Sarvar

Sarvar has two things worth the stop and they sit a few hundred metres apart. The castle was the seat of the Nadasdy family and its ceremonial hall carries a cycle of large seventeenth-century paintings of battles against the Ottomans across the ceiling, with later Baroque frescoes in the adjoining rooms; the first book printed in Hungarian came off a press established on this estate in 1541. Around the castle spreads an arboretum of mature trees. The other draw is the water: two thermal wells, one of them a strongly saline mineral water, feed a large modern spa complex with indoor and outdoor pools, saunas and a medical wing that draws visitors from Austria across the nearby border.

History

Through the Nádasdy family the castle played an important part in Hungarian culture in the 16th and 17th centuries, and the first Hungarian book, the New Testament of 1541, was printed here. The knights' hall is decorated with the battle scenes of Ferenc Nádasdy and with scenes from the Old Testament (Wikipedia, Sárvár).

What's there

• Painted battle ceilings - seventeenth-century cycles in the castle hall.
• The 1541 printing press connection - the first book printed in Hungarian.
• The castle arboretum - mature trees around the moat.
• Saline thermal pools - the water the modern spa is built on.

When to go

Year round; thermal bathing is best in the cold months and the outdoor pools in summer. A day for both castle and spa. Weekends and Austrian holidays fill the spa.

What to expect

The spa is large, busy and commercial, and quiet is not on offer. Castle displays are dated in parts. The two attractions suit different moods and a day doing both is a long one. Town food options are limited.

Nearby

Buk spa is north; Koszeg lies north-west.