The Spa Inn the Tihany Monks Built: Balatonfüred and Tihany in a Day
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The Spa Inn the Monks Built
In 1748 the Benedictine monks of Tihany Abbey, who owned the springs of Balatonfüred, built an inn for guests who came to take the sour-water cure. That inn became the Nagyvendéglő, then the Anna Grand Hotel, and Kossuth visited its restaurant in 1842. The abbey is still on its hill across the bay, so a day here comes with its own story: the spa town in the morning or afternoon, and the monks’ abbey a short bus ride away.
Füred adds a lakeside promenade, the spa square in front of the famous Heart Hospital, the home of the Anna Ball, which held its 201st edition in 2026, and the Vaszary Villa, where until 3 January 2027 you can see paintings that lay rolled up in a museum storeroom for almost half a century. On the hill behind town there is a cave carved by warm water, and a lookout tower above the lake is a short trail away. It is under two hours from Budapest on a direct train. The catch is the calendar: the lake boats stop at the end of October, and some sights close early in the week.
Photo: Takkk, CC BY-SA 4.0, resized.
📋 At a Glance
| 📍 Where | Balatonfüred, on the north shore of Lake Balaton, 132 km from Budapest by rail (Google Maps) |
| 🚆 Getting there | Direct train from Budapest-Déli, 1 hour 50 minutes, every two hours |
| 💰 Train fare | 2,520 Ft one way, no reservation |
| 🎟️ Core tickets | Vaszary Villa 3,200 Ft, Lóczy cave 2,500 Ft, Tihany Abbey 3,400 Ft, bus to Tihany 400 Ft |
| 🛏️ Best as | A day trip with Tihany, Wednesday to Saturday |
| 🚫 Skip if | You want lake swimming or boats between November and spring |
The Promenade and the Spa Square
The Tagore sétány, named after the Indian poet Rabindranath Tagore, runs along the shore from the pier, and in winter it is a quiet, wide walk with the Tihany peninsula across the water. The boats tie up for the season at the end of October, so the pier becomes a viewpoint rather than a departure point.
A few steps inland, Gyógy tér is the spa square, the forecourt of the State Heart Hospital, a working cardiology hospital, so enjoy it from outside. The pavilion of the Kossuth spring stands on the square. Since 1 December 2025 smoking and vaping have been banned on Gyógy tér and in the small park beside it, the Kiserdő, with on-the-spot fines of up to 30,000 Ft.
The Anna Grand Hotel on the square is the old spa inn: extended in 1803 with a 32-room classicist wing, the Nagyvendéglő, given its Anna Café in 1848, modeled on the Pilvax coffeehouse in Pest, renamed Anna Grand in 1889 and rebuilt in Art Nouveau style in 1913. Today it is a five-star hotel, and its ballroom is the traditional home of the Anna Ball, the summer ball that reached its 201st edition in July 2026. The café is the obvious coffee stop.
The Vaszary Villa and the Lost Paintings
The Vaszary Villa on Honvéd utca was built in 1892 as the summer villa of Kolos Vaszary, Prince-Primate of Hungary. After his death it was auctioned, became a holiday home for army officers, and from the 1950s until the end of communism the Soviet army used it. It reopened as a gallery in 2010.
Its current show, “Vaszary: The Familiar Stranger”, runs until 3 January 2027. In 2016, while a storeroom of the Hungarian National Gallery was being cleared, two sealed canvas rolls tied with string turned up, holding forty oil paintings by the painter János Vaszary, hidden for almost half a century. The best twenty-four were restored and are the core of a 50-painting show.
The gallery is open Wednesday to Sunday, 10:00 to 18:00, and closed on Monday and Tuesday. A full ticket is 3,200 Ft (about $9.90), and it includes the local history exhibition. With it, a second town museum within three days costs 2,800 Ft (about $8.60). That covers the Jókai Mór Memorial House, the novelist Mór Jókai’s summer villa on the same street. It keeps the same hours as the gallery, Wednesday to Sunday, 10:00 to 18:00.
Photo: Derbrauni, CC BY 4.0, resized.
The Lóczy Cave and the Lookout
On the side of Tamás-hegy above town, the Lóczy cave was found in 1882 and opened to visitors in 1934. It was dissolved out of the limestone by warm water rising from deep below, and you can still see the knobby pea-stone deposits on its walls. Visits are guided only, take about 25 minutes, and the cave stays at around 12 °C all year, so bring a layer.
From 2 November to 19 December it opens on Saturdays only, 10:00 to 14:30, with tours on the hour and the ticket desk closing 30 minutes before closing. It is closed from 20 to 26 December and on 31 December, and open every day from 27 to 30 December. Until 25 October it opens Thursday to Sunday, and every day from 26 to 31 October, 10:00 to 14:30; it is closed on 1 November. An adult ticket is 2,500 Ft (about $7.70). It is about a 30-minute walk from the center along the green-stripe trail markers.
From the cave, the green-triangle markers lead on to the Jókai lookout, with the lake spread out below. Doing the cave and the lookout as one walk is the best way up and down.
Tihany Abbey by Bus
The abbey that built Füred’s spa is 12 to 24 minutes away on bus 7355, which leaves the Balatonfüred bus station, a 3-minute walk from the trains, about every hour for 400 Ft (about $1.20). Get off at Tihanyi apátság. About half the runs go via the pier and take 24 minutes; the direct ones take 12. MÁV also sells Budapest-Déli to the abbey as one through ticket for 2,920 Ft (about $9).
From 1 November to 18 January the abbey is open Monday to Saturday, 10:00 to 16:00, and on Sunday from 11:15 to 16:00, with the last tickets at 15:30. Until 31 October it is open to 17:00, with the last tickets at 16:30. A ticket is 3,400 Ft (about $10.50). From 19 January to 28 February the church and the royal crypt are free to visit from Monday to Thursday, and the exhibitions open only from Friday to Sunday. Our Tihany guide covers the abbey, the old village and the walks.
Photo: Mocsarbalazs, CC BY-SA 4.0, resized.
The Lake Out of Season
From November to spring, Balatonfüred is a town for walking and museums. The scheduled boats to Tihany and Siófok end in late October, and the Annagora aquapark opens only in summer. The Szántód–Tihany car ferry runs all year in good weather, but it links Tihany with the south shore, not with Füred. For the summer side of the lake, beaches and other towns, see our Lake Balaton day trip guide.
Getting There
- By train: a direct train leaves Budapest-Déli at 5 past every odd hour, from 07:05, and stops at Kelenföld at 12 past. It takes 1 hour 50 minutes from Déli (1 hour 43 from Kelenföld) and costs 2,520 Ft (about $7.80), with no seat reservation. Half an hour after each direct train, at 35 past, an InterCity leaves Déli with a change at Székesfehérvár. It takes 2 hours 15 minutes and costs 3,170 Ft with its compulsory seat ticket, so it only helps if you miss the direct train.
- Back: direct trains leave Balatonfüred at 2 past every odd hour until 19:02, arriving at Déli at 20:54. Later trains need a change at Székesfehérvár.
- By coach: there is no direct coach; every bus connection changes at Veszprém and takes longer than the train.
- In town: the station is about 1.1 km from the pier. The Tihany bus leaves from the bus station next to the trains.
For trains and tickets in general, see our guide to traveling Hungary by train.
The Calendar Problem
- Monday and Tuesday: the Vaszary Villa is closed. The promenade, the spa square and Tihany Abbey are open.
- 2 November to 19 December: the Lóczy cave opens on Saturdays only. It is closed from 20 to 26 December and on 31 December.
- Sunday: Tihany Abbey opens at 11:15, so see Füred first.
- 3 January 2027: the rediscovered Vaszary paintings show ends.
- From 19 January to 28 February: Tihany’s exhibitions open only from Friday to Sunday.
- November to spring: no boats, and the Annagora aquapark is closed.
- January 2027: the Lóczy cave’s 2027 hours are not yet published.
A Saturday, Hour by Hour
| Time | What | Note |
|---|---|---|
| 07:05 | Train from Budapest-Déli | 07:12 from Kelenföld; arrive 08:55 |
| 09:10 | Bus 7355 to Tihanyi apátság | 400 Ft, arrive 09:34 |
| 10:00 | Tihany Abbey and the old village | 3,400 Ft |
| 11:34 | Bus back to the Balatonfüred pier | 400 Ft |
| 12:00 | Tagore sétány, Gyógy tér, coffee in the Anna Café | Lunch in town |
| 13:15 | Walk up to the Lóczy cave | About 30 minutes on the green-stripe trail; the ticket desk closes at 14:00, so leave no later |
| 14:00 | Lóczy cave tour | 2,500 Ft, last tour of the day |
| 14:45 | Jókai lookout on the green-triangle trail | Free |
| 15:45 | Vaszary Villa, the rediscovered paintings | 3,200 Ft, open to 18:00 |
| 17:02 | Train to Budapest-Déli | Arrive 18:54 |
From Wednesday to Friday: swap the cave for a longer visit to the Vaszary Villa, and add the Jókai house. On a Sunday: do Füred in the morning and go to Tihany after lunch, when the abbey is open.
The Verdict
Come for the spa inn the Tihany monks built and stay for the paintings that waited half a century in a storeroom. Take the 07:05 from Déli, see the abbey in the morning, walk the promenade and the spa square at midday, and climb to the cave or the gallery in the afternoon. Pick Wednesday to Saturday, take the bus instead of the boat in winter, and Balatonfüred makes an easy, rewarding day from Budapest.
Sources: MÁV ticket shop and journey planner, MÁVINFORM, Anna Grand Hotel history, Anna Ball, Vaszary Galéria, Füredkult opening hours, Lóczy cave, State Heart Hospital, BAHART boats and ferry, Tihany Abbey hours and tickets, Annagora, all checked 18 October 2026.
Prices are in HUF, which is what you pay at the counter. Converted at 1 USD = 324 HUF, the ECB rate on 15 October 2026. Rates move, so treat the converted figures as indicative.
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Good to know
Is Balatonfüred worth a day trip from Budapest?
Yes, especially with Tihany Abbey added by bus. The direct train takes 1 hour 50 minutes with no reservation, and the promenade, the spa square, the Vaszary Villa and the abbey fill a day. Out of season it is a day of walks and museums rather than swimming.
How do I get from Budapest to Balatonfüred?
Take the direct train from Budapest-Déli at 5 past every odd hour, or board it at Kelenföld at 12 past. It takes 1 hour 50 minutes from Déli and costs 2,520 Ft, with no seat reservation. There is no direct coach.
How do I get from Balatonfüred to Tihany?
Take bus 7355 from the bus station, a 3-minute walk from the trains, to the Tihanyi apátság stop by the abbey. It runs about hourly, takes 12 to 24 minutes and costs 400 Ft. MÁV also sells Budapest-Déli to the abbey as one ticket for 2,920 Ft. The boats do not run in winter.
Can I take the boat from Balatonfüred to Tihany in November?
No. The scheduled lake boats stop for the winter at the end of October and start again in spring; the 2027 dates are not yet published. The bus to the abbey runs all year.
When is the Lóczy cave open?
From 2 November to 19 December on Saturdays only, 10:00 to 14:30, with the ticket desk closing 30 minutes earlier. It is closed from 20 to 26 December and on 31 December, and open daily from 27 to 30 December. An adult ticket is 2,500 Ft.
Can I visit Balatonfüred on a Monday?
For the promenade and Tihany Abbey, yes. The Vaszary Villa is closed on Monday and Tuesday, and the Lóczy cave opens on Saturdays only from 2 November to 19 December, so Wednesday to Saturday is better.