wand mit eigenen fotos gestalten
budapest is a city built on a bevyof thermal springs - 123 of them – and people have been ‘taking the waters’,as they say, for many, many centuries, at least since the 4th century bc. there are plenty of baths to choose fromand each has its own distinct feeling. i visited three of budapest’s top bathsto see how each one is unique and, in this video, i’m going to show youand share my experience and tips. i hope this video will make visiting go more smoothly so all you have to do is enjoy. if you’re interested in my other videosfrom budapest i’ll link them as well.
i’m going to start with theart nouveau style gellert baths which are part of the gellert hotel that opened in 1918. it’s on the buda side of the danube riverand looms large as you walk towards it. beware that you don’t enter through thefront hotel entrance, however, but through the side. there are lots of signs there to direct you which means that we weren’tthe only ones to make this mistake. the actual entrance has an impressive interiorwith columns, statues, and stained glass. like all the baths we visited, you get a littlebracelet that gets you in and out
of the pool areas and lockers. you scan your bracelet to getthrough the entry turnstile and then walk down a long, tiled hallwaythat sounds a little bit like being underwater. there are little circular windowsalong the wall that look a bit like port holes and they look out onto one of the poolsso you can see people swimming past. the windows are lit with multi-coloured lightsthat cycle through a rainbow of colours. the change rooms here feel like organized chaos. as you walk down the long corridorsyou’ll see doors on either side that are private rooms called cabins.
you can pay extra for these cabinswhere you can change and leave your things. paying less, however, will get you a lockerin a common changeroom which is what we did. the lockers aren’t that big so don’t bringtoo much stuff if you’re planning to use one. there are different poolsindoors and outdoors at gellert. the largest of the outdoor pools was closedwhen we were there but it is open in better weather. they have a model of it so we couldat least see what it looks like. another outdoor pool was open so we visited there first and this was also the first time i realizedi didn’t have flip flops and i wished i did. not only was it was really cold on the ground outside
but having flip flops anywherein the baths is a really good idea. we were there after dark and the exteriorof the building was illuminated which was really nice. if you want to actually swim instead of sitting you can do that back inside the swimming pool. not, however, if you don’t have a bathing cap,which we didn’t. this pool is surrounded by columnsand has those circular windows and lights that you see from the entry hall. when you’re finished swimmingthere are water spouts you can sit under and there’s also a second floor balconythat overlooks this pool.
you can spread out there in a lounge chair and there’s also a restaurant to grab a snack or a drink. at gellert there’s also a large areawhere you can get massages done, use the sauna or steam room, or dunk in a really cold bath. you’ll notice in some areas – like goingin and out of the sauna or some of the pools – that there are these little water troughsyou have to walk through to rinse your feet. my favourite part of the gellert bathswas a large room covered in decorative tiles with a pool on either side.
it’s really echo-y which is maybe whythere’s a sign stipulating silence - but nobody was obeying that rule. overall, gellert was a great introductionto budapest bath culture but it also left us wanting more. not far from gellert, on the buda sideof the city as well, are the rudas baths. i was really excited to go there becausethe turks built a bath there in 1566 which is still in use today. the rudas baths are separated into three distinct parts and, unfortunately for us, the old turkish partwas only open to women when we were there.
and while this is great because it wasactually only open to men for a very long time, marc and i wanted to enjoy together so we decidedto visit the other parts of the bath that were open to both men and women. before you visit, make sure you look ahead and see when certain areas are restrictedso that you don’t miss out. you can see on the board in the entrywaywhat is open and how much it costs. we went to the ‘wellness’ bathswhich are very contemporary feeling. on our way to that areawe also passed a large lane pool where swimming lessons were going on.
the wellness baths don’t feel private at all because they’re at street level with huge windows where cars and people are passing by. the area is pretty small but includes poolswith waters that feel warm, really hot, and cold. marc braved the super hot waterwhich was too much for me. i sometimes get headaches from really hot water –does that ever happen to you? maybe it’s just me. it was 42 degrees and a sign suggestsnot spending more than five minutes in there. marc wanted some water afterwards and they have these cool water fountainswith a ram head design that you can drink from.
the baths make you feel really thirsty so i’d actually suggest bringingyour own water bottle with you to stay hydrated. one of the larger pools has water fountainsthat turn on every so often and it’s so nice to just sit or stand underneath it and let the force of the watermassage your neck and back. it’s the worst, though, when you’re so into itand then the water turns off and you have to wait for it to start again. i have to admit that i was a little bitdisappointed at the rudas baths because i’d been expectingto see the historic turkish baths
and the wellness area lackedthe charm i was really craving. but then we went up to the roof and this made it all worth it. there’s a large circular pool up there with a stunning front row viewof the city, river, and bridges. the pool has this lovely curved designthat almost looks like a crown and looks beautiful with light flickering on it. once we discovered the rooftopwe spent the rest of our time up there. luckily it wasn’t too crowdedand we sat for around two hours. the combination of the fresh air,the hot water, and that tranquil view
made me sink into this super deep feeling of relaxation and i actually fell asleep floating in the pool. marc was using the goproand there’s this shot i find hilarious where you just see my legs floating theretotally motionless as i’m sleeping in the water. i’ll never forget that calm feeling of waking upafloat in a hot pool on a budapest rooftop. for me, those are the unexpected momentsthat make travelling so amazing. the third place we went is on thepest side of the river located in city park. the szecheyni baths were built in 1913 and as you walk through the park it feelsmore like walking up to a palace than a spa.
columns hug the buildings curvesand the golden yellow colour feels regal. there are graceful statues that dot the building and a hungarian flagwaves at you outside the entrance. the palatial feeling continues insidewith detailed ceilings and carvings. szechenyi has 15 thermal baths and 3 swimming pools but there’s also a ‘beer spa’where you sit in little pools for two soaking in thermal waters and beer ingredients while also served beer to drink. szecheyni also has pool parties on saturday nights
so look at the calendar ahead of time if you want to go. the large lap pool takescentre stage in the outdoor area and there are two smallerswimming pools on either end. i just love how this looks from way up in the sky. you can see the scale of it. one of the pools has a large spiral partwhere water pushes you around in a giant swirl. you can paddle to speed up or just let the watergently carry you around and around. it really does push you. yeah.
marc and i had a lot of funbeing pushed around the spiral. it’s fun. it feels sort of like a pepped up lazy riverthat can make your stomach flip after a while. this pool also has jets that push upfrom the bottom that are fun to play in. the best is to balance on top of oneand let the water massage your feet - very into massages, as you can see. the pool on the opposite side is where peopletraditionally sit to play chess at the side. there’s also a big fountainthat sprays water from a statue. we had fun playing with the gopro again underwater,like marc having a tea party –
did you guys play that as a kid? i definitely did. i personally have to plug my nosewhen i go underwater. i don’t know if i’m the only adultwho does that still but it was still really fun. the outdoor baths are charming day or nightbut it takes on a different feeling after dark when the steam rising off the hot pools is exaggerated and the lights have this hazy halothat brings everything into soft focus. the steam also makes it feel more private because you can’t seeall the people around you which is nice.
indoors is a maze of connected rooms with pools and they vary in size, depth, and temperature. to get in and out you’ll walk througha water trough again. the tiles, colours, and symmetrymake it really easy to feel like you’ve walked onto the set of a wes anderson film and, to be honest, that happensquite frequently in budapest. don’t commit to a locationuntil you take a look around, though, because you might find a pool you like better. there are also showers that spray hotand cold water as the colours change.
marc was afraid it was going to turn cold,which was a valid fear. all three of the baths we visited in budapestfelt quite different, as you can see, and in my opinion, the outdoor bathsat szecheyni are best, the indoor baths at gellert are best, and rudas has the best view of the city. if you only have time for one, though,i’d make it szechenyi. the prices vary at all the baths depending onwhere and when you go, how long you stay, and if you want a locker or cabin, for example, but in general you can expect to payballpark $26cad or $20usd.
really important is to bring your own flip flops,towel, bathing suit, and bathing cap to avoid having to buy or rent them. make sure also to check opening hours ahead and whether certain baths are restrictedon certain days or times. as a general rule, i’d say going early or lateis a good way to avoid the biggest crowds. give yourself lots of time to enjoythe different parts of the baths and really relax. i’d say two hours at the very minimum but know that you’ll probably want to stay longeronce you actually get in there. i also suggest exploring a littlewhen you first arrive just to get an overview
so you don’t spend all your time in one area and then realize you’verun out of time to experience others. also check whether one section of the bathscloses earlier than another, like the indoor and outdoor areasmight open and close at different times. thermal baths are an essential partof budapest’s past and its present and i highly recommend visitingat least one if you’re in the city. i think it’s the perfect wayto wind down after a day of wandering. i hope you enjoyed this video and find it helpful. marc and i made a series of videosabout our trip to budapest
about all sorts of things so i’ll link thosein the description box below and i’m curious which of these three bathslooks most enticing to you so leave me a commentand let me know what you think. thanks for watching!