Walking in Siófok

Siófok offers numerous pleasant walks and interesting sights for its visitors. We propose you one possible route here. We start this right next to our hotel where we find the port of the sailing boats, as well as one of the characteristic buildings of the town, the Meteorological Observatory, – both located at the western pier of the port. This observatory gives the first storm signal for the whole Balaton region. Yard of the station is decorated by Miklos Borsos’s statue titled “Urania”.

Scenic spot of the port is still the Sió-lock being built together with it. Here a memorial tablet brings it to our mind that the first lock allowing regulation of water level of the lake has been made on the basis of Károly Klein’s and László Botka’s designs in 1863.

After crossing the Sió channel we see the Music School right on the left hand corner with a statue of Béla Bartók – world-famous Hungarian composer – in front of it. Here we turn to the left and walk towards a very interesting scenic spot, the port of Siófok, from where the scheduled pleasure boats put forth. The busiest boat traffic occurs here on the Balaton. The monument erected to 100th 125th and 150th anniversary of steam boating of the Balaton stands in the park in front of building of the port. On the Northern part stands the statue of Vilt Tibor, title: Mermaid of Lake Balaton (1974).

In the park next to it one of the sights of the city, Rose Garden can be seen, which revives again by the careful work of the gardeners. The end of the Cross lake swimming competition is also here, that’s why in 1997 the city put up a statue to Kálmán Szekrényessy, who was the first man who swam across the lake.

The old Sió and Hullám (Wave) hotels are situated on the front of the Petőfi promenade, among ancient walls of which many noted writers and artists made their appearance. On the right side of the promenade we can fall in with popular walking place of Siófok, the Jókai park. There are lots of people seeking for softening under the cool leafy boughs and shady trees. On several kilometer long shrubby promenades and on open beaches of extensive area of the ‘Aranypart’ (Golden Shore) the visitor finds thousands of people seeking for pleasures of summer, resting and recreation.

But exceedingly beautiful eastern basin of the Balaton, with waving mounts of the opposite shore, also bursts upon the visitor’s sight. Turning back on the Batthyány Street among beautiful old villas we make our way back towards the Sió channel and the hotel.