Hungary

Welcome to Hungary

Hungary is both European and distinctly Hungarian, incorporating a mixture of history and the present-day. A small landlocked country sharing its borders with seven neighbouring countries,  originally inhabited by the Magyars, an equestrian nomadic tribe. They were eventually converted to Christianity and in the year 1000 their Prince Stephen was crowned the nation's first ruler. Since then Hungary has seen numerous dynastic changes, from Turkish occupation to the era of Communism, and today quaint little towns, cities and ruins in the countryside bear the marks of this turbulent history with a rich mosaic of architectural styles and fortified hilltop castles.

Cities

Budapest – the Hungary Capital.
Budapest, known as the 'Queen of the Danube', is a magnificent city exuding a cultural sophistication that entices and enchants. Gracing both sides of the legendary river with grand historic buildings, regal bridges and graceful tree-lined boulevards, it is the city's elegant beauty and romantic atmosphere that has given Budapest Parisian status among the Eastern European countries. Budapest offers the visitor the familiarity of European culture with a distinct Hungarian flavour.

Fisherman’s Bastion
Built in 1905 on the medieval castle walls, the neo-Romanesque ramparts were named after the city's fishermen whose duty it was to defend this side of the hill during the Middle Ages. The existing bastion, however, is solely ornamental with cloisters and stairways connecting turrets symbolic of the Magyar that conquered the Carpathian Basin in the 9th century.

Esztergom combines history with a small-town riverside charm. One of Hungary's historically important towns, it was the capital for over 250 years and the birthplace of their first king and saint, Stephen, who was later crowned here in the 11th century. Today it remains the religious centre of the country with Hungary's largest church located o the hill above the town next to the ruins of the medieval Royal Palace.

Szentendre, 'The Pearl of the Danube Bend', is a quaint old market town situated on the slopes of the Pilis range, with a charm and character of its own. Meandering cobbled lanes, little squares, red-tiled roofs, brightly painted houses, and awkwardly positioned Orthodox churches give it an artistically picturesque setting. Serbian refugees inhabited the town in medieval times and their style contributed to the charisma of the town's haphazard structure and Balkan flavour.