Did you know that lavender is grown in Hungary, like in Provence? If you want to see lavender fields and experience their fragrance, visit Tihany. Tihany is a place on the peninsula of the same name located in Hungary, on the northern shore of Lake Balaton. The area is characterized by a wealth of nature and interesting monuments. The most famous attraction on the peninsula is the Baroque abbey of Tihany founded in 1055, whose two towers are symbols of the town.
We reach Tihany by road 71, from which you have to turn in a local road leading to the peninsula. When we drive a few kilometers this local road we pass some lavender fields. We reach the village of Tihany and park at the entrance in the parking lot "Parkoló Tihany" (P1; GPS: 46.915871, 17.884592). Parking is paid, the machine accepts both coins and banknotes. If, however, it turned out that there are no parking spaces, park the car at the local lake (by the way, it is a crater lake, a remnant of the volcano from millions of years) in the parking lot next to Levendula-ház buildings (P2; GPS: 46.908560, 17.888104).
If you live on the other side of Lake Balaton (for example in Siófok), you can have an even more interesting trip by sailing to Tihany on ship — beautiful views of the Balaton guaranteed.
After leaving the parking lot we follow the street Batthyány utca towards the abbey. Along the way, we pass a lot of shops with local products (including lavender and ubiquitous paprika), as well as restaurants. The roofs of many buildings are traditionally covered with reeds growing at Lake Balaton. Everything resembles a living museum. The village is indeed attractive, because we see organized groups of tourists from the Far East, and their presence is always a good indicator of the popularity of the place.
The Benedictine abbey itself (A; GPS: 46.913849, 17.889558) is located on a slope, from which we get beautiful views of the green water of Balaton and the surrounding area. Even the Turks were unable to get this building turned into a fortress. The abbey has a church, museum and several souvenir shops. The buildings impress with their dimensions and architectural style.
After visiting the abbey, we walk the Pisky Promenade, making a loop that leads us back to the parking lot. On the right, we pass the impressive hill Via Dolorosa (B; GPS: 46.916247, 17.887391) as well as the museum of dolls (Babamúzeum) located in one of the buildings with traditional architecture (C; GPS: 46.915872, 17.887043).
Tihany can also be strolled in a mini-train (Lokomotív kisvonat). It stops near the parking lot where we parked the car (D; GPS: 46.915466, 17.885699).