From historical curiosities, through the secrets of the construction to the opening hours – all in one place!
With its 1014 meter height, Kékes is the highest mountain in Hungary.
Geographical location: Heves county, Mátra, which forms part of the Északi-középhegység. Interestingly, many people refer to the mountain or the viewpoint as Kékestető, but in fact the name Kékestető is the name of the settlement there.
Coordinate points: 47° 52′ 20.9892″ N, 20° 0′ 31.8204″ E
Based on some measurements, the height of the Kékes is 1015 meters, but the general height is 1014 meters high and it can be found on the iconic tricolor painted stone at Kékestető.
Our historical retrospective has to go back to the 1871 Matra Guide, which was published by the Matra Association (currently the Class of the Hungarian Tourist Association). This was already mentioned in the Vass lookout tower built in 1888 (hardwood) and 20 m in height. The name of József Vass, a minister of public welfare, played a role in the nomination.
We have to jump 30 years ahead in time (to 1926), when they are expanding the tower with a refuge hut. For a long time, they did not enjoy the development, since the tower was dead endangered by 1938 and was shut down. During the World War II both the refuge hut and the tower itself were demolished.
The year 1933 was a turning point in the life of the Mátra hiking industry by finishing the Kékestető spa stay and parallel to a 5 km long road. The road leading to the Kékes bounded Mátraháza and Kékestető.
In the 1920s and 30s, skiers already took over Kékes and active skiing was born. The southern downhill was handed over as a joint development of the Hungarian Ski Federation and the Mátra Egylet in 1933-34. Then, a decade and a half later, in the mid 1950’s, the first ski lift was completed thanks to the Honvéd ski class.
At this time (1950s), the spa hotel was nationalized and converted into a sanatorium. In this decade (1958), an antenna tower was the tallest building in this period on Kékes, the lookout did not work in that time. It was only available to look around from the eight-floor tower of the Telecommunication Research Institute with dedicated approval.
The Kékestetõ TV tower, as we know it today, was handed over in 1981, which replaced the earlier antenna tower.
Kékestető lookout or Kékestető TV tower
The 180 meter high television tower and the associated server building were built in the immediate vicinity of the old antennas that became obsolete. The tower built at an altitude of 1014 meters extends to an altitude of 1200 meters above sea level.
The TV Tower, which is one of the tallest buildings in Hungary, can be structurally divided into three parts: the lower 80 meter reinforced concrete, the next 80 meter steel structure and finally the 20 meter glass fiber reinforced plastic cylinder. During construction no less than 1300 cubic meters of reinforced concrete and half thousand ton of steel structures were used.
The most extensive weather conditions were taken into consideration when designing the monolithic reinforced concrete facade of the server building. In the nearly 1000 square meters of service area, power supply facilities, transformer stations, network protection, automation and phase correction equipment have been installed.
The Kékestető lookout tower is located at a height of 45 meters, while the covered circular is at 42 meters high. It is worth to visit the lookout, as it has a very nice panorama during clear weather conditions.
When the sky is clear, in the north, even the Tatra Mountains can be discovered for the lucky hikers.
Thanks to ongoing developments, we can admire and track all the moments of the Kékestető Kilátó through the webcams both day and night.
Special Mini-Bottle Collection: In the indoor circle-presso there is a unique collection. From all over the world. Nearly 8,000 mini bottles have been collected and can be admired. We can enjoy real time-traveling and world traveling at the same time.
Mini bottles were categorized by country and are exhibited accordingly. Most of the bottles are in the TV tower’s covered circle shape presso, while a smaller part can be seen in the Kányai Uram Fogadó.
Opening hours:
Kékestető Lookout is open from 9 am to 4 pm, ask for a call at the opening hours at +36 37 567 007.
- November 1 – March 31: 9:00 – 4:00pm
- April 1 – April 30: 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
- May 1 – August 31: 9:00 – 6:00pm
- September 1-October 31: 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
Ticket Prices:
- Adult: 600.-
- Children (under 14 years): 400.-
- <For group discounts, please call +36 37 567 007 at opening hours.
Prices are in Hungarian Forint and include VAT!
The lookout is operated by Mátra Gasztronómia Kft.