Debrecen is the second largest city in Hungary. Among our tourists, it is far from being as popular as Budapest, but it also has its charms. People come here to relax from the hustle and bustle and improve their health at the thermal springs.
Debrecen
By European standards, Debrecen in Hungary is a fairly large city. About 200 thousand people live in it. According to one version, its name translates as "good use", according to another - it comes from the Slavic word "Dobrochin".
It was first mentioned in 1235, but, in fact, the city is much older. In the XV century, it became a developed shopping center. Markets were organized here, fairs were held. In the XIX century, the city was at the center of the Hungarian revolution, in fact, turned into the capital of the state. Its inhabitants remember the story and are always proud to have been born in Debrecen in Hungary.
Reviews from tourists are also positive. The city leaves a pleasant feeling and hospitably welcomes visitors. Debrecen is located 215 kilometers from Budapest. A highway and a railway pass through it, connecting the capital of Hungary and the Ukrainian cities of Chop and Uzhgorod. It is also associated with the Romanian city of Oradea.
It can also be called the "capital of Hungarian football." The local football club Debrecen is the strongest in the country. He repeatedly participated in European cups and six times in a row (from 2005 to 2010) became the champion of Hungary.
Sights of Debrecen
Hungary experienced many turbulent historical events, of which Debrecen became a part. During World War II, half of the city was destroyed to the ground. But some architectural monuments, nevertheless, survived.
There are several interesting objects in Debrecen in Hungary, for example, the City University, the Red Church, the Reformed Cathedral, the Big Forest Park, the building of the Golden Bull Hotel. A gloomy, but no less worthy place, is a public cemetery, which is rather a sculpture park. You can get acquainted with historical architecture by walking along the Market Street, Bösörmeni and other central arteries.
You can stay in the city at one of the hotels. There are a lot of them in Debrecen in Hungary, and most of them are kept at a high level. One of these places is considered to be the Wellness Hotel, which is located right next to the baths and the water park. Divinus, Gondola, Villa Hotel, Lycium Debrecen have long earned a reputation for upscale hotels. More budget hotels are Korona, Izabella Panzio, Peterfia Panzio, Aranybika, KLK Hotel.
Thermal baths
The main reason people visit Debrecen in Hungary is because of the thermal springs. Baths "Nadierde" in the "Great Forest". The first of them was founded in 1826. They are part of the huge complex "Aquaticum".
There are thermal pools, steam rooms, cave baths and corridors with currents. The complex is interesting not only for adults, but also for children. It has a water park with a dozen slides and children's pools. For adults, massage rooms and a jacuzzi are available.
Local water contains chlorine, bromine, sodium, iron, calcium, metaboric and metasilicic acid, iodides, sulfates, phosphates and other substances. The water temperature is +63 degrees. In the baths they treat neuralgia, diseases of the joints and spine, paralysis, respiratory diseases and disorders in the female reproductive system, ankylosing spondylitis.
Reformed Church
The Great or Reformed Church is one of the main attractions of Debrecen. In Hungary, she is known for the fact that it was in her in 1849 that the revolutionary Lajos Kossuth declared the independence of the country. The chair in which he read the declaration is still in the cathedral.
The style of the church combines several styles. The first two floors are made in strict classicism with a wide gable and ionic columns. Above them rise two symmetrical baroque towers. They rise 60 meters in height. The large Debrecen Cathedral accommodates about 5 thousand people and is the largest Protestant temple in the country.
University of Debrecen
The University of Debrecen in Hungary is the largest in the city and one of the leading in the country. More than 30 thousand students are studying in it, not only from Hungary, but also from other countries of the world. The university has a faculty of computer science, medicine, art, natural sciences, sports, law, agriculture and the humanities.
It was founded in 1538 as a Calvinist college. He became a higher educational institution only in the 20th century. The main building looks reserved and at the same time magnificent, which reminds the palace. This is a gray building with a red roof, next to which is a botanical garden. The territory in front of the main entrance is decorated with alleys, flowerbeds and fountains. Anyone can walk here, but inside the building the entrance is open only on weekdays from 9 to 13 hours.
Khortobad National Park
40 kilometers from the city is the largest national park in Hungary. Khortobad is 820 km 2 of flat steppes and salt marshes. Since ancient times, local residents used its territory for grazing, and during the Soviet period 12 concentration camps were located here.
Now the park is a world cultural heritage and is under the protection of UNESCO. Buffaloes, goats, sheep, Hungarian bulls and many birds live in it. In summer, the weather in the park is dry and hot, so tornadoes and mirages can often be observed in it.
In 1883, a long bridge with nine arches, stretching over 167 meters, was built over one of its swamps. Next to it is an inn. It was founded three hundred years ago, when the Salt Road from Buda to Transylvania ran through this area. Now they have done an ethnographic exhibition.