In this guide
💡 The Short Version: The day is a direct MÁV InterCity from Déli to Keszthely, 2 hours 36 minutes, 3,410 HUF each way, the Festetics Palace (5,200 HUF) and a 10 to 20 minute bus to the Hévíz lake (7,500 HUF for the day), about £47 in all. Bathing at Hévíz is outdoors only: the central bath building is closed, and bathing ends at 17:00 from 5 to 24 October and 16:00 from 25 October. Or book a tour: the Hévíz Wellness Escapead (£131.73 to £155, 4.8 stars from 45 reviews, 8 hours, up to 4 guests) includes the lake ticket and a guide, and costs about £85 to £110 more than going on your own (GetYourGuide).
Going on your own
Hévíz and Keszthely are 10 to 20 minutes apart, so they share one day. Fares are full adult second-class fares from menetrendek.hu.
The Hévíz thermal lake from the south shore. Photo: Globetrotter19, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0.
- To Keszthely by train: MÁV InterCity “Balaton” from Budapest-Déli, 2 hours 36 minutes, 3,410 HUF each way, direct at 08:35, 10:35, 12:35 and every two hours after. The last direct train back leaves at 20:48.
- Keszthely to Hévíz: Volánbusz, 10 to 20 minutes, 400 HUF.
- Straight to Hévíz: Volánbusz from Budapest, 2 hours 25 minutes, 3,410 HUF, with seven direct buses a day from 08:00 and the last at 19:40. The tour’s coach leaves from Népliget bus station.
- Weekends: rail works on the Balaton lines replace trains with buses at some weekends, so check MÁV for your date.
- The day: take the 08:35 train, which reaches Keszthely at about 11:10, see the palace first, and take the bus to Hévíz by about 14:00. In October the lake stops bathing at 17:00, and the last direct train leaves Keszthely at 20:48.
| Keszthely and Hévíz on your own | HUF | Pounds |
|---|---|---|
| Train, return | 6,820 | £15.50 |
| Bus between Keszthely and Hévíz, return | 800 | £2 |
| Festetics Palace, one exhibition | 5,200 | £12 |
| Hévíz lake, one-day ticket | 7,500 | £17.50 |
| Total | 20,320 | £47 |
If you go only to the lake, the direct bus and a 3-hour ticket come to 6,820 HUF and 4,500 HUF, about £26.
Tours from Budapest
A tour saves finding the bus and the lake entrance and nothing else. It costs about three times the train. Prices are GetYourGuide’s lowest “from” price for one adult.
Hévíz Wellness Escape
£131.73 to £155 · 4.8 stars from 45 reviews · 8 hours · up to 4 guests
The Hévíz tourad leaves from Népliget by coach, 2 hours each way, with 3 hours in the lake, an hour for lunch and a walk. The price includes the lake ticket and an English-speaking guide who helps with tickets. Children under 16 and pregnant women are not admitted on the tour. Bring a swimsuit, towel, flip-flops and a water bottle; lockers and changing rooms are at the lake. The price changes by date.
Which to choose
- On your own for about £47 with the palace, or about £26 for the lake alone.
- The tour if you want the guide and the coach and the day to be the lake only.
What to see
Allow a full day. The lake and the palace are the two stops, and each has its own ticket.
The Festetics Palace in Keszthely, seen across its formal garden. Photo: Sandor Somkuti, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Festetics Palace, Keszthely. 5,200 HUF for the palace and one exhibition, 8,500 HUF with five exhibitions · Tuesday to Sunday, 10:00 to 17:00, ticket office to 16:30. The palace’s exhibitions are the Aristocratic Interior, the Carriage Exhibition, the Hunting Exhibition, the Historical Model Railway and Aristocratic Travels and Adventures. Those prices are on the list valid from 1 June to 30 September 2026; concessions are half. A ticket that adds the Fenékpuszta Manor is 9,900 HUF. A guided tour is 25,000 HUF per group in English, German or Italian. The park is open from 05:00 to 18:00 from 1 October to 31 March (festeticskastely.hu).
- Hévíz thermal lake. 3 hours 4,500 HUF, one day 7,500 HUF · daily from 09:00. Bathing ends at 17:00 and the site closes at 17:30 from 5 to 24 October 2026; from 25 October to 14 February 2027 bathing ends at 16:00 and the site closes at 16:30. The central bath building, Building A and Terrace B, has been closed since March 2025 after a structural report, so bathing is outdoors only. The evening ticket (3,600 HUF) is valid for the last two hours of bathing, and a 30-minute sightseeing ticket (1,900 HUF plus a 3,000 HUF cash deposit) does not allow bathing (spaheviz.hu).
- Skip: the palace on a Monday, because it is closed outside June to August, and the 3-hour ticket if you plan to stay until bathing ends, since the one-day ticket is only 3,000 HUF more.
Practical information
- Closed: the palace is closed on Mondays outside June to August, on 1 November and from 23 to 25 December. On 24 December the lake closes at 14:00 and on 31 December at 16:00, and it opens at 11:00 on 1 January.
- Children: the children’s rate is for ages 6 to 14 and the tour does not take under-16s.
- Rail works: weekend trains to Keszthely are sometimes replaced by buses; check MÁV for your date.
Hévíz and Keszthely is one of the day trips from Budapest. Lake Balaton’s north shore is the other half of the lake, with Tihany Abbey, and Eger is the other long day by train. What to book before you go to Budapest has the city tickets, the thermal baths guide says what the city’s own baths cost, Budapest public transport has the metro to Déli, and 3 days in Budapest shows where a day out fits.
Common questions
How do you get from Budapest to Hévíz?
Either the Volánbusz bus direct to Hévíz, 2 hours 25 minutes and 3,410 HUF each way, with seven direct buses a day, the last at 19:40, or the MÁV InterCity "Balaton" from Déli to Keszthely, 2 hours 36 minutes and 3,410 HUF each way, then a 10 to 20 minute Volánbusz to Hévíz for 400 HUF. The last direct train back from Keszthely leaves at 20:48.
How much does the Hévíz thermal lake cost?
4,500 HUF for 3 hours and 7,500 HUF for the day for an adult. Children aged 6 to 14 pay 2,400 HUF and 3,600 HUF, and students and seniors pay 4,000 HUF and 7,000 HUF. Bathing ends at 17:00 from 5 to 24 October 2026 and at 16:00 from 25 October.
Is the Hévíz lake open in winter?
Yes, daily from 09:00. From 25 October 2026 to 14 February 2027 bathing ends at 16:00 and the site closes at 16:30. The central bath building, Building A and Terrace B, has been closed since 2025, so bathing is outdoors only.
Is a Hévíz tour from Budapest worth it?
Only if you want the planning done. The tour costs £131.73 to £155 per person, against about £47 on your own with the Festetics Palace, and it is capped at 4 guests. It includes the lake ticket, a guide and a coach from Népliget that takes 2 hours each way.
