The Lukács baths and the northern Buda embankment
Two thermal bathhouses, an Ottoman cupola, and the river path under Rózsadomb to Margaret Bridge. This is a Claude-drafted route awaiting the editor's walk.

1. Lukács thermal baths
Start where the locals soak: the *Lukács*, a working bathhouse since the 1880s, plainer and less photographed than the grand Pest ones, with a courtyard of marble plaques from grateful cured patients. You don't have to bathe; the courtyard and the spring are open to a walker.

2. The Császár baths and the Malom lake
Next door, the *Császár* (Emperor) baths and the small thermal Malom lake that feeds them, warm enough to steam on a cold morning. The springs along this stretch are why the medieval town here was called *Felhévíz* — 'hot water above'.

3. Király baths
South along the foot of the hill, the *Király* baths: a low Ottoman bathhouse of the 1560s, its domed roof studded with star-shaped glass. Built inside the walls so the garrison could bathe under siege. The exterior alone is the city's clearest Turkish survival.

4. The embankment under Rózsadomb
Drop to the river walk below *Rózsadomb* (Rose Hill), the green villa-slope where Budapest's wealth has lived for a century. Down here it's the water, the plane trees, and Pest's parliament stretched along the far bank. Walk south with the current.

5. Margaret Bridge view
The yellow tip of *Margitsziget* points upstream from the elbow of Margaret Bridge, where the river splits around the island. Stand at the bridge's Buda end for the long view down to the Chain Bridge and the castle. Trams 4 and 6 cross here if you want to cut the walk.

6. Bem rakpart to Batthyány tér
Carry on down *Bem rakpart*, the embankment promenade, to *Batthyány tér* — the baroque square facing the Parliament dead across the water, and the best free postcard in the city. The M2 metro and the H5 both run from under the square.

The Lukács baths and the northern Buda embankment