About the venue
Balatonfüred is the ’northern capital’ of Lake Balaton, with 13.500 inhabitants, on the north shore of Lake Balaton, surrounded by gently sloping hillocks. Foreign travellers – may they come here by rail, by road or by boat – start to feel the harmonious blend of past and present at the moment of their arrival. First and foremost the location of the town captures everyone: tender mountains on the north, the beautiful lake on the south embrace the town, which radiates that special Transdanubian serenity for ages. The town was inhabited already when the Romans conquered parts of Hungary. Walking in the town the visitor every now and then faces relics of old times. Ancient living quarters, old buildings, churches, homely vineyards, parks, mighty old trees preserve and whisper their messages to the people living here today.
Balatonfüred is mainly known by its climate which is very similar to the 
Mediterranean and its spring waters containing carbonic acid. Even the sun shines somehow more gently here. Balatonfüred and its surrounding settlements lie in the so-called „Balaton Riviera”. This expression refers to the special micro-climate prevailing here. This climate is created by the foot-hills of the „Balaton felvidék” (=Balaton Highlands): the so-called „Tamás hegy” (=Thomas Hill), Sándor-, Péter- and Száka-hegy (=Alexander-, Peter- and „Száka” Hill) give protection against the icy winds coming from the direction of „Bakony” mountains. Continuous air movement between the land and Lake Balaton, constant winds provide clean air free of dust for people living here and the air heals diseases of the heart and blood-vessels, too. Visitors come to enjoy the mild micro-climate, beautiful scenery, the local wine, made of Olaszrizling grapes, and sailing and swimming facilities, as well as to revive the two-century-old tradition of socializing around spas, bathing and vacationing. The main events of the two-month-long summer holiday season include a ball for first-time visitors with a beauty contest and a wine-tastingfestival. Füred (short for Balatonfüred) has many sporting clubs a newly built conference and sport centre as well.
A number of regattas which qualify as European and world-class competitions are held in Balatonfüred, the best known of which is the Blue Ribbon Regatta.
For those keen on sports we definitely recommend the cycle path around Lake Balaton and horse-riding in Pécsely-Klára Puszta, as well as various water sports (wind-surfing, yachting, water-skiing, pleasure boats).
Balaton hosted many succesful international regattas in the past few years, for example the ORC European Championship was held in Balatonfüred in 2015, one year earlier Balatonalmádi hosted the World Championship for the Soling class and in 2013 Balatonfüred hosted the Laser Radial U21 and the Laser 4.7 World Championship. The special lake conditions with tricky, shifty winds provide very exciting races and big battles all the time. Which gives a good chance for young sailor to improve these special skills.
Accommodation
Balatonfüred is a major tourist destination. A variety of accommodation is available within walking distance from the port and within a large price range (from EUR 20): there is a large camping site within 2 kms, plenty of small and large hotels ranging from 1 to 4 stars, and private guest houses are also available in large numbers. The timing of the regatta ensures availability. There will be detailed information about accommodation possibilities on the website of the regatta.
CLICK HERE FOR THE APPLICATION
About the organizing Club
The MVM SE was established in 1994 as the sport club of MVM, the Hungarian Electricity Ltd., (the largest national energy group in Hungary) to promote sporting activities for its members – mainly the employers of the MVM Hungarian Electricity Ltd. and their family members. The club has several departments, including its most popular and successful one – the Sailing Department. 
The Sailing Department of MVM SE provides a wide range of activities with the aim to promote the enjoyment of sailing, to provide boat usage to its members, to improve skills through training both for amateurs and professionals, as well as to provide a pathway for talented junior sailors. MVM SE places a high emphasis on youth sailing through its Youth Sailing Program, which is open to junior sailors aged 8-16 from beginners to young competitors.
The sailing club takes part in the Olympic campaign as the home club of the two times Olympics participant Zsombor Berecz, who is the most successful Hungarian Olympic sailor in the Finn Class and Balázs Tomai in the Laser class. For Zsombor Berecz it is going to be his third Olympics and the first in Finn. Since he started sailing in this class he has become one of the most successful international competitors in Finn, having a stabil place among the top ten and taking part in the medal races of the most important regattas. So there is good reason to hope for such a position in Rio and even a medal could be achieved.
Organizing and hosting regattas and national championships is a new but an important and exciting part of MVM SE’s range of activities. Since 2011 MVM SE has organized and hosted many major regattas and 7 National Championships for Finn, Dragon, Melges 24, Asso 99 and youth classes.
They organise 2-3 international regattas every year, so they have very well-organised and skilled team with a lot of experience. The team has special knowledge of FINN Class since they organized the Hungarian Finn National Championship two times in the last 3 years for 40-50 participants in different weather conditions. The club house and the port of MVM SE are situated in Balatonfüred, in Koloska Marina.
About the Marina
Koloska Marina is situated on the Eastern part of Balatonfüred. The town of Balatonfüred is one of the most important sailing centers of Lake Balaton, rich in historical sights and sporting attractions.
Koloska Marina was opened in 1992 and developments to widen the marina’s facilities took place in 2001 and 2012 as well. The marina is owned by MVM Paks Nuclear Power Plant Ltd., a member of MVM Group. The marina offers a wide range of port facilities. With its attractive lawn area around the clubhouse, Koloska is one of the most charming one among Balatonfüred’s marinas.
INFRASTRUCTURE & FACILITIES
The port is equipped with all the modern infrastructure and facilities required for organising and hosting a successful international regatta.
Boat Landing Area and Facilities:
The harbour can host a total number of 150 boats. There are 3 slipways and around 10-15 boats can be launched in a minute.
Crane
Coachboats can be launched with the Sailing Club’s power crane, which is conveniently located at the entrance of the Sailing Club, easily accessible by car. Trained staff available from 8-17, free for the competitors.
Motor Boats
The Sailing Club’s motor boat park is well prepared to serve the offshore activities of an international regatta. Apart from the standard size cabin motor boat – appropriate for starting and/or Jury boat function – and the 4 multi purpose RIBs, several yachts with inboard engine are also available to support regatta organisation on the water.
Free Car Parking
There is a free car parking area in the Sailing Club for all vehicles and trailers. The parking area will be looked after by security personnel during the regatta. As the capacity of the parking lot is limited, so availability can not be guaranteed for unlimited vehicles. Details will be fixed later.
Club Restaurant & Buffet
The Restaurant lies in the epicenter of the Sailing Club. It serves a variety of cold and hot dishes, refreshments, hot and cold beverages as well as alcoholic drinks. It is open from 7am until 10pm. The inside and outside seating area makes it convenient to dine in every weather condition.
Toilette and Shower Facilities
The lavatories are centrally located within the Sailing Club. Both the men’s and women’s section bath rooms can be found both in the boatpark and in the restaurant area. The rest rooms equipped with English type toilettes, urinals, wash basins and shower facilities too.
Social facilities
Free wifi available in the harbour area. The widescreen TV and free billiard located in the restaurant of the harbour.
Local Driving Directions useful reaching the Boat Park:
By car the easiest way is to take the main road 71. If you’re coming from Budapest, you can use the motorway M7 (until the exit by the kilometre-sign 90, towards Balatonfüred). The distance from Budapest to Balatonfüred is 130 kms. Please note, that on all motorways (M1-M7) you have to buy a vignette sold at petrol stations.
There is a fast growing highway network in Hungary (1,480 km in total). Each highway starts at Budapest. These are the most useful motorways:
- M1 – connection to Győr, Austria and Slovakia (west)
- M3/M30/M35 – connection towards Ukrain
- M5 – connection to Serbia, via Kecskemét and Szeged (south-east)
- M6/M60 – Connection to Dunaújváros and Pécs (south)
- M7/M70 – connection to Lake Balaton, from Croatia and Slovenia (south-west)
By plane: the closest international airport is Budapest Liszt Ferenc Airport, which operates flights to most European destinations.
You need to take a bus from the airport to Déli pályaudvar (Railway Station) and take the train to Balatonfüred (about 2 hours)
Distances from European cities:
- Wien 270 km
- Rijeka 385 km
- Beograd 400 km
- Koper 450 km
- Praha 620 km
- München 660 km
- Malcesine 755 km
- Warsaw 930 km
- Rome 1100 km
Address: Balatonfüred, Kouvola Str. 1. 46°57’26″N 17°54’50″E
Phone no of the Marina Reception: +36-87/581 555; +36-20/942 2285
Press
Club has a very good relationship with lot of written press for example: Hajó magazin, Vitorlázás and Porthol. For our regatta we could offer to make movies what people can viewed on our website or facebook.
Average Wind & Weather Conditions:
Lake Balaton is the largest lake in Central Europe situated in the middle of the TransDanubian territory in the western part of the country. The 77-km-length and the 14-km-width form a 600-squarekilometre-water surface. Tihany peninsula divides the lake into two parts, forming a strait, – with a width of about 1 km – where you can find the deepest point of the lake. with 11. This 11 m deep spot is known as the ’Tihany Well’ and it was created by the periodical stream of the longitudinal movement of the water due to the E-W or W-E winds. The main axis of the lake lies approximately SW-NE.
The water depth varies between 0.5 and 5 metres, the smaller one on the Southern shore, and it becomes 2 metres after a 600-1000 m distance. At the hilly Northern shore the depth starts with about 1.5 m and reaches the above mentioned 5 metres relatively soon. Since the water of the lake warms rapidly, it is possible to swim there from spring to autumn. The water of the southern shore, being much shallower than that of the northern shore, sometimes reaches a temperature of 25 Celsius, and for that reason it is a real paradise for children, the sands there have a velvety texture.
The wave pattern is very special. The short and relatively high waves are very rough when it blows. The wavelength is 3-4 metres, occasionally 6 metres but only in strong wind. The height of the waves is usually 1 metre but in strong wind it may reach 1.5 metres and the crests fall through. In very rare circumstances, over a wind speed 80 km/hour, the wave crests are taken away and the water starts to form a dusting steam which is very dangerous.
During the suggested regatta time, wind conditions are balanced but varied.
Actual weather conditions can be found here:
http://met.hu/en/idojaras/tavaink/balaton/
