Wellness Hotel Katalin

The food was the standout for me. The buffet was excellent, almost cruise ship quality, though the menu barely changed. The hotel is also close to the beach, which was its main redeeming feature in my view. I was there for five days in the off-season, and it was sold out for much of my stay. I’m an American traveling with a Hungarian family, which helped since some staff seemed dismissive when I tried to speak English. There are signs in English and you can ask for English menus, but I often kept quiet and had my family communicate for me. Even as someone who travels internationally fairly often, that felt uncomfortable. This place is very geared toward children. There’s plenty for kids who like water activities, but little wellness beyond the pools, sauna and tabletop or video games. I expected something like hot spring water or a masseuse. Children are allowed into the adult-only area at certain times, so there’s hardly anywhere adults can reliably get away. The hotel is reasonably clean given how child-focused it is, but adult activities are limited. The rooms were just okay, maybe mediocre. The doors need a firm shove to close, the beds weren’t comfortable, and for several nights there was a strange urine smell in the bathrooms that we couldn’t explain. I was also disappointed that there was usually no lifeguard at the pools, and I rarely saw anyone at the first aid station. If you’re an adult looking for a fuller wellness stay beyond keeping the kids busy, I wouldn’t book here. The rooms and activities fall short, even though the food is a bright spot.

Breakfast and dinner were both included in our half-board stay, and the buffets were impressive in both quality and quantity. There are plenty of activities for children, and adults who still enjoy that sort of thing, plus a quieter adults-only wellness area with a sauna, swimming pool, jacuzzi and fitness room. It works well for guests with or without children. We’ll be back and make this our special getaway.

The children loved the indoor and outdoor pools with slides, and we enjoyed the saunas. The food was good and the service very friendly. I did wonder why the steam room wasn’t running in summer. The hotel is very close to a lovely beach on the Balaton.

The wellness facilities are good, and there’s a lot for children to do. Still, quite a few details made me less inclined to return. If you use the wellness area twice in a day, the sauna towels are likely to still be wet: they’re changed free only once, in the morning, and otherwise you pay extra. Breakfast is supposed to run until 10, but by 9:20 the tables were no longer being set and dishes weren’t being replenished. The waiters didn’t seem eager to help even when they noticed. On checkout day, our key stopped working at 9:40. For anyone intolerant to both gluten and lactose, there was only one suitable dish each day at breakfast and dinner. Vegetables were scarce too.