HUNGARY 

Old World charm meets cosmopolitan glamour on the banks of the Danube. With its fascinating history, incredible architecture and vibrant cultural heritage, Hungary's capital deserves its reputation as the 'Paris of Central Europe'. Budapest has a complex identity, somewhere between Western luxury and Eastern simplicity. Flowing through its center is the mighty River Danube, spanned by nine bridges linking the city. Budapest is known as the City of Spas, with its thermal bath complexes served by more than a hundred natural hot springs.

Stand in awe at the Aquincum Museum and Roman Ruins.These 2,000-year old ruins are remains of a Roman town, and include an impressive remnant of an actual amphitheatre.The contents of the museum include murals, mosaic floors and a reconstructed water organ. Extending over 8.5 miles, Palvolgy Cave is the second largest cave system in Hungary, but its discovery was an accident. Legend has it that in June 1904 the ground suddenly opened up under a grazing sheep.Workers trying to save the animal noticed that the hole that had opened up appeared to lead somewhere. For the next 6 years a determined band of amateur excavators succeeded in opening up a half a mile of caves where the temperature remains constant regardless of season, featuring stalagmites and stalactites, sparkling crystals of calcite and fantastic fossils of shells.

Budapest is richly endowed with natural springs of thermal waters, reportedly possessing various medicinal properties that supply the city’s many thermal baths. Among its most precious treasures are its sixteenth century Turkish baths, as well as the Széchenyi, the Gellért and the Lukács Baths.