Budapest Arts and Culture

Located just opposite the Parliament, this Roman-styled building opened in the 1890s as the home of the Hungarian Supreme Court. The pillars, arches, huge stained glass windows and marble staircases of the Central Hall reek of glitz.

The museum's most interesting and permanent exhibit, “The Folklore of the Hungarian People” chronicles peasant life from the 18th century until World War I with displays of farm tools, intricate embroideries, traditional costumes, carvings and potteries. Texts are in Hungarian and English.

Address: District V, Kossuth tér 12, near Parliament Pest

Tel: +36 1/473-2400

Admission: 1,400HUF(US$6.00)

Open hours: Tues-Sun 10 a.m.-6 p.m

On certain Saturdays at 11am, expect to experience fine chamber music and classical concerts in the music academy's Chamber Hall. Check website for concert calendar. Tickets are 1,300 HUF(about US$5.28)It is possible to pick up an SRO ticket right before the concerts start.

Address: District VI, Liszt Ferenc tér 8, around the corner from Andrássy út.

Tel:+36-1-322-9804

The most grandiose of Budapest’s music venues is the Hungarian State Opera House. A pair of marble sphinx guards the driveway and statues of Franz Liszt and Ferenc Erkel (the father of the Hungarian Opera) stand alongside the entrance. The interior’s grand staircases, wood-paneled corridors, salons, four tiers of boxes and multitude of frescoes are over-the-top opulence. The opera house is not only the venue for opera and ballet, but for many of Budapest’s multitude of festivals.

Address: District VI, Ándrássy út 22

Tel: 36-1-331-2250 for concert information or check the web.

A green and golden tiled dome crowns this fine example of Art Nouveau architecture. Inside, a huge glass skylight casts light on a two-leveled whitewashed interior accented with Moorish arches. The museum hosts large collections of furniture, metalwork, textiles, ceramics and glass including some works of Louis Comfort Tiffany. When it first opened, it was only one of three applied arts museums in the world.

Address:District VII, Üllői út 33-37, Pest. (Underground M3 - Corvin negyed station)

Tel: +36 1/456-5107

Open hours: Tues-Sat 10 a.m-6 p.m.

Admission: 600HUF (about US$2.58)

It doesn’t get better than this. Directed by Iván Fischer, this orchestra has won worldwide critical acclaim. The orchestra performs at the very modern Belá Bartók National Concert Hall in the Palace of Arts. Tickets are available online, at the Liszt Ferenc Academy or at ticket merchants around Budapest.

Tel: +36 1/355-4015

Venue for concerts: District IX, Belá Bartók National Concert Hall in the Palace of Arts, next door to the National Theatre Marcell u. 1

Opened in 2005,this ultra-modern structure is the home to the Budapest Philharmonic and sometimes to the Budapest Festival Orchestra. Opera, dance, jazz and about every other kind of music are performed here as well as applied arts and exhibitions. Its acoustics are amazing.

Address: District IX, Komor Marcell u. 1. (Located next to the National Theater at the foot of the Lágymányosi Bridge, on the Pest side.)

Tel: +36 1/355-3001