Sights

Hungary has a long and rich history in culture, with remarkable sights. The United Nations, UNESCO, has developed and maintained a list of significant places in the world, known as the World Heritage List, which is selected by a committee. Of the more than 1000 world wide properties selected for their outstanding universal value, eight are in Hungary:

1. Budapest, including the Banks of the Danube, The Buda Castle Quarter and Andrassy Avenue – The Gothic castle of Buda and the remains of Roman monuments have had a considerable influence on the architecture of various periods. Budapest is one of the world’s prominent urban landscapes, illustrating the great periods in the history of the capital of Hungary.

2. Old Village of Hollokő and its Sorroundings – The village of Holloko is situated in the County of Nograd. It was developed during the 17th and 18th centuries, making a living example of rural life before the 20th century agricultural revolution. People are still living there using the origin

al buildings according to their proper rule.

3. Caves of Aggtelek Karst and Slovak Karst – The variety of formations which are concentrated in a restricted area makes the 712 currently identified caves in a typical temperate-zone karstic system. The combination of tropical and glacial climate effects makes possible to study geological history inside the caves. The climate in the caves is not following the climate changes of the surface level: it is always about 10 degrees above zero. It is situated in the County of Borsod-Abauj-Zemplen.

4. Millenary Benedictine Abbey of Pannonhalma and it’s Natural Environment – The first Benedictine Monks settled in Hungary in 996. The monks converted the Hungarians to Christianity, and founded the country’s first school. In 1055 the first document in Hungarian was written by the monks. Since its foundation this monastic community has been significant for promoting culture. The monastery has a 1000 year history. It is still houses a school and monastic community.

5. Hortobagy National Park – the Puszta – The park consists of a vast area of plains and wetlands in Eastern Hungary. The traditional forms of land use and grazing domestic animals have been present in this pastoral society for more than two thousand years. The Hungarian Puszta is a remarkable example of cultural landscapes shaped by a pastoral society.

6. Early Christian Necropolis of Pécs – Sopianae – A remarkable series of decorated tombs were constructed in the 4th century in the provincial town of Sopianae, which is now Pécs. The tombs are important structurally and architecturally, since they were built as underground burial chamber with memorial chapels above ground. The richly decorated tombs are decorated with high quality murals of Christian themes.

7. Fertő / Neusiedlersee Cultural Landscape - The Ferto – Neusiedler Lake area has served as a meeting place for different cultures for hundreds of years. The villages surrounding the lake and several 18th and 19th century places add to the beauty and cultural interest of the area: Botanic garden of Sopron, Arboretum of Pannonhalma and a Lime tree lane leading at Nagycenk are all part of this heritage.

8. Tokaj Wine Region Historic Cultural Landscape – The landscape demonstrates the long tradition of the region’s wine production. The region has low hills and river valleys with patterns of vineyards, farms villages and the small town of Tokaj itself. The historic networks of deep wine cellars illustrate every factor for the production of the famous Tokaj wines that is often called the “Gold of Tokaj”