Lake Balaton is preparing to host an even larger number of visitors attracting tourists by organising a whole slew of diverse cultural and artistic programmes located on the northern shoreland of Lake Balaton plays an important role in this year’s schedule and as an area that is managed in an exemplary way Tihany is famous not only for its ecological importance and historic heritage but also for being a popular getaway site for romantic couples While most couples usually visit Tihany during the lavender harvest season Tihany offers a wide range of programmes for this year’s Valentine’s Day The Tapolca Lake Cave is another charming romantic spot near Lake Balaton that belongs to the National Park—the cave it was the first electricity-installed cave of Hungary The Bakony Mountains with their basalt rock formations are a relic of the volcanic activities in the Quaternary For hiking enthusiasts looking for a truly educational tour is visit to Bakonybél is highly recommended Apart from the Bakonybél Abbey, a Benedictine monastery established in the first decades of the 11th century the settlement has another great attraction: it has the biggest and most modern digital planetarium in the whole of Hungary The lush countryside and the splendidly fresh air make Bakonybél a prime hiking destination anyway not to mention that it offers a unique cinema experience: the image projected onto the semi-spherical dome The planetarium has a range of well equipped telescopes that can be used both during the day and at night visitors will find castle ruins on the top of the hilltops thanks to the volcanic soil and a unique microclimate The headquarters of the Balaton Uplands National Park is in Veszprém One of UNESCO’s cities of music since 2019 Veszprém has gained international recognition for hosting a series of music festivals promoting music literacy and education the town decided to share its title of European Capital of Culture with over 110 neighbouring small villages and towns the 2023 Veszprém-Balaton project is set to showcase both the cultural diversity and natural beauty of the region The project wishes to demonstrate the local impact of climate change while promoting the idea that the health of local communities depends on the health of the ecosystems that surrounds them Hungarian Conservative is a quarterly magazine on contemporary political philosophical and cultural issues from a conservative perspective The Tapolca Lake Cave was discovered in 1903 and soon after it turned out that there is an entire cave system underneath Tapolca. 10 years later the prerogative of speleologists and cavers to admire to underground karst formations was extended to the public This was the first cave in Hungary that was equipped with electric lighting and used for tourism purposes The cave was placed under protection in 1942 and has been listed as specially protected since 1982 owing to its geological hydrological and biological values as well as its size There is no other cave of similar size underneath a populated settlement around the world In the frame of the interactive exhibition children can mimic cavers crawling through an adventure cave and there's also a 'feel-the-rock' game which is challenging even for adults The colourful historical geology illustrations depict the flora and fauna of prehistoric times while the 3D photos that you can view standing at dedicated points deliver an eerily up close experience Children might especially like the outdoor climbing wall and playground captivates you perfectly with the story of the water cycle and the world of karst flying spectators above the Earth and its oceans and taking them down into the squeezes of caves The screening also shows a few pictures of cave sections that have been recently discovered and/or out-of-bounds All the rooms and spaces of the new visitor centre (Dripstone Room display a mixture of captivating information and exciting installations you can walk down stairs carved into cave walls to the network of caves you can see the well that led to the discovery of the Tapolca Cave Lake Although the largest part of the caves is only open to speleologists who are still discovering newer and newer sections you can still stroll about 70 metres along one of the caves after turning left from the Lóczy Hall at the bottom of the stairs you'll arrive to part that promises major thrill: boating. The friendly staff dressed in the uniform of the Balaton Uplands National Park will help you get into the metal boat and will gladly share additional information with yo The Tapolca Cave Lake currently has about 180 metres of boating routes which return you to the place you started out from These passages have been shaped by water and are nicely lit - there are also emergency buttons on the walls from time to time but there are also sections with only 10 cm of water apart from visitors and staff) you can see in the cave is the common minnow They say if you catch sight of this tiny fish (called csetri locally) This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks The action you just performed triggered the security solution There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page Hungary will host its first World Rallycross Championship race on 27–28 July at the Nyirád Racing Center where the European Championship will also take place with 17 Hungarian drivers competing in four categories At the press conference presenting the programme of the World and European Championship races chief organizer Orsolya Gyuris stated that they set higher goals each year Following the successful organization of European Championship races in the past two years they are now joining the highest level of rallycross racing series She emphasized that great importance is placed on spectator safety at Nyirád Some safety modifications were made due to the World Championship race but the track layout remains largely unchanged Concrete walls were built in the basin for safety reasons and a new VIP tower was constructed for spectators Orsolya Gyuris said that on the Thursday evening before the race weekend fans are invited to the main square of Tapolca to meet the cars and drivers at the opening event a professional day will be held at the track races will run from the morning until the late afternoon meaning that the World Championship field will have both preliminaries and finals on both days Not only the best drivers from the World Championship but also from the European Championship will be at the Nyirád track on the last weekend of July this will be the tenth European Championship race competing in the RX3 category with a Volkswagen Polo it was a bucket list goal to participate in a European Championship race He stated that his aim is to perform respectably but he would not be disappointed with a semi-final position either also racing in the RX3 category with a VW Polo highlighting that his familiarity with the track and the support of the fans will undoubtedly help debuted with a third place in the European Championship in RX3 at Höljes He remarked that as this is still a learning year for him competing in the RX1 category with an Audi S1 also aims for a podium finish and trusts in the home track advantage told MTI that 17 Hungarian drivers will compete in four categories Among the participants in RX3 will be Krisztián Szabó the audience will see British Patrick O’Donovan Jankó Wieszt will compete in the World Championship field and Gyula Lajos will race in the RX2e category for electric cars Haláp is unusual among the hills of Lake Balaton: looking at it from the summit of the other hills its mined-away basalt top is a sad sight it was forbidden to hike here as the former mine wasn’t safe to visit The mining company then decided to make the hill accessible for visitors and a three-kilometre study trail was opened in the spring of 2019 or at least what’s left of it after eight decades of mining the study trail takes about 90 minutes to complete however: a wide variety of geological features await One minute you can admire the view of the Tapolca Basin the next you are deep in forest seeking a strange crater.To reach Haláp, set off from Zalahaláp near Tapolca A sign saying Bánya út ('Mine Road') will let you know where to turn right The winding road to the mine leads among vineyards and press houses more popular hills. There’s a spacious car park near the mine entrance The road separates at the fifth station: from there you can choose to take the shorterroute or opt for the longer circular path through the forest There’s no need to worry about getting lost as there are plenty of signs to show you the way lived near Badacsony with his only daughter After a while you get back to the shorter path and arrive at a giant crater the place could easily pass as an alien planet It’s astounding what mining did to this hill that once was just like Badacsony and Szent György-hegy its summit was once more than 60 metres higher Mining activities took place here in the Roman era while modern mining activity lasted from 1910 to 1990 More than ten million tons of stone were taken away during this time and a crater seven to eight hectares in size formed at the summit surrounded by a wall of rocks. Some of the hardest basalt in Central Europe was mined here, later used for building railways and roads. Haláp basalt helped create the runway at Ferihegy Airport and the old M7 motorway The mine was eventually closed due to a decline in demand for carved paving stones and the advancement of nature conservation Haláp is the youngest of the hills in the Balaton Uplands. Its high basalt pillars, pentagonal and hexagonal,were formed six million years ago as a result of volcanic activity. Lava outflow can be seen in vertical, horizontal and sidelong directions here, unlike at Hegyestű where only the vertical direction can be seen Mining changed the local flora and fauna: instead of natural vegetation The current flora includes invasive species such as black locust and giant goldenrod. Birds with habitats quite different from this can be seen here like the Eurasian eagle-owl and the peregrine falcon but there are also wallcreepers and alpine accentors A flight of steep stairs lead to what's left of the summit and worth the climb even if you aren’t interested in the geological features Káli Basin and Tapolca Basin with all the hills around them and you might even make out Somló in the distance Featured image: Easter egg park in Tapolca and website in this browser for the next time I comment Y"},"category":false,"taxonomy":{"active":false,"name":"category"}},"markup":{"custom_html":true,"wpp-start":"","wpp-end":"<\/ul>","title-start":"","title-end":"<\/h2>","post-html":"{thumb} {title} {stats}<\/span>{excerpt}<\/p><\/li>"},"theme":{"name":""}} You have successfully joined our subscriber list © 2025 DailyNewsHungary | All rights reserved A tortuous cave system is hiding under the streets and houses of Tapolca which was discovered more than 100 years ago the visitors can make a unique boat trip on the lit A new visitor centre opened next to the cave in January which makes this experience even more unforgettable Because of its special origin and unique formations the cave was designated already in 1942 and placed under strict protection in 1982 The mixture of the cold karst water flowing here and the thermal water upsurging from the deep then smaller and larger niches were formed During a very long time these widened into spacious chambers and passages Welovebalaton.hu writes that the turquoise water is around 18-20 °C The only living organism you can see in the cave is the common minnow They say if you catch sight of this tiny fish you are granted one wish All the rooms and spaces of the new visitor centre display a mixture of captivating information and exciting installations the visitor centre almost had 150 thousand visitors last year the director of the Balaton Upland National Park said that the visitor centre awaits people on 770 m2 with ten rooms You get to know about karst treasures in a 3D cinema and there is also a playground for children But other sights of the neighborhood also had a high number of visitors last year was visited by 2800 people in the last year applied for the Global Geopark network membership in 2012 Thanks to this it received the “UNESCO Global Geopark” title last year The Balaton Upland National Park was established in 1997 and it lies on the north coast of Lake Balaton on 57 thousand hectares 14 sights are waiting for curious visitors in the area Make sure to visit them if you get the chance Photos: www.facebook.com/tavasbarlang.latogatokozpont If you are an active traveller and want to see more interesting things near the northern coast of Lake Balaton The lake cave below the town of Tapolca was discovered in 1903 during an excavation we can get to know the exciting world of caves in an interactive exhibition and then walk down some stairs to go through most of the cave in a boat be sure to visit the uniquely beautiful Malom Lake The building is currently home to Hotel Gabriella The Castle of Sümeg and the knight’s tournament Sümeg Castle is one of the most beautiful medieval fortresses in the country In defiance of the vicissitudes of history it still offers an impressive sight as it dominates its surroundings from a high-rise hilltop in the middle of the village of Sümeg The oldest part of the castle was built in the 1260s The arena at the bottom of the castle hosts a historical program with knights and horses every Wednesday and Saturday a Spanish carousel and a Mongolian group of stuntmen will entertain the audience The most spectacular castle near Lake Balaton is the Castle of Szigliget located on a lonely cliff on the shores of Lake Balaton The bastions offer a breathtaking view of the lake The castle was built between 1260 and 1262 by the Abbey of Pannonhalma you will find yourself at the Castle Café where you can taste really special These are all sorbets: they contain no dairy products The ice creams are freshly prepared every day and in addition to the more common flavours you can also find specialities such as salty flavours If you still want to be near water but you would prefer some more excitement the Sárvár Wellness Bath is the perfect choice the Sárvár Bath awaits visitors with a huge outdoor beach there is also an adventure park where visitors can enjoy exciting programs for all ages There are several underground attractions in Hungary that transport us to a mysterious, unknown world. Femcafe.hu has collected 4 must-see sights under the surface which are great choices whether you’re interested in history geography or just want to escape the summer heat The entrance to the former diocesan cellar system is located at the foot of the Basilica of Eger The Archbishop’s Cellar was chosen as one of the seven wonders of Hungary The cellar was created by bishop György Fenessy who mined tuff to build the Archbishop’s Palace The 3 km long cellar system was used as a wine storage for a long time they attempted to restore it by strengthening it with a metal structure and giving it a concrete floor the tunnel hosts an exhibition about the history of the city and visitors are advised to dress warmly as temperatures underground drop to 12 degrees Celsius [button link=”https://dailynewshungary.com/largest-cave-bath-central-europe-hungary-atiras-alatt/” type=”big” color=”red” newwindow=”yes”] The largest cave bath of Central Europe is in Hungary[/button] The Early Christian Mausoleums are located near the Cathedral of Pécs The necropolis was established in the 4th century and it was the burial ground of the early Christian residents of the city The memorial became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2000 The exploration of the mausoleums has been going on for over 200 years so far archaeologists have found 16 mausoleums several hundred tombs and various Roman items The welling up of thermal water created these caverns in the limestone of Buda they were used as wine cellars and to store produce but the 2- and 3-storey underground tunnels were forgotten after a time They were rediscovered in the 19th century and the labyrinth opened to the public in 1935 it was opened as the Labyrinth of Buda Castle housing waxworks and exhibitions on 10 thousand square metres Cover Photo: www.facebook.com/tavasbarlang.latogatokozpont […] Download Image More @ dailynewshungary.com […] Hungary is visited by millions of tourists who usually come to see the most well-known tourist attractions such as the Hungarian Parliament Hungary also has numerous lesser-known but amazing natural wonders and awesome historical sites that are just waiting to be discovered We have collected some of these hidden gems you should definitely visit Jump on a boat and explore the unique underground world in Tapolca The lake cave which is situated in the centre of this small town was discovered during the drilling of a wellbore in 1903 It was opened to the public ten years later The lake cave of Tapolca is Hungary’s first cave that is open to the tourists and has electric light It was also one of the two dozen caves in Hungary that were placed under protection as early as 1942 consists of crystallized limestone and limestone marly layers which alternate with 1−2 cm clay strips This gorgeous natural structure was formed 13.7 million years ago The most well-known representative of the fauna of the lake cave is the common minnow a small fish species that people living in Tapolca call “csetri” visitors can walk down the 75 steps leading into the cave and stroll through the smaller and larger rooms of the dry section where the temperature is 20 ⁰C all year round You can also jump on a boat and discover the mysteriously illuminated blueish water of the underground lake Lake Bokodi, situated about 80 kilometers west of Budapest is an artificial lake (a power plant cooling pond) created in 1961 by the Oroszlány Thermal Power Company It was primarily formed for the purpose of storing and supplying cold water and cooling heated water that is returned to the lake from the power plant the water temperature of the lake is ideal for wildlife as the water never freezes not even during winter the power plant has been closed since 2015 so the lake is no longer heated in the winter the lake has become a popular spot for fishing and a number of wooden fishing houses were erected by the locals These “floating” houses are connected to the shore by long piers made of wooden planks Numerous photos and descriptions have been published on several foreign websites of this extraordinary location which was even featured as the background image of Bing in 2013 Here are the baths in Budapest where you can relax in outdoor thermal pools even in wintertime – PHOTOS Hungary’s most unique lookout tower stands in the middle of Lake Tisza The 337-metres-high Hegyestű Geological Visitor Site is located at the gate of the Káli Basin between Zánka and Monoszló which has a proper cone shape viewed from the direction of Lake Balaton the remaining nearly 50-metres-high mine-wall reveals the inside of the basalt volcano which was active 8 million years ago The stiff lava in the crater of the volcano split up into several vertical polygonal columns during the hardening process we can admire the characteristic landscape of the Balaton Uplands as well as the harmonious coexistence of human and nature The exhibition areas of the site display the life of the former volcano and the botanical beauty of the Balaton Uplands National Park Visitors can also take part in geological time travel by visiting a stone park which was formed by the characteristic rock types of Transdanubia The formation of limestone, which provides the material for the quarry The approximately 5-acre surface of the quarry is covered by rocky and dry meadows and is home to many protected and rare flowering plant and animal species The Fertőrákos Quarry has been added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2001 Ernő Dohnányi, composer, conductor, and piano player was the first to recognize the venue’s excellent acoustics and its potential to host outdoor cultural events. The Fertőrákos Cave Theatre was founded by György Várady the former director of Győr Kisfaludy Theatre and the first performance took place on 27 June 1970 The renovated Fertőrákos Cave Theatre awaits visitors and spectators all year around with an auditorium for 760 spectators an extended stage area equipped with modern theatre light and sound technology since June 2015 After wandering around the country it is time to have some rest What could be a better place for that than Lake Balaton The Hungarian sea holds numerous possibilities to spend your holiday I tried to collect programs you may enjoy not only in the summer It is the most famous promenade on the northern side of Lake Balaton hundreds of thousands of people are walking through it every year who is most notable for being the laureate of Nobel Prize in Literature in 1913 The promenade was given his name after his arrival to the sanatorium here in 1926 which became a real movement since then: innumerable famous people planted trees in the park from Gandhi Bertalan Farkas (the first and currently last Hungarian astronaut) He even wrote a poem to remember his plantation be sure to walk through the promenade and visit its 46 plaque 5 memorials and the many trees to express gratitude The tower is located in the center of Siófok and was built in 1912 and renovated by the local government in 2012 There are three centers for the entertainment of visitors: Water Tower Café Szentkirályi Oxygen Bar and Samsung Experience Center and last but not least you can sit down with your drink on the top floor and enjoy the view of the 360˚ belvedere If you are interested, take a virtual tour near the tower. For further information, check their website The Lake Cave system is located in Tapolca not far from the north coast of the Lake Balaton It is an extraordinary experience to make your way through the system of caves which is hiding under the streets of the town Besides going down be sure to take a look around the new visitors’ center which includes interesting exhibitions about the karst regions and programs such as the Dripstone Room You can ask for English, German or Hungarian guided tours. See more at their website The symbol of the town stands on the top of Castle Hill (no but there are plenty of hills called like this in Hungary J) although it is better to arrive here at daylight if you want to truly enjoy the view Tourists can have a wonderful panorama over the Lake Balaton: almost every part of the lake is visible from here It is not a tragedy if you leave them at home you can take a look around for HUF 200 (EUR 0.6)/ 2 minutes with the pre-installed ones but be sure to have Hungarian forints on you because they won’t work with any other currencies Want to take a look around before going there? Click here https://www.facebook.com/ZamardiKalandpark/videos/1927237083954271/ try the Adventure Park of Zamárdi on the southern side of the Lake Balaton 713 meters of cableways and an almost 1700 meters long railway Each and every generation will find the field that fits them the most Junior Fields: HUF 3800 (EUR 11.5)/ 3 hours You can find our previously suggested tourist attractions in Hungary here and here Hungary is full of hiking trails and national parks that are popular tourist destinations in summer for those who have already explored all traditional travel destinations something new may be of interest: caving can provide the new experience you are looking for this summer Read on to discover the most beautiful caves in Hungary The Hungarian National Cave Register currently lists 4,131 caves in the country. Although many of them are less than 10 metres long, there are still several significant caves in Hungary. As pointed out by the Ariadne Karst and Cave Research Association, the total length of Hungarian caves exceeds 272 kilometres we collected which caves have made it to the top of these lists to make decisions regarding future excursions easier Perhaps the country’s most famous stalactite sights extending into Slovakia as well as Hungary the cave system has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1995 Formed about 2 million years ago through flowing water eroding the limestone and most spectacular cavern not only in the region but also in the whole of Hungary with a total length of 25 kilometres There are several cave tours to choose from from the 60-minute Aggtelek short tour to the longer 4–5-hour tour The Aggtelek National Park covers an area of nearly 20,000 hectares so that visitors can explore the surface Csévi Cave is located in the Pilis Mountains The cave is 104 metres long and is open to the public but is under ecological protection The narrow clearings in the rim above the cavity offer a beautiful and substantial panorama located in the Bükk National Park in the southeast of Hungary It is the highest-altitude cave in Hungary It is 42 metres wide and around 8 metres high In the part of the cavern closer to the entrance which is a natural source of light during the day and provides access to the area without a torch its depth is 16 metres from the entrance and it is formed by water seeping into the limestone cracks Most of the chasm is underwater and therefore closed to visitors It is the largest system of caves in the world that can be explored by boat It takes about 1.5 hours to visit the visitor centre with the boat ride lasting about 15 minutes be prepared: the temperature inside is 20 Celsius and the relative humidity can be as high as 95-98% The Csodabogyós (Currant) Cave is also located at Lake Balaton It takes its name from the thorny shrub that grows abundantly in the area The site is predominantly characterised by tight crevice passages you can only walk on all fours or might even need to crawl to pass through The temperature is +9.5°C no matter the season Access to the cave is only possible on foot but there are also so-called extreme tours of 3.5-4 hours The Abaligeti Cave is located in southwestern Hungary and is one of the best-known and most popular natural attractions in Mecsek out of which the 466-metre main branch is accessible through a guided tour due to the 97% humidity and the anti-inflammatory calcium ions it contains brings relief to people suffering from respiratory which gives visitors an insight into the history of bat research and the main Hungarian habitats and migration routes of bats