VISUALS: Budapest’s iconic spa hotel to be renamed, renewed

Hotel Gellért is probably one of the most popular Budapest spa resorts. Between 2024 and 2027, it will be completely renewed, and its name will also change. BDPST Group bought the hotel from Indotek. The CEO of the BDPST Group is PM Viktor Orbán’s son-in-law, István Tiborcz.

According to pestbuda.hu, Hotel Gellért will open its gates in 2027 as a luxury resort with 105 guest rooms and 38 suites. Its new name will be Mandarin Oriental Gellért. The explanation behind the name is that the hotel’s operator will be the Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group.

In 2024, BDPST Group, the hotel’s owner, will start a complex renovation program considering the monument protection rules. The place will be Mandarin Oriental’s first hotel operated in Hungary. A London interior design studio, Alexander Waterworth Interiors, will help with the work.

Photo: bdpstgroup.hu

The hotel was destroyed in WWII

Few know that Budapest’s Soviet siege was the second-biggest preceded only by Stalingrad’s in WWII. During the siege, multiple historic buildings were destroyed, including parts of the Buda Castle and even Hotel Gellért. The interior suffered destruction. Therefore, BDPST Group would like to recreate the original interior in the four most iconic halls: the Lobby, the Danube Hall, the Music Hall and the Gobelin Hall. Surviving photos and plans will help with that.

Apart from the building’s renovation, the investor aims to create new functions. Therefore, they could extend services and increase service quality. They would like to bring back the ‘golden ages’ of the building with 21st-century innovation, environment and energy-friendly solutions.

BDPST Group said in a statement that they would like to satisfy the needs of the locals in the first place. They added that Mandarin Oriental had 60 years of experience in the luxury hotel sector. Therefore, the company respect the Hungarian roots and traditions of the hotel.

They will preserve the building’s cultural heritage

Mandarin Oriental promised to preserve the building’s cultural heritage. But they would also like to integrate contemporary comfort and sustainability norms.

“The professional team of BDPST Group aims to explore the potentials of the project sites and create harmony between the environment and the planned functions as a result of the creative work conducted jointly with the designers, following which a sustainable, value-preserving and lasting work could be created from the aspects of architecture and city branding”, BDPST wrote on their website.

BDPST Group bought the hotel from Indotek Group in 2022. Indotek acquired one of the most iconic Hungarian baths in 2019 from the Danubius Hotels.

The hotel has been closed since 2021. It was built between 1911 and September 1918.

Here are some visuals of how the renewed (and renamed) hotel will look after 2027:

Photo: bdpstgroup.hu

Photo: bdpstgroup.hu

Read also:

• New luxury hotel opens at Dobogókő – Read more HERE
• Major European hotel brand opens first Budapest hotel – details, photos in THIS article