Hungarian Great Plains Art Nouveau day trip from Budapest (9h)
From: 490 €
During this unique full day private tour by minivan you will discover the exceptional Hungarian Art Nouveau cities of Szeged and Kecskemét. These two art nouveau hidden gems are not usually found in the traditional itineraries but we consider them key to understand the history of art nouveau and a pleasure to visit. In Hungary Art Nouveau became known as Szeszeció (
We offer you the opportunity to visit these two art nouveau hidden gems in an exclusive tour that will allow you discover the Hungarian countryside. Some information about the two cities:
Kecskemét experienced strong growth around 1880, when its vineyards resisted a phylloxera attack thanks to its sandy soil. This is in contrast to what happened in the rest of the country, where the vines were devastated, as they were throughout most of Europe. The Town Hall was built between 1893 and 1897 to commemorate the thousand-year anniversary of the founding of the Hungarian State and was designed by Ödön Lechner and Gyula Pártos.
Szeged, located 174km away from Budapest and very near the Serbian border, suffered an art nouveau boom because of a natural disaster. They call it “The Big Water.” In spring 1879, a dike on the Tisza River burst, and the flood destroyed all but 300 houses in what was a prosperous town of 60,000 inhabitants. The city was almost entirely rebuilt over the next few years, resulting in a remarkably unified cityscape, a quilt of leafy squares and gracious ring boulevards that remains today.
Art nouveau had became a fashion all over in Europe in the early 1900’s. Of course not everywhere was able to create the same amount of architecture beauties, like in Vienna, or in Barcelona, however, citizens enjoyed the new style as much as they could afford it for themselves. Farther from the main capital areas, smaller cities towns also had their chances to make their city centers more beautiful with the new artistic examples that came from the big cities.
In Hungary Art Nouveau is called Secession. During this tour we will show you two cities in Southern Hungary, where the wealthy class of the society has used also its chance to show up t the world, beauty can hide in smaller details as well.
Departure time: from 8.30am to 10am. If you are interested in another starting time please Contact Us.
1 – 3 PAX = 490€
4 – 6 PAX = 710€
7 – 15 PAX =810€
+15 PAX – If your group is larger, please Contact Us for a quotation
For other departure times, group size, language or any customization to your experience, please Contact us by email. You can also WhatsApp/Call us at +34 667 823 001
Description
Itinerary – Kecksemét
You will start the day with a one hour drive to Kecskemét, a city that lies halfway between the capital of Hungary and Szeged. Once you get there, around its main square you will see some unique Art Nouveau buildings like the Town Hall and the Cifra Palace (also called Gaudí Palace because it resembles the works from Antoni Gaudí).
The historic city of Kecskemét became one of the European centers of wine industry at the end of the 19th Century. Because of the accumulation of capital, peasants began to adopt bourgeois customs and goods, stimulating trade in the town. Such regional wealth led to construction of new buildings in Secession style, Hungary’s Art nouveau.
Itinerary – Szeged
After this city private tour you will be driven to Szeged, where you will arrive one hour later and have lunch in an emblematic eatery and start our visit to the city. The fish restaurant is not Art Nouveau but sells typical Hungarian fish dishes.
Alternatively, we can go to have lunch at a local restaurant that is located in the main square in Szeged. It has a nice terrace with the view to some of the Art Nouveau buildings. Like this, you will be able to have the first views of the Art Nouveau heritage of the city.
Szeged, the third largest city of Hungary and the largest city and regional centre of the Southern Great Plain, is a hidden Art Nouveau gem. Your walking tour there will take a walk and explore many Art Nouveau buildings. Some of the architecture beauties that our guide will show you are Deutsch palace, Gróf palace, Móricz House, Reök Palace, Ungar, Mayer Palace, Marer House and Beregi House.
You will have real experiences that you can’t miss:
- Visit the impressive Synagogue of Szeged. The interior of the great dome (48,5 meters tall) is the work of the artist Miksa Róth. The only days that this visit won’t be possible is on Saturdays, or on Jewish festivals,
- Climb the stairs to the top of a Water tower (54,9 meters tall) built in 1904 which still has the same use of providing water to the city,
- Enter to a private lobby of a residential house with a private elevator from the year 1900 that you will be able to use, and
- Other views that only the best local guide can offer you.
During the afternoon if you feel like a coffee we can stop in a nice café opposite of the Unger-Mayer palace.
As you will discover during our tour, the city center has beautiful buildings and wide avenues. This is mainly due to the great flood of 1879, which literally wiped away the whole town. Emperor Franz Joseph visited the town and promised that “Szeged will be more beautiful than it used to be”. During the next years a new, modern city emerged from the ruins, with palaces and wide streets.
Pickup & Drop Off
Private tour can start either in Budapest or Szeged. Tell us when booking.
Our private guides, licensed guides and Art Nouveau experts from Budapest and Szeged, will pick you up in your Budapest or Szeged hotel, accompanied by a car/minivan with a driver. We can also pick your group up in the airport or train station if this is what you want.
Inclusions
Please note that the your group interests, varying opening hours of some buildings, some covid rules and weather conditions may affect the final itinerary of your private art nouveau experience.
Professional fully licensed guiding service, pick up at your hotel, car/minivan with a driver, motorway toll, petrol.
Luxury transport.
Take into account that the driving times may vary according to traffic.
Difficulties to access some art nouveau buildings
Unpredictable opening times of some buildings, renonvation projects, some covid rules and weather conditions may affect the final itinerary of your private art nouveau experience.
Exclusions
Entrance to the museums. Your interests will determine the museums included in the tour because our tour guide will adapt the itinerary to your interests. The entrance fee for the following buildings is:
- Cifra Palace in Kecskemét (to see ticket prices CLICK HERE)
- Synagogue in Szeged (to see ticket prices CLICK HERE). It is open from Sunday to Friday, except on on Jewish festivals
- Reök Palace in Szeged (to see ticket prices CLICK HERE). The main art nouveau attractions are the exterior and the main staircase and its interior rooms.
- Water tower in Szeged (to see ticket prices CLICK HERE)
Food and drinks.
Payment
Hungarian Florint is the currency in Hungary, but private tour price is in euros. Payment as follows:
- Pay deposit now. If possible, by direct bank transfer. If you prefer by PayPal/Credit card, these payment methods are also available
- Pay the rest in cash to our guide on the day of the tour
Additional Info
Cifra Palace is closed on Mondays and the Water tower is closed on Sundays. Your private tour will make all the best to adjust the itinerary so you can visit the inside of the three places taking into account the different opening hours of the Synagogue, Cifra and Reök Palaces and the Water tower.
Tour takes place even when the weather is not good.
If you stay in or near Szeged you can enjoy the best Art Nouveau private tour in the city on a Half day (4-hours) private tour starting and ending in Szeged CLICK HERE for more information about this alternative private tour.
CLICK HERE to discover all our offer of Art Nouveau Private tours in Budapest and Hungary, both walking and by car/minivan.
Cancellation Policy
Cancellations more then a week in advance only administration costs of 15%
Cancellation between a week and 48 hours prior to departure date: 50% of the total amount
Cancellation less than 48 hours prior to departure date : 100% of the total amount
No show: no restitution.
Transport – Luxury transport similar to the ones pictured below:
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