The Veszprém Castle District opens its full treasury to anyone willing to wander its streets, halls, and sacred corners. Walk it end to end and you don’t just learn dates and facades—you feel the thousand-year current that shaped the City of Queens and still hums through its baroque stones and medieval chapels.
The district is especially atmospheric in winter. Soft light pools on stuccoed fronts, quiet settles over Trinity Square (Szentháromság tér), and bells ripple through the side streets. Even in the cold months, the Veszprém Archdiocesan Tourism Center invites visitors not only to stroll Castle Street (Vár utca) but to step inside the palace, chapels, and award-winning exhibitions that reveal the real pulse of the place.
The Biró–Giczey House serves as the baroque gateway to the Castle Quarter. This is where the guided castle walks start, where the gift shop stands, and where free exhibitions await—including Bogáncs és liliom – Magdolnák virágai, crowned Exhibition of the Year 2025.
Guided Castle Walks: Stories From the City’s Heart
Weekends anchor the program with three start times: 11:30, 14:00, and 16:00. These walks unlock spaces you can’t enter on your own:
• Archbishop’s Palace: baroque interiors, renewed spaces, and standout artifacts.
• Gizella Chapel: one of the oldest, quietest sacred sites in the Quarter, where surviving medieval fresco fragments cast a distinct, centuries-old mood.
• St. Michael’s Cathedral Basilica and crypt: a defining city landmark; the basilica’s past and the crypt’s medieval details sketch a faithful portrait of Veszprém’s history.
• St. George Chapel: an ancient memory site in the heart of the castle, accessible only with a guide.
Walks depart from the Biró–Giczey House; current times and any changes are listed in the events calendar. Groups are capped at 25 and tours last about 60 minutes. Meeting point: Biró–Giczey House, Castle St. 31 (Vár u. 31.), Veszprém.
Two Themed Routes
• Walk of Light and Devotion: Archbishop’s Palace + Gizella Chapel. Runs Saturdays and Sundays at 11:30 and 16:00.
• A Thousand Years’ Path: St. Michael’s Cathedral Basilica + crypt + St. George Chapel. Runs Saturdays and Sundays at 14:00.
Expect occasional schedule shifts due to liturgical or special events; the calendar carries the latest updates.
Tickets and Prices
Buy tickets at the Biró–Giczey House gift shop (cash and card).
• Adult: 3,500 HUF (about 9.80 USD)
• Student/Senior: 3,200 HUF (about 8.96 USD)
• Family (2 adults + 1–3 children): 7,000 HUF (about 19.60 USD)
• Pilgrim ticket (with parish recommendation): 2,500 HUF (about 7.00 USD)
Tip: because of limited spots, arrive 10–15 minutes early.
Free Exhibitions at the Biró–Giczey House
All exhibitions are free during opening hours.
• Bogáncs és liliom – Magdolnák virágai (Exhibition of the Year 2025): artifacts, engravings, and contemporary reflections explore the figure of Mary Magdalene, guided by the thoughts of Blessed Magdolna Mária Bódi (Bódi Mária Magdolna).
• Pantry Exhibition – Details From the Cathedral’s Past: baroque-era objects, liturgical elements, and photographs over 100 years old.
• My Head Is Not a Chapter – Interactive Exhibition: playful, clear storytelling on who the canons were and how the Veszprém chapter worked.
• Archaeology Exhibition: vivid installations chart the changing settlement history of the castle hill and its archaeological finds across centuries.
Opening Hours
December holiday hours:
• December 22–26: closed
• December 27–30 (Saturday–Tuesday): 10:00–18:00
• December 31 (Wednesday): 10:00–15:00
General opening hours (outside holidays), exhibitions at Biró–Giczey House:
• Monday: closed
• Tuesday–Friday: 17:00–19:00
• Saturday–Sunday: 10:00–18:00
Gift shop (Biró–Giczey House):
• Saturday–Sunday: 10:00–18:00
New Underground Stops: Crypt and St. George Chapel
The guided castle tours are expanding with two special sites. Visitors now step below ground into the crypt of St. Michael’s Cathedral Basilica and trace the uncovered remains of St. George Chapel—places where a millennium of history becomes visible.
Inside the cathedral, the new route reveals deeper layers: the 14th-century Gothic sanctuary, the baroque tomb of Bishop Márton Padányi Bíró, and a restored interior. The crypt’s atmosphere—the hush under the vaults, time caught in stone—promises one of the season’s most memorable moments.
On the cathedral’s north side, St. George Chapel stands as one of the earliest memory sites of Hungarian Christianity. Archaeology brought to light the original 10th-century rotunda foundation walls. Tradition says Prince St. Emeric made his vow here before the Virgin’s altar, giving the site singular sacred weight. In the Middle Ages, it was a prized pilgrimage stop, home to St. George’s head relic, a gift from the Byzantine emperor to King St. Stephen.
Plan Your Visit
The guided castle walks run year-round and last about 60 minutes, with limited group sizes. On December 27–28 and again on December 29–31, tours start at 11:30, 14:00, and 16:00 from the Biró–Giczey House. The house itself is the Castle District’s baroque jewel box, complete with garden, gift shop, and those free exhibitions. Tickets and info: at the gift shop.
Walk the quarter, and the buildings will tell you their stories. Follow the bells, step into the chapels, and you’ll feel the thread that ties Veszprém’s past to its present—a thousand years strong.
