Balaton Minor (Kis-Balaton)

This is a marshland with tens of thousands of birds nesting in the reeds. Approximately 150 of the 370 bird species of Hungary hatch here. Most are herons, cormorants and bee-eaters. The most endangered rarity is the noble snow-white tufted heron. The Kányavári-sziget (2 km from Balatonmagyaród to the north) and Pap-sziget lookout towers are ideal places for bird-watching. These highly protected areas can only be visited with prior permission and a guide. In Kápolnapuszta nearby, the only buffalo reservation in the country is worth visiting.

Tihany

The twin-towered church of the Tihany peninsula is visible from afar. Protruding deep into the lake, the 5-km long and 3.5-km wide peninsula, inhabited for almost a thousand years, is of volcanic origin, and has a profusion of rare plants and animals.

One of the most cherished assets of Hungarian architecture, the crypt of King András I, founded in 1055, survived the turbulent past, and still stands in its original form. So did the charter of the abbey, the first written record of the Hungarian language. The present church was built over the crypt in the 18th century in the Baroque style, and has many precious wood carvings. The Museum of the Benedictine Abbey houses an exhibition on the history of the church, a memorial room dedicated to King Károly IV (1916-18), the last Hungarian king and a lapidary collection of Roman and medieval stonework. There are frequent organ concerts in the church in summertime.

The 18th-century houses of the Open-air Ethnographic Museum, the traditional rural houses of Ófalu and the Potter’s House evoke the life of fishermen. The Puppet Museum is a romantic world of porcelain dolls and doll’s houses from 1850-1920.

The Tihany Nature Reserve, established in 1952 and the first in the country, can be explored by taking the Lajos Lóczy pathway. Sights include wind-torn basalt rocks, a hermit’s niche carved from volcanic stone, the monk’s dwellings where Basilite monk settlers lived in the 11th century and the almond trees and lavender fields. From the natural lookouts of the peninsula - the Kiserdő top and the Golden House, the most beautiful view can be had looking over the hundreds of geyser cones onto the Inner Lake, so loved by anglers, and the Outer Lake where tens of thousands of birds nest.

A ferry from one of the prettiest ports on Lake Balaton heads for Szántód, one mile from here, on the southern shore.