Tour Veszprém-Balaton – bike path on the trail of an ancient railway line, red O

1. Route description, explanation of signs
The trail number on this tour is: 249, the tour is marked as red O. Low-traffic public roads: 2.8 km, bike paths: 10.9 km.

2. Difficulty factors in the tour
The difficulty level of the tour depends on the direction you choose to ride the tour. The route ascends slightly from Káptalanfüred to Veszprém. But if you cycle from Veszprém to Káptalanfüred, you can effortlessly ride down to Lake Balaton.

3. Ambience
Two points and the route between them. Apparently, this 17-kilometre bicycle tour consists of these elements. But what two points! And what a route! The starting point is Veszprém, a charming town in the Balaton-Highlands with a friendly, homogenous old town invites to a time travel into the past and offers many picturesque places and precious sights. The end point is Lake Balaton, where sailboats rock in the harbour and the sunset sparkles on the water. That would be enough to jump on the bike, but along the route even more beauty awaits: a lookout point, a spring, a church from the Romanesque period and a shipping monument. They all tell a story about Hungary: its natural treasures, its past, the characteristics of the region. No matter if you are visiting for the first time or you already know the area, the hours you spend here will surely bring a few surprises.

4. Detailed tour description
A very special tour connecting the county capital Veszprém and the shore of Lake Balaton, which you can ride in both directions. For this reason, you can choose between two starting points, either Veszprém or Balatonalmádi-Káptalanfüred.
The route follows a bike path built on the tracks of a railway line that is almost 100 years old. The railway line was built by the city of Veszprém in 1909 and was shut down in 1969.
Today, the route is a properly constructed and safe bike path connecting Lake Balaton with Veszprém. In 2021, another bike path was opened on the Alsóörs-Felsőörs-Veszprém route, which runs roughly parallel to this one, making it possible to make a round tour between Veszprém and Lake Balaton.
Arriving in Balatonalmádi, at the old railway bridge, you can have a look at the locomotive that used to haul the railway carriages.
In the beautiful Vödör Valley between Balatonalmádi and Szentkirályszabadja, you can take a break at A Zöld, a pleasant rest area for cyclists and a garden lounge. Here you can enjoy oven-baked flatbread Langalló, homemade cakes and fine wines.
Halfway through the tour, in Szentkirályszabadja, cyclists are always welcome at the Öntöde pub.
Needless to say, Veszprém also offers numerous sights and tourist attractions for cycling tourists. Information on the programmes can be found at the local Tourinform tourism office.

Municipalities on the route: Veszprém, Szentkirályszabadja, Balatonalmádi.