The City Park of Budapest is one of the largest green spots of the city, rivaling with Margaret Island both in size and tourist appeal. Both of these places feature their own specificity, but, all in all, they contribute to the image of green city Budapest has rightfully gained in time, since the capital of Hungary is, indeed, one of the greenest capitals in Europe.
The City Park (Varosliget in Hungarian) fills a surface of more than one square kilometer, and the impressive plethora of attractions is able to keep tourists busy both in terms of sightseeing and leisure activities. Indeed, just like the Buda Castle District, Varosliget bristles with top things to see and pleasant things to do.
For instance, Hosok tere, one of the most popular squares in Budapest, stands as the main entry in the City Park, being overtopped by the imposing Millennium Monument. It is flanked by the Palace of Arts and by the Museum of Fine Arts, and it opens the perspective of searching out the other inner attractions of the park.
The Vajdahunyad Castle, which is home to Museum of Hungarian Agriculture, enjoys a somewhat central location in Varosliget on one side of the lake which in winter turns into the largest artificial Skate Rink in Europe. The Hungarian Transport Museum stretches on the southeast side of the park, whereas the north part of Varosliget is packed with yet other leisure opportunities: the Zoological Garden and the Vidam Park. And as if to boost even more the tourist magnetism of the park, the place is also where the Szechenyi Bath is located.
Obviously, the City Park is one of the tourist poles of Pest, standing out, at the same time, as a top leisure opportunity for the locals, who find in Varosliget a pleasant and refreshing all-season refuge. But this is no surprise, since the City Park has been part of the daily life of the locals of Budapest since centuries ago. The heydays of the park were recorded in 1896, when it hosted most of the manifestations related to the millennium celebrations. However, the history of the site where the present park is located goes way back, as early as the 13th century. The site was alternately referred to as Okor dulo and Batthyany erdo, and its name was settled on Varosliget in the early 19th century when the park proper was laid out.
The most rapid means to get to Varosliget is to take the metro. Indeed, the park is easily accessible, since two metro stations peg it out: the Hosok tere and the Szechenyi furdo metro stations. The park is also dotted with restaurants, which is always nice to envisage by people who plan to spend a full day while searching out Varosliget to the full extent of its attractions.