A big lake you can stand up in
You can wade a long way out into Lake Balaton. The lake covers about 600 km² and runs about 77 km from end to end, with roughly 235 km of shoreline, and its average depth is only about 3.3 m, so on long stretches of sand the water stays shallow far from the beach. A foil hangs below the board and needs depth under it, and along the whole south shore that depth begins well out from the beach.
The north shore gets there fast, with 1.2 m of water after about 40 to 50 m of wading. On the south shore the same depth takes 150 to 200 m of walking, across sandy shallows that end at a step where the bottom drops away; at Siófok that step lies closest to the beach.
The deepest water is the Tihanyi-kút, a little over 10 m, off the Tihany peninsula, where the lake pinches to its narrowest point.
Storm waves reach about 1.5 to 1.9 m, short and steep next to sea waves, with little room between crests.
The shallow western basin warms quickly in spring and cools quickly in autumn; the deeper eastern basin warms later and holds its heat longer.
North shore or south shore
The wind on Balaton comes most often from the north and north-west, from the north in the western half and more often from the north-west in the eastern half. That pattern, more than any school's address, decides where you launch. A north wind crosses the hills behind the north shore and drops onto the water offshore and gusty in their lee; across the lake, at Siófok, Balatonszemes, Balatonboglár, Fonyód and Balatonfenyves, that air arrives onshore.
An offshore wind is the one to think about on an eFoil, because a flat battery or a stop to climb back on leaves you drifting away from the beach. Here that means a southerly on the north shore and a northerly on the south shore. The ordinary summer lake breeze is a milder thing, gusting to 25 or 30 km/h at most, strongest in May and June and dying down in the later afternoon.
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| Shore | Water near the beach | In a north wind | Schools and bases |
|---|---|---|---|
| North east: Balatonkenese | Sandy bathing zones, 1.2 m deep at most | Offshore, gusty | eFoil Hungary, Hotel Marina-Port |
| North: Balatonfüred, Tihany | 1.2 m after 40 to 50 m; deepest water off Tihany | Offshore, gusty | Flamingó Wellness Hotel, Sail and Surf |
| South east: Balatonaliga to Szántód | Shallow for 150 to 200 m, then a step | Onshore | Surfstation, Zamárdi Vízisport Bázis, eSurf Hungary |
| South west: Fonyód, Balatonfenyves | Shallow for 150 to 200 m | Onshore | Vagabund at Fonyód; kite foil at Balatonfenyves |
| West end: Vonyarcvashegy | - | Offshore | Surfstation; wing and eFoil lessons at the Lidó Strand |
Two levels of storm warning lights around Balaton
From 1 April to 31 October a storm warning service watches the lake, and from the water you see it as lights flashing along the shore. The decree behind it, 46/2001. (XII. 27.) BM rendelet, divides Balaton into three basins in 4. § (4). The line between the eastern and middle basins runs through the east moles of the ferry ports at Tihany and Szántód; the line between the middle and western basins runs through the east moles of the ports at Badacsony and Fonyód. Each basin is warned on its own, so the lights at Siófok can flash while those at Keszthely stay dark.
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| Level | Light | Wind expected | Swimmers | eFoil (our advice) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| First degree | 45 flashes a minute | Strong wind, 40 to 60 km/h | No swimming beyond 500 m from shore | Stay ashore, or head in at once |
| Second degree | 90 flashes a minute | Storm wind above 60 km/h | No swimming at all | Off the water |
HungaroMet issues the warning half an hour to an hour and a half before the wind arrives, and once it does, a cold front can take it to 60 to 90 km/h within minutes. The service says anyone who follows the warnings is very unlikely to be caught by a northerly storm.
Neither text has a line for an eFoil rider. The decree's rules are written for swimmers, and the storm rule of the shipping code, HSZ II. rész 9.12 cikk, covers sail sport craft, so the line we draw here is our own: at the first degree the board comes ashore, or turns for the beach the moment you see the light.
- Before you launch, open the live warning map of the disaster management service (katasztrofavedelem.hu), which shows each basin separately.
- Look at the nearest light again every time you come back toward the beach, and ride where you can see one.
- Save 112, the general emergency number, and 1817, the water rescue line. The lake's water police are based in Siófok.
An electric board under the lake's rules
Hungary's water transport act, Act XLII of 2000 (Vkt.), bars small craft and boats with internal combustion engines from Balaton in 58. § (1). Under 58. § (2) motorised water sport craft may run only on a designated course, and none may be designated on this lake. 58. § (3) exempts authority and service craft, the water police among them, and craft with an operating permit under the government decree.
That wording leaves a battery board out, as far as we can see. The shipping code, 57/2011. (XI. 22.) NFM rendelet (HSZ), defines a motorised water sport craft in I. rész 1.01 cikk 11 as one under 4 m long with a water-jet pump driven by an internal combustion engine, and an eFoil has neither. No authority has ruled on the point in writing.
The rules a rider does meet, from HSZ II. rész unless marked:
- Age 14 to steer a water sport craft, 17 for a machine-driven one, plus swimming, practice and knowing the rules (1.02 cikk 1).
- A boat license for a machine-driven water sport craft only above 14.7 kW (15/2001. (IV. 27.) KöViM rendelet, 4. számú melléklet).
- A life jacket (4.07 cikk 3), and teaching only near the shore, outside the fairway or in a harbor area the operator designates (4.07 cikk 5).
- Never inside a designated bathing area, and 100 m clear of passenger and ferry piers (4.13 cikk 1 c and d).
- 30 m from swimmers, or 5 km/h where that is impossible (3.03 cikk 10 and 11). We find no general speed limit for the lake.
- No riding at night or in visibility under 1,000 m, and never crossing less than 1,000 m ahead of a large vessel (3.03 cikk 12 and 8 a). No alcohol at the controls (1.03 cikk 1).
Distance from shore has no written figure for an eFoil. HSZ II. rész 9.12 cikk 4 lets sail sport craft go up to 1,500 m out below Beaufort 6, only 200 m from 6 to below 8, and none at 8 or more. We advise eFoil riders to stay within about 500 m of the beach.
A rental company has duties under 1.03 cikk 4 and annex II-10: it answers for the board's condition, takes a written statement from you, demonstrates the craft and must turn away a renter who is unfit or drunk. Liability insurance is compulsory for commercially operated craft (Vkt. 24. § (1)), and a private rider, on our understanding, is not bound by it. That is a lay reading of the texts, and a lawyer may read them otherwise; the eFoil rules page sets Hungary next to other countries.
Seven places to book and the two with English sites
Seven places around the lake teach or rent eFoils, from Balatonkenese at the eastern tip to Vonyarcvashegy in the far west. Only two of them, Sail and Surf at Tihany and the Zamárdi Vízisport Bázis, run an English website; eFoil Hungary, eSurf Hungary and Surfstation write in Hungarian, and the language your instructor teaches in is a question for the booking email.
Tihany is the easiest start in English. Sail and Surf works from the Club Tihany beach on the peninsula and teaches windsurfing, sailing, wing, eFoil and SUP. A private 60-minute eFoil session costs €100 plus €20 for each extra person, 27 % VAT included, and the Hungarian list gives 40,000 Ft plus 8,000 Ft. Two riders sharing the hour come to about 24,000 Ft each.
Courses start every week from 1 May to 15 September, with other dates on request, and you do not have to stay at Club Tihany to book one. Children can join from age 8. Parking is free. If the wind fails on a wing day, the theory comes first or the lesson moves to another date.
At the western end, Surfstation teaches eFoil at the beach in Vonyarcvashegy for 40,000 Ft an hour, from cash desk 3. The village lists wing foil and eFoil lessons among the services of its Lidó Strand.
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| Operator | Place | What you book | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| eFoil Hungary | Balatonkenese | Intro, 60 min on the water | 40,000 Ft |
| eFoil Hungary | Balatonkenese | 4 hour course | 140,000 Ft |
| Hotel Marina-Port (ÉlményPláza voucher) | Balatonkenese | 60 min | 39,000 Ft |
| Flamingó Wellness Hotel | Balatonfüred | Lesson, or rental for confident riders | - |
| Sail and Surf | Tihany | Private session, 60 min | 40,000 Ft |
| Zamárdi Vízisport Bázis | Zamárdi | Rental, 1.5 h | 40,000 Ft |
| eSurf Hungary | Szántód | Lesson, 1 to 1.5 h | 40,000 Ft |
| Surfstation | Balatonaliga | Lesson, 1 h | 35,000 Ft |
| Surfstation | Vonyarcvashegy | Lesson, 1 h | 40,000 Ft |
Schools and rental stations
eFoil Hungary
Balatonkenese, Balaton, Hungary
- Lesson: HUF 40,000, 1 h, Lift 3
- Lesson: HUF 75,000, 1 h, for 2 riders, Lift 3
- Lesson: HUF 75,000, 2 h, Lift 3
- Lesson: HUF 140,000, 4 h, Lift 3
Rents only to riders who passed a course
Flamingó Wellness és Konferencia Hotel
Balatonfüred, Balaton, Hungary
Széchenyi út 16., 8230 Balatonfüred
Sail and Surf
Tihany, Balaton, Hungary
Hotel Club Tihany strand, Rév u. 3, 8237 Tihany
- Lesson: HUF 40,000, 1 h
- Season
- April to October
eSurf Hungary
Szántód, Balaton, Hungary
Balalake Resort, Móricz Zsigmond u. 96, 8622 Szántód
- Lesson: HUF 40,000
- Lesson: HUF 70,000, 1 h, for 2 riders
- Day rental: HUF 100,000
Zamárdi Vízisport Bázis
Zamárdi, Balaton, Hungary
Margó Ede sétány, Zamárdi
- Rental: HUF 40,000, 1 h 30 min
E-foil és Wing oktatás Balatonaliga
Balatonaliga, Balaton, Hungary
- Lesson: HUF 35,000, 1 h, SiFly Rider 110L
Sharky Vízi sport Iskola
Vonyarcvashegy, Balaton, Hungary
Vonyarcvashegy strand 3. pénztár
- Lesson: HUF 40,000, 1 h
Updated November 2, 2026
Siófok and the south shore
Siófok itself has nothing to book, since the Mala Garden hotel marks its eFoil offer as no longer current. What the town has is the lake's water police base, a cable track of about 1 km for waterski and wakeboard at Bamboo Sziget on the Sóstó, and the shortest walk on the south shore to the step where the bottom drops away.
West of town, in Zamárdi, the Vízisport Bázis on the Margó Ede sétány, at Harcsa utca, runs an English website and lists “E-Foil 1,5 hour” at 40,000 Ft among its electric rental gear, apart from its lessons. If you have never ridden, ask whether someone will stay with you for the first launch.
Next door in Szántód, eSurf Hungary meets riders at the Mango Bár of the Balalake Resort, where entry is free, and you bring only swimwear. A lesson runs 1 to 1.5 hours with about ten minutes on land and the full kit for 40,000 Ft a person. Two riders sharing one hour pay 70,000 Ft, children under 12 get 50 minutes for 20,000 Ft, and a full day with a board costs 100,000 Ft. Passes run 150,000 Ft for 5 sessions and 290,000 Ft for 10. According to the local kite school, the bay here is at most waist deep over a large area.
East of Siófok, Surfstation teaches at Balatonaliga on a SiFly Rider 110L. The hour costs 35,000 Ft with board, vest, helmet and radio. The south shore railway serves Siófok, Zamárdi and Szántód, and Zamárdi is about 115 to 120 km from Budapest by road.
Balatonkenese and the north east shore
Balatonkenese lies about 100 km from Budapest by road, about an hour and ten minutes, and the north shore railway stops there. Its bathing zones are sandy and 1.2 m deep at most.
eFoil Hungary, the official Lift and Waydoo distributor, teaches here and at the lake in Tata. The intro costs 40,000 Ft and opens with 15 to 20 minutes on land before 60 minutes on the water; two people pay 75,000 Ft. Longer courses run 2 hours for 75,000 Ft and 4 hours for 140,000 Ft. Passes count in sessions of one full battery, which lasts 65 to 90 minutes depending on your weight and speed: 5 for 150,000 Ft, 10 for 280,000 Ft. Extrém Vízi Élmények, which sells eFoil courses of 1, 2 and 4 hours, is the same team behind one phone number and email. Once you can ride, eFoil Hungary also rents boards for several days or one to two weeks against a deposit, provided at least one person in the group is experienced and takes the briefing on assembly and operation.
Sending the order form creates a payment obligation. You pay by bank transfer once the booking is agreed, and after the 14-day withdrawal period nothing is refunded; a voucher stays valid for 6 months from purchase. The terms have no weather clause, so agree on a storm day plan before the money moves.
The Hotel Marina-Port in Kenese offers eFoil on a Lift 3 board from a shallower stretch of beach, booked at reception; its English pages leave it out, so ask at the desk. ÉlményPláza vouchers for it run from 25,000 Ft for 30 minutes to 70,000 Ft for 120, redeemable from May to mid-September, with a Marina-Port entry ticket on top.
Farther west, the Flamingó Wellness Hotel in Balatonfüred gives eFoil lessons with an instructor and rents boards to confident riders, by appointment and without a published price.
Wingfoil at Fonyód and Balatonfenyves in the north wind
Balaton's most frequent wind comes from the north, and along the south west shore, at Fonyód and Balatonfenyves, it blows onshore, so a rider who drops off the foil drifts back toward the beach. The shallows that cost an eFoil a long walk on this shore are a gift to a wing: you can stand up and relaunch for 150 to 200 m out.
Fonyód has a water sports base and accredited sailing school, Vagabund, at the foot of the Fonyód hill between the town beach and the marina; ask there about wing before you travel. In Balatonfenyves the Vízisport Centrum teaches windsurfing, kitesurfing and kite foil, with no wing course on its list.
Lessons are easier to book elsewhere. Sail and Surf at Tihany builds its wing course in three steps, and step 2 is a private eFoil lesson with the instructor in your ear through a Bluetooth headset. On the north shore the offshore wind rules out kiting, one local school notes, but still allows winging. A private wing foil hour at Tihany costs 32,000 Ft plus 12,000 Ft per extra person. Surfstation charges 25,000 Ft for a wing lesson at Balatonaliga, or 35,000 Ft with a motorboat escort, and 22,000 Ft an hour at Vonyarcvashegy, whose Lidó Strand hosts the national wing foil race series. Course shapes and prices elsewhere are on wingfoil lessons, the sport itself in the wingfoil guide.
We take a wing to be a sail sport craft under the code, which puts it under HSZ II. rész 9.12 cikk 4: up to 1,500 m from shore below Beaufort 6, 200 m from 6 to below 8, and nothing from 8. Come in when the lights start, whatever the distance.
Water temperature from May to October
Sail and Surf runs courses from 1 May to 15 September, the Kenese vouchers are redeemable from May to mid-September, and the storm warning service keeps watch longer, from 1 April to 31 October. That is the whole season, and the water inside it is warm.
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| Month | Water |
|---|---|
| May | About 17 °C |
| June | About 23 °C |
| July | About 24 °C |
| August | About 24 °C |
| September | About 20 °C |
| October | About 14 °C |
The warmest water, July and August, falls inside the designated bathing season, roughly mid-June to the end of August, when every launch has to stay clear of the bathing zones. May and September are cooler, and Sail and Surf rents out wetsuits then. Daylight is the other limit: the sun sets at Siófok around a quarter to nine at midsummer and about seven by mid-September, and riding after dark is banned.
For the lakes near Budapest, Tata and the Austrian shore of Lake Fertő, see eFoil in Hungary. Our eFoil lessons guide walks through a first session and what it should include, and eFoil rental covers hire once you can ride alone.