Part of the famous

Hotel Gellért The Hotel Gellért is an Art Nouveau hotel on the right river of Danube in Budapest, Hungary. It closed for renovations on December 1, 2021. History Construction on the Hotel Saint Gellért started in 1912. The hotel was named for Saint Gellért ...

in Buda, the Gellért Thermal Baths and Swimming Pool, also known simply as the Gellért Baths ( Hungarian: ''Gellért gyógyfürdő''), is a bath complex in

Budapest Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the ...

History

The bath complex was built between 1912 and 1918 in the (

Secession Secession is the withdrawal of a group from a larger entity, especially a political entity, but also from any organization, union or military alliance. Some of the most famous and significant secessions have been: the former Soviet republics le ...

) Art Nouveau style. It was damaged during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

but then rebuilt. References to healing waters in this location are found from as early as the 13th century. A hospital was located on this site during the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

. During the reign of the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

, baths were also built on this particular site. The "magical healing spring" was used by the Turkish during the 16th and 17th centuries. The bath was called Sárosfürdő ("muddy" bath) because the mineral mud settled at the bottom of pools.

Reconstructive work

The Gellért Bath underwent its first extensive renovation in 2008. The bath closed only once in its almost century-long existence due to a burst pipe. The Gellért was open even during

. Towards the end of the war, the prestigious Art Nouveau women's thermal bath was bombed, destroying the

Zsolnay Zsolnay, or formally Zsolnay Porcelánmanufaktúra Zrt (Zsolnay Porcelain Manufactory Private Limited) is a Hungarian manufacturer of porcelain, tiles, and stoneware. The company introduced the eosin glazing process and pyrogranite ceramics. Hist ...

pyrogranite façade and the wooden interior of the dressing rooms. Due to economic condition following the war, the thermal bath was redesigned in a much more puritanical manner. The 2008 reconstruction served to restore the bath to its original splendor.

Pools and treatments

The Gellért Baths complex includes

thermal baths A spa is a location where mineral-rich spring water (and sometimes seawater) is used to give medicinal baths. Spa towns or spa resorts (including hot springs resorts) typically offer various health treatments, which are also known as baln ...

, which are small pools containing water from Gellért hill's mineral hot springs. The water contains

calcium Calcium is a chemical element with the symbol Ca and atomic number 20. As an alkaline earth metal, calcium is a reactive metal that forms a dark oxide-nitride layer when exposed to air. Its physical and chemical properties are most similar t ...

magnesium Magnesium is a chemical element with the symbol Mg and atomic number 12. It is a shiny gray metal having a low density, low melting point and high chemical reactivity. Like the other alkaline earth metals (group 2 of the periodic ta ...

, hydrocarbonate, alkalis,

chloride The chloride ion is the anion (negatively charged ion) Cl−. It is formed when the element chlorine (a halogen) gains an electron or when a compound such as hydrogen chloride is dissolved in water or other polar solvents. Chloride sa ...

sulfate The sulfate or sulphate ion is a polyatomic anion with the empirical formula . Salts, acid derivatives, and peroxides of sulfate are widely used in industry. Sulfates occur widely in everyday life. Sulfates are salts of sulfuric acid and many ...

, and fluoride. Medical indications of the water includes degenerative joint illnesses, spine problems, chronic and sub-acute joint inflammations, vertebral disk problems, neuralgia, vasoconstriction and circulatory disturbances; inhalation problems for the treatment of

asthma Asthma is a long-term inflammatory disease of the airways of the lungs. It is characterized by variable and recurring symptoms, reversible airflow obstruction, and easily triggered bronchospasms. Symptoms include episodes of wheezing, co ...

and chronic

bronchitis Bronchitis is inflammation of the bronchi (large and medium-sized airways) in the lungs that causes coughing. Bronchitis usually begins as an infection in the nose, ears, throat, or sinuses. The infection then makes its way down to the bronchi. ...

problems. The temperature of the water is between 35 °C and 40 °C.The thermal baths are decorated beautifully with mosaic tiles. Gellért Spa is famous for its main hall with gallery and glass roof, built in

Art-Nouveau Art Nouveau (; ) is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, especially the decorative arts. The style is known by different names in different languages: in German, in Italian, in Catalan, and also known as the Modern ...

style. The current bath complex and hotel was opened in 1918 and was expanded in 1927 and 1934 with an artificial wave pool and with a bubble bath. The complex also includes

sauna A sauna (, ), or sudatory, is a small room or building designed as a place to experience dry or wet heat sessions, or an establishment with one or more of these facilities. The steam and high heat make the bathers perspire. A thermometer in a ...

s and

plunge pool A plunge pool (or plunge basin or waterfall lake) is a deep depression in a stream bed at the base of a waterfall or shut-in. It is created by the erosional forces of cascading water on the rocks at formation's base where the water impacts.Mars ...

s (segregated by gender), an open-air swimming pool which can create artificial waves every 30 minutes and an

effervescent Effervescence is the escape of gas from an aqueous solution and the foaming or fizzing that results from that release. The word effervescence is derived from the Latin verb ''fervere'' (to boil), preceded by the adverb ''ex''. It has the same lin ...

swimming pool. A

Finnish sauna The Finnish sauna ( sv, bastu) is a substantial part of Finnish and Estonian culture. It was inscribed on the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists at the December 17, 2020 meeting of the UNESCO Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguardi ...

with cold pool is also enclosed within the complex.

Masseuse Massage is the manipulation of the body's soft tissues. Massage techniques are commonly applied with hands, fingers, elbows, knees, forearms, feet or a device. The purpose of massage is generally for the treatment of body stress or pain. In E ...

services are available. The Gellért Baths were originally separated for ladies and men. Starting in January 2013, all pools are mixed gendered, although it still has two different sections. Gellért Baths also offer a range of medical services. Towels and swimsuits may be bought in the Spa (renting is no longer allowed following measures against the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

). On holidays and at weekends the entrance fee is higher than on workdays. In June 2014, the prices were between 4900 and 5100 HUF. Massage is charged extra (4400 HUF for a basic massage). (Current prices: see external link below.)

Filming location

The Gellért Baths have been used as a filming location for the following projects: * ''Accumulator 1'' (1994) directed by

Jan Sverák Jan, JaN or JAN may refer to: Acronyms * Jackson, Mississippi (Amtrak station), US, Amtrak station code JAN * Jackson-Evers International Airport, Mississippi, US, IATA code * Jabhat al-Nusra (JaN), a Syrian militant group * Japanese Article Numb ...

* ''Cremaster 5'' (1997) part of ''

The Cremaster Cycle ''The Cremaster Cycle'' is a series of five feature-length films, together with related sculptures, photographs, drawings, and artist's books, created by American visual artist and filmmaker Matthew Barney. ''The Cremaster Cycle'' was made over a ...

'' directed by

Matthew Barney Matthew Barney (born March 25, 1967) is an American contemporary artist and film director who works in the fields of sculpture, film, photography and drawing. His works explore connections among geography, biology, geology and mythology as well ...

* ''Víz (Pools of Desire)'' (1999) directed by Layne Derrick *K-12 (2019) directed by Melanie Martinez

Notes

References

* ''Budapest''. DK Eyewitness Travel Guides (2004) * '' 1000 Places to See Before You Die''
Épülettár.hu

External links

Danubius Hotels Gellért Baths site

Gellért Baths virtual tour
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gellert Baths Buildings and structures completed in 1918 Thermal baths in Budapest Landmarks in Hungary Art Nouveau architecture in Budapest