Page 147 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Hungary

AROUND BUD APEST  145

7 Visegrád lived here most of his life until
his death in 1960. The museum
40 km (25 miles) north of Budapest.
Road Map C3. * 1,700. £ @ from displays personal artifacts,
Budapest. 4 from Budapest, family photos and some of his
Esztergom; from Szentendre (summer works, including A Bench in the
only). ∑ visitvisegrad.hu Garden (1943).
Set on the narrowest stretch E István Szőnyi Memorial
of the Danube, Visegrád is a Museum
popular village with visitors Bartóky utca 7. Tel (27) 62 01 61. Open
dominated by its spectacular Mar–Oct: 9am–6pm Tue–Sun; Nov–Feb:
ruined Citadel. Built in the 13th 10am–4pm Tue–Sun. & 8
century by King Béla IV, this was Hungarian and German. 7
once one of the finest royal ∑ szonyimuzeum.hu
palaces in Hungary. The massive Zebegény’s Roman Catholic church, built in
outer walls are still intact, and Secessionist style 9 Nagybörzsöny
offer the visitor superb views. 8 Zebegény & Duna-Ipoly
Halfway down the hill, in the National Park
Salamon Tower, is the Mátyás 30 km (19 miles) east of Vác. Road
Museum, a collection of items Map C3. * 1,200. £ from Budapest. 24 km (15 miles) north of Visegrád.
excavated from the ruins of 4 from Budapest. Road Map C2/3. @ from Szob
the Royal Palace. Built by King (to Nagybörzsöny). ∑s dinpi.hu
Sigismund in the 14th century, Famous for fine views of the
it was renovated a century later, Danube Bend, the tiny village of Home to the fine 14th-century
in magnificent Renais sance style, Zebegény also boasts one stone Romanesque Church of
by Mátyás Corvinus (see p41). It of Hun gary’s few Catholic St Stephen, a working mid-
fell derelict in the 16th century churches in Seces sion 19th-century water mill
after the Turkish invasion and style. Designed by (open to the public) and
was then buried in a mudslide. Károly Kós, Dénes a mining museum,
The ruins were not rediscovered Györgyi and Béla Nagybörzsöny is best
until 1934, when excavations Jánszky and built from known as the gateway
took place. Now largely recon- 1910 to 1914, its plain to the Duna-Ipoly
structed and whitewashed, façade has Neo- National Park, one
several rooms recreate life in Romanesque traits. It of the largest in
the Renais sance Palace. is its sharply angled the country. The
and tiered, Christmas- Buda Hill caves
+ Citadel tree-like roof that sets the and the Sas-hegy
Tel (26) 39 81 01. Open Mar–Oct: church apart, while the tall nature trail outside
9am–5pm daily; May–Sep: 9am–6pm adjoining spire adds Budapest are also
daily; Oct–Nov: 9am–4pm daily; Dec– elegance. Inside, the Signpost in Duna-Ipoly within its borders.
Feb: 10am–4pm Fri–Sun. colourful frescoes of St National Park The park is home
E Mátyás Museum Constantine are the last to more than 70
Salamon-torony utca. Tel (26) 59 major works by the master protected plants and more than
70 10. Open May–Oct: 9am–5pm painter Kriesch Aladár Körösfői half of Hungary’s native bird
Wed–Sun. & (1863–1920). species (including black and
P Royal Palace Behind the church is the István white-backed woodpeckers).
Fő utca 23. Tel (26) 59 70 10. Szőnyi Memorial Museum. One A narrow-gauge railway
Open Mar–Oct: 9am–5pm; Nov–Feb: of the most prominent Hungarian runs at week ends from
10am–4pm. & 8 Expres sionist painters, Szőnyi Nagybörzsöny to Nagyirtás
across the Börzsöny Hills, from
where well-marked hiking trails
fan out across the park. There is
also a long trail from Nagy bör-
zsöny itself, leading up to Nagy
Hideg Hegy peak, which offers
views across to Slovakia.
A second narrow-gauge
railway, from Kismaros to
Királyrét, opens up the
southern part of the park.
There are hiking trails from
Királyrét across the hills, and
on to Nógrád, where there
The spectacular ruins of the citadel, towering over Visegrád is a spectacular ruined castle.

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