There are quite a few places near Budapest that are definitely worth a half or full-day trip. When visiting Budapest, do not miss Szentendre, the flagship town of the Danube Bend, part of the Duna-Ipoly National Park, the town of art. Or tour the world's second largest Baroque castle in Gödöllő, where Sissi, the famous Austro-Hungarian queen loved to spend her time. If you like wine, the famous Etyek wine region offers fantastic wine tasting programs with snacks and regular wine festivals.
Visiting Szentendre
Szentendre
lies about 20 kilometres north from the city centre of Budapest. It is
a little village with a Mediterranean feel, and it is a very popular
tourist destination, due to its historical atmosphere, museums, cafés
and romantic cobblestone streets lined with colourful Baroque homes. Szentendre
is the town of art and culture in a beautiful setting. It also gives
home to the "Skanzen", a large-scale open-air ethnographical exhibition,
with traditional Hungarian peasants' homes, mills and churches on
display. The town's original founders were Serbians, who were fleeing
from the Turkish occupation of their country - even the Serbian Orthodox
Church moved their seat here around the year 1690, hence the Serbian
influence to the town's architecture and cultural life. The town houses internationally recognized and interesting museums, such
as the Margit Kovács Museum, the Marzipan Museum and the Ferenczy
Museum.
Castle of Gödöllő
Built
in the 1740-s for the Grassalkovich Hungarian noble family by architect
Andreas Mayerhoffer of Salzburg, the Royal Castle of Gödöllő is a
uniquely beautiful, Baroque style castle, the second biggest of this
architectural genre in the world. When the last Grassalkovich has died
without heir in 1841, the castle was assigned as the holiday castle of
the reigning king of Hungary. Queen Elizabeth (Sissi) has
spent a lot of time here, as she preferred Hungarians to her native
Austria, and especially her husband, Emperor Franz Joseph. After 1945,
the Soviet Army has taken over the building, which has therefore
deteriorated rapidly. The castle has been beautifully renovated
recently, as well as both the upper and lower gardens. Today, hundreds
of tourists a day visit the castle from all over the world.
The wine-producing region of Etyek
While
the village and the region comprise, in legal terms, the newest
wine-producing region of Hungary, in fact it's the oldest one, as grape
production here started in Roman times, as early as the 2nd
century AD. During Communist times in Hungary, the entire produce of the
region was devoted to champagne manufacturing (Hungarian champagne is
very good), because the acid content of the grapes here is ideal for
that purpose. Today, most of the wine produced here is made in small, family-owned units; some vintage wines have won international awards.
Danube Bend Tour
A
full-day guided bus tour to important landmarks of Hungarian history
and culture. We leave Budapest and visit one of the most beautiful
natural reserve areas in Hungary, the Danube Bend. Starting at
the Visegrad Citadel, a formal royal residence and fort, we take a walk
in the castle museum and admire the view of the grand S-curve of the
river Danube. The next stop is Esztergom, near the Slovak border,
where we have a traditional 3-course Hungarian lunch, and explore the
largest church of Hungary, giving home to the seat of the Catholic
Church in the country.
Visit the second largest Baroque Palace of the world in Gödöllő! After only a 30-minute drive from Budapest we arrive to the former summer residence of Queen Elisabeth (Sissi) and Francis Joseph (Habsburg Emperor & Hungarian king 1867-1916). This interior visit and the tour through the gardens of the Chateau, gives you a glimpse of times under the ...
Visit the second largest Baroque Palace of the world in Gödöllő! After only a 30-minute drive from Budapest we arrive to the former summer residence of Queen Elisabeth (Sisi) and Francis Joseph (Habsburg Emperor & Hungarian King 1867-1916). This interior visit of the Museum and the tour through the garden of the Chateau, gives you a glimpse of times ...
We take you to the picturesque Artist’s Village, called Szentendre. We wander around the baroque settlement, built on medieval ruins and walk along the narrrow streets. We invite you for a Lángos (fried Hungarian flat bread)*.Then you will have the opportunity to go shopping or to visit the Margit Kovács Ceramic Museum or the Confectionery Museum (marzipan ...
The Danube Bend – an excursion into Hungary’s history. This is an unforgettable tour along the "Blue Danube" with stops in Visegrád, Esztergom and Szentendre.
Visegrád: we walk on the 750 year-old stones of the formal Royal Residence (entrance fee included), learn about life in the middle ages and enjoy the fascinating panorama on the Danube ...
Vienna, the Capital of Austria is situated only 240 kilometres from Budapest, at a 2-2,5 hours drive on the motorway. Due to the recent changes within the EU there is no border between Hungary and Austria.On this tour we drive along the famous Ringstrasse (Vienna's main boulevard) to give you a first impression of the most important sights of Vienna and ...
We take you to Herend first, to the world’s largest Porcelain Manufactory (founded 1826). Following a guided tour through the rooms we invite you for a coffee (possibility for shopping). Next, we drive to Lake Balaton (the largest fresh-water lake of Central Europe) and visit the abbey (founded 1055) on the Tihany Peninsula. Following a 3-course lunch in a ...
The picturesque Hollókő is located in the northern part of Hungary. This famous Palóc Ethnographic village was built in the 17-18. century. Due to the atmosphare of narrow streets, the traditional Hungarian rural houses and the beautiful surroundings people from all over the world love the village. The ruins of the 13th century castle of Hollókő can be ...
Eger is the most important town of the historical wine region. During our program we learn about wonderful baroque buildings of the city. After the visit of the Basilica and the castle we are going down to the Szepasszony valley where you can have the opportunity for wine tasting and lunch.
Departures
Deprature times
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We introduce you the the 2000-year-old Pécs, which is situated in the southwestern part of Hungary. We begin with a nice walk in the historical downtown where we visit the main sights of Pécs: the mosque of pasha Quasim-today chatolic church, City Hall, National Theatre, spectacular romantic pedestrian precincts, Cathedral, Early Christian Mausoleum-part of ...
Spend an unforgettable day in the Puszta! At an hour's drive from Budapest, we stop in the baroque city of Kecskemét. We walk around the beautiful downtown and visit the most important squares and buildings, like the Main Square with the famous City Hall, , the Theatre and the churches (guided walk). From Kecskemét, we drive to a traditional Hungarian farm. ...
