MAHART base port, Kisköre

Architects: Zsuzsanna Antalné Tari, Péter Antal
Text: Bálint Botzheim
Photos: István Veszely

One of the key places for domestic tourism is Lake Tisza, the second largest lake in Hungary. Kisköre, located 27 kilometers from the Tiszalök barrage, has been the base port of MAHART for quite some time, offering a wide range of services as a starting point for holiday cruises on the river Tisza. In 2021, the port’s new facility was completed: four stilt houses and the imposing observation tower rising between them. The complex stands on a small promontory jutting out into the water and lined with reeds. You can approach the buildings from a small bridge, which connect to a circular terrace and each of them has a different function: one houses the reception office of the holiday cruise, the other the water police, the third a restaurant, and the fourth serves office and community tasks. The designers started from the traditions of the folk architecture typical of the Tisza area, so that the entire facility could be an ensemble that respects nature and lives with it. The focus of the design is on environmental awareness: the appropriate scale, building materials and structures optimized for summer operation, long-lasting, post-recyclable materials, and the use of renewable energy sources.

Architects: Zsuzsanna Antalné Tari, Péter Antal
Structure: Egon Baratta
HVAC: László Iványi
Electrical engineering: György Puppán
Structural expert: László Kakasy
Environmental expert: Péter Antal