Herend Porcelain Factory and Lake Balaton Day Trip from Budapest

Budapest, Hungary

Leave Budapest for the day to visit the famous porcelain town of Herend and the most popular Hungarian resort of laid-back Lake Balaton. The trip includes a guided tour through the world's largest porcelain factory at Herend before continuing to beautiful Lake Balaton.

At Herend porcelain factory, founded in 1826, you'll learn how the tradition of hand-painting the highly successful patterns has been passed down from father to son. You'll have time for a coffee break here, as well as time to purchase some of the world-famous hand-painted porcelain.

The tour continues to Lake Balaton, the largest freshwater lake in Central Europe, scenically located at the foot of the volcanic hills of the Balaton Uplands. Here, you'll visit a traditional tavern to enjoy a three-course lunch with wine.

After lunch, you'll take a drive to visit the oldest spa in Hungary, Balatonfured, before returning to Budapest.

USD $77.63

Traveler Reviews

Review by: Keith W, United States of America	May 2010
Ingrid, our tour guide patiently explained what we were seeing and, at all times, kept track of the group and saw that our questions and concerns were answered. Herend was a fascinating tour will details on how the pieces are make and showcasing the skill and effort that is needed for each piece. Lake Balaton was beautiful and we saw some of the prettier villages and other sights. Both are a MUST SEE in Hungary.

Review by: anthi m, Cyprus	November 2009
Long drive. There was no view of the lake from the restaurant where we ate. The guide was rushing us about all the time, and I was angry that he did not point out the pottery shop to us near the porceline factory. It was nice, but could be better

Review by: GinaMarie B, United States of America	October 2009
The tour is well organized and pleasent. The descriptor of the tour Porcelain Factory is a bit misleading as we really went to a mini factory that was designed for tours. More time at Herend to shop and explore the museum would be nice. Pick up and drop off at the hotel was a plus.

Review by: Anonymous, France	August 2009
A good tour overall! It would have been better if we had spent more time at lake Balaton.

Review by: Erika O, United States of America	July 2009
This was a great trip, beautiful scenery and very educational about making porcelain. Great 3 course lunch with wine outdoors in the hillside of the Balaton. I can recommend to everyone.

Review by: Erkki L, Finland	July 2009
Very nice, but a rather long trip.

Review by: Jane G, United Kingdom	October 2008
An interesting tour of the porcelain factory. Lunch in pleasant surroundings. Well worth getting out of the city, and the guide had some very interesting facts about Hungary.

Review by: Anonymous, Australia	September 2008
The visit to the Herend factory could have been shorter, with the visit to Lake Balaton a little more structured.

Review by: Thomas S, United States of America	July 2008
The porcelain factory is very interesting and Lake Balaton is picturesque. The travel down gives a good view of the countryside and how the people live.

Review by: Mary K, United States of America	October 2006
This turned out to be the best tour we booked on our trip. The Herend factory visit was a truly unique experience. Our time in the Balaton Lake area was extensive and appreciated. While the driver was very courteous and accommodating, I can't begin to say enough about the guide. She was extremely personable, knowledgeable and impressive - speaking three languages to our assorted group. We still can't believe how reasonable the price was for all that we received.