Buda Hills: János Hill, Elisabeth Lookout Tower - Budapest, Hungary

Location:

GPS coordinates: Latitude 47°31'6", Longitude 18°57'32" (N47 31.1 - E18 57.53) Map

The "Libegő" chairlift (elevated passenger ropeway with hanging chairs) operates between Zugliget and the János Hill

The "Libegő" chairlift in Buda is the first cableway in Hungary, however the idea came into view already in 1933, it was implemented only in 1970. It was created primarily for fun, to entertain the tourists and excursionists, so it is not necessarily a transport vehicle in the public mind (although it is that). Its total length is just 1040 meters, the level difference between the endpoints (Zugliget quarter and the Budakeszi Ridge) is 262 meters, the whole distance takes 12 minutes.

The main trouble of the cableways reached the "Libegő" from the beginning as well, this is the problem of the cable elongation. Because of this the Austrian import cables often had to be shortened or replaced. A typical example was when during 9 years the about 2 kilometers long cable (wire rope) was able to stretch 20 meters. But what is even more surprising that it is an absolutely normal value considering the cable cars around the world, every operator handles this problem routinely.

The 495-meter-high Hármashatár Hill (or mountain) with a TV-tower on it, viewed from the lookout tower

The Hármashatár Mountain (or Hármashatár Hill, it means literally "Triple Border Hill") is a popular excursion destination in the Buda Hills low mountain range. Once there was the common border of three settlements (Buda, Óbuda and Pesthidegkút) on the top of this mountain, just until 1873, the birth of Budapest (when these settlements became part of the capital city). The name "Hármashatár" is coming from the 19th century and refers to this historical fact.