The Nyugati Train Station is one of Budapest’s most iconic buildings: its monumental yet elegant iron and glass facade stands out among the brick buildings of the centre of Budapest. The station was built by the Eiffel Company on the site where Hungary’s first railway line began operating in 1846. Its innovative iron structure was considered an engineering marvel when it was completed in the age of steam engines in 1877. The building has changed very little over the years, making it ideal for period pieces. The colorful and grandiose main hall with its beautiful iron structure could double as a station set at any point in the past few hundred years. The grandiose hall takes us back to the elegance of the golden age of Hungary, but that is nothing compared to the extraordinarily pompous and ornate royal waiting room, which looks like the interior of a baroque church. In addition, the side corridors form a more airy, tranquil spot, with a rich variation of textures; wood panelling, huge glass windows, marble floor and brick walls. The Soviet-era aesthetic of the waiting rooms and the international ticket office makes the atmosphere more playful with its colourful fiberglass chairs. This diversity is what makes this location so popular among both filmmakers and photographers.

Photo gallery

Glass corridor with wooden ceiling and green doors inside the historic Nyugati Train Station in Budapest.
This atmospheric side corridor is rich in sophisticated textures
Train platforms with passengers and glass roof at Nyugati Train Station in Budapest.
Completed in 1877, the iron structure was a state-of-the-art architectural solution
Ornate waiting room with chandeliers, classical decor, and red carpet inside Nyugati Train Station in Budapest.
A reminder of Hungary’s royal past; an extraordinarily ornate waiting room
Train visible through mint-green doors and timetable boards inside Nyugati Train Station in Budapest.
The quirky side hall is perfect for a colour coded shoot
Wood-paneled ticket hall with information signs inside Nyugati Train Station in Budapest.
A truly elegant ticket hall with an extraordinarily high ceiling and an ochre colour scheme
Row of yellow plastic seats in the waiting area of Nyugati Train Station in Budapest.
This retro, soviet era waiting room is perfect for a playful interior with its yellow seats
Nyugati Train Station Street View

Filmed at this location

Many important films have used this station as a location. Steven Spielberg filmed scenes for his 2005 movie Munich here. Brad Pitt and Robert Redford worked together in the Nyugati to create the 2001 thriller, Spy Game. Sunshine starring Ralph Fiennes was shot here too and Jennifer Connelly also played here in Étoile in 1988. The station has doubled as one in Buenos Aires in Evita, as a Nazi station in the 2008 film Good, as a station in Moscow in A Good Day to Die and as a Parisian station in the series Maigret Sets a Trap. It was even used as the setting for a fictional werewolf attack in the 2003 movie Underworld. Progressive Productions has also shot in this exceptional location several times, for example for a catalogue shoot for the British clothing brand, Boden and another photo shoot for the German fashion brand, Brax as well as a shoot for FedEx.