Diving in Heviz, Hungary

[Tamas]

I will be heading over to Hungary in April, and will have the opportunity to dive at Heviz. Which is a thermal lake that is fed by hot water springs keeping the water temperature at a steady 25-29C year round.

We will diving down into one of the caves that feed the lake system, at a depth of 165ft while having to endure the close to 49C water for about 8 minutes.....while inside the cave(s) we will have the chance to explore one of the crevasses as well.

Did anyone ever dive here? Do you have any personal experiences to share?

 

[dutch-scuba-kid]

(replying cause I see nobody else has in the last couple of days. Can't add much though)
Sounds pretty cool... Nice and ehm.. warm. Why do I see a diver with a wetsuit on, on the pics btw? Must be hotter than hell wearing that. Not even using a shortie... hehehe. Anyway, would like to try it myself as well.
Enjoy your dives over there!

Ramón (keeping the Europe section alive )

 

[mobymark]

Never been there but let us know what its like. Never dived in a Lake.

 

[redtide]

I will be heading over to Hungary in April, and will have the opportunity to dive at Heviz. Which is a thermal lake that is fed by hot water springs keeping the water temperature at a steady 25-29C year round.

We will diving down into one of the caves that feed the lake system, at a depth of 165ft while having to endure the close to 49C water for about 8 minutes.....while inside the cave(s) we will have the chance to explore one of the crevasses as well.

Did anyone ever dive here? Do you have any personal experiences to share?

Let me know how your thermal lake experience in Hungary was; I live near there. I am curious if you used a dive shop and how they were, or if you went on your own and used your own equip.

 

[Tamas]

Old link revisited......well that dive was fantastic!!!!! The water was fairly warm and
'comfy' in a 3mm steamer. The reasons it was actually needed is due to the large temp difference/drop once you exit the cave. (from 98 to mid 80s).

Overall the dive was super, but short. We spent some time going down to the mouth of the cave, crawled through the TV sized opening into boiling hot rushing water, but once inside it was magical. The walls of the cave are coated in a metallic deposit so when you shine a light on them they glisten like millions of stars at night. We spent a mere 10 minutes inside the cave having our hand held the whole time by the DM, then out and we began our long deco stops......but it was super.

To go there, you have to book in advance and make sure that you have a spot, otherwise no way, since the number of divers and the number of dives are limited due to the fact that this is a health spa, but to book look up: Amphora Dive Club and get in touch with George Kovacs for the dives. Once you get in touch with him he can direct you what and where diving is possible.

You can also see my little write-up, profile and some pics of the dive HERE

 

[MonkSeal]

Old link revisited......well that dive was fantastic!!!!!

It realy looks very good ! But looking at profile I'm not sure if you chose right equipment for dive like this. As I saw you used single tank, air, no deco mix. I believe it wouldn't be my choice of equipment for such demanding dive. However, I would like to dive there.

 

[mania]

You should also try Tapolca – Lake Cave.
The cave is around 10 km up the north shore of Balaton. Max depth is 7 meters, water temp 20 Centigrades. The entrance to the cave is in the building, dry parts are available to all. The caves are part of the National Park and in fact are closed for diving – so either you get the permission or you dive there …well…without letting the authorities knowing that. It’s worth doing because it’s sometimes called European Cenotes. I've never been there but several of my colleagues were.
Mania

 

[Tamas]

It realy looks very good ! But looking at profile I'm not sure if you chose right equipment for dive like this. As I saw you used single tank, air, no deco mix. I believe it wouldn't be my choice of equipment for such demanding dive. However, I would like to dive there.

It was more of a guided tour than anything else, also the time spent at full depth VS the stops we made on provided bottles made the dive doable with the setup we had.

But if you have the chance, go and dive it.

 

[BojanD]

You should also try Tapolca Lake Cave.
The cave is around 10 km up the north shore of Balaton. Max depth is 7 meters, water temp 20 Centigrades. The entrance to the cave is in the building, dry parts are available to all. The caves are part of the National Park and in fact are closed for diving so either you get the permission or you dive there wellwithout letting the authorities knowing that. Its worth doing because its sometimes called European Cenotes. I've never been there but several of my colleagues were.
Mania

 

[BojanD]

Hello do you maybe know who should we contact to dive in Tapolca?

And one more info please, do you know is Heviz still closed for diving?