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HUNGARY – TRADITIONS AND HISTORY IN THE PRESENT

Budapest - the capital of Hungary, „the Paris of the East”
Puszta – the specific Hungarian landscape / a kind of steppe / and horse show
Szeged – the biggest city in South 
Pécs – historical city and Villany wine cellars – wine producing area
Sopron – the Western gate of Hungary Castles of thea biggest hungarian aristocratic family – Eszterhazy in Eisenstadt and Forchenstein (Austria) and Fertőd (Hungary)
Pannonhalma – catholic arcabbey

 

 

Day 1  

Arrival at Budapest airport and transfer to the hotel. Overnight in Budapest.

 

Day 2  

Budapest, the historic royal capital of Hungary. Discover Budapest on a half day tour to see the Castle District with the Fisherman’s Bastione and Matthias Church, the Andrassy avenue with Opera house and the Heroe’ s square, which is a World Heritage site and also the imposing Parliament building. Another stop on the guided tour is the Citadela on the Gellért Hill, where the best panoramic view of Budapest can be seen. You will see the bridges on the river Danube , the Margit island and much more…. Overnight in Budapest.

 

Day 3  

Puszta Show. Budapest - Bugacpuszta (75km/1.5 h) – Szeged (110 km/ 1.5 h)
Puszta Bugac – National Park, the famous Hungarian Puszta/Steppe. Explore the Hungarian horse keeping and horse riding traditions and   the Hungarian Puszta. A half day program with Hungarian cuisine lunch.
In the program: showing 
and leading the Lipizzaner stud and:
• procession of the participants, greeting the guests
• show of the "Puszta Ötös" coach and five
• obstacle driving of coach and four
• several field events of horse-herds: a display of horsemanship
• training of a donkey
• amusingl contest with the guests including knocking down a bottle with of a whip
• instruction on how to use a whip
• viewing of the stables
• a walk to see the Hungarian bullocks and Racka sheep
After lunch we move to in Szeged. Enjoy a city tour in Szeged. In the 14th century, during the reign of Louis the Great, Szeged became the most important town of Southern Hungary, and  as the Turkish armies got closer to Hungary so the strategic importance of Szeged grew. King Sigismund of Luxembourg had a wall built around the town. Szeged was raised to free royal town status in 1498.  For almost 150 years the city was under Ottoman turk rule.  Szeged is a city rich in history with an important role in the past and present of Hungary.  On our tour we will see the main Square with Cathedral, Tisza river, the University, the Synagogue and a great deal more. After the two hour  city tour in Szeged we will continue on to Budapest (170 km). Overnight in Budapest.

 

Day 4

Budapest -  Pécs (195 km/ 2.30 min) – Villany (25 km / 35 min)
Founded as Sopianae 2000 years ago by the Romans and known as Fünfkirchen by the Germans, today’s Pécs is a pleasant small University town (but still one of the largest in Hungary) . In 2000, the Early Christian Necropolis of Pecs was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list. It was one of the European Capitals of Culture in 2010. Lunch in Pécs, explore the city, see the world-famous Zsolnai porcelain/ceramic manufacturers ever since the 18th century. From Pecs we explorer the surrounding region, our first stop is in Villany, part of the great Hungarian wine countryside with many wine cellars and  where we will visit  vineyards. Archaeological findings demonstrate that viticulture has an ancient history with Wine being made here since Roman times. A small wine Museum, housed in one of the villages traditional white washed wine cellars, tells the story of local viticulture. In 1895 the village had no less than 590  acres of vineyards. In present days Villany is one of biggest wine producing areas in Hungary. Visitors can sample local wines at the wine cellars in the village. Back to Budapest (195 km. /2.30 min). Overnight in Budapest.

 

Day 5

Budapest – via Fertőd - Sopron (211 km/ 2.45 min)
On the way we stop in Fertőd.  The Esterházy Palace near Fertod  known as the "Hungarian Versailles"   is one of the most beautiful group of Baroque palace edifices in Hungary and is visited by several hundreds of thousand tourists every year. The second half of the 18th century was the golden age of Eszterházy under Prince Miklós Esterházy.  We shall see other castles of the Esterhazy familytomorrow. Continue on to Sopron for a city tour. When the area that is today Western Hungary was a province of the Roman Empire, a city called Scarbantia stood here. Its forum was located where the main square of Sopron can be found today. In 1676 Sopron was destroyed by a fire. The modern-day city was born in the next few decades, when beautiful Baroque buildings were built in place of the old medieval ones. A beautiful historic city! Overnight in Sopron.

 

Day 6

Sopron area and Austria: History Lesson (50 km/1 h)
Following yesterdays visit to the "Hungarian Versailles" Today we will visit the Eszterhazy palace in Eisenstadt and Forchenstein castle (Austria).  The Esterházy Palace in Eisenstadt is one of the most beautiful baroque palaces in Austria and presents a fascinating view of the resplendent life once lived at the court of the Princes Esterházy.  Forchenstein is the only fortress in the region, that was never captured during the Turkish wars, this castle served as the treasury of the Eszterhazy princes. Overnight in Sopron.

 

Day 7

Sopron – Pannonhalma – Budapest (236 km/3.30 min) viaPannonhalma
Since 1996 the thousand year-old Benedictine Arch abbey of Pannonhalma has been a part of the list of World Heritage Sites. The Baroque complex incorporates original Romanesque and Gothic structures. The three-nave 13th-century basilica with its Gothic vault still stands today, including the lierne vaulted sanctuary. The Romanesque crypt below preserves the oldest sections of the abbey. The monastery evokes Baroque times. The most valuable part of the Baroque abbey is the library hall with its wooden columns. The 360,000  volume collection holds many rare codices and prints. Overnight in Budapest.

 

Day 8

Budapest
leisure time, afternoon transfer to the airport for final departure.