Mátyás-templom (Matthias Church) stands near Fisherman’s Bastion overlooking the Danube River in Budapest. It was built in the 1200s, on the site of an earlier church destroyed by the Mongols. It was founded by Hungary’s King Béla IV, who also founded the city of Buda, in which the church stands high on the western bank of the river.
Renovations have taken place over the years, including a number of upgrades made necessary by age — and repairs necessitated by a bomb that was exploded in the church in 1994. Pope John Paul II visited the church in 1991.
Admission to the church is 1500 HUF for adults and 1000 HUF for seniors and students, but on many Sunday evenings throughout the year, the church opens its doors for free organ recitals.
If you visit the church (or neighboring Fisherman’s Bastion) with children, there’s a really cool playground just down the hill; a replica castle is built within the playground, complete with pretend cannons for fending off advancing hordes.
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