According to the research of Béla Dornyay, the earliest known small communities here began to multiply around 2500 BC. The cavemen living here already had tools and even pottery vessels. The materials needed to make a living were all present here in later times. There was no shortage of firewood, tool wood, building stone, honey, primitive cereals, fish and game. There were also caves and reed beds for safety and protection. The Vonyarcvashegy area was inhabited from the Bronze Age onwards. The Romans and the people of the Migration Period loved the area... traces of them can be found in the excavations.

The watchtower on St Michael's Hill may also have been part of a Roman garrison. The fortress was surrounded by a difficult to access swampy, watery area, because the water level of Lake Balaton was dependent on the prevailing meteorological conditions until the construction of the Sió Canal. It retained this strategic importance and was later a military fortress, first mentioned in written sources in 1543 as Daruvár. In Turkish times it was not part of the defensive line, it was a fortress - a military supply. The castle was demolished because it was outdated, but the small chapel of the castle was not destroyed. During the Tartar invasion and the Turkish occupation, the people who lived here fled from the enemy and found shelter in the reeds under the castle, together with their animals. These wooded, winding paths through the marshes were known only to the locals. In the Middle Ages, hermits settled in the caves on the eastern side of the hill island. They taught the local people how to pick fruit and vegetables and cured the sick. They were educated, literate people, so they took care of written business. The small chapel on the hill has deteriorated over the decades. The church was considering demolishing it, by which time it had not been used as a church for over a hundred years. 

The history of the chapel is an adventurous one. According to the faith record, in 1739 46 ice fishermen were caught in a windstorm on the ice. The huge blocks of ice were crushed and tossed about. Six of the fishermen were swept away by the icy tide, 40 clung together and prayed to God and St Michael for help, until the winds turned and swept them ashore at the foot of St Michael's Hill. The fishermen kept their vow and rebuilt the ruined little chapel on the hill in honour of St Michael. Hence the name St Michael's Vow Fishing Chapel. It is the only fishing chapel in Hungary, or indeed in any landlocked country. The chapel was rebuilt in 1860. Neo-Gothic style with a low tower. Nowadays, thanks to another major renovation, the chapel, situated on a hill overlooking Lake Balaton, has become a popular sacral site, a trademark of Vonyarcvashegy with its magnificent panorama and its value as a reminder of the past. The lives of the people who lived here interacted with the history of St. Michael's Hill and Castle. 

The first mention of the settlement of Vonyarc, which is closer to Lake Balaton, dates back to 1335, as the estate of the Karmacsi family. In 1573 the Turks burnt it down, so the population, hiding in the reeds, scattered and it was uninhabited until the 17th century. In the 17th century, the village was revived by the planting of vineyards, with a few inhabitants and landowners from Keszthely. The other part of the settlement, Vashegy, also appeared at this time, mentioned as a vineyard from 1689.

In the 18th century the two small villages were on the site of the present Vonyarcvashegy. Its inhabitants were feudal serfs and lived on the vineyards and arable land, a traditional part of the Festetics' large estate. The history of viticulture and winemaking can still be seen today at the Festetics Helikon Taverna Museum, which is part of the Zenit Hotel Balaton, a wellness hotel complex with historical roots. 

Until the second half of the 19th century, the two villages lagged behind the development of the country. The population growth was not matched by sufficient land and earning potential. For centuries, its inhabitants had been engaged in traditional occupations: fishing, hunting, grape, fruit and vegetable growing, wine and brandy making. They made their living by reed-making, carpentry, boat-building, ice-cutting in winter, milling, ice-fishing and pottery. They had the small livestock, milk and eggs. The sunshine that nurtured the grapes, the lukewarm mist that ripened the fruit, the refreshing morning dew, the rain clouds from Lake Balaton, the constant refreshing breeze, and above all the forests that covered the mountain, all this is the harmony of existing spheres.

After the merger of the two villages in 1850, it began to develop. Its first school opened in 1870. The village continued to grow at the beginning of the 20th century, becoming involved in tourism in Lake Balaton in the 1950s. A good quality beach was built and a campsite was constructed.

Recognising the tourism potential, this sector took the lead. Hospitality, the multifunctional, nationally acclaimed, five-star Lido Strand, water sports, cultural events, wine culture, tourism, the sacral significance of the St. Michael's Hill and chapel, the natural beauty and the past: the "magic of Summerland" all come together here.