In the courtyard of the Szügy Village Museum, visitors can sample traditional Slovak dishes and take part in preparing them. If you would like to plan this culinary experience, check what is currently available in advance. Szügy combines these glimpses into everyday culture with a rich church history, memorial sites and the park of Simonyi Castle.
A village museum with a house and collection
The Szügy Village Museum house is divided into a tisztaszoba (formal room), a kitchen, a back living room and a cellar. The house also has an outbuilding, known as a szín, where agricultural equipment is stored. The rooms and their functions give the museum visit a tangible connection to traditional domestic life and farming. The collection comprises more than 600 registered objects, including dolls in folk costumes. One bride doll wears a fringed shawl that is nearly 100 years old; her myrtle wreath is original.
Baroque church and other memorial sites
The Baroque-style Evangelical church in Szügy, built between 1774 and 1781, is a protected monument. After fires in 1795, 1823 and 1844, it was rebuilt each time. The small bell dates from the 12th century, and the spacious gallery rests on four columns. Its construction, repeated rebuilding and architectural details thus tell different chapters of the village’s church history.
Other memorial sites mark different periods. In the cemetery in Alsó-Szügy, Merwaldt Éva had the Beniczky tomb chapel built in 1799 over the grave of her husband, Beniczky Sámuel. Today, only the ruins of this protected chapel remain. The Hanzély crypt is on Béke utca, in front of the new cemetery; it was built in the 1890s for Hanzély László and his wife. In the square in front of the former county hall, Bobály Attila’s monument commemorates local victims who fell in the First and Second World Wars.
Simonyi Castle and its protected park
The Simonyi family had the castle built in 1755 in the Late Baroque style. The castle has a park that is protected as a nature reserve. A red-flowering magnolia grows there, reaching six metres in height with a crown five metres wide; two California redwoods also grow in the park.
Interactive activities by Szügyelő
Several interactive activities were presented at the launch of Szügyelő on 24 September 2026. In the Felfedező galéria (Explorer Gallery) at the Szügyelő Élmény turistaháza, participants at the launch on 24 September 2026 moved among hanging picture canvases, answered questions and solved the game using letter clues. The six-pointed Palóc Virág (Palóc Flower) playfully introduced Szügy’s local values at the launch. The Szügyelő Esszencia Őrző (Szügyelő Essence Keeper) was presented at the launch as a community time capsule; participants could leave thoughts, messages and good wishes in small reused glass bottles.
The Szügyelő Névőrző (Szügyelő Name Keepers) were also among the activities presented at the launch on 24 September 2026: the trees Álmok (Dreams), Közösség (Community) and Természet Őrzője (Guardian of Nature) gave participants the opportunity to symbolically become part of Szügyelő’s story. The nature trail, also presented at the launch, led through three stations with playful activities and riddles. At this nature trail, the answers formed the code for the treasure chest at the lookout point; those who opened it could take small gifts. The activities presented at the launch offered different ways to take part: the gallery focused on questions and letters, while the nature trail featured activities along several stations. If you would like to plan these activities into your trip, check their current availability before you travel.
Discover more destinations: Terény, Szanda, Csitár, Drégelypalánk, Bercel, Balassagyarmat, Nógrádmarcal, Hont
For the broader travel overview: Balassagyarmati.
