A road trip through Hungary – what lies beyond Budapest?

What do you know about Hungary apart from Budapest and perhaps Lake Balaton? Probably not much. And with that knowledge, you and I are on the same page as I was before embarking on a road trip through this amazing country. Although Hungary is a neighboring country of Austria and roughly the same size, albeit a bit bigger, I had never made it further than the two places mentioned above. I had visited Budapest a couple of times, once even during communism with my mother.

Lake Balaton has also been a destination of mine on various occasions, always depending on an invitation from my vegetarian friend. This time, though, the plan was to travel around the country and take in as much as possible. No more sticking to the well traveled routes. We were ready to explore Hungary in greater detail. And spoiler alert, I fell in love with this diverse and beautiful country.

The only caveat I have is that Hungary is not quite ready for international tourism. Without my Hungarian speaking friend, the trip would have been a lot less enjoyable. A big thank you to Sylvia for organizing the trip and inviting us to every accommodation!

The trip took us from our starting point at Lake Balaton southwards, then eastwards and northwards, passing through Slovakia for one night before heading back west. Here are the many places we visited and stopped at during our road trip.

We started our Hungarian tour in Veszprém on the evening of our arrival in Hungary. The city was the European Capital of Culture in 2023 and is also home to a castle dating back to the 11th century. Nowadays, little remains of the castle apart from the walls. But here comes the nice part: it stood on top of a small hill, offering a great view over the city.

Our first stop after leaving Lake Balaton was Szigetvár. The castle is famous for holding the Ottoman army under Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent at bay for over a month in 1566. Nowadays, you can see what remains of the castle, a church that used to be a mosque, and the battlefield with the ‘heads’ of Suleiman and Zrínyi.

Pécs turned out to be beautiful, something the Romans already knew. The UNESCO World Heritage Site of Cella Septichora, an early Christian burial site dating back to the 4th century, can be visited here.

In Siklós we toured the castle, apparently the best preserved castle in Hungary. Although the Ottomans had been here, they appreciated the beautiful chapel and did not destroy it.

Palkonya sits in the middle of vineyards. This small village is home to beautifully preserved wine cellars dating back to the 18th century.

In Mohács another battlefield awaited us. On 29 August 1526, the Hungarians lost a battle against the Ottomans under Suleiman the Magnificent. This memorial site was erected to commemorate the 450th anniversary of the battle. Hopefully, they will have stepped up their game for the 500th anniversary. The site caters mostly to Hungarian visitors, with inscriptions almost exclusively in Hungarian.

Kalocsa is famous for its paprika. There is also a Baroque church founded by Stephen I. Next to it stands the Archbishop’s Palace, which houses the first Hungarian Bible as well as a Lutheran Bible in Latin. But we were here for the Paprika Museum, where we learned everything there is to know about paprika.

Next up was Bugac Puszta, famous for its horse show. Upon arrival, however, we learned that the show only takes place on Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. What a pity, as we were there on a Tuesday.

Our next stop was Kecskemét, which was also our final destination for that day. This town is an Art Nouveau gem, and the City Hall alone is fantastic. In the upper balustrade there is an amazing ensemble of bells that plays a little piece of music every hour.

In Hortobágy we had the chance to experience another day on the Puszta. It was definitely more touristy than Bugac Puszta, but at least here we got to see a horse show, complete with plenty of whip cracking.

From here, we drove to Debrecen, the second largest city in Hungary, with more than 200,000 inhabitants, a quarter of whom are students. Debrecen is predominantly Calvinist Protestant and has been so since the 16th century.

Eventually, we made it to Tokaj, the wine region known for producing the wine of kings. At least, that is what the label says. Apparently, even Peter the Great sourced his wine from here. It was transported under guard to ensure it arrived safely in Russia.

In Hercegkút we discovered even more wine cellars, this time with overgrown roofs. They look fantastic, a bit like hobbit houses, but with triangular roofs. Taking pictures of them was not quite as easy, though. They might look best from above.

Our next stop was Sárospatak, where we visited the castle of the Rákózi family, a family of Hungarian national heroes. One of its members led a rebellion for independence against the Habsburgs in 1708 and held a parliament in this castle. The Red Tower is the oldest part of the complex and had already been enlarged in the 15th century.

Next up was Megyer-Hegy Tarn, a national treasure. This quarry pond had been voted the most beautiful site in Hungary in 2011.

Füzér Castle Hill is considered one of the seven natural wonders of Hungary. However, it was the castle itself that fascinated me, rather than the walk up.

The Aggtelek national park in Hungary is shared with Slovakia and is the home to a cave system with 712 caves. It has also been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1995. We took the Aggtelek tour, which lasts a good hour.

There was finally some down time in Miskolctapolca. This suburb of Miskolc is famous for its cave bath. We were lucky enough to arrive on the second Saturday of the month, when the baths stay open until 11:30 pm. On other days, they usually close at 6 pm.

The little village of Lillafüred is famous for the Hotel Palota, built in the 1930s in Neo-Renaissance style. It looks like a castle and has a small lake in front where you can go boating.

At Szalajka Valley we took a train to explore the famous waterfall, which resembles a staircase. We first walked around the lake and then set off in search of the veil waterfall.

We drove to Eger and checked into the Várkapu Panzió, our home for the next two nights. We then walked to Dobó Tér, the main square, for a Negroni and some people watching.

Nearby lies the village of Hollókő, which has essentially been turned into an open air museum and craft shop showcasing the Palóc people. Nobody seems to know exactly where they originated from, but here you can get an idea of how they lived. We walked around and bought a few little things. I opted for some gingerbread, while Sylvia chose a broom. To each their own.

Last but not least we stopped at Gödöllő, the summer residence of Empress Sisi and her husband, Franz Joseph. For thirty summers she came here to spend time away from life in Vienna. We did not explore the castle, as it was far too hot to wander through its 100 rooms, but it is definitely something I still want to see.

This brought our road trip of ten days to an end. After that, it was back to Budapest to catch the train home to Vienna. Yours, Pollybert