Old town
First-timersAround Széchenyi Square and the cathedral: the mosque, the Roman tombs, bars and most beds.
Pécs city guide
Things To Do In Pécs
Southern, sunny and layered: a Roman burial ground under the cathedral, an Ottoman mosque serving as a Catholic church, and a porcelain factory turned cultural quarter.
4th c.
The early Christian burial chambers, UNESCO-listed
1543–1686
The Ottoman period here
2010
European Capital of Culture
Roman, Ottoman and Habsburg, stacked in one small city
Pécs sits in the far south of Hungary against the Mecsek hills, close to the Croatian border, and it has been continuously important for about seventeen hundred years.
The Romans called it Sopianae, and the early Christian burial chambers they left — painted tombs from the fourth century, under the cathedral square — are UNESCO-listed and genuinely rare.
The Ottomans held the city for a hundred and forty-three years, and the Mosque of Pasha Qasim still stands on the main square. It is now a Catholic church, and it has kept the mihrab, the prayer niche facing Mecca, alongside the Christian altar. Very few buildings anywhere carry both that plainly.
Zsolnay porcelain was made here from 1853, and its distinctive iridescent glaze covers roofs across Hungary including the parliament in Budapest. The old factory is now a cultural quarter.
It was European Capital of Culture in 2010 and has a large student population. Two days.
Where to stay
A compact centre on a hillside, with the Zsolnay quarter east of it.
Zsolnay Quarter
Culture and quietEast: the converted porcelain factory with museums, workshops and a calmer feel.
Map © MapTiler © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Things to do
Things to do in Pécs
The Mosque of Pasha Qasim dominates Széchenyi Square, the main square, and is the largest surviving Ottoman building in Hungary. It became a Catholic church after the Ottomans left and has kept both identities visibly — the mihrab is still in the wall. Entry is a few hundred forint and takes twenty minutes.
The early Christian necropolis beneath the cathedral square is the UNESCO site: fourth-century burial chambers with painted walls, preserved underground and reached by a modern visitor centre. About 2,500 HUF, roughly €6.
The Zsolnay Cultural Quarter, in the old porcelain works, holds museums covering the factory and the family, plus the eosin glaze that made their name — an iridescent finish they developed and kept secret.
The cathedral, with four corner towers, sits at the top of the square and is free or close to it.
Then take the chairlift or walk up into the Mecsek hills behind the city for the view south towards Croatia.
Free things
Free things to do in Pécs
Széchenyi Square and the old town cost nothing, and the mosque exterior is the centrepiece of both.
The cathedral square and the walk around the medieval city walls are free.
The Zsolnay Quarter is free to walk through — only the individual museums charge — and the buildings and glazed fountains are the best part anyway.
The Mecsek hills start at the edge of the city with free marked trails, and the TV tower on Misina peak has a paid viewing deck above a free forest.
The padlock wall on Janus Pannonius utca, where students started attaching locks decades before the practice spread across Europe, is free and predates the Paris bridges.
Food and drink
Eating and drinking in Pécs
Southern Hungarian cooking, which means more paprika, more peppers and Balkan influence from across the Croatian border.
A main is 3,500 to 6,000 HUF, about €9 to €15, and student places do considerably less.
The Villány wine region is thirty minutes south and produces Hungary's best reds — Cabernet Franc in particular does unusually well there. A glass in town is 800 to 1,500 HUF, about €2 to €4.
Szentlőrinc and the Mecsek villages supply the markets, and the covered market is cheap and good.
A beer is around 900 to 1,500 HUF, about €2.50 to €4, and the student bars are cheaper again.
Nightlife
Going out in Pécs
Student-driven and cheap. The university is one of the oldest in central Europe, founded in 1367, and term time from September to June fills the centre.
The bars cluster around Király utca, the pedestrian street running east from the main square, and the courtyards off it.
A beer is €2.50 to €4 and cocktails €5 to €8, which is low even by Hungarian standards.
Summer moves outdoors — the squares and courtyards fill, and Pécs is one of the sunniest and mildest places in the country, so the season runs long.
Out of term, particularly July and August, the city is noticeably quieter.
Getting around
Getting around Pécs
The old town is small and walkable, though it sits on a slope and the cathedral end is a climb.
Buses cost a few hundred forint and reach the Zsolnay Quarter and the Mecsek trailheads.
Trains from Budapest take just under three hours for around 4,500 HUF (about €11), several times a day.
Pécs is close to the Croatian border, and buses run south towards Osijek, which makes it a reasonable overland link between Hungary and Croatia.
Villány, the wine region, is about thirty minutes by train or bus and is the obvious half-day.
Costs
What Pécs costs
One of the cheapest cities in Hungary outside Budapest. Beds are €11 to €26, a main €9 to €15, and a beer €2.50 to €4.
A day is €28 to €55.
Most of the city is free — the squares, the Zsolnay grounds, the walls and the hills. The paid sites are cheap: the necropolis at about €6 and the mosque at a couple of euros.
Villány wine at €2 to €4 a glass is the best value red wine in Hungary.
Term time is when the cheap student places are all open; July and August are quieter and slightly less good value as a result.
Safety
Staying safe in Pécs
Pécs is a safe city and crime against visitors is low.
Petty theft happens around the station and in the student bar streets at weekends, at ordinary levels.
The old town is on a slope with cobbled and uneven streets that are slippery in rain, and the cathedral end is a real climb.
The necropolis chambers are underground, cool and reached by steps, and can be damp underfoot.
In the Mecsek hills, trails are marked but phone coverage thins, and ticks are present from spring to autumn across this part of Hungary — check after walking in long grass or woodland.
Emergency number is 112.
Day trips from Pécs
A red wine region, a hill range and the Croatian border.
Villány
Hungary's best red wine region, with a cellar row in Villánykövesd and Cabernet Franc that beats its reputation.
Mecsek hills
Forested hills immediately north, with marked trails, a chairlift and the TV tower on Misina.
Osijek, Croatia
Across the border into Slavonia, and the overland route towards Croatia.
What's on
What is on while you are there
A harvest in Villány and a city with a long cultural season.
September
Villány harvest
Villány, 30 minutes south
The vintage in Hungary's best red wine region, with cellar events through the villages.
Summer
Zsolnay Light Festival
Citywide
Light installations and projections across the city over several nights.
September
Pécs Days
Citywide
The city's own festival, with music and markets in the squares.
September to June
Term time
Citywide
When the university fills the bars and the cheap student places are all open.
December
Christmas market
Széchenyi Square
A small market beneath the mosque, with mulled Villány red.
When to go
April to June and September to October. It is the mildest corner of Hungary.
Jan
Cold but milder than Budapest. Quiet and cheap
Feb
Mild for Hungary. Students in
Mar
Warming early. Squares filling
Apr
Excellent. Warm, sunny and quiet
May
Very good. Long evenings and everything open
Jun
The best month. Term still running until late June
Jul
Hot, and the students are gone
Aug
Hottest and quietest. Least good month
Sep
Superb. Term restarts, harvest in Villány
Oct
Excellent value and still warm
Nov
Cooling. Quiet and cheap
Dec
Cold, with a Christmas market on the main square
Bar height is temperature. Colour is how busy it gets:
quiet
busy
peak
Average highs, and among the highest in Hungary — Pécs sits in the sheltered south and runs a few degrees milder than Budapest year-round, with more sunshine.
What your trip will cost
Pick how you travel. Per person per night, in euros — you will pay in forint.
Shown in euros for comparison; you pay in forint. The doing line is low because most of the city costs nothing.
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- Beds—
- Food and drink—
- Getting around—
- Doing things—
Pécs travel questions
The ones we get asked most.
What is the mosque on the main square?
The Mosque of Pasha Qasim, the largest surviving Ottoman building in Hungary, built during the hundred and forty-three years the Ottomans held the city. It became a Catholic church afterwards and kept both identities visibly — the mihrab facing Mecca is still in the wall alongside the Christian altar.
What is the UNESCO site?
The early Christian necropolis under the cathedral square: fourth-century burial chambers with painted walls, from when the city was the Roman town of Sopianae. Entry is about €6 and it is genuinely rare — few painted tombs of that age survive anywhere.
What is Zsolnay?
A porcelain manufacturer founded here in 1853, known for an iridescent glaze called eosin that it developed and kept secret. Its frost-resistant tiles cover roofs across Hungary including the parliament in Budapest. The old factory is now a cultural quarter, free to walk through.
Is it worth the trip from Budapest?
Just under three hours by train for about €11, and yes for two days. It is the mildest and sunniest part of Hungary, it stacks Roman, Ottoman and Habsburg history in a small walkable centre, and it is cheaper than the capital.
Where is the wine?
Villány, thirty minutes south, which produces Hungary's best reds — Cabernet Franc does unusually well there. A glass in Pécs runs €2 to €4, and the cellar row at Villánykövesd is the place to go properly.
When should I avoid?
July and August. It is the hottest corner of Hungary at around 28°C, the students are away, and a lot of the cheap places that make the city good are closed with them.
Can I cross into Croatia from here?
Yes. Buses run south towards Osijek in about three hours, which makes Pécs a sensible overland link between Hungary and Croatia rather than backtracking through Budapest.
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