Gellért Baths, Budapest (Hungary)

The Gellért Baths (Gellért gyógyfürdő in Hungarian), also called the Gellért Thermal Bath, shapes a magnificent bath complex that is integrated into the noted Hotel Gellért situated on the west bank of the Danube in Buda, the old capital of the Kingdom of Hungary and western half of Budapest.

The effervescent swimming pool

Gellért the name of the first bishop of Hungary (Gerard of Csanád, c. 977 – 1046 AD), the bath complex was built between 1912 and 1918 in the Hungarian Secession (Art Nouveau) style on the site of an earlier Turkish baths laid out in the 16th century under the name ‘Sárosfürdő’ during the time of the Ottoman Empire.

The latter name spells ‘muddy baths’ due to the mineral mud settled at the bottom of the pools against the modern second component of ‘gyógyfürdő’ conveying ‘thermal/medical baths’ come to that.

Opened in 1918, the complex expanded into an outdoor wave pool in 1927 and a glass-domed thermal bath in 1934 in the hotel’s old Winter Garden but the women’s section suffered heavy damage during bombardments towards the end of World War II.

Following a long wait due to financial circumstances, the thermal bath was eventually redesigned and the complex underwent a wholesale reconstruction in 2008, restored to its former splendour.

The main hall, featuring a gallery and a glass roof above, and the effervescent swimming pool (picture) are probably the highlights of the complex which also lines up thermal baths, supplied with water from Gellért Hill’s mineral hot springs, as well as plunge pools and a Finnish sauna.

Reök Palace, Szeged (Hungary)

The beautiful green-and-lilac Reök Palace (Reök-palota in Hungarian) was designed by so called ‘Hungarian Gaudi’ architect Ede Magyar and lies in downtown Szeged, southern Hungary.

An exceptional example of Hungarian Secession, the edifice was constructed originally as a residence for Iván Reök (hence the name) back in 1907 and nowadays houses the Regional Arts Centre since 2007.

Museum of Applied Arts, Budapest (Hungary)

The Museum of Applied Arts (Iparművészeti Múzeum in Hungarian), designed by Ödön Lechner (1845 – 1914), lies on the southern end of Grand Boulevard in Budapest and makes the third oldest of its kind worldwide.

Built between 1893 and 1896, it was fashioned in the Hungarian Secession (Art Nouveau) style and features a golden-green roof whilst the entrance leads to a vast atrium topped by a glass roof and flanked by white cloisters.

The museum itself was inaugurated in 1876 before it moved into its current house and displays collections of ivory carvings, textiles, silver and golden artefacts, music boxes and ceramics among others.