Two/thirds of Hungary is less than 200 metres above sea level. The almost treeless Hungarian puszta (another name of the Great Plain) between the Danube and Romanian border is a forerunner of the Ukrainian steppes. Lake Balaton, covering 598 sq. km between the Danube and Austria, reaches only 11.5 metres at its deepest point south of Tihany. The lake’s average depth is two to three metres, and the waters warm up quickly in summer.

Hungary is home to more than 2000 flowering plant species, many of which are not normally found at this latitude. There are a lot of common European animals here (deer, wild hare, boar, otter) as well as some rare species (wild cat, lake bat, Pannonian lizard), but three-quarters of the country’s 450 vertebrates are birds, especially waterfowl attracted by the rivers, lakes and wetlands.

There are five national park in Hungary. The two on the Great Plain – Hortobagy and Kiskunsag – protect the wildlife and the fragile wetlands, marsh and saline grasslands of the open puszta. Two more are in the north: the almost completely wooded Bukk Hills and the Aggtelek region with its extensive system of karst caves. The smallest park is at Lake Ferto on the Austrian border.

Visit the Hungarian Puszta on a day tour from Budapest!