After the Košice Peace Marathon: Tokaj Wine Region

The Route: Košice → Miskolc → Tokaj → Košice Logistics: Regional train via Miskolc, with a change; a hire car covers the same route in roughly 1 hour 15 minutes on quieter roads. Marathon Month: October Duration: 1 night

Košice ──(train, ~50 min, to Miskolc)──> Miskolc ──(regional train, ~1 hr, to Tokaj)──> Tokaj
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                                          Košice ◄──(return via same route)─────────────────┘

The Košice Peace Marathon finishes in early October, which lines up well with one of the more specific reasons to leave the city for a night: Tokaj's harvest. This is a wine-producing appellation straddling the Hungarian–Slovak border, and by early October the grape harvest is either underway or freshly finished, depending on the year and the vineyard.

October in Tokaj: harvest season proper. The furmint and hárslevelű grapes used for the region's famous sweet wines are typically picked from late September into October, so a visit in this window means active cellars and tasting rooms rather than the quieter off-season.

Getting there from Košice involves a regional train to Miskolc, then a connecting service on to Tokaj itself, a combined journey of around two hours with a change. It is not a direct line, so check current timetables before booking, as regional Hungarian rail schedules shift between seasons. A hire car covers the same distance in about 1 hour 15 minutes and is worth considering if you'd rather not manage a connection the day after a marathon.

Night One: Tokaj

Tokaj town itself is small, a few streets of low buildings running down toward the Bodrog River, and its identity is almost entirely built around wine. The Rákóczi Cellar, one of the oldest and largest in the region, cuts deep into the hillside and offers tastings in a setting that has barely changed in centuries; walking through it involves flat, even ground with no significant steps. The town's own wine museum gives useful context before or after a cellar visit, for anyone who wants the history alongside the glass.

For a place to stay, Andrássy Rezidencia Tokaj sits within walking distance of the main cellars and combines a historic building with straightforward, comfortable rooms, good for a single night when the priority is sitting down rather than exploring extensively. Toldi Fogadó, a smaller guesthouse closer to the river, is a quieter alternative for anyone who wants fewer stairs and less foot traffic.

For dinner, Vinum Wine Restaurant in the town centre pairs a menu built around Hungarian regional dishes with a wine list drawn almost entirely from the surrounding vineyards, which is the obvious move on a night when the region itself is the point of the trip.

Getting Home

Return to Košice follows the same route: regional train back through Miskolc, or the direct drive of roughly 1 hour 15 minutes. Košice International Airport (KSC) sits close to the city centre, a short taxi ride from most central hotels, making Tokaj a manageable one-night addition without complicating a same-week flight home.