Hunting Museum and Model Railway Exhibition, Keszthely

Two amusing museums – the Hunting Museum and Keszthely Model Railway Exhibition – are situated side by side in the same building. These are permanent exhibitions operating at the museum complex Helikon, the foundation of which is the famous Festetics Palace. All these tourist sites are included in the selection of the most interesting sights of Balaton.

Model Railway Exhibition

It is one of the largest railway modelling museums in all of Europe. 75 miniature trains depart exactly on schedule from the real train stations, passing along tiny authentic towns. Railway stations are exact copies of originals, reduced hundreds of times in size. They were made from photographs and drawings.

One of the most recognizable objects is the Berlin TV Tower. In general, here you will see the railways of Austria, Hungary, and parts of Germany. Look at one of the largest railways in the world, passing through the mountains – Semmeringbahn, which passes through Austria. Tiny authentic trains were made from engines, parts of passenger cars of the 19th and 20th centuries.

Exhibition in facts and figures

• 75 trains.
• 160 locomotives and wagons.
• 2700 km of railways.
• 800 doll houses.
• The largest railway station is Nürnberg, which has 26 tracks.

What railways will you see?

The museum presents the railways of Hungary, in particular, the region of Balaton, Austria, as well as many regions of Germany.

• Kanizsa-Budapest.
• Semmering-Klamm. The world's first mountain railway.
• Nürnberg.
• Schwarzwald (the Black Forest).
• Bad-Schandau is the former border crossing between East Germany and Czechoslovakia.

Hunting Museum

Buffaloes, elephants, alligators, polar bears, a myriad of artiodactyls, all kinds of birds ... All of these are gifts made by hunters to the museum complex. The hunting collection of the Festetics family was lost during the Second World War. But the creators of the museum complex decided that the guests would not be able to fully feel the atmosphere of the aristocracy if they did not get to know the hunt better. So, they created an exhibition of trophies donated by hunters.

The largest collection belongs to one of the founders of the museum, Béla Hidvégi. He dedicated more than 30 years to hunting. At 20 he left Keszthely, where he studied at the academy. He returned to Hungary already becoming a famous hunter. He brought souvenirs from his hunting past with him – he visited almost all continents of the world. About 200 exhibits only from Europe. The collection was presented to the museum as a gift. Two trophies from his collection still remain a world record, and another 25 are among the top 10 of the international safari clubs. Also, there are trophies of other hunters in the collection.

How to get there

The museum is located in the heart of Keszthely, from the end of the Festetics Palace: you just have to walk through the park for 5 minutes. The exhibitions were settled on two floors: on the first and second – the Hunting Museum, part of the second floor – Model Railway Exhibition. From the city beach, you have to walk for about half an hour. You can get here from the Keszthely, autóbusz-állomás stop to Keszthely, Bástya utca by bus № 6216, 6231, 6355. It takes about 20 minutes.

Admission:

• 1300 forints – the cost of an adult ticket, it should be bought to each museum separately.
• 650 forints – with a discount, tickets should be bought to each museum separately (age: from 6 to 26 and after 62).
• 1800 forints – a complex ticket to both museums for adults.
• 900 forints – a complex ticket with a discount for visiting both museums.
• You can also purchase a complex ticket for 6 exhibitions that take place at Helikon Palace.

Opening hours: depends on the season. Note that ticket offices are closing half an hour before closing.

• July 1 – August 31. From Monday to Sunday, from 9:00 to 18:00. On Wednesday from 9:00 to 12:00.
• September 1–30 From Monday to Sunday, from 10:00 to 17:00.
• October 1 – April 30. From Tuesday to Sunday, from 10:00 to 17:00.
• May 1 – June 30. From Monday to Sunday, from 10:00 to 17:00.

Address: Keszthely, Pál utca 1. Coordinates: 46.772335, 17.237373.