Countryside Guides: Visegrád

It is no coincidence that the Romans, King Charles Robert (1307-42) and later the celebrated King Matthias Corvinus (1458-90) chose to put down roots in Visegrád. The town had a spectacular location on the Danube bend, it was close to the burgeoning cities of Pest and Buda, and was blessed with strategically important hills (Visegrad is a Slavic word meaning `high hill`). These are also the reasons tourists flock to the town every summer.

Today`s Visegrad not only boasts beautiful panoramas, it also offers dramatic ruins that reveal its former status at the very beating heart of Hungary. The first fortress was built in Visegrád in the mid 13th century when the town became Hungary`s capital for a brief period, before power eventually moved back down river to Buda. Nevertheless, Visegrád enjoyed its real golden era under the reign of Matthias Corvinus and Queen Beatrice whose revamp of the palace by Italian renaissance craftsmen was the envy of the courts of Europe. However, along came the Turks, launching the first of centuries of destructive sieges and the palace steadily deteriorated, eventually being razed completely. Architects only uncovered the remains of the original buildings in the 1930s.

Today, you can see the fruits of these excavations in the form of the Salomon Tower at the foot of the hill and the Royal Palace a little further inland. Continue on uphill to the Citadel and take in its impressive views of the sharpest turn in the Danube Bend, the town of Nagymaros and the Börzsöny Hills on the left bank of the river. The citadel, which dominates the crag today, has been reconstructed.

Another reason folk make it out to Visegrad is the summer bobsleigh course, which is actually a whole lot of fun all year round. The wooded hills that lend the town its pleasant backdrop are also popular among hikers and ramblers. Architecture buffs will be fascinated by the remarkable wooden buildings in the area designed by the controversial contemporary architect Imre Makovecz. Because of all this, Visegrád is considered, along with Esztergom and Szentendre, a must-visit for anyone spending more than a few days in the vicinity of the Hungarian capital.

Sue Healy
www.caboodle.hu - Monday, August 14, 2006