Home > Trips > Wine and Food in the Northeastern Volcanic Hills of Hungary – Tokaj, Eger, Mátra, and Bükk
Wine and Food in the Northeastern Volcanic Hills of Hungary – Tokaj, Eger, Mátra, and Bükk
SEPTEMBER 5-13, 2026
Hungary is blessed with many characteristics that make it a special wine destination: deliciously distinct wines, indigenous grapes unique to this part of the world, and thousand year long traditions. The northeastern wine regions—Mátra, Bükk, Eger, and Tokaj—are special for many reasons, including for their layers of volcanic soil composed of mostly rhyolite tuff stone, resulting from the volcanoes that were active here millions of years ago.
These regions are fascinating to explore, with the roots of the vines running deep into this soil, producing high-quality, complex, acid-driven wines. We will also get acquainted with the history, which also runs deep here. In Eger we’ll visit the castle, where the residents defended the city against the Ottomans, as well as other buildings which date to the Ottoman occupation of the town in the 16th century. The Tokaj region has historically been at the crossroads of east and west, and it has a rich history of Jewish wine merchants and winemakers.
The regions are defined by the family-run wineries (we will visit several of them), whose hospitality is legendary. We’ll wander in stunningly beautiful vineyards, sip wine drawn from the barrels lining cellar caves that have been hand-carved into the volcanic rock, and explore countryside life in small towns and villages. And, of course, we’ll eat like kings. We’ll have our welcome and farewell feasts in Budapest, and elsewhere we’ll enjoy meals prepared by winemakers, we’ll cook outdoors in our cauldron over an open fire, and we’ll sample some of the fine traditional restaurants in the countryside.
Trip Highlights
What’s included?
What’s not included?
Why Travel with Us?
Since 2008, when we founded Taste Hungary, we’ve been immersed in Hungary’s food and wines, falling ever hopelessly in love with the delicious and varied wines, old kitchen traditions, and more modern culinary innovations. Through our immersive trips, we bring small groups of curious travelers along with us on deep and personal explorations of our favorite and most meaningful places. These trips are the result of everything we’ve learned and experienced over the past few decades of our life in Hungary, and we are proud to share them with our guests. These are trips for food and wine-loving travelers who would like to travel more slowly, quietly, and with deeper intention. We’ll take you behind the scenes to meet the food producers, farmers, and winemakers who we have gotten to know over the past few decades. Our favorite part? The time we spend sitting around a table, eating well, sharing delicious wines, and making lasting memories. We do all of the planning and organizing, all you need to do is shop up with curiosity (and an appetite). We hope you’ll join us for an adventure!
We are especially excited about this particular trip, since the Tokaj region is our second home away from Budapest. We’ll show you our favorite parts of this unspoiled and historic region, host you for some cooking adventures at our country home, and welcome you into our own wine cellar, where you’ll make yourself at home amongst our barrels and tanks full of Furmint and Hárslevelű! Our favorite part? The time we will spend sitting around a table, eating well, sharing delicious wines, and making lasting memories. We hope you’ll join us for an adventure!
Day by Day Itinerary
Day One: Budapest – Arrival, Danube Cruise & Welcome Dinner
SEPTEMBER 5
After settling into your hotel—located in the heart of town, on one of Budapest’s most stunning avenues—we’ll gather in the afternoon for a welcome drink at a nearby rooftop bar. After introductions and discussing the plan for the coming week, we’ll stroll over to the Danube where we will meet our captain for a private river cruise (accompanied by some fine local sparkling wine) to get a feel for the city.
From there, we’ll head to the Palace District for a private welcome dinner at the Tasting Table, our own wine cellar. Over the course of dinner we’ll open a bunch of wines from regions that we will not be visiting on the tour, so you can begin your crash course in the wines of Hungary. The menu will be centered around the lovely and tasty Mangalica, Hungary’s very special indigenous pig.
Overnight in Budapest.
Day Two: The Mountains of Mátra
SEPTEMBER 6
Today we’ll depart from Budapest and head straight to the Mátra wine region. Just a short drive from Budapest, this is Hungary’s second largest wine region, and a relatively hidden treasure. It’s a diverse area with volcanic soil that produces both whites and reds. It’s one of the country’s hotspots for natural and organic wines. In a country full of “emerging” wine regions, Mátra is one of the most exciting for us locals.
It’s a region full of small wineries, spirited wines, and innovative newcomers working in old cellars. A wide variety of grapes are grown here, but Kékfrankos, Cabernet Franc, Irsai Olivér, Chardonnay, and Pinot Gris are the most common. Today we’ll visit two small wine producers to tour their wineries, check out their vineyards, and taste their wines. Lunch will be home-cooked at one of the wineries. In the evening we’ll head to Eger, in time for a sunset stroll around the historic town center. Dinner will be at a restaurant awarded the Michelin Bib Gourmand rating. Of course, we’ll taste some Eger wines with dinner!
Overnight in Eger.
“The trips that we have taken with you have been the best wine experiences that we’ve taken. We have been in many cellars, seen our share of barrels and tanks, and listened to dozens of winemakers tell us why their methods are the best. There is something magical that happens when a winemaker invites you into his kitchen or dining room to share his wine and home cooking with you.
Wayne (USA)
We talk to friends about your tours all the time. The personal touches that you and the winemakers show your guests are astounding. Meeting the whole family behind the wine is something that I’ll never forget. I’ve been with you on a few day trips from Budapest, and I’ve only been in one architect inspired tasting room, and that was an extra stop our driver added. All the others have been in homes or cellars WITH the winemakers, not someone who was hired to deal with the annoying tourists.
To anyone contemplating taking this tour, don’t hesitate. Sign up for a special time with knowledgeable guides that always make it personal and educational. The passion of your staff is among the most intense I have seen.”
Day Three: The Legends and Wines of Eger
SEPTEMBER 7
Our singular goal today is to get to know Eger, one of Hungary’s most renowned historical wine regions. Eger is one of the few regions that produces both excellent reds and whites. In fact, it was better known for its white wines in the past, even though it is now increasingly dominated by reds. The region is sometimes compared to Burgundy, since its wines possess great poise, elegance, and acidity. And like Burgundy, Eger’s wines reflect individual vineyard terroirs. We’ll start the morning with a walk in the beautiful old city center. Overlooked by a castle, this is the site of many legends, and it plays a major role in the story of how Egri Bikavér (Bull’s Blood) got its name.
Next, we’ll visit a boutique winery for a tour of the vineyards and a tasting in the cellar. Then we’ll head to a larger family-run estate in a neighboring village, where we will also enjoy lunch. Lunch will be a feast prepared in a traditional brick oven (a kemence) by the proprietor, served with their wines. After lunch we’ll tour the stunning cellar. From there, we’ll visit a nearby cheesemaker who produces some of the country’s finest cheese. After some down time, we’ll meet again in the evening to explore the picturesque traditional cellars in the Szépasszonyvölgye. Here we can casually taste some wine and homemade snacks from smaller cellars.
Overnight in Eger.
Day Four: One Day, Three Regions: Eger, Bükk, & Tokaj
SEPTEMBER 8
After spending the morning in Eger visiting an exciting small family winery, we’ll head into the more off-the-beaten path wilds of the Bükk region. We’ll start with lunch at a restaurant located in a former abandoned village pub. Brought back to life by a chef couple who worked in fine restaurants all over Hungary, the place has become a destination in this mostly remote region. The restaurant defines its philosophy as “ingredient cuisine,” so we’ll really taste the spoils of this lush region on our lunch plates. With lunch, we’ll taste some wines from the best producers of the region, which is defined by its scattered small family estates, many of which do not sell their wine commercially.
En-route to Tokaj we’ll make a stop in the largest city in the region—Miskolc, a former mining town—to explore the wonderful food market (and to pick up some ingredients for meals we will cook together in the coming days). In the evening we’ll have our first taste of Tokaj at dinner, paired with wines from the region.
Overnight in Tokaj.
Day Five: Introducing Tokaj
SEPTEMBER 9
Tokaj is the birthplace of one of the world’s finest sweet wines, Tokaji Aszú. Plenty of spectacular dry whites—made from the local grapes Furmint, Hárslevelű, Kabar, Zéta, and Muscat Lunel—are also made here. Tokaj is one of the world’s oldest wine regions—first demarcated in a 1737 Royal Charter. Like Aszú, the region is very complex, and is full of fascinating history, unique wine styles, indigenous grapes, terroirs which vary from vineyard to vineyard, and a climate uniquely conducive to botrytis (which is a necessary ingredient for the sweet wines). We’ll start exploring some of its layers today. One reason this region is so exciting to visit is that it is still in the process of re-introducing itself to the world since its rebirth in the early 1990s after Communism ended.
We’ll start at the top, with a visit to Oremus Winery (owned by Vega Sicilia). Oremus is one of the gold standards and pioneers of the region. Its ancient cellar is one of the most stunning (which is saying a lot, in a region full of extraordinary cellars). After our tour and tasting, we’ll go for a little stroll in some of Oremus’ vineyards. From there, we’ll spend the afternoon in Erdőbénye, a village tucked between the Zemplén hills and the forests.
This is our home base in the region, where we started our own small winery in the old cellar behind our house. In this small village, start-up wineries tend to pop up more with more regularity. We’ll cook together at our house, in true-Hungarian village style: over an open fire. We’ll also visit a cooper in the village, and make a wine barrel together from scratch! Erdőbénye has a long history of cooperage, and barrels are made from the oak in the surrounding Zemplén hills. An afternoon or evening hike through the vineyards to the top of the village would be a perfect idea for whoever wants to participate. And perhaps a nightcap in one of the local wineries …
Overnight in Tokaj.
Day Six: Tokaj Highlights – Jewish History, Royal Cellars, and a Feast
SEPTEMBER 10
We’ll begin with a boat ride on the Tisza River, known for its rich birdwatching possibilities. Today we visit the region’s namesake village, where we will be hosted by one of our longtime partners (and friends), a winery beloved by every guest who tastes their wine or visits them! This winery produces the range of Tokaj wines, and we’ll have a thorough (and educational) tasting in their historic cellar (once opened by a Russian czar).
Afterwards, we’ll explore the village a bit, and we’ll visit the Rákóczi cellar. This is the town’s largest cellar, dating to Medieval times. Here in the Knight’s Hall, Hungary’s King János was elected as king by aristocrats in the 1500s. For lunch, we head to another very special family-run cellar in a neighboring village. In addition to being talented winemakers, this mother-daughter team are also fantastic cooks, and they’ll prepare us an epic meal of regional dishes. Of course, we’ll taste their range of wines (from sparkling, to dry, and sweet) over the course of the meal. We’ll spend the rest of the afternoon exploring the village of Mád, which was once a Jewish and commercial center of the region. We’ll visit the restored Baroque synagogue and the Jewish cemetery. Dinner will be a light meal at a winery-run restaurant in Mád.
Overnight in Tokaj.
Day Seven: Fortresses, Castles, Libraries (and More Wine!)
SEPTEMBER 11
Our immersion in Tokaj wouldn’t be complete without visiting some of its castles. In the morning, we’ll drive through a beautiful forested valley to get to the Boldogkőváralja Castle, which is at least 800 years old (possibly more). We’ll see this fortress long before arriving—it’s situated at the foot of the Zemplén hills, built into the rocky hill rising above the village. Its panoramic views are exceptional.
We’ll have lunch in Encs, at a restaurant which has become a dining destination. Opened by two brothers who spent time cooking in Italy, the place is not only one of Hungary’s finest pizzerias, but has local specialties that draw many to its out-of-the-way location. Next, we’ll head to Tállya, where we’ll visit with a winemaker who has somehow made time stand still. He specializes in aging his wines slowly, until they are in perfect condition, even after decades spent in his dark, cool cellar, carved into the ancient volcanic stone underneath the winery. These will be among the oldest wines that we taste on the trip.
From there, we’ll head to Sárospatak, an important historic university town on the banks of the Bodrog River. Here we’ll see the Rákoczi Castle, and visit the Library of the Sárospatak Reformed College, which holds some of Hungary’s oldest and most valuable books and manuscripts. If time allows, we’ll visit a garage winemaker in town for a tasting of his natural wines. Dinner will be at a traditional Hungarian restaurant on the bank of the Bodrog, with a direct view of the castle. After dinner we’ll take an evening stroll in the cellar rows in Hercegkút, one of the most unique and picturesque neighborhoods of cellar rows in Tokaj.
Overnight in Tokaj.
Day Eight: Back to Budapest – Farewell Dinner
SEPTEMBER 12
We’ll have to wrest ourselves away from Tokaj and head back to Budapest after breakfast. You’ll have the rest of the day to re-charge and explore Budapest on your own until dinner. We’ll meet for a farewell dinner at a Michelin-recommended bistro, where the menu is modern Hungarian takes inspired by some of the classics. If you’re up for a final evening stroll through Budapest, we can walk home through the City Park and down Andrássy Avenue, past the Opera House and the elegant 19th century villas until we arrive back at the hotel.
Overnight in Budapest.
Day Nine: Departure
SEPTEMBER 13
Today we say goodbye! Check out after breakfast. If you want to stay and explore Budapest, we can help with travel arrangements and additional hotel nights.
We will do our best to keep to this itinerary, but it is subject to change based on weather conditions, availability, or unforeseen circumstances. If any activities must be changed, we will do our best to substitute them with a similar one.
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