If you have been to Brussels you might know the Mini-Europe. But, have you ever been to Mini-Hungary in Szarvas in Hungary? I recently went there and it was great!
The official name of Mini-Hungary is Mini Magyarorszag. This is a small park inside the big Arboretum (Botanical garden) in Szarvas. The city of Szarvas is located about 160km from Budapest and if you go there by car you should expect the travel to take around 2 hours, whereof half is spent on highway, while the rest is spent on not the best roads ever. This is a very nice day excursion possibility from Budapest, and if you have some more time then you should consider one of the following programs in addition to your visit to Szarvas:
- Stop in Kecskemet to discover the city.
- Stop in Cserkeszölő to go for a swim in the fantastic hot springs.
As we arrived to Szarvas we were hungry, and therefore our first stop was in the Halaszcsarda Vendeglo. This was a nice restaurant with nice prices. They had lots of fish on their menu, but other traditional Hungarian courses as well. The Veal stew with noodles and the Beef pörkölt with noodles were our favorites, while the local specialty Croquettes of Szarvas was a bit boring.
After finishing our lunch we jumped back into the car and went directly to the Arboretum in Szarvas. We bought combined tickets which included both the Arboretum and the Mini-Magyarorszag. The price was 1900 HUF for adults, while the single ticket would have costed 1200 HUF if we only entered into either the arboretum or the Mini Hungary exhibition.
Visiting Mini-Hungary in Szarvas
Mini Hungary was a very nice exhibition and they said that the average visitor normally spend around one hour visiting this place. Our kids loved running around in here and spent more than one hour doing so. They were not so enthusiastic about the buildings, but much more about the trains running around and stopping at the different stations. Notice that the trains are only running on days with nice weather, so visit the place in nice weather! 🙂
The buildings you could watch were a nice mixture of beautiful buildings that belonged to Hungary before 1920, and of those in areas still belonging to Hungary today. The miniatures were faithful to both the present and the past, and it was a very nice way to see some of the most beautiful architectural masterpieces in Hungary.
The trains in Mini Magyarorszag are a real treat for kids!
I have been to Mini-Europe in Brussels as well, and to be honest, I enjoyed the Mini-Hungary in Szarvas just as much. Have you been to both places? Which was your favorite?
Here you can see the Chain Bridge in Budapest with the Parliament in the background
Visiting the Arboretum in Szarvas
The Arboretum (botanical garden) was beautiful as well. It was not as big as some of the other botanical gardens I have been to in Hungary, but it had a magical atmosphere to it. Since it was autumn the leaves at the trees (or in the grass) had lots of colors and when some peacocks came walking around that just spiced up the entire visit. In addition to peacocks walking freely around there are also emu’s in the arboretum which you can watch as you go to their location.
If you do not have so much time you can spend only one hour in the arboretum. But, if you are interested and want to read the names of the trees, take a small trip on the lake or just lie down in the grass, then the trip to the arboretum in Szarvas can be a program lasting many hours.
Want to see even more. Why not travel on to Gyula?
If you have been to Szarvas, eaten some food, been to the arboretum and Mini Magyarorszag and want to see even more, then there are several other places to go afterward. Why not jump in the car and drive more and end up in Gyula. That city is close to the Romanian border and it is a beautiful city with a castle, thermal springs and lots of attractions to see. Another city nearby is Szeged. That is one of my favorite cities in Hungary, so I am sure you will be pleased as you visit that city.
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