Budapest’s best autumn walks

A place of public recreation since the early 1800s, City Park (Városliget) came into its own in 1896 when it hosted many of the Hungarian millennial celebrations. A metro line, the yellow M1, was duly installed to whisk visitors up from the city centre, still in place today.

Some 125 years later, City Park is being transformed by the so-called Liget Project, which has ushered in attractions such as the House of Music Hungary and the Museum of Ethnography. Most of all, though, Budapest’s most popular park makes for a perfect morning’s stroll, around its two lakes – one backdropped by photogenic Vajdahunyad Castle – and along its many pathways. It’s also a lovely walk up Andrássy út to City Park.

Time Out tip: For a break as you stroll, head for cultish café Pántlika, its main building a retro wonder.

Transport: M1 metro to Széchenyi fürdő or Hősök tere

One of the city's most revered green retreats lies entirely in the picturesque embrace of the Danube. The road leading off Margaret Bridge to access the island immediately gives you a sense of detachment – no cars will be making the short journey with you, only cyclists, the 26 bus and the occasional delivery van.

You’ll then be sharing these wide, shaded promenades and grassy expanses with strollers, pedalos and tandems, and recreation seekers will be spoilt for choice where activities are concerned. Paths surrounded by golden-hued trees lead to a Japanese garden, a ruined medieval nunnery where St Margaret died in 1270, and a modest petting zoo, handy if you have kids in tow. River views feature throughout.

Time Out tip: Overlooking the Pest side not far from the musical fountain, the Stég Pub serves all kinds of coffees and lemonades.

Transport: Bus 26

One of the most nature-friendly hiking destinations in Budapest, where expansive meadows, forest trails and panoramic viewpoints follow one after the other. A children’s playground and a skiing club number among the activities, but the main attraction here is the silence of the surrounding woods, simply gorgeous in autumn. If the sun’s shining, find a bench to take in the panoramic cityscape of Budapest you’ll see stretched out before you.

Time Out tip: Open year-round, the Normafa Síház restaurant has been serving hearty delights to hikers and skiers since 1930. If its recent contemporary makeover isn’t to your liking or out of your price range, the sit-down outlet next door has been serving prime strudel (rétes) for nearly half a century.

Transport: Bus 21 or Children’s Railway

Overseen by prestigious university ELTE, Budapest's botanical garden dates back several centuries, accumulating more than 10,000 varieties of plants and flowers. Providing a peaceful getaway deep in District VIII, this relaxing attraction is best known for its huge water lilies and the special events it lays on throughout the year. While spring sees the cherry-blossom trees in full bloom, autumn has its own charm and wonderful colours.

Address: Illés utca 25, 1083 Budapest

Time Out tip: Tucked inside the main entrance, the Szakállas Medve (‘Bearded Bear’) Bistro offers full meals, snacks and salads amid plentiful foliage.

Transport: M3 metro to Semmelweis Klinikák

Recently named after a revered actress, the Mari Töröcsik Park sits longside trendy boulevard Bartók Béla út, surrounding Feneketlen-tó, the Bottomless Lake. Originally a deep clay pit dug by workers at a local brick factory in the late 1800s, constantly replenished by groundwater, the lake became the centrepiece of a City Park for earmarked Buda in the late 1930s, by which time a complex of tennis courts had transformed this neglected corner into a sporting hub.

Landscaped in the 1960s, it became a popular retreat for anglers, families and music-lovers after a concert stage was installed. Today, the stage has gone and the anglers banned, leaving this gorgeous, leafy park to strollers, couples and birdwatchers gazing at the various ducks. Look out, too, for composer Béla Bartók and writer Dezső Kostolányi among the statues. All is backdropped by the neo-Baroque towers of Szent Imre Church.

Time Out tip: Overlooking the lake, its terrace fringing the water’s edge, the Hemingway restaurant is known for its popular Sunday brunches.

Transport: M4 metro to Móricz Zsigmond körtér; bus 7, tram 19, 47, 48 & 49 to Kostolányi Dezső tér

Anchored by the landmark Gellért Hotel, currently under renovation, Gellért Hill is perfect for an autumn stroll. Paths wind over steep green slopes, interspersed with sets of staircases and surrounded by trees in all shades of gold, yellow and orange. As you ascend, you approach the vast Statue of Lady Liberty looming above you, visible from most points in the city. Around the base, the former Habsburg military redoubt, Citadella, has recently been converted into an exhibition centre, the Bastion of Liberty, documenting Hungary’s struggles for freedom over the centuries. Views from here are the most dramatic in Budapest and a popular location for wedding photos. If you’d rather take public transport up the hill and stroll down, bus 27 from Móricz Zsigmond körtér stops at Búsuló Juhász (Citadella), just below the museum and statue.

Time Out tip: By the Bastion of Liberty exhibition, the terrace of the upscale Citadella café spreads out over the relandscaped concourse below the Statue of Lady Liberty. Divine cakes and fine wines are the order of the day.

Transport: M4 metro/tram 19, 41, 47 & 49 Gellért tér or bus 27 to Búsuló Juhász (Citadella)

The former grounds of the noble Károlyi dynasty now form a revered pocket park, Károlyi-kert, within a few minutes’ walk of main downtown square Deak Ferenc tér. Fenced off from the streets between main Múzeum körút and the Petőfi Literary Museum, which is housed in the Károlyi Palace itself, it’s an elegant rectangle of deep autumnal foliage, well-maintained flower beds, a children’s playground and plentiful benches,

Time Out tip: Open from noon, Csendes Létterem near the main gate to the park is part relaxed daytime café, part ruin bar.

Transport: M2 metro/tram 47 & 49 to Astoria

A large cemetery on the hilly slopes of a quiet area of Buda, Farkasréti comprises 60 hectares of mausoleums, gravestones and mature trees, which turn golden from late September onwards. As well as a lesson in Hungarian history – musicians, sports stars, film directors and former ministers all lie here – it makes for a gorgeous walk of an autumn morning. As you follow the pathways past numbered plots – there’s a map just inside the main gates – occasional views of the city peek through the foliage.

Time Out tip: Open from noon, closed on Mondays, Jardinette sits in a century-old building with a glass-fronted winter garden attached. A classic Hungarian main can be followed by an irresistible dessert.

Address: Németvölgyi út 99, 1124 Budapest

Transport: Tram 59/bus 8A, 8E to Farkasréti temető