Sopron
is cobbled streets and wine cellars
Welcome to Sopron
Hungary’s ‘most faithful city’ (a reference to a 1921 referendum when Sopron opted to stay part of Hungary rather than be absorbed into Austria) has been around for a while, first settled by the Celts, then the Romans (as a trading spot along the Amber Route from the Baltic Sea to the Adriatic and Byzantium), then a succession of Germans, Avars, Slavs and Magyars. In recent times, this little town also indirectly brought about the most dramatic event of the late 20th century – the fall of the Iron Curtain. Today it is the most beautiful town in western Hungary, its medieval Inner Town (Belváros) intact and its cobbled streets a pleasure to wander. And if that weren’t enough, it’s also famous for its wine, surrounded as it is by flourishing vineyards.
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Sopron activities
Vienna and Budapest Transfer with Wine, Sightseeing Tour
Start your transfer with a pickup from your hotel in central Budapest or Vienna. Meet your knowledgeable guide, and board your air-conditioned minivan.Your route snakes through the idyllic countryside of the Austro-Hungarian border, taking in the UNESCO-listed landscapes around Lake Neusiedl (Lake Ferto) and Hungary’s lovely Sopron and Austria’s Burgenland wine regions.Stop at two wineries — one in each region — to sample five to eight varietals of wine in each. In Sopron, wrap your taste buds around the local red wines and in Burgenland sample both reds and whites, perhaps including one of the local sweet botrytized wines, made from mold-affected grapes.Absorb the views over the reed-fringed Lake Neusiedl (Lake Ferto) and learn how this body of water — central Europe’s second-largest steppe lake — attracts hordes of storks in spring and summer.Stop in the Austrian lakefront town of Rust, and if you wish, enjoy free time to stroll around its pretty streets, bright-colored houses and wineries, perhaps seeing the summertime blackboards that record the numbers of visiting storks.Also, call at the historical Hungarian town of Sopron to admire its medieval, Baroque and Renaissance architecture, and visit the nearby Pan-European Picnic Park. Stretch your legs and learn how a peaceful 1989 demonstration here helped drive the fall of the Berlin Wall soon afterward.Spend time, too, in Eisenstadt, Burgenland’s capital and formerly home to Hungary’s noble Esterházy family. Enjoy some free time to stroll around the grounds of the family’s Baroque residence, the Esterházy Palace (Schloss Esterházy).Around midway through your journey, break for lunch (own expense) at a winery or Austrian buschenschank or heuriger. Venues vary, but expect to choose from dishes such as local cheese, wiener schnitzel (breaded veal) and fried chicken.Your tour ends with a drop-off at your hotel in either Vienna or Budapest.
Sopron the Jewel Box of Hungary Full-Day Trip
Sopron is konwn as the jewel box town of Hungary, the ’Hungarian town of fidelity’ locates at the western border of the country, at the foot of the Alps, and just 60 km from Vienna. The locals are famous for their hospitality and loyalty to their hometown. This fidelity is symbolized by the ’Gate of Faith’ placed on the Fire-watch Tower, one of the surviving old city gates. Sopron’s history dates back to the Romans, who built the first fortress here. Later on Sopron witnessed the stormy history of the Hungarian history, wars, parliament meetings, coronations of queens and kings, and the turmoils of the Great War. The city was always an important commercial center and a strategical point between two worlds, where in 1989 – first in Europe –finally also the famed Iron Curtain was opened. Another attraction of Sopron is the excellent mostly red wine of the region, coming from the sunny slopes around the city and can be tasted all over Sopron, but best is in the ’Healing Hole’, the oldest pub of Sopron. The curative and refreshing air of the natural environment makes Sopron also a climatic curative place. The Löverek, the hilly area south of the city, is the most fascinating and most distinguished area of the city. It offers calm forests with spruces, oaks and chestnuts, lilies of the valley and cyclamens, hiking paths and lookout towers. We visit the Old Town Square, Fire-watch Tower, Esterhazy Palace, Storno House, Colonel House, Gambrinus House, Goat Church and cloister, walking on the old city walls, and upon request taste some local wine.