Városliget park competition; Városliget park rehabilitation by Garten Studio Ltd.

Built in 2024 / 2025 Built Landscapes / 2025 Entries / 2025 Public Projects / Hungary /
gartenstudio.hu

The renewal of the world’s first people’s park: Városliget

The park’s history spans over two centuries, beginning with Henrich Nebbien’s winning 1813 design, which embraced the romantic English garden style through winding paths, a lake with islands, and rural elements like a farm on Peacock Island. Although much of his vision was realized by the mid-1800s, subsequent urban development and large exhibitions reduced the green space. While further alterations followed in the socialist era, a revival began in the 1970s.

After 200 years a design competition in 2015 led to the selection of Garten Studio’s plan, praised for its historical fidelity, clear spatial structure, lake design, and user-friendly vision. Building on Nebbien’s master plan, the project aimed to create a family-friendly cultural and leisure park by restoring the original layout, enhancing core functions, and removing car traffic and surface parking. The design honors the park’s original purpose: connecting people with nature and providing a retreat from city life, now complemented by modern functions such as play, sports, and community spaces. Our proposal also suggested placing intensive park functions on nearby unused railway areas, such as Rákosrendező, relieving Városliget and helping to preserve the park’s peaceful, family-friendly atmosphere.

An ecological strategy underpinned the project, focusing on biodiversity, soil protection, and water management. Nature conservation actions included bird feeders, nesting sites, and fish habitats. Special emphasis was placed on planting strategy, guided by ecological experts to ensure year-round visual appeal, ecological value, and a pleasant atmosphere for visitors.

The implementation of Városliget’s renewal was a complex, multi-phase process, delivered in 30 documentation packages. Key public areas have been revitalized, especially south of Zichy Mihály Street, where classic park functions such as a dog park, sports fields, running tracks, and playgrounds were developed. Special features include the Rose Garden, Mőcsényi Botanical Garden, Sensory Garden for the blind, and a musical playground.

The following elements have been completed, but the most visually striking part of the construction, the renewal of the Városliget lake and its surroundings, is yet to come.

The renewed Sensory Garden, originally built in the 1970s, offers a safe, independent environment for the visually impaired, with tactile elements and dedicated relaxation areas. The Rose Garden reflects the Neo-Renaissance style of the Millennium House, featuring a Zsolnay fountain and wrought iron pergola, with flowers chosen in collaboration with the Hungarian Rose Society.

The Main Playground, inspired by Szinyei Merse’s painting Balloon, includes unique elements like climbing structures, dig sites, water features, and steam-emitting rocks, earning a landscape architecture award. The sports center adds facilities for football, basketball, fitness, and teqball, with full amenities. Adjacent to this, the skill park features skateboarding, wall climbing, and a pump track designed mainly for children.

The Mőcsényi Botanical Garden was expanded and renovated, preserving features like the spring and stream, and promoting environmental education through outdoor activities. Two special pools display aquatic and marsh plants. Biodiversity is supported with bird feeders, shelters, and a bee hotel.

The Promenade is the most contemporary element, linking new cultural institutions with Heroes’ Square. It serves as a visual and functional boundary between historical park areas and modern urban elements, using distinct paving and furniture. A digital fountain with over 150 individually controlled nozzles adds interactive musical elements.

The Rondo, a historically significant circular park element, was restored using a more diverse plant composition to avoid monoculture vulnerability, while maintaining its original layout. Nearby, the House of Hungarian Music—designed by Sou Fujimoto—blends into the landscape alongside an interactive musical playground using sound and motion sensors.

The balloon lookout on Mimóza Hill connects to past traditions of both observation points and ballooning, offering panoramic views of Budapest. The newest addition is the Children’s Traffic Park, a mini city where children can safely learn traffic rules through play, with vegetation and landmarks enhancing realism.

And what lies ahead:
Currently, the lake’s water is drained in winter to allow for the operation of the ice rink. The planned upgrades will introduce a new water management system, ensuring that the lake remains water-filled year-round, supporting a living ecosystem, with only the ice rink area excluded during winter via a mobile dam.

Now the key remaining task in the park’s complete renewal is closing Károly Kós Promenade to traffic, which would eliminate a major barrier, enabling the expansion of the lake and the restoration of adjacent areas.

• Other landscape architecture offices involved in the design of the landscape:
Garten Studio Ltd.
Senior landscape architects: Szloszjár György, Vatagh Gabriella, Dandé Eszter, Stéhli Zoltán, Csákó Edina
Project engineer team: Ficzere Csaba, Füssy Gyula, Zvolenszky Ágota
Landscape architects: Mándoky Petra, Köllő Janka, Szűz Attila, Kazári-Ambrus Nóra, Sipos Eszter, Hollósi Vivien, Ripszám Eszter, Szécsényi Hargita, Szaller-Gyuricza Fruzsina, Andó-Ledzényi Lilla

• Architecture and engineering offices involved in the design:
Plant Atelier Peter Kis – architecture, pavilions
Studio BMPZ Ltd. – architecture, pavilions
FŐMTERV Zrt. – civil engineering
SKS Terv Ltd. – road design engineer
Static Plan Ltd. – structural design
HHT’98 Ltd. – communication system design
Penta-Kör Ltd. – hydrology
Respect Ltd. – environmental consultant
Csernozjom Ltd. – soil, humus management
Ilona Malom Műhely, ASAPA Alkotócsoport, Berliner Seilfabrik – playground equipment
Ganz Hydro Ltd. – water engineering designer
ESP’63-67 Ltd. – accessibility designer

• Other credits:
Photo Credit: Glázer Attila, Talabér Géza, Városliget Zrt., Garten Studio Ltd.