FANTASTIC NEWS!"Lufthansa will operate weekly and biweekly flights to FlyBalaton Airport from Frankfurt, Dusseldorf, Hamburg, Dresden, Leipzig."
NOW GET A DECENT AIRLINE FLYING TO LAKE BALATON
FROM THE UK AND EVERYTHING STARTS TO LOOK ROSY AGAIN...!!!

Please let someone fly from the UK, maybe even Lufthansa will operate a service from the UK

Flights from the uk would be brilliant!!!!!!!
I have family over there.

Fly Balaton's new schedule is here:

http://www.flybalaton.com/index.jsp?id=64&lang=en&hm=01&sm=01

Just those flights to/from Germany and Basel, not too much really ...

So we're still hoping ...

can you include prices from ireland on realdealto balaton as we have been left high and dry by ryanair.there are four families who fly on a regular basis.
best regards

Hate to be the bearer of bad news again..DanubeWings no longer plans to fly here to Balaton...why ? inaptitude again of the local operators of the airport...can you beleive it costs nore to land at Balaton then Budapest!! Lufthansa..funny if you were Lufthansa would you not have these flights up on the Lufthansa web-site.
Check it out the only city in Hungary Lufthansa flies to is Budapest, these Balaton flights are booked by a local tour-operator. Lufthansa has seat sales from any German city to Budapest return for 99 Euros, hop in a bus for 20 Euros and 2 hours later your in Heviz. Last year they were charging 300 Euros and more for the Heviz-Germany flights.
I would much rather spend 2 hours in a bus from Budapest, and use the 200 Euros savec on massages and spa treatments. Wouldn"t you??

@peter:

2 Hours from Budapest Ferihegy airport to Hevíz sounds a bit unreal (more like 4 hours ...), but you're probably right:

We have to accomodate the fact that it'll be easier and cheaper to book a flight to any "surrounding" airport: Budapest, Vienna, Graz or even Ljuljana ...

We'll be flying over Easter to SFO from Vienna, got a good price and a good connection ...

Flybalaton airport is a fantastic little airport. Used it many times myself.
Unfortunately, local operators, councils, and tourist agents couldn't run a bath.
Lake Balaton is a good resort and can accommodate
tens of thousands of tourists each year.
Shambling useless officials across Hungary drain the lifeblood from any worthwhile projects because
they still live and work in the realms of the dreaded communist system. It has only been twenty years and the roaches have not changed their attitude in any way, shape, or form.
I have been frustrated in many business ventures because of diabolical bureaucratic nonsense that
threatens to see off this country altogether.

@Wolfi:
I probably do Budapest Airport - Heviz twice a week and it is 2 hours normaly. Even the Volan bus does Heviz-Budapest in 2 hours..its 175 km completely along the motorway except for the small stretch from the motorway exit to Heviz about 12kms.
And for cheap inter European flights..Bratislava with 22 Ryan Air cities served, including London twice a day!

@Peter:

Thanks for the info!

I calculated from the experience of my wife's family members coming from a Pest suburb ...

For financial reasons they usually take the train to Balatonszentgyörgy where we fetch them - that takes even longer.

Still, whichever alternative airport you use, it is a nuisance ...

For people living in Austria or southern Germany (like us) the best thing is still to take your car to the Balaton, but for the rest of Europe ?

Well, we just have to wait.

heel goed nieuws. Als er nu nog vluchten vanuit belgie of zuid-nederland bij komen dan kan de benelux eindelijk ook de balaton ontdekken!

We are glad to inform our passengers and our partners that the season’s first scheduled Lufthansa flights from Düsseldorf, Hamburg and Frankfurt will arrive to the airport on 10th April 2010.

As of this year, FlyBalaton will be fully financed & operated by private capitals we warmly welcome the support of tourism enterprises, hotels as well as neighbouring municipalities - this could ensure a successful re-opening of FlyBalaton Airport.

Well, we have a house only 20n minutes away from the airport but because we live near Durham, England, we have to travel 3 hours to get a flight from either Manchester or East Midlands to Budapest. Then, if the flight arrives during the day we wait 4 hours for a bus to the lake, if not, we hotel it or hire a car. Instead of talking about the inability of people who are in charge why doesn't someone take the "bull by the horns" and get some skills and experience involved? Directors, Finance, Managers, Pilots, PR, Marketing etc etc. There's every nationality going to the Lake so let's do something instead of just talking about it PLEASE!

@lesley. You are talking...???

I checked on the Lufthansa site and I couldn't see any Lake Balaton routing from Germany, so I emailed Lufthansa and this was the reply...
In terms of routing, Lufthansa do not offer Lake Balaton as a destination. In Hungary, you will be able to fly to Budapest.

Chris... Sounds ominous for the renaissance of the best little airport that never was?

Ok lets all calm down and get all the facts straight. The fact is that 3 Lufthansa flights will start arriving every Saturday starting this weekend April 10. These planes have been chartered by a local tour operator bringing German clients to Heviz, Zalakaros, and surounding areas. The planes are all Bombardier jets with 70-90 seat capacity depending on their configuration. now comes the strange part..No reservations can be made anywhere on the Lufthansa web-site, only possibility is through the local tour operator!I also thought it logical that the available seats about 20 on each flight would be made available say to a London, Paris, or even New York passenger transfering through Frankfurt..but no..that would make no sense right????? Lets keep the 20 seats empty as they are being sold by the tour operator at prices 4 times higher than a Budapest-Germany Lufthansa flight!Unfortunately we are still in diapers at Balaton airport, while our friends in Bratislava, Zagreb, Graz, and Llublyana are wearing suits!!!

pete c. Thanks for that. Thousands of Brits want to fly to Lake Balaton. Ryanair had the Stanstead -Lake Balaton run but have pulled out.
Stanstead is a poor airport destination anyway.
It only takes someone with half-an-ounce of savvy
to work out the great potential of Flybalaton airport as a commercial enterprise?
Believe me when I say I have tried very hard to get a marketing advertising campaign launched for this great tourist destination called, Lake Balaton.
Hungarian officials and bureaucrats are just not streetwise enough to understand that advertising and marketing brings in the customers.
This strategy also applies to the many golf courses, thermal spas, hotels etc in-and-around Lake Balaton.
I have spent a lot of time and money and cannot
afford to do anymore when these idiots singularly fail to understand the free market with the emphasis on drawing in custom with targeted advertising and marketing campaigns.
These subjects should be taught in the universities and colleges and then perhaps the young will lead the way forward?
Those in charge at the moment are old commies that know no better.

The first Lufthansa (Charter) not possible to reserve seats remember, touched down at Flybalaton this afternoon from Duseldorf. The flight had 19 passengers on board the 90 seat plane...strange the local tour operator was supposed to have bought 60 places.....I guess flying with 71 empty seats and no way to reserve on any web site makes sense for Lufthansa. Well again there are always the drag car races in may at the airport, thank god a dragster only has 1 seat..wonder if they can fill that one!!!