One of my biggest pet peeves while traveling is when churches are costly to enter. I am of the opinion that churches should be free or at most request a voluntary donation.
When I visited Budapest, one of the biggest attractions (both metaphorically and physically) is St. Stephen’s Basilica. The Neoclassical building towers above its neighboring building at over 300 feet, making it a striking sight from the ground. It’s intentionally the exact height of the Hungarian Parlament Building.
As the biggest tourist site in town, it makes sense to want to see the inside- but as I implied, this is one of those churches that requires paid entry.
It was difficult to justify it to myself because I’ve been to such pretty churches (for free!) throughout my travels, but I talked myself into it by virtue of it being SUCH a tourist attraction. This FOMO-style anxiety must be how they can keep that entrance fee.
Tickets are available to purchase online as well as in person. Interestingly, the tickets are not sold directly in the basilica, but instead by a ticketing booth across the street.
The line is long but moves quickly- just make sure to bring water if it is as hot during your visit as it was during mine!
At this location, the cheapest ticket was the Church hall ticket at $14. Since I was there, I figured I might as well see the panoramic view from the top of the church. Church, Panoramic, and Treasury ticket, which cost a whopping $28!
This is far more than I am usually willing to spend on a church visit- and frankly I had little interest in the treasury. I had even less interest in the more expensive guided tours, so I shelled out the $28 and made my way to the church.
Once inside, the church hall was spectacular. Somehow, it looked even bigger inside than it did from the outside!
There were a few different sections of the church, with tons of details tucked away in every corner. Dedicated visitors can spend the better part of an hour here.
Visitors like myself may spend about 20 minutes in the church hall before making their way up to the top of the church for those panoramic views.
I took an elevator to the floor just below the viewing platform, but I have a feeling that I just entered the elevator too confidently to stop; I saw other visitors get assertively redirected up the stairs. I’m glad I didn’t have to do that- it seemed like a long way up!
The view from the top is excellent. I loved looking out over the Danube, with Fisherman’s Bastian in the distance!
Be warned that the viewing platform is incredibly narrow at the top of the Basilica, and many visitors do not heed the one-way arrows, leading to a fair amount of squeezing. The balcony railings are very high and sturdy, so no need to fear falling, but still- keep to the flow of traffic!
I did find the crowd to be a little overwhelming, so I headed down to see the treasury- mostly to get my money’s worth- but I think the religious artifacts housed here are of interest to a more select group of people.
All in all, I was happy to have visited the interior of St. Stephen’s Basilica, but I wouldn’t recommend it to everyone. This church is perfect for people who have limited experience with baroque churches- or a vested interest in religious locations.
As a huge fan of baroque and neoclassical architecture myself, I’d recommend purchasing just the Church Hall tickets for $15 and skipping the expensive Church Hall, Panoramic, and Treasury ticket.
For those who have been there, done that, their way through Europe’s extensive selection of churches- skip this and check out the Church of St. Anne instead.
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