The best Budapest luxury hotels in its city centre

Want to stay in a neoclassical hotel that also boasts cool vibes (like a rooftop bar?). Look no further than the Aria Hotel Budapest, housed in a former bank. Under the shadow of St. Stephen’s Basilica, you get to enjoy some of the best views in the city from the High Note Sky Bar, the rooftop bar of the hotel where you can enjoy some drinks or dinner.

Aria Hotel has a musical theme — each of its four wings is dedicated to a different musical genre, and each bedroom is dedicated to an artist. For example, you can find a Louis Armstrong room in the jazz wing. Over in the lobby, a black-and-white keyboard carpet welcomes you, while ornamental treble clefs and violins hang over light fittings in the common area. It truly is quite a sight.

Yet another hotel with a neoclassical style is Corinthia Hotel Budapest. However, unlike Aria, Corinthia Hotel has decided against a modern contemporary makeover and instead embraced its classically elegant design. Think marble flooring, a grand fairytale staircase that leads to a ballroom, glass-covered atriums, and more. The pool is also a delight with its Corinthian columns stained glass ceiling. All 412 rooms in the hotel maintain this classy facade, while the four in-house restaurants serve up traditional Hungarian fare as well as international cuisine.

You can’t go wrong with luxury when it comes to a Four Seasons property. The Four Seasons Hotel Gresham Palace Budapest precisely fits the bill with its grandiose lobby of marble and stained glass. Instead of Neoclassicism, the hotel has taken on an Art Nouveau facade, complete with arches, columns, statues of gods, and floral motifs. Its location at the east side of the Chain Bridge makes it a convenient one to head towards shops at the Pest area. There are 179 rooms to choose from, all classically elegant and feature black marble bathrooms.

Perhaps seeing most of the classical buildings in Budapest might have put you off wanting to stay in one. No matter, because the Kempinski Hotel Corvinus Budapest is here to the rescue. Designed in glass and stone, this contemporary building has clean lines and the occasional columns. The ground floor was designed with a promenade in mind, with “shops” being its in-house delis, flower shop, and gift shop. Out of the 351 rooms that are available in the hotel, 35 of them are suites. All are decorated with Art Deco flourishes, particularly in the furniture fittings. Within the hotel’s restaurants, you can find Hungarian and Austrian cuisine, but if you’re feeling for Asian, there’s also a Nobu available within the hotel grounds.

Here’s a little tidbit about the Prestige Hotel Budapest—although it might take on a 19th-century design, it was actually built from the ground up during the 21st century. Nonetheless, you can’t fault its luxuriously classy design. The hotel is cosy, with 85 rooms decked in cream and gold, with adequate lighting despite not having natural sunlight. Dine in the Costes Downtown, the in-house Michelin-starred restaurant that serves Hungarian food with a choice of vegetarian and vegan options.

The Ritz-Carlton Budapest is fancy, but most certainly not stuffy. That much is obvious with its warm service and restaurant staff donning jeans as part of its uniform. The early 20th-century building facade is imposing, but that’s as far as it goes. There are 200 rooms in the hotel, including 30 suites in your standard clean beige and cream fittings. The restaurants are worth visiting for a hearty meal, particularly the Deak St. Kitchen, a grill restaurant serving Hungarian and international cuisine.