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  • View of Debrecen

    Do & See

    Debrecen

Provided by: Istvan Csak/Shutterstock.com

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Europe Hungary Debrecen Do & See
Do & See The guide was updated:
You will never completely take in Debrecen unless you climb the tower of Reformed Big Church, or try to lift a “gerundium” at the Reformed College. You must see the “lícium tree,” probably the humblest symbol of the Reformed faith, as well as St. Anne’s Cathedral, seat of the Catholic Bishop, based, ironically enough, in “Calvinist Rome.” True, you can get insights into Debrecen’s past and form predictions about its future strolling in the city’s streets and squares at your leisure. However, you won’t see the whole picture until you check out the excellent exhibits at Tímárház, the Déri Museum, Medgyessy Ferenc Memorial Museum or Modem Museum of Modern & Contemporary Art. Don’t let these adventures into the realms of history and art prevent you from tasting a nice plate of Debrecen double sausage. Have you explored the historic city center, discovered the Big Market, and mapped the small downtown piazzas, whiled away some time on the terraces and at Roncs Bar? Why don’t you kick back and enjoy the pleasures of Big Forest? Pamper yourself at Aquaticum Pleasure Bath, relax at the Spa, or go for a swim at Debrecen Swimming Complex, the main venue of 2012 European Swimming Championships. Take a stroll in Nagyerdei Park, which was completely redesigned in 2014. Check out the walkways dotted with spectacular water attractions. Try some of the rides at Nagyerdei Theme Park, or sign up for fun classes at Agora Scientific Adventure Center, located on UD’s campus. Round off you sightseeing tour with a mouthwatering dinner at a fine-dining restaurant, a show at Csokonai National Theater, or a classical music concert by Kodály Philharmonic Orchestra. Sports junkies can also get their adrenaline rush by rooting for local soccer heroes at Nagyerdei Arena, while young folks can have a great time in the country’s biggest club, the Hall.
Reformed Big Church

Reformed Big Church

Debrecen’s symbol is one of the nation’s largest Reformed churches, a building of major historic significance. It was here that Lajos Kossuth read out the Declaration of Independence on April 14, 1849. The wing chair used by the Regent-President on that glorious occasion is one of the church’s most precious relics. The main structure has been rebuilt several times. Today’s familiar Classicist form was developed after the great fire of 1802. You can enjoy magnificent views of the city from the top of the towers, or the steel bridge behind the tympanum. If you are courageous enough to attempt the steep climb up, your added bonus will be a spectacular close-up of the 5.6-ton Rákóczi Bell. In addition to regular services, exhibits of religious history, organ concerts and other musical events are also on the schedule. The church has held the status of national monument since 2013.
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Museum of Debrecen Reformed College

Museum of Debrecen Reformed College

Having functioned continuously as an educational institution since its establishment in 1538, the college is the cradle of Hungarian civilization. It features a museum that has permanent exhibits displaying the school’s history, student life. Your visit here will help you understand why Debrecen became the most important bastion of the Reformed faith in Hungary. Bedecked with majestic murals, the building’s stairwell leads to the entrance of the gigantic library storing more than 600,000 volumes
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Déri Museum

Déri Museum

The Déri Museum is one of Hungary’s foremost establishments of its kind. It has become renowned for the huge collection of items, brought together by Frigyes Déri, which represents various aspects of universal human civilization. One of the museum’s main attractions is the awe-inspiring “Ecce Homo” painted by Mihály Munkácsy. The group of four statues by Ferenc Medgyessy, erected outside the main building, was awarded the Grand Prize at the 1937 Paris Exposition.
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Aquaticum Spa

Aquaticum Spa

Located in an area of scenic beauty in Big Forest, the spa complex offers an entire unit of medical facilities and a wide range of specialist consultations to guests who seek regeneration, healing, or relaxation. Your comfort and enjoyment will be guaranteed by the attractions of the Thermal Bath, the Indoor Mediterranean Pleasure Bath, “water-chute park,” wellness center as well as the “sauna world.” All this in an area of natural beauty set aside for public recreational use.
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Synagogues

Synagogues

Debrecen Jewish Congregation is Hungary’s largest Israelite community outside the capital. The older of Debrecen’s two surviving synagogues, the Orthodox synagogue was built in Pásti Street in the early 1880s. In 2015, a tourist and cultural center will open there to display the history of Debrecen’s Jewish community, its life, faith and traditions. Erected in 1909 in Kápolnás Street, the synagogue “status quo ante” shares a plot with the former Jewish High School (now Youth Center).
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Piac Street and Kossuth Square

Piac Street and Kossuth Square

Debrecen’s Main Street - Piac Street - was the proud venue of the famous town fairs for 300 years starting in the 16th century. Today’s cityscape, however, is defined by the former merchant houses erected at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. The pink office building of Debrecen’s First Savings Bank (on the corner of Kossuth Street) and the twin tenement blocks with the copper spires (on the corner of Simonffy Street) spectacularly stand out against the background of slightly gaudy downtown houses. Number 54 is occupied by Debrecen’s most beautiful Art Nouveau building now functioning as County Hall. Debrecen’s Main Street was suitable for traffic for two centuries thanks to a 650-meter-long and 6 to 7-meter wide elevated wooden walkway erected in the 1600s. A small section of the ancient “mud bridge,” now on display outside Hotel Aranybika, is a peerless archeological relic. Debrecen’s Main Square - Kossuth Square - features the iconic group of statues erected to commemorate Lajos Kossuth, the huge mosaic depicting the city’s coat of arms, made by placing together 180,000 pieces of Venetian glass, the Millennial Fountain as well as the Art Nouveau building of Hotel Aranybika. The extended walking zone that includes the square is the venue of countless summer cultural events such as the Turkey Days and Flower Parade. This is also where the city’s Christmas tree is placed at the beginning of the festive season.
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Csapó Street

Csapó Street

One of Debrecen’s oldest streets is named after fullers and other practitioners of the wool trade who inhabited these quarters in the 15th century. The section closest to downtown is a popular shopping street and pedestrian zone. The neighborhood includes the Big Market, Flower Market, the Fórum Shopping Mall, the City Music School as well as several watering holes including Debrecen’s first “ruin pub”, the Roncs Bar. Another attractive feature is the spectacular fountain display.
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Nagyerdei Park

Nagyerdei Park

All great cities can be identified by famous parks. In the case of Debrecen, this is called Nagyerdei Park Forest, the nation’s first conservation area. Only a ten-minute ride from downtown, the park offers total peace and quiet in the shade of hundred-year-old trees as well as countless entertainment options. You will definitely enjoy negotiating the meandering footpaths, designed by landscape architects, no matter if you explore the secrets of the woods on your own or with kids in tow. Your ventures along the trails will be made even more fun thanks to the Landart pieces, which make use of the forms and “props” of their natural environment to provide unique visual input. Should you have overexerted yourself through walking, check out the nearby spa center, zoo, amusement park, or “literary” statue park for different kinds of entertainment. Or contemplate the novel architectural techniques applied to the building of the brand new, multifunctional Nagyerdei Stadium, which smoothly cuddles up to its leafy surroundings. In the immediate vicinity, a one-of-a-kind attraction beckons from spring through fall. The “Mist Theatre” boasts a 10-m-high curtain of water which can be used as a functional movie screen. It may provide a bonus show after you watched a less ethereal theatrical or musical performance at the nearby amphitheater.
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Nagyerdei Water Tower

Nagyerdei Water Tower

The newest attraction of the park is the Water Tower Adventure Center. It promises to be home to a whole cornucopia of entertainment options from spring through fall. Not only will its 31-m-high observation point give fantastic views of the surrounding area. Nourish your mind and body, respectively, at the permanent exhibitions and eateries. If you crave some physical exercise, check out the climbing wall built in the tower’s structure. The day’s adventures will culminate in the night light show
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Main Building of the University of Debrecen

Main Building of the University of Debrecen

UD is one of the nation’s five research universities. The glass-ceilinged cour d’honneur of the main edifice, built in Eclectic and Neo-Baroque style, is skirted by an arcaded corridor system, whose walls are inscribed with the names of the school’s most renowned professors and former students. The fountain in the spacious French-style park in front of the building plays a special role in student tradition: Graduates are supposed to take a plunge in its pool after their finals.
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Bánk Recreation Center and Arboretum

Bánk Recreation Center and Arboretum

The center’s exhibit house and arboretum give fascinating insights into the flora of the surrounding area as well as the entire Central Europe, and the life of the “vákáncsos,” impoverished peasants who lived rough in the woods. You can also take a pleasant stroll along the trail called Trees of the Year, or in the adjoining exhibit farm. More recreation and entertainment options are available at the “fun village,” historical exhibition and the rustic open-air activity house.
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Nagyerdei Stadium

Nagyerdei Stadium

Boasting a seating capacity of 20,000, the multifunctional compound serves as a sumptuous venue of sporting events, training sessions as well as concerts and other programs of cultural interest. Its unique architectural features include the spectacular “suspension sidewalk.” Complete with a running track, the 1,100-m-long structure skirts the entire stadium building at an average height of 7 meters. This will make joggers feel that they do laps in the leafy canopy of the park.
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