Things to do in Ászár - Wine, Mountains, Hicking, Folklore, Relax

Things to see

Ászár

Ászár – located in the “gates” of the Bakony mountains -, and its surroundings offer entertainment for everybody, for those who are looking for a quite, relaxation time, as well as, for those, who prefer active recreation. Those who are interested in wine can visit any of the numerous wine cellars in the region. They can start with the wine cellars in and around Ászár, or they can go north to the wine cellars of Neszmély, or to the south-east direction towards the Mór wine region. For those who prefer the nature the nearby Bakony mountains offer numerous hiking trails. While for those who prefer culture, historical sights or monuments Ászár and the nearby Kisbér, Csatka, Jásd or Tés provide numerous things to see.

ÁSZÁR-NESZMÉLY WINE REGION

The historical Ászár wine region (currently part of the Ászár-Neszmély wine region) lies at the northern gate of the Bakony Mountains. It’s been a well established wine region with a long history going back to medieval times. In the second half of 19th century, during the Eszterházy Csákvári lordship, the wine production blossomed, and as a result the wines of the region gained country-wide and even foreign popularity. After a difficult span in the 20th century, in recent decades, the modernization of vine production has resulted in a significant increase in the quality of wine putting back Ászár on the wine-map of Hungary.

history of the region

Bakony Mountains

Bakony is a mountainous region in Transdanubia, located north of Lake Balaton and lies almost entirely in Veszprém county. Limestone and dolomite constitute most of the Bakony, which range from 700 to 2,300 feet (210 to 700 meters). Ászár and it’s surroundings are often called the “gates” of Bakony since they lie just north of Bakony, while Vértes another north-western mountain range is also only a few kilometers away. Both mountain ranges offer a wide variety of tracking, hiking routes ranging from scenic routes and popular paths to more challenging terrain.

house of JÁSZAI MARI

The permanent exhibition, which keeps the memory of Mari Jászai,the most famous Hungarian actresses of the second part of the 19th and early 20th century, was opened in her birth house in 1976. With her own words: “In 1850 I was forced to come to this land in this harsh form that I am.” The renovated building and expanded exhibition was opened on the 13th of April in 2006, 105 years ago, on that day, she was awarded the perpetual membership of the National Theater. In two of the three rooms typical objects of village life are on display, while in the third room the visitor can get acquainted with the most important stages of the rich life of Mari Jászai.

ÁSZÁR MINI SKANZEN

The mini-scanzen was built on the square next to the Jászai Mari Memorial House in Ászár onn a green area of almost one hundred and fifty square meters. Using twenty-two building mock-ups (replicas) it presents the folk architecture of Transdanubia and the Bakony region. The twenty-two buildings, include residential houses, a windmill, a blacksmith, a church, a reduced replica of the church.

CSATKA

One the 8th of September, on “Kisasszony” Day the village of Csatka livens up. On this day the chapel and the pilgrimage place, that attracts visitors throughout the year, acts as a place of the Csatka Gypsy farewell. Gypsies arrive from a number of countries, to honor the statue of Mary in the chapel, and pay their respect in the memory of the departed family members. On this day there are several masses held in the Lovari Gipsy language.

Chapel in jásd

The chapel was built by Count István Zichy in 1837 to replace the old wooden chapel. Inside, there are frescoes of Keszthely Gyula. The Holy Well of Jasd was first mentioned in 1814, and the current, Baroque-Rococo style chapel was built between 1825-37 in the place of the former wooden chapel. The Christian Holy Well is more than 600 years old, one of the oldest pilgrimage places in Hungary. The 6 meter high statue of Mary is made of Bulgarian limestone, created by sculptor János Braun. The additions,that include the Calvary and the Opposing Altar were made between 1961 and 1980.

water mill in jásd

Also in Jásd you can find a 100-year-old watermill that was still functional in the early 1970s. Most of the mechanisms can be seen in their original form, only the mill wheel was replaced.

TÉS

In the past the village of Tés used to have four windmills. Today only one is still functional: the Helt windmill, which was built in 1840 by János Pircher miller. The mill milled grain until the end of the 1950s.

About two hundred meters away there’s also the restored Ozi mill built by János Ozi in 1924. The structure of the mill is the same, the difference is that there are only 1 pair of stones in the Ozi mill. Today both mills are folk monuments, and operate as a museums.

mini-hungary in kisbér

In the Mini-Hungary park in Kisbér visitors can see real-life models of famous Hungarian buildings such as the Szeged Cathedral, the Cifra-Palace in Kecskemét, the Eger Castle, the Sopron Fire Tower, the Abbey of Tihany or the Hortobágy Nine-Hole Bridge. Beside these there’s a number of region and the county, such as the Esztergom Basilica, the Tatabánya Market Square or the Tata Castle.