Page 172 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Budapest

170  BUD APEST AREA B Y AREA

7 Kecskemét
86km (52 miles) SE of Budapest.
* 110,000. £ Nyugati pu. @
Népliget. n Kossuth tér 1. Tel (06 76)
48 10 65. Town Hall: Kossuth tér 1.
Tel (06 76) 51 35 13. Open 8am–
4:30pm Mon–Thu, 8am– 2pm Fri.
8 by appointment. Cifrapalota:
Rákóczi utca 1. Tel (06 76) 48 07 76.
Open 10am–5pm Tue–Sun.
& 7 8 ∑ kecskemet.hu
Spreading out in a vast sweep
around Budapest is the Great
Hungarian Plain, or Alföld, which Kecskemét Town Hall, designed by
covers nearly half of modern Ödön Lechner
Hungary. For hundreds of years,
Exterior of Fót’s Church of the Immaculate Kecskemét has been the major 8 Kiskunfélegyháza
Conception market town of the central- 110 km (66 miles) SE of Budapest.
southern plain. Distributing and * 40,000. n Szent János tér 2.
5 Fót pro cessing the products of the Tel (06 76) 56 14 20. £ Nyugati pu.
surrounding rich farmland, @ Népliget. House of Nature Visitor
25 km (15 miles) NE of Budapest.
* 16,000. £ Nyugati pu. @ Újpest Kecskemét grew affluent, par- Centre: Liszt Ferenc u. 19, Kecskemét
Városkapu. n Vörösmarty tér 3. ticularly towards the end of (for information on Kiskunsági Park).
Tel (06 76) 50 15 96. Open May–mid-
Károlyi Palace Open by appt. Tel (06 the 19th century. As a result, Oct: 8am–4pm Tue–Fri, 10am–2pm
27) 36 13 39. & 7 ground floor only. the town today boasts many
8 obligatory. Park: Open Apr–Sep: gracious squares and splendid Sat; mid-Oct–Apr: 8am–4pm Mon–Fri.
8am–8pm daily; Oct–Mar: 8am–6pm 19th and early 20th century ∑ knp.hu& Kiskun Museum:
Dr Holló Lajos utca 9. Tel (06 76) 46
daily. Church of the Immaculate buildings. The most famous is 14 68. Open Mar–Nov: 9am–4pm Tue–
Conception: Vörösmarty út 2. 8 Ödön Lechner’s massive Town Fri (to 5pm Sat); Dec–Feb: 8am–4pm
Hall. Built between 1893–6, the Tue–Thu (to 1pm Fri); Sat & Sun by
Just outside Budapest is the building is a combination of both appt. & 8 ∑ kiskunmuzeum.hu
small town of Fót. Its main Renaissance and Middle-Eastern
attraction is the Károlyi Palace, influences. The flamboyant Much of the Great Hungarian Plain
birthplace of the country’s first Cifrapalota (Ornamental Palace), is used to grow maize and vines.
president, Mihály Károlyi (see built as a casino in 1902, is a Small areas, however, have been
p36). The palace was built in uniquely Hungarian vari ation preserved as national parks.
the 1830s, with a pavilion added of the Secession style About 15 km (9 miles)
on each side a decade later. (see pp56–9). to the west of
Also worth a visit is the town’s
attractive 19th-century Church
of the Immaculate Conception.
6 Gödöllő
30 km (18 miles) NE of Budapest.
£ Hév from Örs vezér tere.
Grassalkovich Mansion: Tel (06 28) 41
01 24. Open Apr–Oct: 10am–6pm
daily; Nov–Mar: 10am–4pm Mon–Thu,
10am–5pm Fri–Sun. Closed Jan.
& 7 8 ∑ kiralyikastely.hu
Gödöllő is most famous for its
restored Baroque palace, the
Grassalkovich Mansion. Built
in 1741, it was the favourite
residence of Queen Elizabeth,
wife of Franz Joseph. The
permanent exhibition in the
Royal Museum incorporates the
Ceremonial Hall and royal suites,
and details the life of the
Austro-Hungarian monarchy. Detail of the ornate Town Hall façade at Kiskunfélegyháza

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