Jewish Quarter / District VII

Continental Hotel Budapest

★★★★★

For a mid-range to upper-mid-range stay with a pool, a sense of history and a lively neighbourhood, the Continental is one of the best-value choices in Pest. The hotel stands on Dohány utca, on a site with a long bathing history: an iron bath opened here in 1827, and in 1907 to 1910 the architect Emil Ágoston built the Hungária Bath in the Viennese Secession style. The building was listed in 2005, and the hotel, which opened in 2010, sits behind a facade that recalls the original architecture, so the street front still has the curving lines and decorative details of early twentieth-century Budapest. Inside, the style is calm and contemporary. There are about 270 rooms and suites, in standard, deluxe and executive categories, with parquet floors and a choice of queen, king or twin beds; some suites have balconies. The hotel's great asset is its wellness offer, unusual at this price level in central Budapest: on the rooftop terrace, a seasonal outdoor pool opens in the warmer months, with views over the rooftops of District VII, and downstairs there is an indoor pool, a Finnish sauna, a heated salt room and a fitness room, all of which make it a good choice for families and for anyone visiting in winter. ARAZ Restaurant serves the main meals and breakfast, and the Gallery Café and Bar is a relaxed place for coffee or a drink. The hotel has an underground garage, which is rare in this part of the city, and a concierge and transfer service. It is part of the Hungarian Zeina Hotels group. Rates are higher than at the city's simple three-star hotels but well below the luxury palaces on the Danube, and the pools tip the balance for many guests. Note that in District VII, the hotel's surroundings are lively late into the night at weekends.

The location suits first-time visitors who want to be in the thick of things. The Dohány Street Synagogue is a short walk west along Dohány utca, and the ruin bars of the Jewish Quarter, Szimpla Kert and Gozsdu Udvar among them, are a few minutes beyond. Blaha Lujza tér, with the M2 metro and trams 4 and 6 on the Grand Boulevard, is close by, so the Parliament, the Castle District and City Park are easy to reach. The Great Market Hall and the Inner City are a short metro or tram ride away.

Choosing the room: ask for a room facing the inner side if you are a light sleeper, as the streets of District VII can be noisy at weekends. Deluxe and executive rooms give more space for families; suites with balconies are worth the upgrade for a longer stay. Check the rooftop pool season before you book if it matters to you, as it is open only in the warmer months; the indoor pool and saunas run all year.

How it compares: the Continental is less grand than the Matild Palace or the Gresham Palace, and less design-led than the Aria, but it offers what few central hotels can at its price: a real pool, saunas, parking and a historic facade, in walking distance of the synagogue and the nightlife quarter.