Have a Dip and Relax in Budapest Spas!

In a rainy cold day nothing can compete with indulging in the hot pools and getting a thorugh massage.

Do spare some time to indulge in the healing waters and have a revitalizing massage in one of the famous spas of Budapest.

If you have arthritis and aiching joints it would be a direct sin not having a dip in our city's medicinal waters.

You'll feel as if the steamy hot water is melting your tired muscles and it drives away fatigue and depression.

If this hot indulgence not enough for you, masseurs can take your body in their expert hands.

Most Budapest spas are worth a visit because of their history and architecture, as well.
Cheap entrance fees make them even more attractive, though the elegant and the most touristy Gellért Bath is a bit on the pricey side.

Baths usually have two main pools and several smaller ones that contain different temperature waters. Other amenities besides the steamy hot water are varying types of massages, saunas, mud-packs and other medical treatments. There are separate pools for the men and women.

Tickets to Budapest Spas Buy your ticket to the two most popular spas of Budapest the Gellért Bath and the Széchenyi Bath online. It's convenient and secure: no need to queue just show your ticket to the staff at the separate Welcome desk. Buy your spa ticket in Euro. Buy your spa ticket in HUF.

Information on Budapest Spas

History of Budapest Spas
Bathing Etiquette
Further bathing tips

History of Budapest Spas

Budapest baths have a long history. The first settlers in the area, the Celtic tribes had already discovered and used the healing waters. They named the place Ak-ink, meaning abundant water.

The Romans occupied the settlement and called their province Aquincum, refering again to the abundancy of water in the area. They had developed bathing culture at home that they wanted to enjoy in Aquincum as well. They built the first baths here, the excavations in Óbuda discovered 14 of them from this era.

After the Romans the Hungarians used the baths for centuries.
Budapest spas and bath culture were developed significantly during the Turkish rule in the 16th-17th centuries.

Their 150-year reign left some beneficial heritage besides the raids and devastation. Some of these Turkish baths in Budapest are still in use today, you can enjoy their great architecture, coloured glass windows and domed pools.

After the Turkish occupation baths became less popular.
The turn of the last century saw another flourishing in bath culture. New thermal springs were discovered and the science of the healing waters, balneology demonstrated the beneficial effects of these waters. Some wonderful Budapest spas were built at that time, the best-known and most upscale is the Gellért Baths. The other two from this era are the Széchenyi Bath and the Lukács Bath. Click to read more about these Budapest baths.

Everybody from the aristocrats to shop assisstants were enjoying the baths. They were also places for informal meetings, chats, just like today. If you want to hear the freshest gossip in town, mingle with bathing Budapesti people, but I guess you need to pick up some Hungarian.

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Etiquette in Budapets Spas

Your first visit to Budapest spas might be a bit complicated if you don't speak any Hungarian at all. Apart from the Gellért Bath, instructions, price lists in most baths are posted only in Hungarian. I summarize in short what etiquette to follow in the baths.

Tip: if you can't memorize the followings just follow what the local regulars do!

Make sure your devote at least two hours in the bath to fully exploit the relaxing benefits of the baths, saunas, steam rooms and massages!

Note that the cashiers at Budapest baths shut up an hour before closing time.

Choose which services or treatments you want to try from the list at the entrance and pay for them at the cashier. You'll get a separate ticket for each thing. I usually go for some kind of massage besides bathing. If you prefer to have only a hot bath, ask for a standard ticket (use of sauna is included). Swipe card system replaced tickets in modernized baths. At the entrance to the baths an attendant will asks you to hand over your ticket.

The Turkish baths were men-only for decades, today they either have separate days for men and women, or mixed days when both men and women can bath (see the opening hours given at each bath). On single-sex days the attendant will give you a tiny cloth that you're supposed to tie around your waist. The cloth for women looks like an apron (kötény in Hungarian) to cover the breasts. You might feel awkward or embarrased in it but bare in mind that other bathers wear it too, so you want stand out from the crowd. On mixed days you have to wear bathing suit.

At the Gellért, Széchenyi and Lukács you can choose between a cabin (kabin) or locker (szekrény) to change. If you prefer privacy choose and pay for a ticket with cabin when you buy your ticket.

After changing close the locker or cabin and ask the attendant to double lock it for you. Locking with two keys minimizes the risk of someone being able to steal your belongings. Tie your key to the string of your cloth or find a way to keep it with you all the time. Memorize the number of your locker/cabin. Time to have a dip in the pools!

The baths usually have a main pool, surrounded by smaller ones with varying temperatures from hot to cold. Taking a shower before going into the bath is compulsory. Afterwards start with the main pool than one of the hotter ones. If you've feel almost cooked take a deep breath and plunge into the cold pool for a few seconds. Head for the steam rooms (hamam) and/or the saunas, that also offer a choice of different temperatures (from hot to very hot). Finally relax in the warm pool. A thorough massage makes the whole ritual complete.

Afterwards have a nap in the rest room to regain strength to change back into your clothes. You'll need it believe me! The hot soaking, the steam and the scorching heat of the sauna will drive away stress, slackens your body and leave you without strength.

Don't plan any major sightseeing afterwards, have dinner in a good restaurant, sit in a café or head straight for home to have more sleep.

Note: on men-only days the Turkish baths attract many gay people,

Buy your ticket online to the Gellért Spa or to the Széchenyi Spa.

Further Tips to Budapest Spas

Make sure you bring:

• a towel,
  
  
• shower gel or soap,
  
  
• slippers (the humid, warm baths are hotbed of mycosis infection)
  
  
• Don't forget to bring some change to give it to the attendants!
  
  
• Do bring a cap if you plan to swim in one of the swimming pools!
  
  

In most Budapest spas you can bath for maximum 1,5 hour hours on weekdays and for 2 hours on weekends. If you stay longer the attendant will ask you to pay for the extra time. If you leave earlier than the allowed time you'll receive a few hundred forints refund.

Note that some of the Turkish baths (the Király and the Rác) have become meeting places of gay people on men-only days, don't be surprised if someone sits too close to you.

Day spas offer good alternative to crowded communal baths. They are real refuges from daily strees providing varoius health, wellness and beauty treatments, though you have to dig deeper in your wallet.

The best place to while away on a sultry summer day is in an open-air bath: see the most popular Budapest Beaches.

What Are the Best Spas in Budapest?

Tell us about your most memorable spa moments!

Click to read which Budapest spas found other visitors the best.