PÉCS

View-forming and educational activities by the Directorate of the Danube-Dráva National Park organised in Pécs and surroundings. Help with the planning of professional trips and school trips.

Tettye Education Centre
Our Education Centre awaits everyone from toddlers to grown-ups with a wide variety of programmes. The partaking kids and adults can get to know the natural treasures that surround us and the most important questions of environment protection, all with the aid of our qualified instructors. We regularly organise short (1-1,5 hour) and long (3 hours, half-day or full day) work-shops and field trips of varied topics for kindergarten pupils and elementary school students. Tour guiding can also be requested for the tourist tracks. Here we can learn all there is to know about forest wild-life.
In the programmes, we strongly emphasise practical research, field observations and an interactive hands-on approach with the kids. Following cross-checking with the teachers and kindergarten educators, the real life work-shops can connect seamlessly with the curricular requirements.

A taste from our programmes:

• Pintér garden stroll – guided visit to the arboretum
• Tinkering away – colourful handicrafts work-shops (mould-made paper, felting, egg decorating, wax casting, plaster painting, eco-wallet making, making greeting cards and figures from pegs, making paper masé, corn husk dolls, crop figures and tree-trunk figures).
  
• „I don’t like” animals – getting to know useful animals, that have, somewhat undeservingly, received a bad name.
  
• Slide show about the Danube-Dráva National Park.
  
• Life in the water – getting to know the tiny organisms that live in the water through active observation.
  
• Forest school – half-day or whole-day programmes with hikes.
  
• Seasons.
  

For school students:

• Insight into the forest world, following the trail of animals.
• The world of birds: bird observation. 
  
• Owl cast examination.
  
• The world of the reptiles and amphibians.
  
• The world of the arthropod.
  
• Wild-life management and forestry.
  
• Characteristics of plants, making prints of leaves and bark.
  
• Forest eco-system, the inhabitants of the forest’s various levels, food chain.
  
• Examination of the forest floor.
  
• The role of environmental elements in nature: water and its wild-life, water quality examination, the role and significance of the forming of the ground, indicator types for the purity of the air.
  
• Topographical knowledge, making a map and navigation tasks.
  
• Presentation about the Directorate of the Danube-Dráva National Park, chat about nature conservation and the role of the park ranger.
  
• Creative and handicrafts tasks (corn husking, pebble painting, felting, making signs, etc.).
  
• Pintér Garden Arboretum
  
• Hikes in the nearby forests.
  

For kindergarten pupils:

• Winter; winter bird feeding, what do the animals do in winter?
• Spring, birds singing.
  
• Summer.
  
• Autumn, getting ready for winter (plants and animals).
  
• Insight into the forest world, following the trail of animals.
  
• Water and its wild-life.
  
• Simple examinations (magnifying glass, microscope).
  
• Creative and handicrafts tasks (corn husking, pebble painting, felting, making signs, etc.).
  
• Stroll in the Pintér Garden Arboretum.
  
• Hikes in the nearby forests.
  

In the summer time, camps and professional exercises are part of the programmes. In the cadre of the environmental protection days (Jeles Napok), we welcome students with environment knowledge programmes and help them organise and effectuate vocational competitions.
We also await students from middle and higher educational institutions to carry out their obligatory traineeships.
Within the various types of workshops the main stress is always on the formation or deepening of nature protection attitudes and the development of active behaviour. If required, this can be complemented with nature knowledge education.
In order to work successfully, we wish to forge strong ties with kindergartens, schools, and higher education institutes.

Prices:
- General work-shops:      200-500 Ft/person, depending on duration
- Forest school work-shops:     
- a 3-hour programme: HUF 600/person
- 2 3-hour programmes: HUF 700/2 programmes/day (discounted rate)
- For schools with a cooperation agreement: 200-400 Ft/person depending on duration
- Preparation for competitions: free of charge
- Participation fee for own competitions: HUF 450/group

Pintér Garden Arboretum
The arboretum is named after János Pintér, a retired bank official from Pécs, who started planting flowers and plants here in the 1920’s. Following his death, the Mecsek’s indigenous growth retook the area of the garden, thus increasing its richness in species. Today, an interesting combination of indigenous and ornamental plants and flowers make up the flora of the garden.
The Pintér Garden is a protected nature conservation area. It harbours numerous protected floral species and is ideal for an agreeable yet useful outing and is also the location for exterior programmes and work-shops. 

Opening times
1st of May – 30th of September: weekdays; Mon-Thu: 8.00-16.00, Fri: 8.00-14.00
Sat-Sun and holidays: 10.00-18.00  
1st of October – 30th of April: weekdays Mon-Thu: 8.00-16.00, Fri: 8.00-14.00   
Guided tour with expert,  45-60 minutes duration (in case of groups, advance booking required)
Entree fee: HUF 300/person
Address: 7625 Pécs, 9 Tettye Square - Information: +36 72/517-200
                                                         
Tettye Calc-tuff Cave
The cave is a unique geological formation. Its caverns were formed in the 10,000 year old loose, thick calc-tuff. The tunnels were artificially extended over the centuries; further corridors were cut into the mountain’s innards resulting in the creation of a smaller labyrinth system. Formerly, these caves also served as dwellings. In the 1900’s, the Tettye cave was known as „the gate to hell” and was a real tourist attraction with inside it a scary dragon. Today, this mysterious, underground cavern system boasts an interactive exhibition that helps us to get to know the world of caves, the history of the calc-tuff caverns and lots of other interesting things. Homepage: www.barlangpecs.hu

Opening times:
1st of November – 14th of March: Mon-Fri: 11.00-16.00, Sat-Sun: 10.00-16.00       
15th of March – 30th of April: Mon-Fri: 10.00-17.00, Sat-Sun: 10.00-18.00   
1st of May – 31st of October: daily 10.00-19.00
- The tour duration is 30 minutes.
- The tours leave every 30 minutes, the last one leaving half an hour prior to closing time.
- Group participants: maximum 30 people.
Entree fee:    Adults: HUF 750
Until 18 and pensioners: HUF 550
Under 2 years of age: free of charge
Advance booking for groups: +36 72/211-830, +36 30/580-3424, +36 30/525-4351

Jakab Hill
The Jakab Hill rises over Kővágószőlős and received its nature conservation status due to its geological and culture-historical assets. The hill is made up of a gravel conglomerate and red sand stone, the nicest example of which can be studied at the Babás and the Zsongor rock formations. The view from here is breath-taking. It is also worth it having a look at the early Iron Age earthwork fortress, which is the second largest of Europe, and the surrounding grave mounds. Another sight worth visiting is the ruins of the 13th century Paulite cloister. The area can be visited freely. A geological and culture-historical learning track awaits hikers. We recommend hiring a tour guide for your visit to Jakab Hill.
Tour guiding up to 20 people: 8500 Ft/group, over 20 people 425 Ft/person.

Accommodation
Pintér Garden guest house
The house next to the Pintér Garden Arboretum has a triple room with kitchen (sink, micro-wave oven, fridge and coffee maker) and bathroom available for guests.
7625 Pécs, Kiss József Street (Tettye)
 
Price:
Adults: 1st night: HUF 3200/person, from 2nd night: HUF 2500/person/night
Kids from 3 years: 1st night HUF 2200/person, from 2nd night: HUF 1700/person/night

For information and appointments contact the following numbers/e-mails:

Education:
Károlyné Ötvös instructor
Tel: +36 72/517-223, +36 30/300-3091, Fax: +36 72/517-229 - email: otvosne@ddnp.kvvm.hu

Katalin Ferenczi instructor and programme organiser
Tel: +36 72/517-222, +36 30/326-9459, Fax: +36 72/517-229 - e-mail: ferenczik@ddnp.kvvm.hu

Tourism (tour guiding, accommodation reservations)
Directorate of Danube-Dráva National Park, 7625 Pécs, Tettye tér 9.
Tel.: +36 30/405-4571, +36 30/377-3388 - e-mail: wodtke@ddnp.kvvm.hu, komlos@ddnp.kvvm.hu
Postal address: 7602 Pécs, P.O. Box.: 312