Beneath Budapest: What’s under the famous Gellért Baths?
For decades, the name Gellért Baths has been synonymous with healing, luxury, and the very essence of Budapest’s bathing culture. Yet behind the glittering mosaics, ornate marble columns, and the iconic glass dome lies a very different world – a dark, damp, and mysterious place known only to a few.
The Gellért Baths were built in the perfect spot
On 1 October, one of Hungary’s most popular thermal baths, the Gellért Baths, closed temporarily. Opened in 1918, the establishment was built on a site famous for its healing waters for centuries, and it is now set to undergo long-awaited restoration works.
The building and its technical systems were last renovated more than fifty years ago, and continuous operation has caused significant wear and damage over time. With a refurbishment budget of HUF 20 billion, a full closure during the works is well justified.
At the time of its opening, the bath complex was among the most modern in Europe. It was equipped with state-of-the-art facilities to ensure that every visitor could enjoy the highest standard of comfort and service. Remarkably, it even had its own medical supervision.
But what lies beneath the Budapest bath?
Deep below the Gellért Baths lies an underground complex that would astonish even the most seasoned urban explorers. Beneath the engine room, tunnels filled with salty and warm air twist and turn, while the steady hum of pipes creates an eerie, almost hypnotic atmosphere, reports Promotions. Vapour clings to the walls, and water slowly drips from rusted metal – as if another, parallel Budapest existed beneath the city itself.
Several branches lead off these tunnels. One narrow passage connects Gellért with the Rudas and Rác Baths, suggesting that the city’s famous thermal system is far more extensive than previously thought. Rusted rails still line some of the corridors – remnants from a time when small carts once transported hot water and equipment. Today, silence and darkness fill these passages, yet they vividly reveal how the baths operated more than a century ago.
The most fascinating part of the underground tour is where the concrete pathways suddenly give way to natural rock. Stalactite-like formations sparkle on the ceiling, while crystalised water traces patterns down the walls. The air grows thicker, hotter, and more humid – a clear sign of the nearby thermal springs. Here, one feels as though the boundary between nature and human architecture has blurred: beneath the city’s heart, nature reveals its own ancient realm.
At the lowest point of the tour awaits a true geological wonder – the Cauliflower Cave. It takes its name from the peculiar cauliflower-shaped formations covering its walls and ceiling, created over millennia by minerals precipitating from the hot springs. This unique cave is one of the hidden jewels of Budapest’s thermal system – a natural masterpiece that quite literally lies beneath the feet of the bathers above.
In recent weeks, videos of the cave have spread like wildfire on TikTok. Many viewers could hardly believe that this “other world” exists right beneath the heart of the Hungarian capital, under the Gellért Baths themselves.
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