Hungary sees Budapest lead spring trips, Lake Balaton region tops summer bookings

In the spring domestic travel season, Budapest was the most popular destination for Hungarian travellers, followed by Eger and Pécs. Other cities in the top ten included Szeged, Siófok, Gyula, Miskolc, Nyíregyháza, Hajdúszoboszló and Balatonfüred. About a third of spring bookings were for hotels, 27 % for apartments, 22 % for guesthouses and 13 % for pensions, with short stays of one‑ to two‑nights accounting for roughly 80 % of reservations. Nearly two‑thirds of bookings were valued under 70,000 forints and only 8 % exceeded 170,000 forints.

For the upcoming summer, advance reservations show Siófok leading the list, followed by Hajdúszoboszló and Gyula, with Balatonfüred, Eger, Szeged, Balatonlelle, Budapest, Nyíregyháza and Pécs also in the top ten. The Lake Balaton region accounts for 33 % of domestic summer bookings, Northern Hungary 14 % and the Southern Great Plain 11 %. Apartments dominate summer accommodation demand at 36 %, followed by guesthouses (25 %) and hotels (24 %). More than 26 % of online payments were made with the SZÉP employee‑benefit card, a share that could rise before the May 31 deadline.