H und R Mobilcamping Balaton Süd

Bag yourself a break near the banks of Lake Balaton with a stay at H und R Mobilcamping Balaton Süd, a 15-minute walk from the water’s edge in Hungary’s Western Transdanubia region.

This place, about an hour and a half’s drive from Budapest, also has top-notch public transport links if you’re thinking of touring the region’s vineyards, beaches and thermal baths without a car.

For dips in cold water, Lake Balaton is just the ticket and has plenty of space for a swim – it’s the biggest body of water in western Hungary at a whopping 79 kilometres long and an average of 7.8 kilometres wide. There’s a public swimming pool near the site too, so you’ll have ample choice when it comes to picking where to head for a morning submerge.

For those not wanting to spend a hol perfecting their front crawl, fishing is allowed at the lake and watersports options range from kitesurfing to paddleboarding. But if all that sounds too aqua-based for your landlubbing self? A harbour, shops and restaurants are close by in the village of Balatonszemes (five minutes’ drive) for slow days spent eating, wandering and browsing.

To pick up the pace, activities like horse riding, cycling and hiking are available in the lush local area too, and the popular lakeside town of Siófok is a 30-minute drive.

The site in Somogy county allows barbecues and pets are most welcome.