Tokaj Wine Tours
Tokaj is one of the world’s great wine regions — a UNESCO landscape of volcanic hills and centuries-old cellars, birthplace of the sweet golden Aszú that kings called the “wine of kings”. Most visitors come on a day trip from Budapest to tour the cellars and taste Aszú alongside the region’s superb new dry Furmint. Compare the top-rated Tokaj experiences below, then read our notes.
Top-rated Tokaj wine tours from Budapest
Formats: full-day Tokaj wine tours from Budapest with transport, cellar visits and tastings; Aszú-focused tastings; multi-cellar and lunch itineraries.
What you’ll taste: the sweet, botrytised Tokaji Aszú (graded in puttonyos), the rare Eszencia, and dry Furmint and Hárslevelű.
Read next: What Is Tokaji Wine?
The wine of kings
Tokaj (or Tokaj-Hegyalja) has made wine since the Middle Ages, and its sweet Aszú — from grapes shrivelled by botrytis, “noble rot” — was the toast of European courts long before Sauternes. Louis XIV called it “the wine of kings and the king of wines”. The sweetness is measured in puttonyos (traditionally 3 to 6), and the rarest, most concentrated wine of all is Eszencia. The volcanic soil and the mists off the Bodrog river make it all possible.
Visiting from Budapest
Tokaj is about 2 to 2.5 hours east of Budapest, so most people visit on a full-day tour with transport, one or more cellar visits — the cellars are cut deep into the rock, walls furred with the black “cellar mould” — and a tasting flight, often with lunch. Don’t miss the region’s dry Furmint, the crisp, mineral white that is Tokaj’s exciting modern story. Learn the detail in our guide to Tokaji wine, or taste it first in the city on a Budapest wine tasting.
FAQ about Tokaj Wine Tours
Frequently asked questions
What is Tokaji wine?
The wine of the Tokaj region in northeast Hungary — most famously the sweet golden Aszú made from botrytised (noble-rot) grapes, graded in puttonyos, plus the region's excellent dry Furmint whites.
Can you visit Tokaj on a day trip from Budapest?
Yes — Tokaj is about 2–2.5 hours east, and full-day tours from Budapest include transport, cellar visits and tastings, often with lunch.
What does puttonyos mean?
It's the traditional measure of sweetness and concentration in Tokaji Aszú, historically from 3 to 6 puttonyos — the higher the number, the sweeter and richer the wine. Eszencia is rarer and sweeter still.