Balaton
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Balaton
Main cities at the upper lake::
- Síófok
- Kenese
- Almádi
- Füred
Main cities at the lower lake::
- Keszthely
- Badacsony
- Lelle
- Boglár
- Fonyód
Map of interesting spots of lake Balaton: [1]
Getting around:
- The Hungarian railway company (MAV) runs trains around the lake, they are loud, dirty and much fun to ride. On the northen shore they run old nostalgian steam engines. Informations in every town at the railway stations.
- Not so fast but much more fun is getting from town to town by Ship. The Balaton Hajószási KFT runs ferries that stop at every mayor town at the lake, they do this at any weather and are quite precise to there schedule.
- The Busses from VOLAN are also a good way to come around. Most stops are in the centers of the town near public places like Railway stations, city halls or beaches. Do have a lot of stops and so you can get quite exactly where you wanna go, while by boat or railroad you might have to walk abit.
- By bike or Rollerblades is a very good way to get around. Since 3 years the bike- road around the lake is completed. actually they do not treat it to much so is in a bad condition already, but hey, its Hungary. Most tows do have rentals. I try to get some addresses on the map. Trains and ferries take also your bike. so you can combine both possibilities.
- Of yourse most easy is by car, but at the main season there are so many people on the road that you are not able to go faster then 30km/h on most places in towns there are 20 km/h signs and even less. Please take care of kids and bikes. If you need to go by care take the Highway on the south shore (M7). If you are on you might see a beautifully spot right at the Bridge at Zamárdi and at the very end at Balatonszentgyörgy.
- Taxis: Well there are some, but do not count on them and do count that they will ask for crazy money especially at night when you wanna go home.
Getting there:
- By car: Take the highway M7 from Budapest. It follows the south shore of the lake. If you go to the north you have to leave at the exit Balatonfüred/Aliga at km???? In Summertime take care while driving, People are on holiday, and most towns regulate trafic to 20km/h so children playing and people on rollerscates and riding bikes do not have to be worried. Please respect this, hey you should cruse as well.....
- By train: Intercity trains go from Budapest to Nagykanizsa and follow the south shore of the lake. Intercities only stops at Siófok, Balatonboglár and Fonyód. Most times ther is a connection to the other cities inbetween minutes. For all other stations please check the [Elvira HP]
- By Bus: Busses go from Budapest and Vienna. From Vienna they go to the west end of the Lake to Héviz and Keszthely and called "Bäderbus" from [Eurolines]
- By Aircraft: [Sármelék Airport] and [Siófok Airport] are both internationa status but do not have too much regular flights. They are very close to the lake (about 20km). Vienna and Budapest are beside Bratislava the big international Airports to come from fare away to the lake.
What you should not miss:
This calender shows some events that happen at the lake or nearby
In case of emergancies:
- Hospitals:
- Ambulance:
- Police:
- Fire Fighters:
- Water Police:
