Danubius Hotel Annabella

We really liked the location, and the food was consistently good, with plenty to choose from at both breakfast and dinner. The kids’ club was another hit with the children, and the indoor pool and sauna are handy once the water in Balaton gets cold. Having a bathtub in the bathroom was a big plus too. There were a few letdowns: we left towels on the floor once during our five-day stay, but they weren’t replaced. At night we could hear quite a lot from the corridor and neighboring rooms. Our balcony also could have been nicer, with quite a bit of cobwebs.

Everything about the stay was great, and I’d come back without hesitation. The room, the price, and the food were all top drawer. Don’t let the exterior put you off, it’s recently been refurbished.

When we booked, the hotel gave us incorrect information that ended up costing us an extra 100 EUR. We raised the issue, but neither the hotel nor the chain’s central reservations team refunded or compensated us for the overcharge caused by the staff’s misinformation.

Hotel Annabella is in a fantastic spot, with direct access to the Tagore promenade and a small private beach. Some renovated rooms are quite pleasant, but in 2022, 2023, and 2024 I was given east-facing rooms rather than the more desirable west-facing ones. My one exception was a stay in 2020. This year I was at the very end of the third-floor corridor, and the view was truly boring. The restaurant has felt the effects of inflation since 2023, with a more limited menu. The kitchen seems to have improved some things this year, though the planning still wasn’t always great. On my last night this year they ran out of duck quickly, then chicken drumsticks, and ended up serving nuggets or some kind of industrial breaded chicken. The location is excellent, but there’s room for improvement.