In the early 20th century fuel and lighting gas used in Hungary was manufactured from coal and because of the increasing consumption there was a need for modern, high capacity gas plants. The location of the gas plants was crucial, as they needed road, rail and waterway connection. The Óbuda Gas Works was inaugurated in 1914, it was the most advanced gas factory of the country producing 250 thousand cubic meters of gas every day. In the 1970’s natural gas became more accessible and cheaper and Budapest switched to natural gas. The Óbuda gas works was decommissioned in 1984.

The factory with its great colours and shapes might remind you of an abandoned castle with its four towers, they originally housed the turbines, control rooms and water towers.

What I personally love about the place is that because of the generosity of the original owners of the factory, residential buildings had also been built for the employees, so that they could live close to their workplace. Two locations were created, a villa neighbourhood for managers and a more simple housing estate for the workers. Walking around the early 20th century buildings is like a real time travel.

A short video shot in the building showing its decoy before it was finally restored a few years ago.

The Budapest home of Liszt is surprisingly modest with only two rooms, one of them serving as bedroom and study at the same time but it’s nevertheless full of treasures. The Budapest home of the one and only Hungarian composer universally renowned as one of the greatests of the 19th century was on the elegant Andrássy avenue.

His home is a museum now and it’s a remarkably valuable collection of objects: personal items and amazing instruments of music. My favourite piece is a music composing desk with a built-in three-octave piano keyboard, specially designed for Liszt in the 1870’s. I also love the ornate music stand that Liszt received as a gift in 1858 and thanked it by saying: “I wish to produce soon some works worthy of being offered as an homage to the three patrons of music: Beethoven, Weber and Schubert” – whose busts decorate the wonderful piece.

Although Liszt only welcomed visitors in his home on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday afternoons, the museum is open to visitors every day except Sundays.

Vác is a cute little town on the left bank of the Danube, it’s some 25 minutes drive from Budapest. The visit of Vác can be included in a customised Danube Bend day trip. It’s such a beautiful Baroque jewellery box, I strongly recommend a short visit. We had been fortunate to tour Vác with my travellers before the borders of Hungary got closed again on the 1st of September.

The mummified remains of 265 people were found in 1994 in the crypt of the Dominican church, they had been laid to rest in hand painted, wooden coffins in the 18th and 19th centuries. The bodies didn’t decompose but were mummified naturally because of the favourable air conditions and dry settings.

The findings were extraordinary and not only because it’s a veritable gold mine for ethnographers about 18th century Hungarian everyday life and funeral traditions. It’s also a fantastic source for medical researches, a large number of tests have been performed by scientists on the mummified remains related to tuberculosis, HIV researches and they could also confirm C section had been performed as early as in the 18th century in Hungary.

The coffins are simply beautiful, all colourful, all hand-painted, all prepared with a lot of care, it’s very much like the fascinating celebration of life and death in a small Vác museum.

I’m a huge admirer of the Hungarian Art Nouveau movement and I’m more than proud to show travellers around the magnificent Budapest Art Nouveau buildings. For me, the home of György Ráth, first director of the Budapest Museum of Applied Arts is a veritable jewellery box, both the building and the artworks and furnitures on display are unique.

The villa was originally Ráth’s family home and was furnished with pieces of his private collection, today it houses the permanent exhibition “Art Nouveau – a Hungarian Perspective”. Every room is different, the furnitures and pieces of art were selected and put on display with such a unique care and taste, it’s like visiting an elderly family member where every single item is authentic and they all tell you a different story.

When you visit the museum, don’t forget to take a walk along Városligeti fasor, where you can admire fascinating Art Nouveau villa buildings.

I’m starting a new series to introduce you the most famous statues of Budapest and some of the hidden gems, too. These are the beautiful monuments of Budapest we usually see on our walking or driving tours in Buda and Pest.

The Matthias fountain is at the Royal Palace of the Buda Castle district. It shows our great Renaissance king Matthias on a hunt. It also tells a love story about the king who was a true friend of ladies, join my Buda Castle walk to learn more!

… and it breaks my heart. I realise it’s a very delicate situation and every country’s government is responsible for the measures they’re taking. But I’ve also seen how differently other governments are dealing with the pandemic and only few of them decided to say no to tourists, brave and enthusiastic travellers who, despite of the spreading of the virus were still considering visiting my Beautiful Budapest.

This is all over for now, indefinitely, for 1 or 2 months, we don’t know. I’ll of course continue delivering Virtual Tours for the time being but I’ll miss terribly the real tours, the real adventures and the real people I’ve had the chance to work with these last couple of months.

You’ll find below a gallery of stunning pictures taken by one of my travellers, Jessica with whom I’ve had the chance to explore Buda, Pest and the cute little town of Vác last week.

With over 100.000 Hungarian and international artworks from as early as the ancient times to the 18th century, the Fine Art Museum is probably the largest and the most comprehensive art museum of Budapest.

The building of Classical Revival style is from 1906, from the outside it might remind you of a Greek temple, actually, the tympanum on the main facade is the exact replica of that of a Zeus temple in Olympia, Greece. The interior is just as magnificent as the artworks on display, the museum was closed for renovation works for almost 4 years and both the interior and the outside regained their original splendour. My personal favourite halls are the Romanesque and the Renaissance Halls, wondering around the building is like a real time travel for visitors.

The collection of the museum has six departments: Egyptian Antiquities, Classical Antiquities, Old Master Paintings, Sculptures, Prints and Drawings, Old Hungarian Collection. For more information on the museum and opening hours, you can visit the museum’s official website.

We were lucky enough to visit the Tokaj wine region last week, this is one of my favourite tours. We were able to sample some truly amazing wine in Tokaj and Mád, visited the fairytale castle of Boldogkő, saw a beautiful rainbow over the vineyards and had also the chance to see the Mád synagogue.

This was a tour to remember, I hope I can show more and more travellers this beautiful part of Hungary.

I’ve decided to share this blogpost originally from 2016 because my experience is that the Buda Castle District of Budapest is the most popular choice for the virtual tours. Most of the attractions below are to be seen during the tour and I’m happy to discuss the special architecture, culture and traditions of this beautiful neighbourhood. Feel free to contact me for further details on live or virtual tours!

The Buda Castle district is the oldest part of Buda, many of the buildings are originally from the Middle Ages. Buda became the capital of Hungary by the middle of the 13th century, the castle and the medieval town were constructed in the top of the Castle hill.

I don’t want to disappoint you but The Castle district is not a real castle. The Hungarian Medieval castle, residence of many of our great kings, constructed in Gothic and Renaissance architectures was destroyed in the 17th century. Only some parts of it are accessible in the Budapest History Museum, unfortunately the rest of the castle rest in the ground now.

You can walk up the hill along the ramparts of the Medieval Castle to get to the 18th century Baroque Palace which houses the Budapest History Museum and the National Gallery. The cobblestoned streets of the historical old town of Buda lead you to the Matthias Church, one of the oldest churches of the city originating from the 13th century. If you have some time, you really need to climb the 197 stairs to the church tower from where you can have the best view over our beautiful city.

From the top of the Fisherman’s Bastion you can enjoy the panorama over the Parliament building and the Pest side.

Continue your walk in the civilian town, admire the unique architecture of the National Archives and wonder around the old Jewish quarter. Probably the most interesting fact about the distric is that there is a 12 km long underground cave and cellar complex underneath the Castle District. There are 2 museums where you can discover this unique labyrinth. The Hospital in the Rock was a military hospital during WW2 and a nuclear bunker during the Communist era. The Labyrinth museum is all about scary fun and you might also meet Dracula, the infamous vampire count.

I’d be glad to show you the famous attractions and the hidden treasures of the neighborhood, too, book the Buda Castle walk!

I’m starting a new series to introduce you the most famous statues of Budapest and some of the hidden gems, too. These are the beautiful monuments of Budapest we usually see on our walking or driving tours in Buda and Pest.

The Turul bird is one of the national symbols of Hungary, as it was a Hungarian falcon that had led our ancestors to the actual territories of Hungary in 896. The statue is at the upper station of the Buda Castle funicular.