A wonderful day in Győr, Sopron and the Fertőd Esterházy Palace

Private tour to Győr, Sopron and the Esterhazy Palace in Fertőd

Győr, Sopron and other beautiful towns of Hungary are a longer drive from Budapest, so unfortunately this is not my most popular tour. That is why it is always a special treat to travel near the Austrian border to explore the Baroque architecture, local culture and local food. The weather was not ideal, however, the fog made the towns look even more magical and special. We also had time to visit the absolutely exquisite Esterházy Palace in Fertőd, which I think is the number one attraction in Hungary (it really is a tough race). Thank you for the great experience and I cannot wait to take more people to Győr, Fertőd and Sopron!

New tour – Herend Porcelain Factory

This isn’t really a new tour, as I’ve been offering the tour for a few years now as a custom tour, but the time has come to publish it on my website. To be honest, I’m in love with Herend products. It’s unique, beautiful, elegant, classy and clearly timeless. All my former travellers were fascinated by the factory, by the steps of porcelain making and the finest, most magnificent porcelain products. The tour is about 6 hours, including the drive to Herend and back to Budapest, the visit of the factory and the porcelain museum. Don’t hesitate to let me know if you have questions or book the tour directly on my website.

Please note that his tour is only available from April to October, as the mini factory is closed in the winter months.

HEREND FACTORY AND MUSEUM TOUR

 

Festival of Folk Arts – 2023

Every year, at the end of August some of the great Hungarian folk artists have a special opportunity to put on display their talent and products: the folk art festival in the Buda Castle district. Visitors can watch and also participate in activities, such as sewing, lace or embroidery making, wood carving and many more. It’s a great occasion to meet local craftsmen and craftswomen, observe their techniques and tricks and also to buy local folk products. I loved the little old ladies teaching me sewing, trust me, they are very patient with visitors much less talented and experienced than they are.

 

Easter in Hollókő

I was very lucky this Easter Monday because I could take my travellers to Hollókő, one of the cutest and most traditional Hungarian villages where people still cherish old traditions. Most of the village people are beautifully dressed up in locally designed costumes.  There is music, great food and drinks, plenty of locally crafted products.

One can also participate in the festivities. The most cherished Hungarian Easter tradition is the “watering”, young men tossing buckets of cold water on girls, to keep them fresh all year long. In exchange they are given hand painted and decorated Easter eggs. Visiting tourists might also get wet if they don’t avoid young men carrying buckets of water :).

Hollókő is a very special village all year around, it was a very special treat to be there and celebrate Easter with locals. Book a tour with me, so that I can tell you more about the village and its traditions!

 

A Must-See: House of Hungarian Music

A new museum opened in the City Park of Budapest, the museum of Hungarian Music. We had a private tour in the museum last week and were truly impressed by both the design of the building and the museum’s programmes and exhibitions.

The building was designed by Japanese architect Sou Fujimoto, to me it looks like an extremely ornate spaceship abandoned in the woods. For example I love the 12m high glass windows and panels and the hundreds of golden stylised leaves decorating both the interior and the outside. As a result it looks like a huge forest of gold, which is even more beautiful in the sunshine when the lights are nicely reflected on each and every gold leaf.

In the sound dome you can enjoy a unique audio-visual experience with sounds and music coming from all directions. I loved when all the sounds and music came together by the end of the show. It really felt like as if we witnessed a special chemistry experience in a musical laboratory. As an addition the permanent exhibition offers a musical journey in space and time. You must take some time to explore it, because you can easily spend hours in this underground musical maze. Music lovers should plan to spend some 2-3 hours in the building. Visitors can expect to get a better understanding of Hungarian music from the different periods of our musical history.

(On a personal note I have to add that I’m very much against all new constructions in the second largest public park of Budapest. The reason is that I think we should preserve and enlarge the green spaces in the city. However, I like the modern approach and the fact that the building is supposed to use sustainable and climate-friendly solutions.)

Update on travelling to Hungary from the US

I’ve had received today some inquiries about how the new recommendations issued by the European Union might affect travels from the US to Hungary. The US is one of the five countries that have been removed from the EU safe travel list.

What is important is that this is a guidance and each EU countries decide individually about travel restrictions. As for Hungary, you can enter Hungary if you come from the US with a negative PCR test not older than 72 hours – no PCR test is needed when you get to Hungary by road, rail or waterway.

What is even more important is that Budapest is as beautiful as always, it’s not overcrowded with tourists, so it’s still a great time to come and see. Let me know if you have questions, or book a tour! Also, don’t forget that a private tour is safer than being in large tour groups, myself and the drivers I work with are fully vaccinated and can’t wait to meet you!

Beautiful Budapest - Fiseherman's Bastion
Beautiful Budapest – Fiseherman’s Bastion

Budapest fireworks – 20th of August

It’s always nice to watch the fireworks from the balcony – the advantages of living on a beautiful hill in Buda. St. Stephen’s Day (20th of August) is a national holiday in Hungary and the day’s celebrations are crowned every year by amazing fireworks at night.

Private daytrip to the lake Balaton from Budapest

The lake Balaton is the number one destination of Hungarians in the summer months. It’s the greatest freshwater lake in Central Europe and is famous for its wine regions, cute little villages, beautiful castles and of course the magnificent views over the lake.

You can book the tour or contact me for further details. I’ll make sure to include in the itinerary all the sights you would like to see.

Budapest Lake Balaton Private Tour
€660

VESZPRÉM AND THE LAKE BALATON

Medium
8 hours
view

COVID-19 update: entry into Hungary from neighbouring EU countries

I was surprised to see that two cruise ships are currently docked in Budapest and I also met real tourists in the Buda Castle District and the City Park.

I’ve just checked the official website of the Hungarian Police. It says: “Except in the case of entry by civil aircraft, entry into Hungary from Croatia, Austria, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia and Slovenia, regardless of nationality or protection against the coronavirus, is possible without epidemiological restrictions, but providing other general conditions of entry (eg valid travel document) is necessary.”

I’d think it means that travellers can enter the country without restriction except in case of entry by civil aircraft. However, I read the entire article and found this: “Foreign citizens arriving from abroad in passenger traffic – unless otherwise specified by law or government decree – shall not enter Hungary.” 

It’s hard to tell which rules apply to those who would like to get into the country by car. By the 1st of July the all travel restrictions will be lifted for those who have the EU COVID-19 Passport (when travelling, every Digital Green Certificate holder will have the same rights as citizens of the visited Member State who have been vaccinated, tested or recovered). I’m really looking forward to it and to welcoming travellers in my Beautiful Budapest.

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