10 Nights in Hungary

About the destination: Budapest is known as one of Europe’s most stunning cities. It may be thanks to its impressive surroundings, the Danube River that divides the city, the Buda hills to the west and the Great Plain to the east or due to its varied and beautiful architecture: Renaissance, Byzantine, Neo-Classical, and Art-Nouveau buildings coexist in perfect harmony. Its extensive World Heritage Site includes: the banks of the Danube, Buda Castle Quarter, Andrassy Avenue, Hero’s Square, and the Millennium Underground Railway. To top that, the city has 80 geothermal springs, the world’s largest water cave system where visitors can indulge in a relaxing bath. Budapest became a single city in 1873, occupying both banks of the river Danube, to the west there is Buda and Pest lays at the east. Both sides of the city have very different personalities. Buda is the quiet section of the city. Walking around Buda, travelers will be able to inspect the Castle Quarter and explore the narrow cobbled streets that lead to the Fishermen’s bastion with its fairytale towers, which represent the 7 tribes that existed in the city in the 9th century. This decorative fortification is located atop the Buda Castel Hill and offers the best panoramic view in Budapest. The eastern side, Pest, is where all the action takes place. This section of the city has a fin-de-siècle feel to it and nearly every building has some interesting or unusual detail. Visitors will be invited to take long strolls on its wide boulevards filled with all sorts of shops or enjoy a well-deserved coffee in its grand coffee houses. Pest is home to the parliament building and the Dohari street synagogue, the largest synagogue in Europe. The scars of WWII are still present in the city, bullet holes and shrapnel scorings left over from the Second World War and the 1956 Uprising are still visible in some of the facades, painful reminders of this grey period of history. There are several tributes honoring the Hungarian Jews that lost their lives, as the poignant Shoes on the Danube memorial or the Raoul Wallenberg Holocaust Memorial Park. This side of the river is also considered the cultural heart of the city with numerous art galleries and with more opera, concerts and ballet performances than there are days of the week. The capital’s best restaurants are found in Pest too, and it’s here the nightlife wrestles with until the early hours as well. For a unique drink try a Ruin Pub, Budapest’s network of bars in disused buildings that include former tenement houses, factory buildings and community centres. Budapest has combined all its influences and overcome its complex history to shape its own character, and sure it did it right.

About the destination: Esztergom or Estrigonia (as it is also known in Castilian) (in German: Great, in Slovak: Osrihon) is a city of the county of Komárom-Esztergom in Hungary. From the foundation of the Kingdom of Hungary it became the residence of the archbishop of Esztergom, the highest hierarch of the Catholic Church in the country. This is why his role has been key in Hungarian history. The city is located 50 km from Budapest and its population is currently about 30,261 inhabitants.

About the destination: Pécs is the fifth largest city of Hungary, located on the slopes of the Mecsek mountains in the south-west of the country, close to its border with Croatia. It is the administrative and economical centre of Baranya county. MAIN TOURIST ATTRACTIONS • Early Christian monuments. Remains of Sopianae, the Roman city in Pannonia Province, are found at several points below the inner city. The most important one is the Early Christian Necropolis, a World Heritage site dating back to the 4th century and the largest necropolis remaining in the European provinces. • The Mosque of Pasha Quasim. Located on the main square. Built on site and from the stones of Saint Berthold’s gothic church by Pasha Quasim the Victorious, the Turkish character of the church was restored during the most recent, early 1940s renovations. • The Cathedral. The Cathedral of Pécs dates back to the 11th century and the times of Peter Orseolo, second king of Hungary. Bearing the traces of the Romanesque, Gothic and Renaissance periods as well as the Turkish conquest when it was partially used for storage. • Vasarely Museum: dedicated to the works of Victor Vasarely, founder of the op-art movement. • Zsolnay Museum: An exhibit on the life, times and decorative ceramics of Vilmos Zsolnay and the Zsolnay Ceramic Factory. • Television tower. Open for visitors; provides a nice panorama on the city.

About the destination: Szeged is hungary's third largest city, the largest in the southeast of the country and the capital of Csongrád County, located on the banks of the Tisza River. The famous Szeged Outdoor Games are one of the main attractions, held every spring on the famous City Day, May 21.

About the destination: Debrecen is the second largest city in Hungary, and its name has been synonymous with wealth and conservatism since the 16th century. Flanked by the Great Golden Church and the historic hotel Aranybika, the central square of Debrecen, Kossuth tér, sets a rather moderate tone for this city. During the summer, frequent street festivals fill the pedestrian core with revelers, and the bars and nightclubs of the old town create a lively scene for night crawlers on weekends throughout the year. The variety of museums and thermal baths in this 'Capital of the Great Plain' will keep you occupied for a day or two, but then you'll want to take a day trip to the puszta to explore natural wonders and see a cowboy show. It is close to the eastern border, 230 km from Budapest. Now that Debrecen has an international airport, it's time to explore the city! The cultural riches of Debrecen (pr-deb-reh-tsen) and Hortobágy are unique and emblematic in their own right. The streets of the city of Cívis and its buildings that represent a mixture of architectural styles establish a pleasant atmosphere. Quiet walks in museums and galleries will lead to close encounters with artistic treasures of the past and present. Get to know the centuries-old artistic and folk traditions of Debrecen and Hortobágy living today.