Tatabánya is well-placed for trips into the historic heartland of medieval Hungary. Tata, fifteen minutes by road, has a striking lake with an island castle and a baroque old town. Esztergom, about 40 minutes north on the Danube, was the medieval royal capital of Hungary and is dominated by its enormous neoclassical basilica.
The full day excursion is Budapest, less than an hour by train or car. If you have a car, the Vértes hills to the south are another option — rolling forested country with old mining villages and the Vértesszentkereszt monastery ruins.
