Thermes Balf

Balf is a small Hungarian spa village on the western shore of Lake Ferto, the vast shallow steppe lake shared with Austria known in German as Neusiedler See, whose 315 square kilometres of reed beds support over 300 nesting bird species and earned the lake its UNESCO World Heritage designation. Chlorurated mineral springs have been used here since the Roman period and the thermal complex today offers baths and rehabilitation treatments in a peaceful lakeside setting that combines wellness with extraordinary birdwatching in the surrounding Hansag wetlands and reed marshes. The proximity of both the lake's natural treasures and the Baroque concert halls of the Esterhazy Palace at Fertod, where Haydn served as court composer for nearly thirty years, makes Balf an unusually rich combination of nature, music, and thermal culture.