Buda Hills | Old World hotel | Hotel Gellért | Millennium Court

Where did you stay when you were there? "Years ago, I stayed at the Inter-Continental, and then we moved to the Millennium Court, where you can have an apartment with a little kitchenette. So if you're staying there for any length of time, it's really wonderful. The Inter-Continental is on the Pest side, right on the river, where there's a beautiful promenade. Then there's the Hilton over in the Buda Hills. It's pretty, too. But the Gellért is probably the most fabulous Old World hotel."

The Gellért is also known for having one of Budapest's famous bathhouses. "The spa and baths at the Gellért are very belle époque, you know, very end of the 19th century, beginning of the 20th. Buda is full of baths. You go in the bathhouse and you've got steam and healing waters. The Palatinus Strand on Margaret Island, which is a big park in the middle of the Danube, is a city bath, which is magnificent. There's also the Rudas Baths, built in 1566 by the Turks. It has wonderful vaulted archways. But I think the bath at the Hotel Gellért is probably the most ornate."

So, did you do the thermal baths? "I actually never did. Too shy. But the guys did. They said it was amazing."

Is the secret in the water? "Oh, yeah. If you're a guy, you - I know because I was very curious - go in and strip, and you're given this little apron that covers your front. And you go into this huge bath and, well, it's considered healing. But I don't know if they're natural springs or what. It's very much a culture of the city, very much part of the Hungarian culture, these great huge old bathhouses. They have mosaic and a lot of beautiful marble and a lot of fancy work."