Budapest sits on more than a hundred thermal springs, and choosing between the best thermal baths in Budapest mostly comes down to three questions: how much atmosphere you want, what time of day you’re going, and whether you have children under 14 with you. The last one rules out almost every bath in the city, a rule that older guides haven’t caught up with.
This guide compares the six baths worth your money in 2026, with prices from each bath’s official price list, a which-bath-for-whom table, the night-bathing options and the two famous baths you can’t visit right now. If you’re building a whole trip around the city, start with our guide to the best things to do in Budapest.
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Which is the best thermal bath in Budapest?#
Széchenyi Baths is the best thermal bath in Budapest for a first visit. It has the most pools, the big outdoor thermal pools and the steaming-in-January scene everyone comes for. It isn’t the best at everything, though, and here is how all six compare:
| Bath | Weekday ticket | Weekend ticket | Best for | Under-14s | Late opening |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Széchenyi | 13,200 HUF (€36) | 14,800 HUF (€41) | First-timers, outdoor pools, winter | No | Fri until 22:00 |
| Rudas | 12,000 HUF (€33) | 15,000 HUF (€41) | Atmosphere, rooftop pool, couples | No | Mon until 22:00; night bathing Fri–Sat 22:00–03:00 |
| Lukács | 7,000 HUF (€19) | 8,000 HUF (€22) | Value, locals’ bath, Budapest Card holders | No | Tue until 22:00 |
| Veli Bej | 5,700–6,700 HUF (€16–18) | 7,200 HUF (€20) | A small, quiet Ottoman bath | No | Until 21:00 |
| Palatinus Strand | 3,800 HUF (€10) | 4,200 HUF (€12) | Families, summer | Yes (child ticket 3–14) | No |
| Dandár | 3,500 HUF (€10) | 4,000 HUF (€11) | The cheapest thermal soak | No | Thu until 22:00 |
Prices checked September 2026 on each bath’s official price list (adult daily ticket; Széchenyi includes a locker). “Weekday” means Monday to Thursday, except at Veli Bej, where Friday afternoon is priced like the weekend. Euro amounts are approximate.
Verdict: Széchenyi for a first visit, Rudas for a second visit or an evening, and Lukács if you’d rather pay half the price and share the water with locals instead of tour groups.
Which bath is best for whom?#
The best bath depends on who you are and when you’re going. Use this as a shortcut:
| If you are… | Go to | Why |
|---|---|---|
| A first-timer with one bath slot | Széchenyi | Three outdoor pools, 15 indoor pools, the famous yellow courtyard |
| A couple wanting atmosphere | Rudas | Ottoman dome, rooftop pool over the Danube, late nights |
| Out after dark | Rudas (Fri–Sat night bathing) | Open until 03:00, no party; Sparty at Széchenyi if you want one |
| Visiting in winter | Széchenyi | Outdoor pools at 36–38 °C steaming in the cold air |
| On a budget | Dandár or Lukács | 3,500 HUF and 7,000 HUF on weekdays |
| Holding a Budapest Card | Lukács | One free entry included |
| With children under 14 | Palatinus Strand | The only one of the six that admits them |
| Wanting quiet above all | Veli Bej | Small, no online sales, and each ticket is limited to 3 hours |
Széchenyi Baths: best for first-timers#
Széchenyi is the biggest bath in the city and the one to pick if you’ll only go once. It sits in City Park (Városliget) in District XIV (Zugló), and its outdoor thermal pools stay at 36–38 °C all year. A daily ticket with a locker costs 13,200 HUF (about €36) Monday to Thursday and 14,800 HUF (about €41) Friday to Sunday. Enter before 9:00 on a weekday for the cheaper Good Morning ticket (10,500 HUF, about €29).
The downside is scale: at weekends and on summer afternoons it feels less like a spa and more like a very warm public square. Go early, or on a weekday. Children under 14 aren’t admitted, and there’s a fast-track ticket (2,000 HUF extra, online only) for busy days. Every ticket option, the Palm House upgrade and the what-to-bring list are in our Széchenyi Baths ticket guide.
Széchenyi Spa Tickets with Optional Upgrades
The official site is cheapest if your date is fixed, but its tickets can’t be refunded. This one comes with free cancellation up to 24 hours before, and the same listing sells the fast-track morning and afternoon options. Book it if the weather or your plans might change.
Getting there: M1 metro to Széchenyi fürdő, which comes up beside the bath. Hours are 7:00–20:00 Monday to Thursday, 7:00–22:00 on Friday and 8:00–20:00 at weekends.
Rudas Baths: best for atmosphere and late nights#
Rudas is the bath to choose for atmosphere. Its centrepiece is a 16th-century Ottoman Turkish bath: an octagonal pool under a dome pierced with small star-shaped windows. On the roof, a 36 °C panorama pool looks straight across the Danube to Pest. It stands at the Buda end of Elisabeth Bridge (Döbrentei tér 9, District I).
| Rudas ticket (official, 2026) | Mon–Thu | Fri–Sun | Holidays / peak |
|---|---|---|---|
| Daily ticket, all zones | 12,000 HUF (€33) | 15,000 HUF (€41) | 16,000 HUF (€44) |
| Fast track, all zones | 15,000 HUF (€41) | 18,000 HUF (€49) | 19,000 HUF (€52) |
| Night bathing (Fri & Sat, 22:00–03:00, online only) | n/a | 15,000 HUF (€41) | n/a |
| Cabin supplement | +1,000 HUF (€3) | +1,000 HUF (€3) | +1,000 HUF (€3) |
Prices checked September 2026 on the official Rudas price list.
The Turkish bath still has single-sex sessions, which catches people out. According to the official opening hours, it’s men only on Monday, Thursday and Friday from 6:00 to 10:45 and all day on Wednesday, and women only all day on Tuesday. It’s mixed (swimsuit required) on Monday, Thursday and Friday from 11:00 and all day at weekends. The wellness section with the rooftop pool is mixed every day. So if you’re a couple and want the dome together, don’t go on a Tuesday or Wednesday.
Weekday Rudas is 1,200 HUF cheaper than Széchenyi. At weekends Rudas costs slightly more. Children under 14 aren’t admitted.
GetYourGuide sells a Rudas day pass bundled with a three-course lunch at the bath’s bistro. It costs a lot more than a plain ticket, so book it only if you want the meal and the towel and robe included:
Rudas Turkish Bath or Spa Day Pass & 3-Course Meal
A wellness or Turkish bath day ticket, a three-course à la carte meal and a drink, with towels and robes included. Free cancellation up to 24 hours before. Rated 4.1 from 1,360 reviews: fine, not spectacular, and it’s the meal you’re paying for.
View Tour →Verdict: For a plain soak, buy the standard ticket from the official webshop or at the desk. Night bathing is sold only through the official webshop, so book it there.
Getting there: trams 19, 41 and 56, or buses 7, 8E, 108E, 110 and 112 to the Buda end of Elisabeth Bridge.
Lukács Baths: best value and best for locals#
Lukács is where Budapest residents go for the water rather than the photos, and it’s the best-value bath in the city. A daily ticket costs 7,000 HUF (about €19) Monday to Thursday and 8,000 HUF (about €22) Friday to Sunday. That’s roughly half the price of Széchenyi. The Budapest Card includes one free entry.
It has thermal pools at 32, 36 and 40 °C, a year-round outdoor leisure pool at 33–35 °C, two swimming pools and a sauna world, all in a courtyard complex at the Buda end of Margaret Bridge (Frankel Leó út 25–29, District II). It’s open daily 7:00–19:00 and until 22:00 on Tuesdays. There’s no Ottoman dome and no rooftop view, but there’s also no crush. Children under 14 aren’t admitted.
Buy at the desk. GetYourGuide lists a Lukács day ticket from about €33, which is far more than the official 7,000 HUF. The only thing it buys you is free cancellation. Prices and the current list of pools out of service are on the official Lukács price page.
Getting there: trams 4 and 6 to Margit híd, budai hídfő, or trams 17 and 19 and buses 9 and 109.
Veli Bej Baths: best for a quiet Ottoman soak#
Veli Bej is the smallest and quietest of the historic baths: an Ottoman-era Turkish bath run by the Hospitaller Brothers of St John of God, in the grounds of their hospital at Árpád fejedelem útja 7 (District II). It’s the calmer alternative to Rudas: a domed hall with a central hot pool and smaller pools around it, but no tour groups.
It works differently from the city-run baths, so read this before you go:
| Veli Bej (official, 2026) | Details |
|---|---|
| Hours | Wed–Sun 6:00–12:00 and 15:00–21:00; Mon–Tue 15:00–21:00 only; closed daily 12:00–15:00 for the water change |
| Price | 5,700 HUF (€16) Wed–Fri mornings; 6,700 HUF (€18) weekday afternoons (7,200 HUF on Friday afternoon); 7,200 HUF (€20) at weekends |
| Time limit | 3 hours per ticket, then 40 HUF per extra minute |
| Buying | At the cash desk only (cash or card); no online sales or bookings |
| Age | No under-14s, even with a parent; bring ID for teenagers |
| 2026 closures | 20 August and 23–25 December; open on some public holidays and closed on others, so check before a holiday visit |
Checked September 2026 on the official Veli Bej price page.
A disposable towel costs 1,100 HUF at the desk, so it’s the one bath where forgetting yours is cheap. Getting there: trams 4 and 6 to Margit híd, budai hídfő, or trams 17, 19 and 41 to Komjádi Béla utca. Lukács is close by, so you can compare the two in one afternoon.
Palatinus Strand: best for families#
Palatinus Strand, on Margaret Island (District XIII), is the only one of the six baths that admits children, with child tickets for ages 3 to 14. The adult ticket costs 3,800 HUF (about €10) on weekdays and 4,200 HUF (about €12) at weekends, and a family ticket for three costs 7,600 HUF.
It’s a summer place first: a big lido of outdoor pools on the island. It’s open all year, daily 9:00–19:00, but in autumn and winter most of the fun pools close. In late September 2026 the wave pool, slide pool and several thermal pools were closed, and the outdoor round pool closes on 4 October 2026. What stays open is a children’s pool, a medical pool and a couple of warm outdoor pools. Check the official Palatinus pool list before you promise anyone a slide.
Getting there: bus 26, which runs the length of Margaret Island. For a family day built around it, see our Budapest with kids guide.
Dandár Baths: best for the cheapest soak#
Dandár is the cheapest thermal bath in Budapest. A thermal ticket costs 3,500 HUF (about €10) on weekdays and 4,000 HUF (about €11) at weekends, and the “Komplex” ticket, which adds the sauna and the outdoor pool, costs 4,500 HUF (about €12) on weekdays. It’s a small neighbourhood bath in District IX (Ferencváros), open daily 9:00–19:00 and until 22:00 on Thursdays.
Don’t expect grandeur or English signage everywhere. Do expect locals doing slow lengths and pensioners discussing the news in the thermal pools. It admits no under-14s. Official Dandár prices here. Getting there: trams 2 and 24 or buses 23 and 54.
Which Budapest baths are closed?#
Two of Budapest’s famous baths are closed, and older guides still describe both as open:
If Gellért was the one you wanted, Rudas is the closest open alternative: it’s on the same stretch of Buda riverbank, and it’s the better bath for atmosphere anyway.
Which baths are open at night?#
Rudas night bathing is the best late-night option in Budapest. It runs on Friday and Saturday from 22:00 to 03:00 and costs 15,000 HUF (about €41), online only. Night tickets cover the Turkish pools, the swimming pool, the wellness area and a rooftop bar. Other late options:
| Bath | Late opening | Vibe |
|---|---|---|
| Rudas night bathing | Fri & Sat 22:00–03:00 | Calm: Turkish bath, pools and rooftop bar |
| Széchenyi | Fri until 22:00 | Normal bathing, after dark |
| Sparty at Széchenyi | Saturday nights | DJs, light show, 18+ |
| Rudas | Mon until 22:00 | Normal bathing, quieter |
| Lukács | Tue until 22:00 | Locals after work |
| Dandár | Thu until 22:00 | Very local |
Hours checked September 2026 on each bath’s official site.
Sparty tickets are cheaper on the official site (spartybooking.com) than the GetYourGuide Sparty ticket, so book direct. The full night-time list is in our guide to Budapest at night.
Verdict: For a romantic late soak, choose Rudas night bathing. For a party, choose Sparty. For after-dark bathing on a budget, go to Széchenyi on a Friday, when a normal ticket gets you in until 22:00.
Can children go to Budapest thermal baths?#
Children under 14 can’t go to most Budapest thermal baths. Széchenyi (since 1 August 2025), Rudas, Lukács, Veli Bej and Dandár all bar them, as of September 2026. Veli Bej won’t make an exception even with a parent’s permission. Palatinus Strand is the exception: it sells child tickets for ages 3 to 14.
What should you bring to a Budapest bath?#
Bring a swimsuit, slippers or flip-flops, a towel and, if you want to swim lengths, a swim cap. Slippers are compulsory outside the water at every Budapest Spas bath. Caps are compulsory in the lap pools, but not in the thermal pools. Towels aren’t included, and replacements are expensive: at Széchenyi and Rudas a towel costs 6,900 HUF and slippers 4,200 HUF in the shop. Veli Bej’s 1,100 HUF disposable towel is the cheap exception.
Swimwear is required everywhere, including the Rudas single-sex sessions. Keep track of your locker wristband or key: losing one at Rudas costs 3,000 HUF.
Is the Budapest Card worth it for the baths?#
The Budapest Card is worth it for the baths only if you’ll use its free Lukács entry. Otherwise it gives 20% off daily tickets at Széchenyi, Rudas and Palatinus. At Széchenyi that works out to 10,560 HUF instead of 13,200 on a weekday, but only on site, not online. On its own that doesn’t pay for a card that starts at 17,990 HUF for 24 hours. It adds up only with transport and museums. We do the full maths in is the Budapest Card worth it?
Which bath should you skip?#
Skip Gellért and Király: both are closed, so any tour or combo that promises them is out of date. Skip Széchenyi on a summer Saturday afternoon unless you enjoy crowds. Skip Sparty if you want to relax. And skip the bath altogether if you’re travelling with children under 14 and Palatinus is closed for the season. For those families, a hotel with its own pool is the easier answer: see our Budapest spa hotels guide.
For everyone else, one bath is a must and two is better: Széchenyi on a weekday morning, then Rudas on a Friday night. To fit them into a trip, see our 3-day Budapest itinerary.
FAQ#
What is the best thermal bath in Budapest?#
For a first visit, Széchenyi Baths is the best thermal bath in Budapest: it has the most pools, big outdoor thermal pools and the classic steaming winter scene. Rudas is the better choice for atmosphere, a rooftop pool and late-night bathing. Lukács is the best value, at 7,000 HUF on weekdays as of September 2026.
Is Széchenyi or Rudas better?#
Choose Széchenyi for your first bath, outdoor pools and space. Choose Rudas for a 16th-century Ottoman dome, a 36 °C rooftop pool with a Danube view and night bathing on Friday and Saturday. Rudas is 1,200 HUF cheaper on weekdays, and both charge about the same at weekends.
Which Budapest baths allow children?#
Most Budapest thermal baths do not admit children under 14, including Széchenyi, Rudas, Lukács, Veli Bej and Dandár, as of September 2026. Palatinus Strand on Margaret Island does admit children and sells child tickets for ages 3 to 14, so it is the bath to choose for families.
What is the cheapest thermal bath in Budapest?#
Dandár Bath in District IX is the cheapest thermal bath in Budapest, with a thermal ticket at 3,500 HUF (about €10) on weekdays and 4,000 HUF at weekends as of September 2026. Palatinus Strand costs 3,800 HUF on weekdays, and Veli Bej costs 5,700 HUF on weekday mornings.
Which Budapest baths are open at night?#
Rudas runs night bathing on Friday and Saturday from 22:00 to 03:00, with online-only tickets at 15,000 HUF. Széchenyi stays open until 22:00 on Fridays and hosts the Sparty party on Saturday nights. Rudas is also open until 22:00 on Mondays, Lukács on Tuesdays and Dandár on Thursdays.
Is Gellért Bath open?#
No. Gellért Bath has been closed for renovation since 1 October 2025, and the official site gives 2028 as the expected reopening. Király Bath is also closed, for an indefinite period. Rudas, a short walk from Gellért along the river, is the nearest open alternative.
Do you need a swim cap in Budapest baths?#
Only in the swimming pools. Swim caps are compulsory in the lap pools of the Budapest Spas baths, but not in the thermal pools. Slippers or flip-flops are compulsory everywhere outside the water. Towels are not included in the ticket, so bring your own.
Does the Budapest Card give free entry to the baths?#
The Budapest Card gives one free entry to Lukács Bath and 20 percent off daily tickets at Széchenyi, Rudas and Palatinus, as of September 2026. At Széchenyi the discount applies only to tickets bought on site, not online.
Last verified: 16 October 2026. Prices and timetables change, so confirm with the operator before booking.
