Nightlife at a Budapest spa party
Nightlife at a Budapest spa party

Budapest’s famous spa parties – where wellness and fun collide

 Enjoy the exciting combination of relaxing thermal baths and wild night life at a Budapest spa party!

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Budapest is well-known for its spas and vibrant nightlife. It is also a great place to go if you are looking for a laid-back type of holiday. In the morning and afternoon, the spas and thermal baths are filled with visitors and locals who come to a dip and play games in the therapeutic waters. But as soon as the sun sets, the city is filled with night-crawlers looking to party through the night. There are basement bars, clubs, and popular ruin bars in abundance to tempt people looking for a good time. And then there’s one extraordinary event that attracts thousands of partygoers to the capital of Hungary – the Budapest spa party.  

Note

due to the pandemic situation all the baths in Budapest are temporarily closed!

One of a kind atmosphere at a Budapest spa party
One of a kind atmosphere at a Budapest spa party

The history of the Budapest spa party

It was L. Laki Lászlo – the founder of the later Cinetrip – who first had the idea of holding a party in a Budapest thermal bath. It was in 1994 when the first Budapest spa party was held in Széchenyi Thermal Bath, but only people who knew the organizers were invited. Regular bath parties for the public were launched in Rudas Baths in 1998. As the only spa party (‘sparty’) in the world at the time, with a unique mix of music and visual displays featuring video projection mapping, the party met with enormous success – it was literally a wet dream. Originally, winter parties were hosted at Lukács Baths, but due to their popularity, Széchenyi Baths has also become a permanent venue.

Features of a Budapest spa party

Budapest spa parties combine popular DJs blasting electro, hip hop, and trance with light, video, and laser visual effects, as well as unlimited supplies of alcohol to party the night away. In the summer period, the Széchenyi Baths – well-known as the largest thermal baths in Europe – attract lots of fun-loving people to party their heart out in its warm water pools. There is a party almost every Saturday during the summer months, but during winter Lukács baths is the popular spa party destination. Cinetrip also hosts annual mega parties – one in August and another before New Year’s Eve.

Spa party at Lukács Baths
Spa party at Lukács Baths

Getting tickets for a Grand Bath Party at Széchenyi Bath

If you want to go to a spa party, you’ll need more than a Budapest day spa ticket – you’ll also be needing an additional wristband. The basic price for a pool party ticket in Széchenyi Bath is 16,000 HUF ($54). However, it is worth paying a little extra and buying your ticket online because the tickets often sell out. Check the official page of the spa for the full description and price of the – highly recommended – online Budapest spa party ticket. There are basic individual tickets and tickets for a group of friends. Another reason why we recommend you buy your tickets in advance is that it lets you skip the line of people waiting to buy their tickets at the entrance.

What you should know about the Budapest spa parties

Bath parties at the popular Széchenyi Thermal Bath offer a unique experience that you cannot find anywhere else in Budapest. The party is held each Saturday in its steamy thermal waters spiced with flashing lights, foam, and fun party equipment like inflatable unicorns and water guns. The summer party at Széchenyi extends over the two big outdoor pools of the complex and accommodates about 2000 people. The winter party at Lukács Baths can only accommodate about 500 people. Whichever you visit, you won’t have to worry about your party outfit, as all you’ll need to bring is your finest swimwear – bikini, one-piece, surf-style short, whatever you prefer – and a pair of slippers to stop the stone surfaces from hurting your feet. Do you worry about catching a cold during the party? Let us tell you why you shouldn’t: all pools are filled with warm thermal water, the temperature of which range from around 33 degrees Celsius (91 degrees Fahrenheit) to 38 degrees Celsius (99 degrees Fahrenheit).

Have a party in a thermal bath at a Budapest spa party
Have a party in a thermal bath at a Budapest spa party

Planning to drink? You can buy almost any kind of booze with a special waterproof top-up party card which you must be familiar with from festivals and similar events. The general admission price includes lockers which are available to people who arrive in time. The lockers can be accessed using the same plastic wristband which gives you access to the thermal baths. If the baths run out of lockers, there are also cabins available for an additional fee.

New Year’s Eve celebration at a Budapest spa party

If you’re planning to spend New Year’s Eve in Budapest, you can join the VIP Cinetrip Pool Party on December 30th. This party takes place at Széchenyi Thermal Bath and is one of the two VIP Cinetrip parties that happen during the year. The other is held at the peak of the summer season and includes a variety of extras that elevates it above the weekly parties. To enjoy the VIP parties, you must dig deep into your pocket: the tickets cost about twice as much as those for the regular weekly parties.

Stunning colors at a Budapest spa party
Stunning colors at a Budapest spa party

How to get there and how to leave the Budapest spa party

Should you want to make your way to the bath as much of an experience as the time you spend there, we recommend you take a Hop-on Hop-off bus that drive you around town showing its most magnificent sights before dropping you off right in front of the venue. But of course, you can always rely on the city’s public transportation – to get to Széchenyi baths, it’s best to take metro line 1 and get off at the Széchenyi Bath stop, and to get to Lukács Bath, your best option is to take tram 4-6 to a Margit híd. As for leaving the party, keep in mind that metros in Budapest run until around 11:30 pm, so you will need other transport alternatives to get back to your accommodation. For example, you could take the Budapest spa party bus shuttle which runs every 30 minutes till 3:30 am or hop on one of the many night service buses that operate in the city. Alternatively, you can always call a taxi, but that will obviously be a bit pricier.

All info about Széchenyi and Lukács Bath

Széchenyi Thermal Bath: 1146 Budapest, Állatkerti krt. 9-11.

Lukács Baths: 1023 Budapest, Frankel Leó út 25-29.

Q & A

What is a spa party? 
It’s a special type of Hungarian party which takes place in one of Budapest’s thermal baths and lets you enjoy the healing thermal waters while partying to music from the best DJs and being blown away by spectacular visual effects. 
Where can I go to a spa party?
There are currently two locations in Budapest that offer spa parties, Széchenyi Thermal Bath and Lukács Baths. While the former is the main location of outdoor parties and has a capacity of 2000 people, the latter gets incredibly popular in the wintertime, even if it can only fit a smaller crowd. 
Are spa parties expensive?
They’re not cheap, but they’re definitely worth their price as attending one is an experience for a lifetime. A single spa party ticket is 16.000 HUF which is around $54. 
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