The keyword at Lake Tisza is cooperation. The result: the settlements around the lake offer new, spectacular attractions and services for visitors to the area.
Abádszalók beach will be expanded with several new elements
We started our tour on the renewed free beach in Abádszalók where Mayor Gyula Balogh and his team presented new elements of the beach development, such as the new sandy beach, the beach volleyball court with professional lights for tournaments, the new a triple giant slide, and the LED-ZOO. We also tasted the cake of Abádszalók and heard the programs of this year’s Tisza Lake TOMÉK festival.
For those who arrive to Tisza by boat, can choose from 2 ports, Kisköre is the South home port of the holiday boats, and the port “Tünderfátyol” in Abádszalók is the only port where you can refuel your boat on the water in Hungary.
Continuing our journey from Abádszalók, we got to know Vitorlás Guest House and Restaurant, where we not only tasted excellent food but also got acquainted with artisanal chocolate that has gained national fame. The chocolate named “Egy csepp Tisza-tó” is filled with plant súlyom (Trapa natans). It is a natural plant of the Tisza region for centuries and today it is officially a protected plant. It can only be collected by someone who has permission to do so. In times long since past it was consumed as a delicacy, cooked, baked, or made into a patty or flour.
Puppet Museum, Holiday Boating and the Northern Hungarian Coast in Sarud
Ms. Róza, the dreamer and enthusiastic founder of the puppet museum lives in the city Abádszalók. Her guided tour is a unique experience. She has collected more than 800 dolls and has dressed them in 215 types of traditional clothes of the Carpathian Basin. It is probably the only museum in the world where we can see so many dolls dressed in traditional folk dress.
Traveling, boating, or cycling toward the Ecocentre in Poroszló, we can stop in Kisköre where the base of a new MAHART holiday boat is being built. This summer, 10 well-equipped boats, sleeping 4-8-10 people will be available for those who want to vacation by boat, with a full range of services. Due to construction, we are told we can only sail north on the Tisza, and we can admire the majestic view of the lake and shore for 27 kilometers up to the Tiszalök dam. Beaches along the coast and other attractions that should not be avoided, such as Tiszanána and Sarud.
The newest and fastest developing Sarudi Élményfalu (Adventure Village) meets world-class standards in terms of attractions and services. Its sandy beach and water experience park really make it the golden shore of the lake. The Adventure Village offers many experiences both on land and on water. The committed goal of the Adventure Village is to preserve the values and traditions of village life and nature, as well as to provide visitors with experiences that are guaranteed to be a joy to remember. We could enjoy here many water slides, climb a wall at “Adventure shore”, horse ride, sail, or cycle.
Continuing our tour, we visited the Lake Tisza Ecocentre in Poroszló. It offers a glimpse of the wildlife of Lake Tisza and houses Europe’s largest freshwater aquarium. The natural wonders of Lake Tisza and the Tisza valley are showcased in the Ecocentre’s 4-floor, 2,600m2 main building, and 10-hectare wildlife and leisure park. Europe’s largest freshwater aquarium has a capacity of 750,000 liters of water, it also has exhibition spaces, a 3D cinema, and a lookout tower.
Organized by the Hortobágy National Park, we visited the Lake Tisza Water Promenade with a scheduled boat trip from the Poroszló Fűzfa Recreation Park and Harbor. The walkable plank road is named “2000 steps above the water” and here we could observe the life of the reeds and the water birds. Lake Tisza is the second largest lake in Hungary. The artificial lake and a reservoir were established almost 45 years ago now, but nature has slowly conquered it. Today, the 127 km2 artificial lake is dotted with large open water areas, wetlands overgrown with swamps and seaweeds, backwaters, moorlands, natural watercourses, islands, and peninsulas.
Tiszafüred, Playhouse, Brick Exhibition and Pálinka
Crossing the Tisza Bridge, we arrived in Tiszafüred. The first stop of Tiszafüred was the newly completed cycling center, where bikes could be rented for cycling around the lake. The 2-3 meter high dam surrounding Lake Tisza is asphalt paved and enables cyclists to bike around the entire lake.
The beach of Tiszafüred has been known and recognized as the “Lake of Debrecen” but the new developments represent a new tourist attraction. In Tiszafüred, the Tisza Lake Nature Diver’s Playhouse and Tour Center (Tisza-tavi Természetbúvár Játszóház és Túraközpont in Hungarian) will be built in the spring of 2022, once complete it will be welcome visitors every day of the year. The city center will be renovated and a new free beach will also be built.
Heading back to our guest house aQuarium in Abádszalók, we came across many great exhibitions run by people who work with full hearts to create something unique. One of them is the priest of the Reformed Church in Tiszaszentimre. He presented the past of the settlement through his collection of old bricks including political or religious bricks. His collection and presentation are a rare treasure.
Good pálinka is also available in the region. It was worth visiting Falusi Patika (Village Pharmacy) in Tiszaszőlős where we could take part in a pálinka tasting during the guided tour and taste the local specialties of apple, peach, blackberry and quince pálinka.
After a long tour, we have returned to Abádszalók, to the aQuarium guest house. It is a great resting place for travelers with children and dogs. The guest house is a 5-minute walk from the beach and the dam, where in addition to the 10 comfortable rooms, you can also enjoy delicious food. It is also a refreshing point on the newly handed-in bike path, where a “mini bike service” and bike pumps are also available.
