The Hotel Gellért is an

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 ...

hotel A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a re ...

on the right river of

Danube The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , pa ...

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 o ...

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

. 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 (St. Gerard Sagredo) the first bishop of Hungary in the 11th Century. The 176-room hotel was designed by Hungarian architects Ármin Hegedűs, Artúr Sebestyén and Izidor Sterk. Work on the hotel slowed due to

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

, and it did not open until September 1918, just as the war was ending and the

Austro-Hungarian Empire Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

was descending into chaos. The hotel was commandeered for military use throughout 1919, during the

Aster Revolution The Aster Revolution or Chrysanthemum Revolution ( hu, Őszirózsás forradalom) was a revolution in Hungary led by Count Mihály Károlyi in the aftermath of World War I which resulted in the foundation of the short-lived First Hungarian Peop ...

. Once Hungary was established as an independent country, the hotel proved so financially successful that it was expanded in 1927 with 60 more rooms and a wave pool. Noted Hungarian restaurateur

Károly Gundel Károly Gundel (; 23 September 1883 – 28 November 1956) was a Hungarian restaurateur, business magnate, philanthropist, writer of culinary works and the former owner of the Gundel Restaurant. Family Károly Gundel was born on 23 Septembe ...

took over management of the hotel's restaurants in 1927 as well. In 1934, the hotel added a jacuzzi pool. The hotel was severely damaged in World War II. Post-war Communist authorities removed the "St." from the hotel's name and it became the Hotel Gellért. Restoration of the

Gellért Hill Gellért Hill ( hu, Gellért-hegy; german: Blocksberg; la, Mons Sancti Gerhardi tr, Gürz İlyas Bayırı) is a high hill overlooking the Danube in Budapest, Hungary. It is located in the 1st and the 11th districts. The hill was named after ...

wing began in 1946, while work on the main Danube River wing began in 1957. Restoration work was completed in 1962. The hotel was again renovated in 1973. Danubius Hotels assumed management of the hotel in 1981. After the company was privatized in 1992, it purchased the hotel outright in June 1996 and it became the Danubius Hotel Gellért. On June 24, 2019, Danubius sold the hotel to Indotek, an investment group, which announced plans to renovate and restore the Gellért and reposition it as a five-star luxury hotel, under the management of an international chain. The hotel closed for renovations on December 1, 2021 and ceased to be operated by Danubius Hotels at that point. The adjoining Gellért Baths remains in operation, as it is independently owned and operated, by the City of Budapest.

Gellért Baths

Hotel Gellért has

thermal bath 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 balneoth ...

Design

The hotel was built in the

Secessionist 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 l ...

style with some

biomorphic Biomorphism models artistic design elements on naturally occurring patterns or shapes reminiscent of nature and living organisms. Taken to its extreme it attempts to force naturally occurring shapes onto functional devices. History Within the c ...

elements. The cone-shaped towers of the hotel that frame the hotel make it distinctive from long distances. The interiors of the hotel was built in

style with high glass cupola and wrought iron decoration. The ornamentation of the stairs originating from the hotel reception is a bespoke glass window whose design represents the Chase of the Miraculous Deer from ancient Hungarian mythology. In the spa, the original

ornamentation has artistic mosaics, colorful windows and statues. During and after

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 World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

the hotel and the thermal baths suffered a great amount of damage. By the end of the 1950s the reconstruction and renovation of the hotel and its spa was started.

Location

From

Budapest Ferenc Liszt International Airport Budapest Ferenc Liszt International Airport ( hu, Budapest Liszt Ferenc Nemzetközi Repülőtér) , formerly known as ''Budapest Ferihegy International Airport'' and still commonly called just ''Ferihegy'', is the international airport serving t ...

the hotel is 21 km away and can be reached by taxi, minibus, or public transport. The principal streets of the city center and the Great Market Hall are just a short ride by public transport or a ten minute walk across the Liberty Bridge. The closest train station,

Kelenföld railway station Kelenföld railway station (Hungarian: ''Kelenföldi vasútállomás or incorrectly Kelenföldi pályaudvar'', and until 2007 officially Budapest-Kelenföld) is Budapest's fourth busiest railway station (after Keleti pu, Déli pu and Nyugati pu ...

is just 3 km away and is accessible directly by Line 4 of the

Budapest Metro The Budapest Metro ( hu, Budapesti metró) is the rapid transit system in the Hungarian capital Budapest. It is the world's oldest electrified underground railway system, and the second oldest underground railway system with multiple stations, ...

as well as trams and buses that stop in front of the hotel.

Budapest Keleti railway station Budapest Keleti (Eastern) station ( hu, Keleti pályaudvar) is the main international and inter-city railway terminal in Budapest, Hungary. The station stands where Rákóczi út splits to become Kerepesi Avenue and Thököly Avenue. Keleti ...

is also easily reached using the Line 4 metro.

is next to the hotel and the

Cave Church A cave monastery is a monastery built in caves, with possible outside facilities. The 3rd-century monk St. Antony the Great, known as the founder of monasticism, lived in a cave. *Albania ** Qafthanë Cave Church, cave church near Urakë ** S ...

and

Citadella The Citadella is the fortification located upon the top of Gellért Hill in Budapest, Hungary. ''Citadella'' is the Hungarian word for citadel, a kind of fortress. The word is exclusively used by other languages to refer to the Gellért Hill ...

are reachable on foot for those that can manage going up somewhat steep paths.

Media appearances

* Since it began in 1997, the

Balint Balassi Memorial Sword Award The Balint Balassi Memorial Sword Award is a European award for literature presented in Budapest since 1997. The native form of this name is Balassi Bálint-emlékkard ( Balassi Bálint-emlékkard). This award commemorates the 16th century Hung ...

international literature prize ceremony has been hosted annually at the hotel. * The hotel is among the settings of the

Video game Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This feedba ...

series ''

Hitman Contract killing is a form of murder or assassination in which one party hires another party to kill a targeted person or persons. It involves an illegal agreement which includes some form of payment, monetary or otherwise. Either party may b ...

'' in '' Hitman: Codename 47'' and '' Hitman: Contracts'', under the name ''Hotel Gallàrd'' (and known as ''Hotel Galar'' in ''Hitman: Contracts''), although it is more often referred within the game as the "Thermal Bath Hotel". * A music video for the song "

You Can Get It "You Can Get It" is a song by German Eurodance project Maxx, released by Blow Up and Intercord in September 1994 as the third single from the project's debut album, ''To the Maxximum'' (1994). The song peaked at number 21 in the United Kingdom ...

" by German Eurodance act Maxx was mostly filmed inside the Gellért Spa in 1994. * Portions of the 2015 French film, '' Le Tournoi'' (''The Tournament'') were filmed at the hotel. * The 2018 Italian film, '' Natale a 5 stelle'' (''5 Star Christmas'') was filmed at the hotel. * A section of the American film ''

Red Sparrow ''Red Sparrow'' is a 2018 American spy thriller film directed by Francis Lawrence and written by Justin Haythe, based on the 2013 novel of the same name by Jason Matthews. The film stars Jennifer Lawrence, Joel Edgerton, Matthias Schoenaerts, ...

'', was filmed at the hotel. * The hotel has also appeared in: ** ''The Golden Head'' (1963) ** ''A hamis Izabella'' (1969) ** ''A Kantor'' (1970) ** ''Kojak in Budapest'' (1980) ** ''Csontvary'' (1980) ** ''Mephisto'' (1981) ** ''Io e Mia sorella'' (1988) ** ''The Edge of Sanity'' (1988) ** ''The Star'' (1988) ** ''Eroltetet menet'' (1988) ** ''Music Box'' ** ''Evita'' ** ''Der Brockerer'' (2000) ** ''I Spy'' (2001) ** ''The Moon and the Stars'' (2006)

Gallery

File:HotelGellertFotoThalerTamas1.jpg, File:HotelGellertFotoThalerTamas2.jpg, File:HotelGellertFotoThalerTamas3.jpg, File:IMG 0290 - Hungary, Buda - Hotel Gellért.JPG, File:Gellert1FotoThalerTamas.JPG, File:Gellert6FotoThalerTamas.JPG,

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hotel Gellert Gellert, Hotel Gellert Art Nouveau architecture in Budapest Gellert