The country of 10 million is situated in the heart of the Carpathians. With its cultural and natural heritage it is a real little island between the East and the West.
Hungary is proud to have one of the most beautiful capitals in the world; Budapest is often called "the Paris of Central-Europe". The beautifully situated city is located on both sides of the river Danube. It is rich in natural and built heritage; the Castle district, the cost of the river Danube and the Andrássy Road were all given the honoring title of UNESCO's World Heritage.
As a result of its geological endowment Budapest is rich in medicinal springs of different temperature, upon which baths, thermal spas and hospitals were built since the Roman and especially the Ottoman age.
There are over 200 registered caves under the capital, of which four can be visited. All four are special and provide a cool entertainment on hot summer days.
The country's culture is very varied. Despite their ruined condition, the 2000 years old Roman ruins, the 400 years old monuments from the Ottoman age, the Roman-style churches, the masterpieces of neo-gothic and art nouveau style or the numerous castles are all very commanding.
Those who seek relax can visit Central-Europe's largest sweet-water lake, Lake Balaton or as the Hungarians call it, "the Hungarian sea" (in Germany it is known as "Plattensee").
The Northern cost of the lake is an excellent place for excursions and wine tasting in the neighborhood of ruins of beautiful castles and churches.
The world's second largest warm-water thermal lake is the Hévízi-lake which is situated in the hills of Dunántúl just a few kilometers from the North-Western corner of Lake Balaton. Hungary is excellent for those who love to relax in spas and wellness centers. There are plenty of baths with medicinal and thermal water throughout the country with great relaxing and curing opportunities.
Fertő Lake - situated on the Austro-Hungarian border - is the largest salt-water lake in Europe and also the westernmost representative of the mere-lakes of Euro-Asia. Only a quarter of its surface is inside the border, the rest is in Austria. It's an excellent program to have a trip or a bicycle tour around the lake. Once there, it's worth visiting the nearby Sopron.
The world's largest natural grassy mere can be found in Hortobágyi National Park Visitors to Hortobágyi National Park can get acquainted with the traditional Hungarian food, folklore clothes and times in the past; you can even maybe take part in a traditional rural wedding. Hortobágy is the home of hundreds of types of birds. It's a majestic view when on an autumn night thousands of herons fly across the sky to resettle themselves. Visitors can get to know several types of sheep and the grey cattle, which is the specific animal of the mere. The view of the sprinting studs can sweep visitors of their feet.
North-Hungary's most famous sights are the world-famous wine-districts of Tokaj, the thermal baths at the feet of Bükk Mountain (named Miskolci Barlangfürdő, Zsóry fürdő, Bogácsi fürdő, Egerszalók, Bükkszéki fürdő with it's famous Salvus drinking courses) and the small town of Eger with the Ottoman age castle known from Géza Gárdonyi's novel, it's thermal spas and world-famous wines (Bikavér - Hungaricums).
Noone, visiting Hungary, can miss out the gastronomical delicacies, for example "gulyás" soup, stuffed cabbage, paprika chicken, roast pig or duck, the famous "lecsó" or the strudel filled with sour cherry. At last but not least let's not forget about the superb Hungarian brandy made of peach or the excellent quality Hungarian wines!
There are several wine-districts in the country, for example near Balaton, Tokaj and Eger, at the feet of Mount Bükk and Mátra and in the region of Villány - what these types of wine have in common, is that they are all made of the grape mellowed in the special climate of the slopes of the Carpathians.
Hungary's most famous places which are part of the World Heritage: Budapest, Hollókő, Aggtelek, Pannonhalma, Hortobágy, Pécs, Fertő Lake, Tokaj. These places everyone must visit, because every one of them has a unique and magical atmosphere.