The Ciklámen Nature Trail in the Balaton Uplands National Park passes through Remetekert, which lies on the outskirts of Nagykapornak. Remetekert is a consecrated pilgrimage site. When looking for hotels in Nagykapornak, it provides a specific point of interest: here, a nature trail focused on woodland themes meets a religious history.
Nature trail, forest and pilgrimage site
The stops along the Ciklámen Nature Trail showcase a forest reserve as well as areas illustrating selection and clear-cut forestry. The trail therefore explores the forest both as a natural environment and through different forms of forest management. For travelers interested in forests and forestry, this offers a distinct way to experience Remetekert, alongside its significance as a pilgrimage site.
Mária Spring is in the forest below the pilgrimage site. A description from 2020 also mentions a bell tower in Remetekert and several sculptures by woodcarvers that could be seen there at the time. This time reference is particularly important for the sculptures: their visibility at that time is documented, not a current exhibition.
The pilgrimage tradition is also part of the character of the place. A 2026 report describes the Feast of the Assumption as an annual communal prayer by pilgrims under the protection of the Virgin Mary, and reports growing numbers of pilgrims. This religious occasion adds to the nature trail’s woodland themes, though the two aspects do not describe the same experience.
Historical traces in Remetekert and Nagykapornak
The village of Boldogasszonyháza once stood on the site of present-day Remetekert. It was destroyed during the Ottoman period, while Remetekert remained a pilgrimage site. Hermits lived there until the 18th century. Joseph II prohibited hermit life in Remetekert. These events place the site’s religious history in context: after the former village, centuries followed during which pilgrimage traditions and hermit life were associated with the place.
The church of Nagykapornak Benedictine Abbey also acquired its present historical character, as described here, in the 18th century: it was converted into a single-nave Baroque church. This is a separate element of the area’s history, alongside the story of Remetekert and its pilgrimage site.
Nagykapornak within the wider destination of Zala
Those looking at the wider destination of Zala will find other themes there that are not features of Nagykapornak itself. In Zala, the Zalai Wine Region developed on the slopes and plateaus of the Zalai Hills and on the northwestern slopes of the Keszthely Mountains. It comprises two wine-growing districts and 38 settlements. The wine-growing landscape is therefore a distinct regional focus.
Other places in Zala also offer different points of interest. At the Kotsy Watermill in Zalaszántó, visitors can see a working 390 cm overshot waterwheel mechanism. Kis-Balaton is Zala’s largest body of water, is strictly protected, and covers 14,745 hectares; it is also the setting for István Fekete’s novels Tüskevár and Téli berek. The mill, waterscape and wine-growing landscape broaden the regional picture without being attributed to Remetekert or Nagykapornak.
For planning your trip, it helps to distinguish between the local focus and the wider region: Remetekert is directly associated with Nagykapornak, while the wine-growing landscape, watermill and Kis-Balaton are themes of the wider destination of Zala.
Discover more destinations: Pölöske, Zalaszentmihály, Misefa, Zalaigrice.
View the regional travel overview: Pacsai.
