Length: 10.7 km (6.65 mi)
Ascent/descent: 287 m (941 ft)
Duration: approx. 3.5 – 4 hrs (plus optional)
Lake Balaton is the biggest lake in Hungary, a super popular area for vacation days. Tihany is a peninsula of the northern shoreline with two small internal lakes, numerous great viewpoints to enjoy the landscape of Balaton, plenty of lavender fields and the famous Benedictian Abbey that was established in year 1055, so soon it will celebrate its 1000th birthday!
Our hike starts by the Kotyogós Café (right next to a pasture where sometimes you can spot some Hungarian Gray cattle!), so on days when it is open, you can get some quick caffeine before heading into the forest. From here, we soon reach our first waypoint, a rock formation with great views of the peninsula around. After a short walk, we reach the area closest to the water with several great photo spots of the most amazing sights of the lake. We follow the path on the western side of the peninsula to reach the Apáti Hill, which has a lookout tower as well. We descend to the trail leading us between the two internal lakes to reach the side of the village where we pass by an artist settlement and an outdoor theather before reaching our starting point.
After the hike, if you wish, you can also visit the Benedictian Abbey and/or enjoy a meal at a nice restaurant with views of Lake Balaton. Please let me know in advance if you want to do any of the additional programs, as in this case we will have to consider opening schedules as well.
Transport:
For this tour, travelling by car is strongly recommended, as public transport requires several changes, may be delayed and takes approx. 3 hours one way.
Please consider that the start/finish point of this hike is an approx. 1.5-2 hours drive from downtown Budapest!
Price: 24000 HUF (~60 EUR) per person. For 5 persons or more: 15% discount for all!
Included:
– Private trail guide for only your group
– One small bottle of still water per person
– Equipment rental on request (hiking poles, snow spikes)
Excluded:
– Transportation
– Food/drinks
– Entrance to Abbey
Pick up/drop off from/to downtown location: 55000 HUF (~ 140 EUR) up to 4 persons, round trip. For 5-7 persons, we need two cars, so the price will be double (110000 HUF total).
