You can get to know the military history of the Szeklers in the Szekler Border Guard Memorial Center. The world class exposition presents the military history of the Szeklers on 600 square meters. History comes alive thanks to vax statues and scenes from every day life. Even those who aen’t keen on history can take a liking to it here. You should dedicate at least 90 minutes to explore the exhibiton.

The people of Szépvíz are connected to Saint László in multiple ways. The elders still remember that close to here, on the Small Pogányhavas mountain stood the rock from where King László strode on horseback to the valley, he gave his horse water from the clean creek he found there, and he said: Drink, my horse, for this is beautiful water (szép víz). Ever since then, the creek bears the name Szépvíz (Beautiful Water), the village having been named after it. Today on the mountain Small Pogányhavas (1195 meters) stand the ruins of a chapel and a belfry, but one can also see the legendary rock from where the knight king strode to the valley.

You can get to know the military history of the Szeklers in the Szekler Border Guard Memorial Center. The world class exposition presents the military history of the Szeklers on 600 square meters. History comes alive thanks to vax statues and scenes from every day life. Even those who aen’t keen on history can take a liking to it here. You should dedicate at least 90 minutes to explore the exhibiton.

The statue of Saint László has been erected in the village center of Szépvíz in 2009. This is the only full body statue of the king in Transylvania. It was created by sculptor Bocskay Vince. The small artificial hill behind the three-meter high statue visualizes parts of Saint László’s myth. Soil has been brought here from several settlements in the Carpathian Basin during the space arrangement. It’s worth to take a peek at the area around the statue, here you can find four important dates that connect to the life of the king. One should find these when visiting.

The Armenian settling took place in several waves during the 17th-18th Century. According to tradition people fleeing from Moldova initially solicited refuge from the village elders for three days time but they ended up staying for centuries. The civilian houses in the village center were built by Armenians in the 19th Century. The houses of the merchant-families were provided with business premises. By the present day the once numerous Armenian community diminished, most of their houses were sold. The built heritage of the village center invokes the atmosphere of a townlet. It’s well worth exploring this Armenian island. 

Szépvíz is connected to Saint László in multiple ways. One of these is the fact that the local church was consacrated to Saint László in 1897. Hungarian saints can be found on its high altar: next to Saint László you can see the king Saint Stephen and the prince Saint Imre.  The original organ of the church was made in 1896 and it has been completely restored in 2010. At this time it was fitted with 519 new whistles, 8 new varieties of register and 9 new lines of tiers.

There is a good chance that Csíkszentmiklós and its neighbours, Szépvíz and Csíkborzsova were established in the Árpád Era. During the excavations in Csíkszentmiklós led by archeologist Botár István in 2016 there were four hairpins found with round heads, dated around the 12th Century. Thanks to the archeologist’s research we now know that this is oldest graveyard located next to a church in the Csík-Basin. It can be assumed that the graveyard was established around a chapel made of etiher stone or wood. The church has been rebuilt several times, the current Gothic sanctuary and tower were built in the 18th Century. It’s worth to explore this monument church.

The spiritual and cultural center of the local Armernian community was the Armenian Catholic Church which has been built in 1762. The church is only being used nowadays during celebrations by the visiting Armenian descendants, also the local Catholic community  holds a mass here on every Sunday night. „My house is a house of prayers.” – this Armenian inscription can be read on the church’s arch. In the village there are three more towers. Originally they were all built as Catholic churches so at one time Szépvíz used to have Armenian, Greek and Roman Catholic churches.

We don’t know the exact date when the chapel consacrated to the Snowy Virgin Mary was built but there is some data concerning the restoration of the building left in ruins after the last Tatar invasion of Europe in 1716. Later, from 1861 the craftsmen of Szépvíz took care of the chapel. Mostly the local craftsmen were buried in the graveyard around the chapel, hence the name.

The world’s second oldest Szekler gate still standing in its original location can also be found in Szépvíz. It was erected in 1799 and since has been restored several times, but it was never moved. Close to the gate there stands a belfry which was pronounced a monument. The locals call it the Tinkler. This assortment of historical buildings can be found only 700 meters from the village center.

The world of the shacks in the mountains meadows is magical. One can truly enjoy the unique sight of the sunsets and sunrises or dive deep in the sea of smells created by the unique flora of the Csík Mountains. Agriculture is one of the most significant part of the village’s and the landscape’s vital force. Farmers always knew from experience that nature and man are coworkers and that they can’t be at odds with each other. Around Szépvíz there are several Natura 2000 protected areas where the flora and fauna only survived thanks to the fact that they were cultivated by humans.

The Via Mariae is a pilgrimage that is based on the cult of the Virgin Mary thriving among central european people, but it also connects the shrines conscrated to the Virgin Mary and the historical, cultural heritage along the road, no matter the religion – so says the website of the pilgrimage about the spiritual significance of this tourist’s path. The Via Mariae goes through our village, following the markers one can also visit the Szentlélek Chapel located on the mountain Széphavas (1339).

The bath was restored in 2011, when they added a smaller pool and a footbath next to the big pool and dressing rooms and toilets were also added to the amenities. The popular bath can be found along the Borzsova Creek, 2,5 kilometers from the village of Csíkborzsova in pleasant surroundings. During the summer months it’s an ideal place for a picnic, in the neighbouring forests one can also gather mushrooms and forest fruits. During the summer the homecoming herd usually grazes closeby so the ringing of the bells can be enjoyed together with the sounds of birds.

This popular bath is being mentioned by locals as the Armenian Bath. Tha name Cibre however keeps the memory of the late settlement, Cibrefalva (Cibre village). The village has been burned down during the last Tatar Invasion in 1694. The popular bath that can be used today has been built in the 2000’s after the initiative of the Szépvíz Mayor’s Office. The color  of the water in the pool here is russety thanks to the local mineral water. This bath is located 2 kilometers from the village center. It is easily reachable by foot or by bike.

The building of the reservoir at the edge of Szépvíz van finished in 1987 and ever since then this body of water supplies Csíkszereda and other surrounding settlements with drinking water. The artificial lake gets „fed” with water from two creeks, Szalonka and Pálos. Swimming or boating is not allowed in the lake situated 800 meters above sea level but it can be circled by foot or by bike. TÍhe lake is 1.2 kilometers long and 0,5 kilometers wide.

One can marvel at the beauty of the Csík Mountains, the everchanging face of nature around Szépvíz. On this photo you can see the peak of Mountain Pogány-havas (1351) where the sun shines even when the whole of Csík is under the weather – at least according to the locals, meaning at times when the whole basin is submerged in fog. One can choose from several tourist routes starting out from Szépvíz. If you like a whole day tour there are multiple options for you, but if you only want to walk around for a few hours, Szépvíz (situated at 791 meters above sea level) is perfect for you even in that case. From here, you can reach the mountains Széphavas (1339 m), Small Pogányhavas (1195 m) or even the Szellő Peak (1493 m).

The Merchants’ Road is probably one of the oldest commercial routes in the Csík-Basin. The Merchants’ Gate – that’s name of the hill from where the route starts, close to the Saint John’s Church in Csíkdelne. This 7,5 km road is classified as an agricultural road therefore there is much less traffic on this blacktop. Because of this it is considered one of the best roads for cycling in the region, in the last several years it also served as a location for local foot-races. It’s also a part of the Via Mariae. The Merchants’ Road leads into the village at the intersection of the Rákosi Road and Church Street.

No other village in the Csík region has such a „garden” at their disposal anymore. This 25 acre area is co-owned by more than 500 farmers. Besides cabbage, other garden vegtables are grown on the small, „handkerchief-sized” (1-4 acres) areas. The cultivation of these areas is done in a highly regulated way. The cutting of the cabbage happens on the same day for everyone, on the weekend closest to Gál’s Day (october 16th). Together with this cutting there is also a local farmer’s market at this time where the farmers can sell their produce surplus.

Traditional agriculture is still very much a part of the life of the locals. There still exists a homecoming herd of cows and the mountain pastures are still cultivated. You can stroll around the countryside and become a cowherd if only for a few hours time! The herd starts out in the morning and comes home at sunset, and these two daily events give a very special athmosphere to the village’s landscape. Time hasn’t stopped here either, but there are still some things being kept alive from old times.

The Csengő Agricultural Association based in Csíkszépvíz promotes traditional agriculture by buying milk from the local farmers since 2015. Cheese, curd and butter is made from this local produce under the name Szépvíz. Try the Szépvíz cheese when in Szépvíz! Tasty cheese plates can be enjoyed while exploring the surrounding area, you can taste Cibre cheese in Cibre or Szellő cheese at the top of the Szellő Mountain.