Jewish Heritage Tour in Budapest
Visit the world’s second largest Synagogue
1,5 hour
The Jewish cultural and religious heritage in Budapest represents the third largest Jewish population's history in Europe. A community of approximately 100 000 Jews lives in the country, whose history dates back to Roman times. The Jews have always played an outstanding role in the city's economic, political and cultural life and the success of modern Budapest was significantly due to the diligence and organizational skills of Jewish industrialists.
Budapest also has a rich Jewish artistic and architectural heritage. Despite their persecution and the terror of the 20th century we can still find numerous monuments of the once thriving Jewish culture. Budapest has many fine synagogues, kosher restaurants and Jewish schools. The most significant synagogues – Great Synagogue, Kazinczy Street Synagogue, Rumbach Street Synagogue – are concentrated in the city center.
During the tour you can see the most important and the most beautiful Jewish Monuments. We will guide you through the former Jewish ghetto, which has a quaint atmosphere. The tour’s first stop is at the unique Dohány Street Synagogue. Designed in Byzantine and Moorish styles in the mid nineteenth century by the Viennese architect Ludwig Förster, this is the biggest and the most impressive synagogue in Europe and the second largest in the world. The interior space has a capacity for nearly three thousand believers. In 1931 were built to the Synagogue the arcade and the Heroes Temple, which is now used for daily observance. With its red and white brickwork, onion domes and rich ceramic ornamentation the Dohány Street Synagogue is one of the most distinctive buildings in Budapest.
Next to the Synagogue can be found the Jewish Museum with an extremely rich collection of Jewish artefacts spanning the last two millennia. This exhibition introduces the devotional articles of the Jewish holidays and the everyday use objects.
After the interior visit of the Synagogue and the Museum, we show you the Holocaust Cemetery and Raoul Wallenberg Memorial Park with the Tree of Life monument. The Tree of Life is a metal sculpture in the Synagogue's courtyard. It's metallic leaves carry the names of Holocaust victims.
Optional
1,5 hour guiding to Carl Lutz Memorial, Rumbach Synagogue, Gozsdu Court and Kazinczy Synagogue, with interior visit of Rumbach Synagogue.
Keeping on our tour we pass by the Carl Lutz Memorial. Carl Lutz Swiss Consul played an important role in the rescue activities during the persecution by issuing tens of thousands of protective documents to Jews and also claimed diplomatic immunity for 72 protected houses established around Budapest. He saved 62000 Hungarian Jews from death between 1942 and 1945. On his memorial the following inscription can be read:
„Whoever saves a life is considered as if he has saved an entire world” (Talmud).
Then we take an interior visit in the Rumbach Synagogue. It was designed by the famous architect of Vienna, Otto Wagner. The traditional exterior covers a modern cast iron internal structure.
Next we walk along the Király street and have a short stop at Gozsdu Court’s classical buildings.
Finally we have a look at the Kazinczy Synagogue, the center of the orthodox Jewish community, with beautiful Art Noveau facade.
At the end of the tour you'll be treated to a cake and coffee in a kosher confectionery.