New boats soon to enter service on Lake Balaton

The ferries and catamarans currently running on Lake Balaton have been in service for forty years: they have served travellers well and seen a lot, but the time has come for their retirement and for a renewal of the fleet.

Of the four new boats, Tihany and Tomaj made their first trips on the Balaton this September, while the others are still waiting to be launched. The development by Bahart is significant both for tourists and in local transport, as the four new ships will make it easier for people living around Lake Balaton to travel between the two shores. As ferry transport has increased from 800,000 to 1.4 million passengers in the last ten years and the number of cyclists has more than doubled, it’s clear that new ferries, capacity expansion and technical renewal are needed. 

The ferries and catamarans, which were especially designed for Lake Balaton, have engines that meet the latest environmental protection standards. They are equipped with modern technologies and have a faster travelling speed (ferries: 15 km/h, catamarans: 18 km/h) than their predecessors. The ferries are expected to enter service in December and the catamarans next March, at the start of the next sailing season.