run<br />
evening cruises – including<br />
drinks and dinner – every day<br />
from May to September. There<br />
are also daily hydrofoil services<br />
to Bratislava and Vienna from<br />
April to November. d Mahart<br />
Passnave: Map K4; V, Vigadó tér; 318 12<br />
23; www.mahartpassnave.hu<br />
Elizabeth Bridge<br />
The longest suspension<br />
bridge in the world<br />
when completed in 1903,<br />
Elizabeth Bridge (Erzsébet<br />
híd) had to be completely<br />
rebuilt after World War II,<br />
and did not reopen until<br />
1963. Great care had to be<br />
taken on the Pest side to<br />
ensure that the Inner City<br />
Crown on Elizabeth<br />
Bridge<br />
Parish Church (see p83) was not<br />
damaged during rebuilding;<br />
indeed at one stage the church’s<br />
continued existence was threatened,<br />
with the builders and the<br />
Communist authorities wanting<br />
to demolish it. A compromise<br />
was reached however, and today<br />
the roadway passes just<br />
inches from the church’s<br />
walls. d Map K5<br />
Hungarian<br />
Parliament<br />
The city’s number one<br />
sight looks better from the<br />
water or from the opposite<br />
bank of the Danube than from<br />
anywhere else. On summer mornings,<br />
the splendour of its startling<br />
design – based on London’s<br />
riverside Parliament building – is<br />
only enhanced by the river’s<br />
soothing effect (see pp8–11).<br />
Margaret Island<br />
Budapest’s oasis and a great<br />
place to spend summer afternoons,<br />
Margaret Island was in<br />
fact three separate islands until<br />
View of the Parliament from across the Danube<br />
For more information on river boat cruises see p104.
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