Hungarian Parliament Building
Országház
A neo-Gothic giant on the Danube bank and Hungary's largest building. A thousand-year-old Holy Crown is preserved beneath its dome, and at night its lights reflected in the river make it Budapest's top landmark.
The Parliament Building was designed by Imre Steindl and built between 1885 and 1904 to celebrate the millennium of Hungary's founding. Its façade is 268 metres long and 96 metres high (the height symbolizes the year 896, when the nation was founded). It has 365 towers and statues and is the third-largest parliament building in Europe.
Interior visits must follow a guided tour, which takes about 45 minutes. Chinese-language audio guides are available. The route includes the gleaming grand staircase; the sixteen-sided domed hall, where the thousand-year-old Holy Crown of St. Stephen and the sceptre are displayed under guard, with the guard changed every hour on the hour; the former upper house chamber; and the smoking corridor, where the story behind the numbered cigar racks is fun.
Admission for non-EU visitors is about 10,000 forints. Book in advance on the official website, jegymester.hu/parlament, because same-day queues often sell out. Bring your passport to enter, as security checks are strict.
The best spot to photograph the exterior is the Batthyány tér embankment on the opposite bank (Metro M2), especially when the lights come on at dusk. You can also admire it head-on from a Danube night cruise. On the south side of the building is Kossuth Square, which has a memorial to the 1956 Revolution. Walk 5 minutes south along the embankment to the bronze sculpture 'Shoes on the Danube Bank,' which commemorates Jews shot during World War II. It is worth pausing there.
Getting there: exit at Kossuth Lajos tér station on Metro M2. Tram line 2 also runs along the river.
Opening hours
Guided tours 08:00–18:00 (until 16:00 Nov–Mar); partly closed on national holidays and parliamentary sitting days
Nearby sights
- Shoes on the Danube Bank
- Széchenyi Chain Bridge
- Danube River Cruise
- Fisherman's Bastion / Matthias Church
- Buda Castle
- Hungarian State Opera House
- Váci Street & Vörösmarty Square
- Hospital in the Rock Nuclear Bunker Museum