Bábolna is dialing up the good times across 2025 and 2026, with a calendar stacked with culture, food, horses, markets, music, and late-night fireworks. The small town turns into a year-round playground: think International Show Jumping, the crowd-pulling Corn Festival, and the hands-on International Farmers’ Days. Even the local spa leans into storytelling—Bábolna Beach and Thermal Bath is the first themed bath in the country to conjure the old peasant world while you soak and unwind.
December 2025: Advent lights and family days
The run-up to Christmas gets personal in Bábolna with cozy events and familiar faces. On December 13, a Christmas Playhouse pops up in town—a kid magnet packed with crafts and festive fun. A day later, on December 14, Advent Sunday returns featuring the Tiamo Modern Dance Association on stage. The greeting will be delivered by Lutheran pastor Máté Kiss, setting a warm tone for the season.
On December 17, the City Christmas brings the community together—expect carols, lights, and that bustling holiday square atmosphere. Then on December 21, another Advent Sunday lands, this time with the Cseperedők Folk Dance Group taking the spotlight, tapping into folk rhythms and local heritage that always hit home in Bábolna.
September 2026: The Corn Festival takes over
Save the date: September 11–12, 2026. The 27th Bábolna Corn Festival returns for two full days—one of the region’s most loved autumn blowouts is back, louder and brighter. Expect a family program that actually earns the name: a busy producers’ market for serious browsing and tasting, kids’ favorites throughout the day, and lots of local performers showing off the town’s talent.
The show’s heavy hitters aren’t just the bands and fireworks. The strongman competition is a real crowd-puller—built for spectacle, cheers, and camera rolls. As evening settles, big-name concerts light up the main stage before fireworks paint the sky. Parties run until dawn. Call it the perfect end-of-summer tradition: shoulder-to-shoulder crowds, corn everywhere, the smell of grills, and music that keeps the streets buzzing.
Where to stay: Imperial calm in the historic stud yard
Base yourself at the Imperial Hotel (Imperiál Hotel), tucked in the serene, historic Stud Yard (Ménesudvar), Bábolna’s storied stud farm. It’s a small, calm retreat with exactly what you need. There are 11 double rooms, 3 with double beds, 4 triples, and 1 single, all with private bathrooms. Altogether, it sleeps 41 guests, and it’s open year-round, making it a reliable pick whether you come for Advent, show jumping, or the Corn Festival.
Eat and drink: homestyle, kids welcome, and special diets covered
Hungry? Several local and nearby spots have you sorted. One kitchen leans hard into authentic homestyle flavors: freshly fried mains, fish dishes, and desserts, with kids’ menus and a play corner. You can order generous platters and pizzas for delivery if you’d rather feast at home or at the office. The menu roams through Hungarian and international specialties, with a special love for fish.
Dietary needs aren’t an afterthought. AlBatrosz “free-from” Cake Workshop specializes in gluten-free (gm), lactose-free (lm), dairy-free (tejm), sugar-free (cm), and egg-free pastries. The mission is simple but vital: boost quality for people with diabetes, food intolerances, or those on diets by delivering genuinely delicious, mindful pastry work.
Near Bábolna, Komárom’s newest restaurant, guesthouse, and event hall welcomes the downtime crowd with homestyle cooking, spacious interiors, and a cozy, enclosed courtyard. Candlelit dinners, family gatherings, or a quick midday menu—it’s meant to feel special without the fuss.
Bahía is the go-to for rich buffet breakfasts, bistro-style lunches and dinners, and the kind of meetups that only happen over fresh Italian coffee and good drinks. Also in Komárom’s city center, a beloved spot open since 2008 channels a ship’s spirit—freedom, travel, adventure, and discovery—into a friendly, unique design that keeps locals returning.
If you love classic Hungarian cooking, Flamingó Restaurant and Café hits the mark. Talented chefs, big flavors, and air-conditioned comfort make it a dependable stop whatever the weather. Private events can be arranged too, so birthdays and gatherings feel easy.
For river vibes, head to Gönyű, between Győr and Komárom, on the old cobblestone road. Expect à la carte dishes with weekend specials, weekday set menus, and a stacked drinks list—premium beers, lovely wines, coffee, lemonades, and cocktails—to go with a dreamy Danube panorama in a refined setting.
Raise a glass: a reborn cellar with centuries of cool
Wine lovers should head to the Pannonhalma wine region and discover Herold Cellar (Herold Pince), the area’s youngest winery, perched at the foot of the abbey in the Chestnut Gully (Gesztenyés-horog). The cellar itself reaches back roughly 800 years, once used by the Benedictines as a tithe cellar. The family bought it in 2010 after years of disuse, then reshaped it with a cross-section expansion and nearly 100,000 clinker bricks carefully stacked to fashion its current, striking form in 2014.
The hand-hewn loess and sandstone cellar keeps a steady temperature around 55.4°F, paired with optimal humidity—ideal for reductive winemaking. Wines are stored in modern stainless steel tanks, while select lots also see time in wooden barrels depending on grape quality. Old bones, new tech, and thoughtful craft—exactly the balance you want in your glass after a long festival day.
Bábolna’s lineup has a rhythm of its own: family-first, proudly local, and big enough to make memories. Mark your calendar, bring the kids, and arrive hungry. The rest takes care of itself.
