Őrség (A–B6) This unspoilt area, with its 18 little villages acts like a magnet, drawing city folk worn down by stress and smog. The special method of building, the crafts, and the customs all grew out of the dangerous circumstances in which the original settlers found themselves. The ancestors of the local population settled in the Őrség after the conquest of the Carpathian Basin by the Hungarian tribes in 896. Their task was to protect the border and those crossing it. They made space for their homes by clearing the forests, and since the valleys were slippery and difficult to navigate, they built on small rises. In this way, a unique form of settlement came about, known as the "szer" (pronounced "ser"), where one family lived on each hilltop. A family could consist of around 20-25 people and all these mouths needed to be fed in the harsh winters, when snow cut off the villages from the outside world. Many of those living in the Őrség became self-sufficient, since for the most part they had to rely on their own devices. From the excellent clay in the area they made terracotta utensils, and from wood they carved tools, furniture, and wove baskets. The workshop, or carving room, can be seen next to most houses. Potters are still active in the Őrség to this day. In the yards of the craftsmen of three villages (Velemér, Gödörháza, Magyarszombatfa – B6) pots, saucepans, baking dishes, jugs and mugs glow as they are fired in the furnaces. And in the other villages woodcarvers, basket weavers and broom binders continue to ply their trade. At the houses, you can buy honey and dried mushrooms, or home-pressed pumpkin seed oil, or the host's palinka (a strong brandy similar to schnapps) and wine can be tasted.
The Őrség National Park is a highly protected area, and has lakes and rivers suitable for bathing, green pastures and crystal clear pure springs. More than sixty per cent of it is covered with forests rich in game. Most of it is pine, so hikers, walkers and cyclists are accompanied by a resinous, refreshing scent. This is the scent of the Őrség.

Őriszentpéter, Pankasz (B6) In Őriszentpéter, the centre of this area of 18 settlements, you can see one of the most beautiful fortified churches from Roman times. A valuable monument in the village of Pankasz is the eighteenth-century bell tower, with a “skirt”. The bell is held in place by a wooden structure, one of the highlights of which is a low roof covered with rye thatch, the so-called "skirt".

Velemér (B6) The village is famous for one of the most visited monuments in the country, the thirteenth-century church built in Gothic and Romanesque style, which stand on the hill next to the village. Its fourteenth-century frescoes almost completely cover the walls.

Szalafő (A-B6) This small village has best preserved the old, medieval structure of a settlement. It is built on seven hills, on one of which (Pitzerszer), an open-air ethnographical collection can be seen. There are early nineteenth-century thatched residential houses, with their living room-kitchensmall room arrangement, workshops, wood chopping blocks, old tools, a small pond for watering animals, and a two-storey “warehouse” unique in Hungary, with a living space on the ground floor and, above that, an open space for storing produce. The buildings usually formed a U-shaped courtyard, closed on the fourth side by a fence the height of a man. This created a small stronghold.

Göcsej (B6) In Göcsej too, a region of almost seventy villages next to the Őrség, the first settlers built on hilltops. The roads were difficult, so a special dialect developed in the villages, isolated from the outside world. According to some researchers, this is closest to the ancient Hungarian language. Zalaszentgyörgy (B6) Is known for its Romanesque church, the village of Böde (B6) for the thirteenthcentury church on the village boundary, and in Zalalövő (B6) archaeologists have discovered a military camp from Roman times.

Zalaegerszeg (B–C6) Today in Göcsej only a few residential historic buildings can be seen, because the old buildings have been transferred to the central town of the region, Zalaegerszeg, where the first open-air ethnographical collection was founded. In the village museum, furnished houses 150-200 years old, a water mill, a barn, and a traditional Hungarian well (gémeskút) give an overall picture of the village. In Zalaegerszeg it is also worth looking up the Göcsej Museum, the baroque parish church, or the oil industry museum, which can be found close to the ethnographic museum.

Young people enjoy the water theme park, Aquacity, and the nearby medicinal and leisure baths of Kehidakustány (C6) provides a pleasant way to unwind for all the family.