Mosonmagyaróvár is situated in the northwestern corner of the region defined by the latitude of 47-48° on the North and in the longitude of 17-18° on the East. This small region is junction between Slovakia, Austria and Hungary. Mosonmagyaróvár is a stopover of the Vienna - Budapest (Paris-Istanbul) international railway. It is located at the point of intersections of highway M 10 from the direction of Hegyeshalom (Vienna) and the main road from Rajka (Bratislava). Highway M1 has its junction here as well. The city is situated 39 kms from Győr, 34 kms from Bratislava, 84 kms from Vienna and 164 kms from Budapest, the capital of Hungary, and it is easy to reach either by railway or on the highway from both the Austrian and Hungarian capitals as well.
Currently Mosonmagyaróvár is the third largest city of Győr-Moson-Sopron County. In its immediate surroundings, the city has 25 settlements on the area of 931 km2, with approximately 70 thousand inhabitants. Its closeness to the two important border-crossing stations of the country, Hegyeshalom and Rajka has made it an important economic, financial (customs), tourist, traffic, industrial and commercial centre. Its manpower of academic and service sectors sustains the requirements of the population in the neighbouring regions as well. The city’s university has been the centre of important academic education and research.
Mosonmagyaróvár is situated in the northwest of Dunántúl region, in the lowlands of Kisalföld, in the Győr basin. The small regions around are the bed-silt deposited lowlands of Moson and Szigetköz. In the north and in the east there is the region of Szigetköz, in the south Hanság, and in the west the plateau of Pandorf are the natural borders of the city. The river Lajta flows through the region and merges into the river Mosoni-Duna (Danube). The city itself has been built on a huge 50-200 m thick alluvial cone of the river. Mosonmagyaróvár has two rivers. The river Mosoni-Duna branches away the Danube between Oroszvár and Dunacsúny. The river has a winding course, and its water level is regulated by the penstock of Rajka. The river is lined with green woods. The recreational use of the river is authorized as it has been deemed suitable for water sports. After 125 kms, this river merges into the river Danube.
The other river, Lajta springs from Lower Austria, It is 182 kms long, its height decreases from the spring to the delta 1150 meters. The water level fluctuates due to varied amounts of rainfall, it is quite temperamental. The quality of water is to be protected.
The primeval Danube, entering the lowlands through the Gruck gate and loading down an enormous layer of sand and pebbles, played a very significant role in the formation of the region. The topography of this region is completely flat; its height above sea level is 112-128 meters. Due to the relatively young accretion, there is not such a significant volume of valuable mineral deposits; apart from sand and pebbles one can only find thermal springs. The native rock of Mosonmagyaróvár and its region is pebbles; its the soil is slightly humic.
The climate is moderately warm and dry with green winters. This region is one of the most cloudy and most windy in Hungary. There are an average of 1820-1900 sunny hours annually, the number of cloudy days is 130-140 on average per year, the number of sunny days is about 40, while the number of foggy days is 20, and that of the snow-covered days is 35-40 per year. Rainfall is excessive; the annual average is 560-600 mm. Periods of heavy rainfall are common. The number of rainy days is about 130-140 days in a year with most of the rain falling in June and July. January is the driest month while July is the warmest. The annual average temperature is 9,5-10,5 °C, while the average temperature in winter it is 3,3°C. The difference between the January and July averages is 21-32 °C, but if we consider the end values the difference can be 55-58 °C. Frost is frequent in late spring and early autumn, which can cause serious damages for agriculture. Floods can occur twice a year; in the spring due to thawing of snow and in early summer due to heavy rainfalls. The number of wind-free days is only about 50-60; the prevailing wind directions are western and north-western winds and less frequent are south-eastern or a southern.
Previously the natural foliage of the region had been extremely diverse. Before the drainage of the Hansag region, one could find marshy alder forests, rush-beds, and marshlands and in the bottomlands whitewood and hardwood park forests and oak woods. These natural phytocoenosis can only be found in the bottomlands, in the riverside of the Mosoni-Duna and in abandoned riverbeds. Nowadays the natural forests have oak-, ash- and elm trees, the most common trees of the planted forests are the poplar-, willow-, acacia-, and ash trees. The fields around the city are under cultivation. The oldest and largest park of the city is Wittmann park, named after Mr. Anthony Wittmann, manor’s livestock steward, the regulator of river Lajta and the founder the Academy.
Today the main attraction of the city is the presence of thermal baths that surfaced from a well from 2000 m deep in 1966. The well delivery is 1800 litres of water /minute. The spa is 75°C Natrium-hidrogencarbonate and chloral spring water. In 1967, it was certified to be medicinal water, suitable for the treatment of rheumatic diseases, inflammations, respiratory diseases and a cure for stomach- and bowel conditions. From the mid-1990s, there was a significant investment and development of the thermal bath site such as hotel, restaurant, apartments, service- and therapeutical facilities. Today all these services are available all year round for the general population and for visitors looking for rest, remedy and recreation.
