Hungarian baths see huge ticket price increase

This summer, price of baths have increased by around 40 percent compared to last season. Zoltán Kántás, the president of the Hungarian Bathing Association (Magyar Fürdőszövetség) explained what to expect this summer.

He reminded that the rise in gas and electricity prices, has created challenges for spas and the tourism sector. To address this, he emphasised the importance of transitioning to alternative, renewable energy sources to reduce dependence on the market, writes Index.

Renewable systems

According to Kántás, energy efficiency improvements are necessary for long-term sustainability. To demonstrate, he highlighted examples where domestic spas have implemented renewable solutions. These include utilising methane-containing thermal water for energy or utilising waste heat and investing in energy efficiency measures. However, a long-term solution is needed to enhance spa sustainability.

The expert stressed that maintaining spas has become significantly more expensive, with costs for gas and electricity rising by tenfold in many places. This has prompted operators to implement changes, including adjusting opening hours, imposing restrictions and reviewing energy systems. Spas have embarked on major energy modernisation investments with the support of subsidies and their own resources.

Lack of guests

Notably, despite the challenging economic climate, no spa has had to close, although some may do so temporarily for renovation and modernisation work. Rising energy prices, labor costs and the cost of water treatment materials have contributed to increased expenses.

Regarding the number of guests, Kántás mentioned that the past years have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Although there are currently no restrictions, the number of guests remains below 2019 figures. The absence of foreign visitors, primarily due to the war in the neighbouring region, particularly affects spas in Budapest, where over 60 percent of visitors frequent at least one spa. The absence of Russian and Ukrainian tourists is also felt in Eastern Hungary and in Hévíz.

Rising prices of baths

Despite the increase in ticket prices, domestic baths are still competitive in terms of value for money in comparison with those found in neighbouring countries in Central and Eastern Europe.

Kántás noted that around 90 percent of domestic spas are owned by municipalities and were subject to a price increase ban until June 2022. Therefore, they couldn’t offset rising operating costs through ticket price adjustments.

The first price increase occurred in June-July 2022, but it only partially covered the increased costs. As a result, this summer, bath prices are approximately 40 percent higher than last year’s pre-season prices. However, it’s worth mentioning that small rural baths still offer adult admission around HUF 2,000, providing options for various budgets.