Pest, on the left bank of the Danube, also has many historic districts, resorts and famous sights. There are nine bridges spanning the Danube, the oldest being the Széchenyi Chain Bridge built in 1849.

The Downtown Parish Church on Március 15. tér was the city's first church. Examples of all architectural styles, ranging from Romanesque to Classicist, blend into the interior of the church.

At 2 Dohány utca Europe's largest synagogue is found, serving also as a concert hall of excellent acoustics. The Jewish Museum in the courtyard of the synagogue is a centre for Jewish studies.

The Hungarian National Museum is the finest example of Hungarian Classicist architecture. In existence since 1846, it is the most significant public collection in Hungary, tracing the history of the Hungarian people from prehistoric times to the present day.

The Vásárcsarnok (Grand Market Hall) is striking in its architectural inventiveness.

The finest examples of Art Nouveau architecture in Hungary include the Museum of Applied Arts its wide selection of permanent and temporary exhibitions, the houses on Szervita tér (Pest town centre) and the building of the former Postal Savings Bank.

The Parliament is the largest and the most lavishly decorated building in the country. Built between 1885 and 1902 by Imre Steindl, this exquisite edifice is 96-m high and 118-m wide, and has 10 courtyards, 29 staircases and 27 gates. Europe's first area heating system was put in service in this building. Seat of the Hungarian Parliament and government offices, it provides a place of safety for the Holy Crown and the royal insignia. It is accessible only by guided tours in groups.

The neo-Renaissance St. Stephen's Basilica, elevated to the rank of basilica minor, is the largest church in Budapest, and the second largest in Hungary. The right hand of St. Stephen, Hungary's first king (970?-1038), preserved intact for over 1,000 years, is the relic of the Chapel of the Holy Right. The tower balcony of the basilica offers a splendid uninterrupted panorama of the whole of the city.
It is worth taking a walk along the straight Andrássy út, a boulevard that is now a World Heritage site. It is lined with 19th- and 20th-century Eclectic-style palaces. The State Opera House, with its frescoed interior, seating an audience of 1,200, is a splendid work of by Miklós Ybl, Hungary's most famous architect, and has been the centre of musical life in Hungary since 1864.

Margaret Island

Lying in the centre of Budapest and the River Danube and closed to automobile traffic, the island can easily be accessed on foot from both banks of the river or by bus. A broad 2-km long green expanse of land stretching between Margaret Bridge and Árpád Bridge, the Margaret Island is Budapest's most treasured and beloved park. Closed to automobile traffic, it is a scenic island of peace and quiet with some trees that are hundreds of years old, the colourful tapestry of a rose garden, a thermal spring in an evocative Japanese-style garden and a waterfall. The little zoo is popular with children while the Hajós Alfréd Swimming Pool hosts international sporting events. For the ultimate summer pleasure there is the Palatinus Swimming Pool. Musicals are staged in the open-air theatre at the water tower. The ruins of a 700-year-old Dominican and a Franciscan church and monastery are the island's historical monuments. In the belfry of the Premonstratensian chapel, the oldest bell in the country can still be heard.