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Bács-Kiskun · Hungary
Port city on the Danube and the Sugovica branch, home of Baja fish soup and gateway to the Gemenc floodplain forest.
In the photo: Sugovica, Baja
Illustrative images. The pictures in this guide are illustrations based on the real place, not photographs, and may differ from it.
Get to know the place
Baja lies in southern Hungary on the left bank of the Danube, where the river splits and forms the arm called Sugovica. It is the second-largest city in Bács-Kiskun county and one of the country's river ports. Hungarians, Germans, Serbs and the Bunjevci, a South Slavic group, lived side by side for centuries, and the churches and houses of each community still mark the town center.
The heart of the city is Szentháromság tér, a broad square open to the Sugovica, with the town hall housed in the former Grassalkovich palace and the Holy Trinity column erected after the 18th-century plague. A few minutes' walk away are the Türr István Museum, with collections about river life and fishing, the gallery dedicated to painter Nagy István and the Serbian Orthodox Church of St. Nicholas.
Across the Sugovica, Petőfi Island offers leisure areas, river beaches and kayak rental points. At the junction of the arm with the Danube, the Türr István lookout faces the river bridge and the Gemenc woods.
Gemenc is one of the largest floodplain forests in Central Europe, part of the Duna-Dráva National Park. From Pörböly, a few kilometers from Baja, a narrow-gauge forest train enters the waterlogged woods. The town is also known for Bajai halászlé, the local fish soup.
This destination brings together 1 city: Baja.
One destination, many paths
Start with one city or combine several in your itinerary.
Outlines: Natural Earth (public domain) e geoBoundaries (CC0). Adapted by Cidade Turismo.
✈ Budapest Liszt Ferenc nemzetközi repülőtér (BUD), in Budapeste · 166 km to Baja
Baja has a train station with connections to Budapest, Szekszárd and Kecskemét, and buses to Budapest and Szeged. By car, roads 51 and 55 meet in the town, and the Türr István bridge crosses the Danube. Budapest Airport is an option to arrive by plane and continue overland.
The local experience
Baja’s main square, open on one side to the Sugovica branch of the Danube. It houses the town hall in the old Grassalkovich Palace and the Holy Trinity column from the 18th century. It is the stage for the fish soup festival in July.
Baja Museum of History and Ethnography, with Hungary’s most renowned folk fishing collection. Exhibitions cover life on the Danube, the city’s 300 years and the region’s ethnic groups. It is named after General Türr István, who was born in Baja.
Gallery housed in the Vojnich manor, a classical building from around 1820. It brings together works by the painter Nagy István, who lived in Baja, and the sculptor Telcs Ede, as well as a collection of 20th-century Hungarian modern art.
Serbian Orthodox Church of St. Nicholas, the oldest of the two surviving out of the three Serbian churches Baja once had. Completed in 1775 and remodeled in 1779 in late Baroque style, it preserves an iconostasis from the late 18th century.
Stone viewpoint and memorial, circular in plan with columns, inaugurated in 1938 in honor of General Türr István. It stands at the meeting point of the Sugovica branch and the Danube, with views of the Türr István bridge and the Gemenc forest.
A narrow-gauge forest train that departs from the Pörböly ecotourism center, about 8 km from Baja, and crosses the Gemenc floodplain forest in Duna-Dráva National Park. The center has exhibitions about the wildlife and life in the forest.
Before you go
A little planning leaves more time to enjoy the journey.
From May to September the days are usually warm and long, good for the river, the Sugovica beaches and the Gemenc forest train, which has reduced schedules outside the season. The July fish soup festival takes place then. Spring and autumn are milder; winter is cold and Danube floods can close parts of the forest.
The seasons shown are the most usual ones; nature doesn't always follow the calendar.
One day covers Szentháromság tér, the central museums and the Türr István lookout. With two days, there is time for the forest train and Gemenc trails, departing from Pörböly.
The center around Szentháromság tér and the pedestrian street Eötvös puts museums, churches and restaurants within walking distance. Petőfi Island, on the other side of the Sugovica, has guesthouses, campsites and direct river access. In Pörböly there is simple accommodation next to the Gemenc ecotourism center, useful for those who want to start early in the forest.
Take your trash with you, follow the signs and support local businesses. In natural areas, follow the visiting guidelines.
Get your questions answered
By train, with direct services or with a change at Sárbogárd or Kiskunhalas depending on the schedule. There are also buses from Budapest. By car it’s about 175 km. Check schedules before you go.
One day is enough for the center, the main square and the museums. With two days you can include the Gemenc forest and the forest train that departs from Pörböly.
Between May and September, when the river and the Gemenc forest are more accessible and the forest train runs more frequently. The fish soup festival fills the center in July.
Not for the center, which can be walked. For Gemenc, a car helps, but Pörböly also has a train station on the line that runs from Baja to Szekszárd.
It is possible, but the journey is long for a single day: Szeged is about 90 km away. Staying one night in Baja lets you see the center at a relaxed pace and go to Gemenc.
