Balaton for Families - 5 days

The largest and most intact castle in Hungary, a popular tourist destination not only because of its sheer scale, but also its various events, activities and services. The path to the gate is up a steep slope, so we recommend you wear comfortable walking shoes. The exhibitions on the castle’s history, together with the castle games and the exciting horse shows, give you an idea of what life was like in the fortress, which was built at the end of the 13th century. Every generation will find the castle chapel, the prison exhibition and the smithy interesting, and the visit to the castle will be like an interactive history lesson for children. Visit the medieval adventure park at the foot of the castle for even more fun.

The Lake Cave discovered in 1903 is merely a short section of the sprawling cave system under the town. Even children will find the interactive exhibition of the Visitor Centre exciting, with its ‘stone-feeling point’ and crawling cave, and you can also learn about the animals that lived in the Bakony Hills in ancient times. You can then paddle a boat on a 180-metre-long section of the lake under the ground in crystal-clear water. Suggestion: once you are back on the surface, enjoy a short walk to the Mediterranean Malom Lake, where you will see colourful fish zigzagging through the water.

The abbey, founded almost 1,000 years ago, is the world-famous symbol of the Tihany Peninsula. Once you have finished at the church of the monastery founded by (Saint) Andrew I of Hungary, walk down into the undercroft, where you will find the tomb of the abbey’s founder. It only takes 10 minutes to reach Belső-tó and the Lavender House, where you will find an interactive exhibition on how Tihany Peninsula was formed and learn about lavender growing. The gift shop, the tea shop, the craft shop and the experience garden all focus primarily on the lavender.

The Castle District in Veszprém towers above the medieval, crooked little streets of the town, with a profusion of museums, palaces, galleries and churches, from the Fire Tower to the north peak of the castle, where the statues of Saint Stephen and Blessed Gisela watch over the town. Visit the Dubniczay Palace, the Saint Michael Cathedral, the Archbishop’s Palace and the Gisela Chapel, but make sure you also have time for the Salesianum, located in the recently renovated Bíró-Giczey House, which was built in the 18th century. It is definitely worth a visit for its halls decorated with Baroque wall paintings, a liturgical exhibition and a violin maker’s demonstration workshop.

There is a lookout tower standing on top of Castle Hill in Balatonboglár and reigning over the land, officially called the Xantus János Lookout Tower. The view from this aluminium sphere – which has a diameter of 15 metres and stands at a height of 165 metres – is amazing in any direction, but the monadnocks on the north shore are best viewed at sunset.