Hungary – Lake Balaton Walking Holiday

Make your way independently to your hotel in Lake Balaton. Lake Balaton has beaches, volcanic hills, resort towns along its 197km shoreline. The hilly north shore is a wine-growing region, with protected wetlands and hiking trails at Balaton Uplands National Park. Here you will spend the evening at leisure and join your group for dinner.

Upon arrival in Budapest, we will be met by our local representative and transferred to our hotel in Lake Balaton (Distance: 147 km / approximate transfer time: 1 hour and 40 minutes).

Our guide will host a welcome meeting at our hotel, with the aim of preparing us for what we can expect in terms of distance, duration, and terrain during the hikes of our walking holiday. Dinner will be included every evening at our hotel, and we will have a packed lunch included for all our walking days together. Walking or hiking boots with good ankle support are essential for all walks throughout this guided group holiday.

4 star hotel (7 nights)

Let’s begin our adventure! This morning we will embark on a moderate walk to cross the Tihany peninsula. We will start our walk on the lakeside and continue as we ascend and descend smooth hills. Along the way we will pass the celebrated Abbey church, the caves of the monks and we will have the opportunity to witness beautiful views of the inner lake. We will end our walk in the town centre of Tihany. You will have some free time to explore the tranquil town of Tihany at your leisure before we return to our hotel.

Difficulty: Moderate / Distance: 9 km / Duration: 4 hours / Incline: 200 m

Difficulty: Challenging / Distance: 13 km / Duration: 6.5 hours / Incline: 250 m

Join us and discover the beauty of the Keszthely mountain range. We will transfer by coach to start of our walk. We will embark on an invigorating hike through the tranquil hills. Along this route we will find ourselves ascending an almost horizontal path where we will be 430m above sea level. Walking poles may be an asset on our hike today.

Difficulty: Moderate / Distance: 10 km / Duration: 5 hours / Incline: 240 m

Difficulty: Challenging / Distance: 14 km / Duration: 6.5 hours / Incline: 400

Let’s unwind together! After our hike we will have a short transfer to Héviz, where we will get to enjoy the world largest natural thermal lake. This is the perfect place to relax and rejuvenate after our adventurous activity today. Following our time at the lake we will return to our hotel where the rest of the evening will be at your leisure

Join us as we explore the virgin forest of Bakony mountain! We will take on 3 different walking routes together over the course of the day and walking poles may be an asset. Firstly, we will depart our hotel to the small village of Vinya and from here we take a short 10 minute journey on the forest retro train from Porva to Cseznek station. We start our first walk of the day at the Cuha, a gorge which runs parallel to the train track. This 4.3km walk back to Vinye consists of small creek crossings with no elevation. The Cuha valley is a spectacular combination of railroad buildings surrounded by beautiful natural scenery. When we return to Vinya we will transfer by coach to Zirc where we will sample some beer in the Zirc Monastery brewery. After our beer tasting we will take a 2km walk around the beautiful Botanical Garden of Zirc which is the highest gardens in Hungary.

Lets’ continue exploring! This afternoon we will explore Amos hill, the ski resort area of Bakony mountain which is used by hikers outside of the skiing season. We will begin our moderate hike by taking the chairlift uphill and upon reaching the top we will have the chance to see stunning panoramic views of the surrounding areas. There will be time to take it all in before descending back down on foot along a 1.5km route to the starting point. Afterwards we will return to our hotel by coach where the remainder of the evening will be free for further independent exploration.

Difficulty: Moderate / Distance: 7.8 km / Duration: 5.5 hours / Incline: 250 m for all 3 walks combined

Difficulty: Challenging / Distance: 9.3 km / Duration: 6.5 hours / Incline: 250 m     

Today you will have the full day free to spend as you wish in the Balaton Uplands. You might like to take a stroll along the shoreline of Lake Balaton, or you could sit back, relax and re – charge your batteries at your hotel. The choice is all yours. Your local guide will be on hand to make some suggestions for activities, sightseeing and local eateries to suit your taste.

Join us today for a hike through the Tapolca Basin where a true forest experience is waiting for us, as we walk through a young mountain range surrounded by volcanic hills. To begin we will transfer to the St Georg hill which will be the starting point for our hike. As we ascend the volcanic hills, we will get the chance to take in the tremendous views of Hungary’s most famous wine region. We will approach Badacsony hill, known as the godfather of the volcanoes as it is the highest and most prominent peak, as well as one of the most important formations of Lake Balaton. From here we will descend along a path to the wine region, where our hike will finish. We could not visit the wine region without sampling what makes this place so famous! We will get the chance to sample some of delicious Hungarian wines on offer. After some time for refreshments and recuperation we will then transfer back to our hotel.

Difficulty: Moderate / Distance: 10 km / Duration: 4.5 hours / Incline: 350 m

Difficulty: Challenging / Distance: 17 km / Duration: 6.5 hours / Incline: 700 m

Let’s go on our final hike together! We will make the journey to the Kali Basin, just north of Lake Balaton. Our hike will take us across the Kali Basin which locals refer to as the Hungarian Tuscany for the breath-taking views across the landscape. On this hike we will pass through many traditional Hungarian villages and numerous nature reserves boasting unique flora and fauna. The Kali Basin sits on a volcanic formation just like the Tapolca Basin. We will encounter uneven terrain today so walking poles may be an asset. After our hike we will transfer back to our hotel where you will have your final night at leisure to spend as you wish.  

Difficulty: Moderate / Distance: 8 km / Duration: 5 hours / Incline: 170 m

Difficulty: Challenging / Distance: 15 km / Duration: 6.5 hours / Incline: 350 m

Depending on the time of your flight, you may have some time to spend at leisure in the Balaton Uplands for any last-minute shopping or sightseeing. We will say goodbye to the Balaton Uplands and transfer from our hotel to Budapest airport for your flight home.