Debrecen4U
September 15, 2025
How the founder and tour guide of “Explore Debrecen” sees Debrecen – Interview with Nóra Erdei
Why is it worth knowing the past and memories of the city where we live or study? How does a walk become storytelling, and what can we learn about our surroundings from the perspective of a tour guide?
There are few things more inspiring than when someone sees what they do not just as a profession, but as a matter of the heart. In such a case, every little detail is filled with life, and the experience becomes captivating for others as well.
Nóra Erdei was asked about Debrecen, her connection to the city, and how this perspective can be passed on to future generations.
Why was Nóra Erdei captivated by the world of tour guiding, and what inspired her to choose this profession?
“When I was a university student, I started working as an English major student at the Tourinform office, where I came into contact with tourism. After quite a few years, the idea came to me that I would like to be a tour guide because I like dealing with people, I am interested in the history of the city and its cultural and built heritage, and I also enjoy working with foreigners. I completed the training required for tour guiding and immediately started my business under the name Explore Debrecen with a local by your side,” she explained.
Nóra also revealed the idea behind the name choice.
“I chose an English name because even then my goal was to be found by foreign students studying in the city, foreign workers living here, and tourists coming to us from other countries. In the past eight years, since I have been working as a tour guide, I have had the opportunity to show Debrecen to many Hungarian and foreign guests,” adding that “what makes me even more proud is that the people of Debrecen are also happy to participate in my thematic walks, so we can discover the city where we live together.”
Nóra has lived in Debrecen since she was born, although she has also worked abroad during her career, and through her work she has become acquainted with many countries. She has lived in England and Brussels, but her heart has always drawn her home. She believes that it is particularly important to thoroughly get to know the city where we live or study.
As she recounted, “My roots are here; my family lives here. As I got older, I began to be more interested in where I live, why the city is the way it is, why the locals behave the way they do, and what it is that always draws me back here beyond my family. In addition, as I started working as a tour guide, I learned more and more about the city, its history, its buildings, and its inhabitants. Together, these two opened up new dimensions of the city for me, which I am happy to share with others. The joy of discovery, of wonder, and of course the many exciting, interesting stories that streets, squares, and buildings hold, help us understand ourselves, answer certain questions, provide guidance in life, or simply entertain us. This is an exciting experience for both locals and tourists. And for foreigners, it is an interesting cultural adventure.”
But what is it that makes Debrecen such a lovely place for her?
“I love its stories. I love its buildings. I love its green spaces. As a city girl, when I was a child, our family had a custom of going for a walk, as we said at home, to the Great Church and back. The buildings on Piac Street meant nothing to me then, but now I know something interesting about almost all of them—who designed them, who lived there, and what used to stand in their place.
Of course, this is also true of the city as a whole, and to this day I still go on tourist trips in Debrecen, going off the beaten path, exploring parts of the city I rarely visit, and entering buildings I have never been to before.
These trips always bring great discoveries and surprises. What I really love is Piac Street. I wear it out every day, but I don’t get bored of it,” Nóra expressed.
The tour guide told us who usually takes part in the city walks and whether, in addition to tourists from abroad or other cities, the people of Debrecen also enjoy exploring their own city.
“I usually have all kinds of guests—foreigners, Hungarians, and locals. From a couple of families to small groups of friends and work communities, large tourist bus groups also regularly come to visit. That’s exactly what’s exciting about this job, that you can meet a wide variety of people, and no two groups are the same, and therefore no two walks are the same.
So it can happen that one day I have to introduce the Munkácsy trilogy to a Chinese group, and the next day I’m telling locals about Jókai’s experiences in Debrecen. Both are guided tours, yet they’re completely different.
And the fact that I can meet people from other countries and cultures here is a bonus. Even in a short, informal conversation, you can hear a lot of interesting things from them and often learn about how people live and think in other parts of the world, and you don’t even have to travel to do this,” she shared.
“Everyone comes with a different background. Moreover, foreigners come from a different culture, where the customs are different and the general education is different. Debrecen is completely unknown to them in most cases, as are the names of Kossuth or Csokonai.
For Hungarian groups, the challenge is more about the age, composition, and range of interests of the group. A city tour should be organized differently for primary school children and differently for a technically minded adult community. What they have in common is that in addition to a lot of information, the program should be entertaining and experiential and should include points that they can relate to, be it a world historical event, a special building, or even a dish,” she explained.
Education is not new to her, as she previously taught English and communication. Nóra also revealed that she had the opportunity to meet future tourism professionals during examinations organized within the framework of higher education.
“At Visit Debrecen and the Tourinform office, I worked with interns for nearly two decades, who got their first insight into the everyday activities of the tourism profession. I was always happy to mentor them, and several of them later became my direct colleagues.
It feels good to see that there is a new generation and that I have contributed a little to the launch of some young people’s careers.
Over the years, it has become clear to me that I love teaching, so when the idea of moving on matured in me, the change was not so drastic. Not least because I am now teaching something that I have been working in for more than two decades.
My goal is to help my students understand the connections of tourism through personal and practical examples, in addition to basic professional knowledge, and to encourage them to find a job in tourism after graduating from school,” Nóra concluded.
The tour guide was also asked about if she was a student today and where she would like to spend her free time after school.
“I would definitely spend a lot of time in the Great Forest. It is true that I spend most of my days in the city center, but being close to nature always recharges me, so I would probably often jump on a bike with friends, and after a ride together, I would sit with them on the grass on the shore of Lake Békás to chat and watch the ducks.”
Debrecen, in addition to its main attractions, has many hidden treasures, which, according to Nóra, are at least as exciting as its iconic landmarks.
What are the three places she thinks are absolutely must-see in Debrecen?
“It is a difficult question, but if I had to recommend it, a walk along Piac Street among the beautiful tenement houses and colorful merchant houses is unmissable.
Even if it is not clear at first glance what is significant, why, or what is worth knowing about, the statues decorating their facades, building decorations, the huge gates, the special wheel arches, and of course the commemorative plaques are interesting in themselves and tell a lot about the city’s history, built and cultural heritage.
Of course, the Great Forest is also unmissable, a pleasant walk through the park, touching Lake Békás and along the colorful flower carpet of the Szabó Magda Promenade to the university’s main building, reminiscent of the palaces of Versailles.
And speaking of Debrecen, you can’t leave the city without seeing the impressive Reformed Great Church towering over the main square, which is not only a must-see for its vast interior but also for its attic and the panoramic walkway between the two towers, from which the city center opens up beautifully. The Great Library of the Reformed College, a monument, and the Oratory, where you can even sit on a bench in Kossuth’s place, are the icing on the cake. And I haven’t even mentioned the Déri Museum, the Szabó Magda Memorial House, the cozy old town streets, the Jewish quarter, the botanical garden…” she listed.
Those who are moving to Debrecen to study or work should also visit the city with open eyes, as there are many experiences, discoveries, and opportunities waiting for them. And the tour guide has now sent a message to them too: In this fast-paced, stressful world, it is refreshing to go sightseeing where we live.
“The advantage is that you don’t even have to travel to it; you just have to walk home sometimes instead of taking a car, take a different route instead of the beaten path, and walk a little slower, more leisurely, and of course, with open eyes. We will see many new and interesting things along the way that we would otherwise avoid. It may be just a gate lined with wild grapes, through which the sun shines beautifully, a romantic building facade even in its more worn condition, or a garden full of colorful flowers,” she mentioned.
Discovering Debrecen can be an exciting adventure for everyone. If we walk the streets, squares, and parks with open eyes, the small details of the city will start to tell us stories, enriching our everyday lives and bringing us closer to our surroundings. And if we capture these moments, the pages of our memory book can be filled with more than beautiful stories.
When Nóra asked what she would write in her own memory book, she replied, “Maybe I wouldn’t write; I would rather fill it with photos. Let the photos speak instead of words.”
Source:dehir.hu | Photo credit:dehir.hu
