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Among Hungary's most pleasurable activities are bird-watching and horse riding in the Hortobágy region; hiking in the Mátra Hills and the Zemplén Hills near Tokaj; canoeing on the Tisza River, and caving in Aggtelek. You can also sightsee by ultra-light aircraft over Lake Balaton, as well as cycle around its shores or windsurf on its waters.
Aquincum is the most complete Roman civilian town in Hungary and its indoor and outdoor museums try to put the ruins in perspective, with some success. Most of the big sculptures and stone sarcophagi are outside to the left of the museum or behind it in the lapidary.
Keep an eye open for the replica of a 3rd-century portable organ called a hydra (and the mosaic illustrating how it was played) and the mock-up of a Roman bath.
III Szentendre út 139
Obuda
www.aquincum.hu tel info 1 250 1650
train HÉV from the Batthyány tér metro stop
| full | Forint 800.00 |
| concession | Forint 400.00 |
| family | Forint 1500.00 |
Visegrád's impressive citadel is perched on top of the dramatic Castle Hill. Visegrád was once the royal centre of Hungary and the citadel, completed in 1259, was the repository for the country's crown jewels until 1440 when they were impishly stolen by Elizabeth of Luxembourg, with the help of her lady-in-waiting.
She hurried off to Székesfehérvár to have her infant son László crowned king. The crown was returned to the citadel in 1464 until the Turkish invaded. The Habsburgs came along in 1702 and blew the citadel up to prevent its use by Hungarian independence fighters as a base. Its remains were buried until the 1930s when archaeologists, following descriptions in literary sources, uncovered the ruins.
There's a small pictorial exhibit in the residential rooms on the west side of the citadel and two smaller displays near the east gate and the nearby Royal Palace and Solomon's Tower are worth exploring However, the real highlight is just walking along the ramparts of this eyrie, admiring the views of the Börzsöny Hills and the Danube, which are arguably the best in the region.
Panoráma út
Várhegy
(23km N of Szentendre)
www.visegrad.hu
tel info 26 398101
bus from Szentendre
walking take Kálvária sétány trail from village centre (behind 18th-century Catholic church on Fötér)
bus Citibus taxi van from Mahart boat pier
| full | Forint 800.00 |
| concession | Forint 350.00 |
Totalling 76,000 hectares (187,720 acres), Kiskunság National Park consists of half a dozen 'islands' of protected land, though much of the park's alkaline ponds, dunes and grassy 'deserts' with juniper trees are off limits. Bugac village is the most accessible part of the park. Here you can see the famous Hungarian cowboys ride at the popular horse show.
The horse show is the park's highlight. You may come across a couple of noble Nonius steeds being made to perform tricks that most dogs would be disinclined to do, but the real reason for coming is to see the csikósok (cowboys) crack their whips, race one another bareback and ride 'five-in-hand'. This is a breathtaking performance in which one csikós gallops five horses around the field at full tilt, while standing on the backs of the last two.
(Great Plain)
www.knp.hu
bus from Kecskemét
| full | Forint 1100.00 |
| child | Forint 550.00 |
About two-dozen renovated rooms at the horseshoe-shaped Esterházy Palace are open to the public; the rest of the huge complex houses a hotel and a secondary school. You can only tour the palace with a guide, but armed with a fact sheet in English (available from the ticket office), try to lag behind and explore the rooms away from the crowds.
On the ground floor of the palace you'll pass through several rooms decorated in the pseudo-Chinese style that was all the rage in the late 18th century. On the 1st floor are more sumptuous baroque and rococo salons as well as the lavish Concert Hall and Ceremonial Hall, which lead on to one another. There's also an exhibit dedicated to the life and times of Haydn.
Joseph Hadyn utca 2
tel info 99 537 640
| full | Forint 1000.00 |
| concession | Forint 600.00 |
| family | Forint 2500.00 |
Founded by Benedictine monks almost 1000 years ago, Pannonhalma Abbey has been destroyed and rebuilt many times and is now a crazy quilt of Turkish, Romanesque and Gothic architectural styles. The interior is beautiful despite the butchery, and includes a neoclassical library containing 300,000 volumes, making it the largest private library in Hungary.
Also inside the abbey are historical archives holding some of the earliest surviving examples of written Hungarian; a gallery with works by Dutch, Italian and Austrian masters from the 16th to 18th centuries; and, above the red-marble arched doorway, a fresco depicting the patron, St Martin of Tours.
Look down to the right near St Martin and you'll see, written in Latin, perhaps the oldest graffiti in Hungary: 'Benedict Padary was here in 1578'. Pannonhalma is a working monastery, and must be visited with a guide.
Vár utca 1
(21km SE of Győr)
www.bences.hu tel info 96 570 191
bus from Győr
A beautifully preserved baroque town, Eger has a relaxed, Mediterranean feel. Flanked by two of the Northern Uplands' splendid hill ranges and home to the celebrated Egri Bikavér (Eger Bull's Blood) wine, there's no doubt Eger is worth that long daytrip from Budapest.
There's something interesting around every corner in Eger and the centre is closed to traffic making it perfect to explore on foot. Heaps of Hungarians make the hike to Eger to pay homage to their ancestors who fended off the Turks for the first time during the 170 years of Turkish occupation.
Terrific views of the town can be seen from 13th-century Eger Castle. Scanning the town you'll see Eger Cathedral and a Minaret with 100 narrow spiral stairs twisting claustrophobically to the top.
The wine cellars of the seductively named Valley of the Beautiful Women should not be missed. Traipsing southwest of the town centre and down into the valley there are dozens of cellars, some with musicians and outside tables - the place to sample Bull's Blood.
Pécs is blessed with an illustrious past, a mild climate, superb museums and some of the finest Turkish monuments in the country. Lying equidistant from the Danube and the Dráva rivers in Southern Transdanubia, Pécs is certainly one of the most interesting cities in Hungary.
Music, opera, ballet, and Hungary's best leatherwork are some of the city's cultural gems. Its symbol is the Mosque Church, the largest building from the Turkish occupation still standing in Hungary. The square mosque, with an octagonal green copper dome, was built in the mid-16th century.
Near the mosque is the synagogue, another of Pécs' extraordinary monuments. Built in the Romantic style in 1869, it has carved oak galleries and pews, ceiling paintings, and the ornate Ark of the Covenant in the sanctuary.
Among the city's best museums are the Victor Vasarely Museum and the Zsolnay Porcelain Exhibit. Vasarely was the father of Op Art and although some of the exhibited works by him and his acolytes are dated, most are evocative, tactile and very playful. The Zsolany porcelain factory was at the forefront of art and design in Europe for more than half a century. Many of its tiles were used to decorate buildings throughout the country.
With its multifarious and often embittered history, incredible architecture and rich cultural heritage, Hungary's capital deserves its reputation as the 'Paris of Central Europe'. It has a complex identity, somewhere between Western luxury and simple traditions.
The city straddles a gentle curve in the Danube. It has broad avenues, leafy parks and elaborate bathhouses. It also has a turn-of-the-century feel to it, for it was then - during the industrial boom and the capital's heyday - that most of the city was built.
There is more to Budapest than fish soup, paprika and Zsa Zsa Gabor. With its multifarious and often embittered history, incredible architecture and rich cultural heritage, Hungary's capital has the justly deserved sobriquet of 'the Paris of Central Europe', set apart from other Hungarian and European cities by its beauty. The city straddles a gentle curve in the mighty Danube River, the Buda hills rising dramatically on the west bank while Pest marks the start of the Great Plain to the east.
The largest Hungarian city by a long shot, Budapest is the heart, soul and memory of Hungary, with the Danube coursing through its veins. The city has a complex identity, currently facing something of a crisis with the allure of modern Western luxury in conflict with the simple traditions of its Central European roots and penchant for all things classical.
Hungary's major celebration is the Budapest Spring Festival in March, a two-week cultural extravaganza of local and international performances, conferences and exhibitions. Other important events include: the Budapest Film Festival (February), which premieres new Hungarian films; Busójárás (February also), the nation's top Mardi Gras, in Mohács; Sopron Festival Weeks (June/July), showcasing ancient music and dance performances, and Debrecen (Jazz Days)(September) is Hungary's top jazz festival.
