Protected pastureland, a church with a complex building history, and a collection of cast-iron stoves give Hajdúsámson a distinctive character. When planning your trip, it is worth distinguishing the town’s nature and cultural attractions from the broader excursion destinations in Hajdú-Bihar.
Martinkai-legelő and the natural environment
Martinkai-legelő lies within the administrative area of Hajdúsámson, east of the settlement of Martinka. It is part of the Hajdúsági Landscape Protection Area, where strictly protected plants and insects occur. The protected area gives this pastureland a different focus from the town’s cultural monuments: here, nature takes center stage, rather than the history of a building or collection.
The strictly protected Hungarian pasqueflower is also significant in the wider region. It is considered the most valuable part of Hajdúsámson’s natural heritage and today is found only on the sandy soils of the Nyírség. This classification concerns the wider natural region, not a specific spot on Martinkai-legelő.
Church, collection, and remembrance
The Reformed Church is on Rákóczi utca in the town center. It was built in the late 19th century on foundations that are several centuries old. The history of the earlier building is also noteworthy: the first church at this site had Orthodox features. During construction of the present building, workers discovered the foundations of a wall that surrounded the altar of the original church and points to Orthodox church architecture. The construction period, the old foundations, and this earlier church building offer different historical perspectives on the same place.
Another attraction is the collection of cast-iron stoves in the exhibition room of the Petőfi Sándor Town Library, which also serves as a cultural center and exhibition venue. It comprises around 180 stoves, 150 charcoal irons, and 80 iron mortars, as well as small sculptures and hanging lamps. The collection figures may change. This overview of stoves, irons, and mortars highlights the collection’s different groups of objects.
The war memorial in Szabadság Square originally commemorates 273 victims from Hajdúsámson who died in the First World War. In 1998, a marble plaque bearing the names of Second World War victims was added. They include 122 fallen soldiers from Hajdúsámson and 188 Jewish residents who were deported. The sculptural group was created by sculptor László Némethy and master stonemason Károly Harró. The church, exhibition, and memorial each highlight a different theme: architectural history, material culture, and remembrance.
Hajdú-Bihar as a wider travel destination
The Hortobágy National Park—the Puszta offers a different scale within the wider Hajdú-Bihar travel destination. The World Heritage site covers nearly 75,000 hectares in the Great Hungarian Plain in eastern Hungary. As a cultural landscape, it preserves visible evidence of more than 2,000 years of traditional pastoralism. This places the natural and cultural landscape in a broader regional context without equating it with the local features of Hajdúsámson.
For a practical comparison when planning your trip, consider the walks along the Hortobágyi-halastó Nature Trail: routes of 3.6, 5.4, or 10 kilometers are available, none with difficult sections. The fishpond system is also a Ramsar site, an Important Bird Area, part of the World Heritage site, and a Natura 2000 site. The different route lengths can help you decide how far you would like to walk; this is a regional offering in Hajdú-Bihar, not in Hajdúsámson.
Plan your accommodation search
When searching for a vacation rental in Hajdúsámson, you can first decide whether to focus on the town’s nature and cultural attractions or also visit other destinations in Hajdú-Bihar. If you plan to include several regional stops, check the location and travel arrangements for each one separately before choosing your accommodation.
Discover more destinations: Nyíracsád, Téglás, Nyíradony.
Go to the main travel overview: Hajdúhadházi.
