Thermal Baths in Budapest: A Beginners Guide To Visiting
Budapest has been called the “city of spas,” and after living there, we know why – there are so many! Thermal baths are a huge part of the “wellness” care of the locals because the waters are rich in minerals, so they go for a soak to stay healthy.
We went on a mission to visit all the large thermal baths in Budapest to figure out which are worth your time and which are not, especially if you only have a short time in the city! You don’t want to waste any precious time that you could use to eat Hungarian food or drink amazing Hungarian wine, right? Right.
In this guide, we’ll share an overview of each spa and the general guidelines for visiting the baths so you don’t look like tourist fails and make the mistakes that we did, like bringing a water bottle. Let’s get into it!
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Quick Navigation: 📖 Quick History // 🧼 All Baths // 🛁 What To Expect // ❗️Tips
Quick History Of The Thermal Spas in Budapest
Budapest sits in the Carpathian Basin, which has a thinner earth crust, giving the waters their mineral-rich healing properties. It was the Romans who first learned of these magical waters and built the spas to use for healing.
The tradition continued under the Ottoman Empire, with the construction of Hammam-style Turkish baths, many of which still stand today (like Vali Bej.)
During the Austro-Hungarian Empire (1867-1918), some of the more grandiose baths, like the Széchenyi baths, were built, giving Budapset a large variety of thermal spas and natural hot springs!
Choosing The Best Thermal Bath For You
Personally, we don’t think there is one answer to the question of what the best thermal bath in Budapest is because it really depends on the vibe you’re going for. Here’s a quick breakdown of the most famous baths (all of which we have visited ourselves) and what we think they are best for.
Széchenyi Thermal Bath – Best if you want to stay outdoors
Széchenyi is definitely the most famous and has the most “touristy baths” of all of them. If you watch any Instagram reel featuring the Budapest baths, or have done any planning for your trip, there is zero doubt in your mind that you’ve seen the sprawling yellow complex before. It’s MASSIVE with 18 pools between the inside and outside complexes.
We think that the outside area of Széchenyi Baths is the most beautiful of the whole complex, and the inside pools are beautiful in a simple and traditional way but nowhere near as beautiful as the outdoors. There is a larger variety of pools inside with different temperatures compared to outside, though.
We really liked that the outdoor pools have a colder pool with a fun lazy river and whirlpool in the center, as well as a warmer pool that is great for just chilling.
You can read our detailed guide for exactly how to visit the Szechenyi bath, which has all our tips, tricks, and important things to know.
FUN TIP: Szechenyi baths have “sparties” with electronic music and performances on some evenings that take place in the outdoor baths. We’re not usually “club” kinda people, but it’s a fun thing to experience once in your life. You can get details here.
📍 Budapest, Állatkerti krt. 9-11, 1146 Hungary
Gellért Thermal Bath – Best If you want the most fancy/to stay indoors
Gellert is a lot smaller than Szechnyi (5 indoor thermal pools and 2 outdoor) and beautiful in a different way. It has an art nouveau style with beautiful tile work lining the walls of the indoor pools.
Speaking of indoor pools, that’s the majority of what you will find at Gellert. There is an outdoor pool that is pretty but not as nice as the indoor tiled pools – especially the blue tiled pool you see in all the photos.
NOTE: we felt the creepiest carrying our phones and taking photos in Gelert thermal baths, and if you stay inside, there isn’t really anywhere to place your phone. You’ll have to carry it around above your head like a psycho (read: like us. 😅)
You can read our detailed guide for exactly how to visit Gellert Bath with all our tips, tricks, and important things to know.
📍 Budapest, Kelenhegyi út 4, 1118 Hungary
Rudas Thermal Bath – If You Want views and romance
The highlight for us here is the beautiful rooftop pool with AMAZING views of the Danube, especially at sunset. It’s one of the best things to do for couples in Budapest, even though you will be surrounded by people (unless you rent it to yourselves for the night, which you can do!)
We also like that Rudas has a poolside restaurant where you can get a drink or a snack if you get hungry and some pools specifically for having a contrast bath – hot, cold, hot.
I couldn’t last long enough in the cold water cause it’s COLLLLLD. But you should definitely try.
You can read our detailed guide for exactly how to visit Ruda Bath with all our tips, tricks, and important things to know.
📍 Budapest, Döbrentei tér 9, 1013 Hungary
Lukács Thermal Bath – If You Want a more local but still pretty bath
Lukacs is the bath most known for its healing properties, and it’s MASSIVE! This was my personal favorite because it gives a little bit of Szechenyi vibes with its pretty, yellow outdoor pools, but it’s WAY LESS busy.
We think this is one of the most local baths to visit, and we love that there is a water fountain where you can get the mineral-rich water to drink!
You can read our detailed guide for exactly how to visit Lukacs Bath with all our tips, tricks, and important things to know.
📍 Budapest, Frankel Leó út 25-29, 1023 Hungary
Veli Bej Bath – If You Want the most local and intimate
If you want the most local and quiet bath, this is the one for you! The inside is simple but feels like a Hamam in Turkey or Morocco due to it being built during the Ottoman Empire. There is one main octagonal pool with a few smaller surrounding pools inside and no outdoor pools here.
It’s definitely the most local feeling and the least busy because they limit the number of people that can go in at once, and you cannot buy tickets in advance.
PRO TIP: get there early! We got there when they opened at 3pm and had to wait in line.
You can read our detailed guide for exactly how to visit Veli Bej bath with all our tips, tricks, and important things to know.
📍 Budapest, Árpád fejedelem útja 7, 1023 Hungary
One to skip: Dandár Bath
Personally, we did not like Dandar and recommended you skip it. Yes, it does have a local feel (and the outdoor pool felt like a party when we visited it), but it’s very small and outside the city center.
It is on the cheaper side and right beside the Zwack unicum factory if you do want to visit a thermal bath and taste some unicum at the same time!
We didn’t stay long and went to our favorite wine bar close by instead. 😅
📍 Budapest, Dandár u. 7, 1095 Hungary
Map Of all The Baths
How to use this map: Use your computer mouse (or fingers) to zoom in or out. Click on the icons to get more information about each place. Click the arrow on the top left corner for the index. Click the star next to the map’s title to add it to your Google Maps account. To view the saved map on your smartphone or PC, open Google Maps, click the menu and go to ‘Your Places’/’Maps’. If you want to print the map or see it in a bigger window, click on ‘View larger map’ in the top right corner.
What to Expect and How to Prepare For A Bath
What to Bring
When you visit the baths, make sure you bring the essentials: a swimsuit, a towel, flip-flops or slippers, and any personal toiletries like soap and shampoo.
If you want to actually swim, make sure to bring a swimming cap as required.
If you forgot to bring a towel, swimsuit, cap, shoes etc you can buy them there. Caleb made this rookie mistake and had to do this Lukacs bath, and the swimsuit was VERY unflattering and way overpriced. So know that before you go. 😅
PRO TIP: we bought slippers at the store in Budapest called Pepco for a couple euros and then used them in all the baths! There are many Pepcos around the city, so this is a great hack if you forget some things!
You will be given an electronic bracelet that works as a key to your locker in all the baths to leave your stuff!
Etiquette and Customs
When you change into your swimsuit (don’t worry, none of Budapest’s bathhouses allow you to go naked anymore!) and get ready to enter the baths, make sure to shower off first! From there, just keep the noise down and follow the signage.
A note about bringing your phone: we took our phones into all the thermal baths. Some pools had ledges to store them, and some did not, which made them awkward to carry.
But, in *all* spas, we did feel a bit awkward taking photos. Many people do it (we even saw some influencers going live, lol), but just know you might feel like a creeper.
A note about water bottles: we also brought our water bottles in, and we were the only ones doing it. I am not even sure if you’re allowed to be honest, so we recommend not. We felt like it was basically a “we’re tourists” sign!
COUPLES TIP: Rudas bath is the only bath to have single-sex sessions. Monday, Wednesday-Thursday & Friday until 12.45 is men-only, and Tuesdays are women-only. But this is only for their Turkish Hamamm bath. The rooftop pool and other pools are always co-ed!)
Tips and FAQ About Your Thermal Bath Experience
When to visit the thermal baths:
The baths are open year-round, so you can visit them anytime! If you want to visit the outdoor baths, we think the spring or fall is the loveliest time. It’s not too cold that you freeze your buns off when you’re not in the bath, but not so hot that you don’t want to be in a hot bath!
Time of day:
If you want to avoid the selfie crowd, we found the best time to visit the baths was right when they open in the early morning. If you go to some of the more local baths on the list, you have a little more flexibility.
How long to stay:
You can stay as long as you want, but we stayed around 2 hours in each bath and found this to be the perfect amount of time. If you want to spend more time just lying around, you may want to spend longer.
Buying tickets:
The easiest way to get tickets is online. Personally, we just did the tickets for a day-use locker, and that was plenty of space to store our belongings. Then, we just changed in bathroom stalls. You could book a private cabin if you want your own place to change in and a large area to store your belongings, but we didn’t think it was necessary.
Also, if you plan to go right at opening, you really don’t need to pay for the skip-the-line tickets. But it’s worth it if you plan to go during high times.
PRO TIP: The one bath you can’t buy tickets for online is Veli Bej, so you have to wait in line with everyone else!
What to do when you get there:
Relax! That is the whole point of the spas! In some spas, you can take a contrast bath (hot/cold) or use saunas or steam rooms. You can also book massage appointments or even go to a beer spa at Szecheyni.
Just soak in the mineral-rich water, relax, and get skin as smooth as a baby’s bottom from all that healthy water!
Can you take pictures In the thermal baths?
Yes, you can take pictures in the baths. We did it, but we felt a little creepy! Just to warn you.
Does it smell like sulfur?
Yes, it does smell like sulfur, but it’s super mild! The egg smell is barely noticeable, and we got used to it quickly!
How much does it cost to visit the thermal baths?
The price ranges from around $15 USD for Veli Bej baths to $30+ USD for spas like Szecheyni.
Visiting the thermal baths in Budapest is a must-do if you want to experience a little bit of “local life,” and we hope this quick guide helps you navigate how to use them! Remember to read our detailed guide for each spa (linked above) for the ins and outs of each spa!
Once you know which spa to visit and how to use it, now it’s time to figure out how you will fit it into a vacation! We wrote this detailed Budapest itinerary to do all the hard work for you!
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