The Széchenyi Thermal Bath in Budapest is the most famous. Located right in the City Park, it was built in a Neo-Baroque style in 1913, and it houses 21 pools and 10 saunas. In addition to the thermal waters, you may also take part in a SPArty, a night-time spa party with lights and music.
If you're looking for a possible celebrity sighting, try the Gellért Thermal Bath, whose past guests include Dmitri Shostakovich, Jane Fonda, Uma Thurman, Ryan Gosling, as well as many heads of state. Built in the Art Nouveau style behind the Gellért Hotel near the Liberty Bridge, the baths feature many pools and saunas, including the sliding-roofed main pool.
The Lukács Baths sit on the riverbank just north of the Margaret Bridge. Once a favorite of the Ottoman pasha Mustafa, the baths feature a wall of commemorative plaques of the healing that has taken place there. SPArties are a big attraction of the baths, as well as five pools, several smaller Kneipp pools, saunas, and a salt cave.
The historic Rudas Thermal Baths date from the 16th century. Located at the foot of Gellért Hill, the baths offer great views of the Danube and features a dim central dome and octagonal baths surrounded by four pools of different temperatures. Days are reserved for male or female only visitors so be sure to plan in advance.
Another historic bath is the Veli Bej Baths, also dating back to the 16th century. Fully renovated, the baths feature five Turkish pools, sauna, steam cell, hydroxeur, and tangentor baths, Kneipp pools, and wellness facilities, as well as intricate mosaic ornaments in the style of the former Ottoman Empire.
For a more family-friendly experience, there is Palatinus, an open-air bath on Margaret Island with 14 pools and timed giant slides, and Aquaworld, an indoor, five story high building with 15 pools, 11 slides, and rope bridges.
These are just a few of the many thermal baths located in Budapest and throughout Hungary. And of course most upscale hotels in Budapest offer a wide range of spa and wellness services as well. Budapest has a lot to offer visitors, from drinking shots of pálinka in the ruin bars to the Jewish District and the historic attractions from the Ottoman and Austro-Hungarian empires. But certainly setting aside some time for thermal baths and wellness is a must.
