Cave Baths via Bükk National Park

This afternoon's vacation destination: Barlangfurdo! And how do I plan to get there? The Bükk Hills of Bükk National Park.

Hungary is known for its thermal baths. And one of them is located in an actual cave. The Barlangfurdo located in the town of Miskolc Tapolca, directly on the other side of Bükk National Park from Eger. And that made for an easy decision on how to get there.

I got the Mercedes out of its cage and took off for points east. It took me awhile to get directions on how to get through the national park. I presumed there would be signs for the cave baths once I got on the other side. The drive was up the side of a hill (mountain for the folks back east), through a winding canyon of green trees:

The Mercedes handled the incline and the bends perfectly adequately. I had to downshift a lot because of the combination of grade and curves. It only creeked a little on the sharp turns.

Perhaps you'd like that shot with the Mercedes in it:

The nicest scenery in the Bükk Hills is further off the road, but some nice sights are right alongside the roadway:

Finally, when I hit Lillafüred, I knew I was just about through the park:

Lillafüred is the tourist mecca of the Bükk Hills region. And soon I was in Miskolc, which is the third largest city in Hungary. Which really emphasizes the drop off after Budapest. I knew I should head south. And I had a general idea of which direction was south. I figured there would be signs for the Barlangfurdo.

Actually, the plan worked. I headed south through the city and began to see signs for Miskolc Tapolca. I followed those and soon enough I saw the sign for the cave baths. I paid 1000 forints (about four bucks) to park in the parking lot of the Hotel Kitty:

It was a short walk from there to the cave baths. Because it was late enough in the afternoon, admission was a bargain 1000 forints.

I paid my money. I changed into my swimsuit. And soon enough I was taking to the waters. Inside a real live cave!




I took the less direct, but much quicker route back to Eger. It was a two-hour drive to the caves, but only a one-hour return trip. Just in time for supper.