Vas

Vas County borders Burgenland and, for many Austrians, is the closest piece of Hungary. A vacation in Vas County means thermal baths in Bük and Sárvár, the medieval small town of Kőszeg, and the forested Őrség region.

Towns with a Long History

Szombathely, known in German as Steinamanger, is one of the oldest cities in Hungary: As Savaria, it was an important center of the Roman province of Pannonia and lay on the Amber Road. Remains from that era can be seen in the Garden of Ruins and the Temple of Isis, and the Baroque cathedral behind it is among the largest in the country. Kőszeg, known in German as Güns, lies at the foot of the Kőszeg Mountains and has an almost perfectly preserved old town; in 1532, a small garrison here held off the Ottoman army for weeks, possibly saving Vienna from an attack. To this day, the bells ring every day at 11 a.m. in remembrance. Sárvár, formerly Kotenburg, has a moated castle built by the Nádasdy family, and Bük, formerly Wichs, is a well-known spa town with its large thermal bath and golf courses. Ják, a few miles south of Szombathely, has one of the most important Romanesque churches in Hungary, its west portal decorated with 13th-century figures of the Apostles. Körmend on the Rába River has a castle of the Batthyány family set in an expansive park, and in Szombathely itself, the open-air museum by the boating lake is worth a visit, with farmhouses from western Transdanubia.

The Őrség

In the southwest, where Hungary meets Austria and Slovenia, lies the Őrség, a national park of pine and beech forests, meadows, and scattered settlements. Typical sights include the wooden bell towers and the potteries in Magyarszombatfa. Pumpkin seed oil is pressed here, and the inns serve millet porridge, mushrooms, and lard bread. The scattered hamlets, called szer, sit on hilltops between forests.

Getting There and Best Time to Visit

Szombathely is easily reached by train from Budapest and via border crossings from Burgenland. Because the thermal baths are open year-round, the county is also a good choice in winter; for hiking in the Őrség and for excursions to Kőszeg, the best time to visit is May through October.