Experience the best of Miskolc

Miskolc spreads along the Szinva stream at the edge of the Bükk hills, a former steel town that is now a regional centre for culture and the gateway to the uplands. Diósgyőr Castle, a fourteenth-century royal fortress with four corner towers, stands at the western edge of the city. Avas Hill rises above the centre, with its Gothic church and rows of wine cellars carved into the rock.

The spa district of Miskolctapolca has a thermal bath built in natural caves. In the Bükk, the resort of Lillafüred sits beside a lake with a waterfall, reached by a narrow-gauge forest railway, and a 1920s palace hotel overlooks the water. Eger with its castle, Tokaj with its sweet wines, and the caves of Aggtelek on the Slovak border are all within reach for longer outings.

Hungarian staples such as goulash, paprika stews and stuffed cabbage are served here, with pálinka, a fruit brandy, to end the meal. Wines come from Tokaj and Eger, including the red blend known as Bull's Blood. The beech forests of the Bükk turn copper in autumn.