Keszthely is a beautiful town of almost 23,000 inhabitants at the north-western corner of Balaton. It is one of the largest cities of Balaton shore, a cultural and educational centre and a university town. Currently it is one of the most popular places of Balaton visited by lots of tourists, probably because of its nice old city centre, historic monuments, museums, cultural programmes and the closeness of Hévíz. While Siófok is the party capital of Balaton, Keszthely is a more peaceful summer resort and is highly recommended for family holidays.
In the Middle Ages Keszthely used to be a royal town ("villa regia") while in a document dated 1421 it is mentioned as a country-town. At the time of the Turkish rule the nunnery and church located in the heart of the city were reconstructed into a fortress. At the beginning of the 18th century Keszthely became part of the Festetics domain. In 1745 the family built a pompous palace and transferred their residence to Keszthely. The baroque Festetics Mansion is the third largest palace in the country with 101 rooms, an ornate wrought iron gate, the surviving chapel and the Helikon Library with 86,000 volumes including many rarities. Beside the library room of the museum inside the palace, 16 other rooms are furnished with period furniture. Ornate firearms and the trophy collection of the Duke of Windischgrätz are displayed. Concerts are organized regularly in the music hall of mirrors, the former dining room of the palace. The French garden and English park of the palace is under protection because of the various plant curiosities.
It was the former owner of the chateau, György Festetics, who founded Europe's first farming school, the Georgikon, providing university level education, in 1797. The institute first educated professionals only for the domain but soon it became of national significance. The history of the school, 19th-century viticulture and grain-farming in the Balaton region can be traced at the Georgikon Manor Museum. The Festetics family further has done a lot of other things for the town: a hospital was established by Kristóf Festetics in 1759, and a high-school by Pál Festetics in 1772.
Other major buildings of the main square of the city are the Gothic parish church which was built for the Franciscan order settled here and it existed already in 1386. Gothic paintings of the largest surface in Hungary can be studied near the sanctuary of the church. After the Turkish rule the church was renovated in the Baroque style, its neo-Gothic tower was added in the 1880s. Monument of The Holy Trinity in the square was erected in 1770. Characteristic buildings of the promenade starting from Főtér (the Main square) to the north were erected during the second half of the last century. Composer Károly Goldmark was born in house No. 22 of the promenade (it is the oldest house of Keszthely) in 1830. A synagogue can also be found in the yard of the building with arcades.
Helikon monument in the nice park westward to the railway station commemorates former poets' meetings and games. The promenade in the park lined with plaques and sculptures of famous personalities of the town leads to the quay and the harbour.
All you may wish to know about Lake Balaton, including its formation, flora and fauna, the history of bathing culture and waterborne traffic as well as archaeological and ethnographic memorabilia of 7,000 years, can be seen at the Balaton Museum. Works of painter János Halápy are exhibited in one room of the building.
The marzipan model of the Festetics Mansion is among the exhibits at the Marchpane Confectionery Museum. The Puppet Museum offers a rich array of cute puppets and dolls dressed in folk costumes and a miniature replica, made from snail shells, of the Parliament in Budapest. The museum also houses a waxworks displaying notable personalities of Hungarian history. The island baths, built in 1892, with a timber structure protruding deep into the lake, is an interesting sight.
Programmes of the summer season in Keszthely start already at the end of April with Helikon Ceremony of Literature. This event was first organized in 1817 and has become a tradition by now. Opening of Summer Season is followed by the programmes of Balaton Festival in May. Classical music programmes of Festetics Palace are of national fame, beyond solo evenings and concerts of chamber-music, master courses are held there, too. The programme called Summer Theatre of Keszthely is held in July and August in the park of the palace. The Wine Festival in August attracts many visitors.
A promenade to Lake Hévíz, the largest and most famous warm-water lake of Europe is a pleasant excursion. Castle of Rezi in the neighbourhood of the city is also worth visiting.
