All of Hungary
🐎
Hungary / Eger & the Great Plain / Hortobágy

Hortobágy

Horsemen, Grey Cattle and the Open Puszta

Plan this trip
1 dayIdeal stay₹5,350From / night₹2,520Food / day₹1,930Entry

Hungary's first national park and a UNESCO site: the largest natural grassland in Central Europe, the puszta of the Great Plain, grazed by long-horned grey cattle, curly racka sheep and water buffalo. In the warmer months horse-drawn carriages take visitors onto the plain to watch csikós horsemen ride standing on two horses; the Nine-Arch Bridge, the old coaching inn (csárda) and a shepherds' museum are in the village. In autumn tens of thousands of cranes stop over at the fishponds. Reached by train through Füzesabony or Debrecen (2.5-3 hours from Budapest, some local trains replaced by buses) or by car; Debrecen, Hungary's second city with its great Reformed church, is 40 km east and has the nearest airport.

Highlights

  • Csikós horsemen riding standing on two horses
  • Grey cattle, racka sheep and water buffalo
  • The Nine-Arch Bridge
  • Carriage tours on the open puszta
  • Autumn crane migration at the fishponds
  • Debrecen's Great Reformed Church

Things to do

  • Carriage tour of the puszta with a csikós horse showApr–OctMorning · 3h
  • Nine-Arch Bridge and the Hortobágy CsárdaAfternoon · 1h 30m
  • Puszta Animal Park: grey cattle, racka sheep and water buffaloAfternoon · 1h 30m
  • Birdwatching walk at the Hortobágy fishponds (cranes in autumn)Morning · 3h
  • Shepherds' Museum and the craft yardAfternoon · 1h
  • Debrecen: the Great Reformed Church and the Déri MuseumAfternoon · 3h

Tours & tickets

Tours & tickets in Hortobágyvia GetYourGuideTours & tickets in Hortobágyvia Klook

Tourisma may earn a small commission if you book — it never changes your price.

When to go

Best time: April – October

Heads up

Summer Heat

July and August can bring heatwaves above 35 °C, when Hungary issues heat alerts. Sightsee in the morning and evening, carry water (tap water is safe), and save the midday for a thermal bath, a museum or a shaded park.

Worth knowing

No Puszta Shows in Winter

The carriage tours onto the puszta and the csikós horse shows run about April to October. In winter the plain and the village are open, but the shows, the animal park and some museums are closed or on short hours, and local trains are few: a day trip may not be worth it.

  • Hortobágy Bridge Fair — A craft and livestock fair by the Nine-Arch Bridge around 20 August, with herdsmen's shows, folk music and food stalls.
  • Crane migration — Tens of thousands of common cranes stop over on the Hortobágy fishponds in October and November; at dusk they fly in to roost. Guided evening walks run from the village.