Pesterzsébet Iodine-Salt Thermal Bath

What to expect

Pesterzsébet is the Budapest bath that few visitors hear about. It sits in the 20th district, in the south of the city, on the bank of the Soroksár branch of the Danube, and its full name is Pesterzsébeti Jódos-Sós Gyógy- és Strandfürdő: the Pesterzsébet iodine-salt medicinal bath and lido. It is run by Budapest Gyógyfürdői (Budapest Spas), the same city company as Széchenyi and Rudas, but it feels like a local sports and family centre.

The site has a long gap in its history. An investor drilling wells in the 1930s struck the iodine-salt water, which is rare in Hungary and, in Budapest, is found only in this district. The domed bath building probably dates from the 1950s. The outdoor lido shut in 2001 and the bath in 2005. After a rebuild that kept the old dome, the medicinal bath reopened at the end of 2018 and the lido for the 2019 season, with a wave pool, a sauna area and room for about 1,800 people on the beach.

The main draw is the price and the welcome for families. Széchenyi, Rudas and Lukács admit nobody under 14; Pesterzsébet sells family tickets.

The pools

The bath lists these pools and temperatures:

• Adventure pool: 93-97°F34-36°C, 1.1-1.2 m deep, with a swim-out to the outdoor area.
• Sitting pool (outdoor, all year): 95-99°F35-37°C, beside the swim-out and sun terrace.
• Iodine-salt medicinal pool: 97-100°F36-38°C, with a recommended soak of 10 minutes. Currently filled with Szent Erzsébet medicinal water because of a long-running fault in the iodine-salt well.
• Thermal pool (medicinal section): 100-104°F38-40°C, 1 m deep.
• Swimming pool: 25 m, 79-82°F26-28°C, 2.1 m deep, open air and open all year. Swimmers only, no floats.
• Indoor children’s pool: 86-90°F30-32°C, 20-50 cm deep, open at weekends, on holidays and from June 1 to August 31.
• Wave pool (summer): 79-82°F26-28°C, shelving from 0 to 2.2 m like a beach. A horn sounds five minutes before the waves start.
• Outdoor children’s pool (summer): 86-90°F30-32°C, up to 20 cm deep, with play features under a shade sail.

A weight bath (súlyfürdő) at 93-95°F34-35°C is for patients with a prescription.

Getting there

The bath is at Vízisport utca 2, 1203 Budapest, about 8 km (5 miles) south-east of the city centre in a straight line.

• Public transport: the bath lists the HÉV suburban railway and buses 35, 36, 66, 119, 148, 151, 166, 224 and 224E. Plan the last stretch with the BKK trip planner (BudapestGO app).
• By car: the bath’s own car park is free for bathers. Non-bathers pay HUF 250 per 30 minutes.

Cyclists must use the bike rack in the car park; bikes may not be left at the main entrance.

When to go

Weekday mornings are calm, with mostly local regulars. Summer weekends bring families to the wave pool and the beach. The strand closes in winter, but the open-air 25 m pool and the warm outdoor sitting pool stay open, so a winter visit still gets you outside in the steam.

Saturday is the late night, with the bath open until 10 p.m. (the swimming pool, or the wave pool in summer, closes at 7:40 p.m.). On October 23, 2026, the bath keeps Sunday hours and charges weekend prices. Because of energy costs, the outdoor Finnish sauna opens only from noon on weekdays.

Prices and booking

Budapest Spas published these 2026 prices (weekday / weekend and holiday):

• Adult: HUF 4,700 / 5,700.
• Children 3-14, seniors, full-time students: HUF 4,000 / 4,400. Under 3 free.
• Complex ticket with Sauna World: adult HUF 5,800 / 6,600; concessions HUF 5,000 / 5,100.
• Family: two adults and one child HUF 9,400 / 11,400; two adults and two children HUF 13,400 / 15,800.
• 2-hour ticket: HUF 3,800 on weekdays, HUF 4,500 on Saturdays before noon.
• Sauna World only, 5 hours: HUF 3,700 / 4,100.
• Safe for valuables: HUF 1,100.

Time-limited tickets are not valid on October 23, 2026. Residents with a Pesterzsébet Card get 15% off the adult daily ticket.

Bathing culture

The rules are the usual Budapest Spas ones. Shower before you get in and again after the sauna. Wear a swimsuit. Toddlers who are not toilet-trained may use only the children’s pools, in reusable swim nappies. In the children’s pool adults may supervise but not sit or lie in the water.

Hungarian rules (Government Decree 510/2023) keep children under 14 out of medicinal pools and pools above 95°F35°C, and children under 6 out of whirlpools and massage pools, so younger children will spend their time in the adventure, swimming and children’s pools.

The Sauna World has an indoor Finnish sauna (176-194°F80-90°C, 20 people), a steam cabin (113-131°F45-55°C), an infrared salt cabin and an outdoor Finnish sauna, with a cold plunge pool at 63-66°F17-19°C and a hot one at 104-108°F40-42°C. Leave the sauna area 20 minutes before closing.

Where to stay nearby

There is no lodging at the bath, and the 20th district has few hotels. Most people stay in central Budapest and come out for the day. To make a bath day of it, combine Pesterzsébet with Rudas on the Buda riverbank or Széchenyi in City Park, both of which are adults and teenagers only. Lukács on the Buda side and Dandár in the 9th district are the other quiet, local choices. Gellért has been closed for renovation since October 1, 2025.

Safety notes

• Medicinal water: keep to the recommended 10 minutes in the medicinal pool. Hungarian spas advise people with heart disease, high blood pressure or a pregnancy to check with a doctor first.
• Deep water: the 25 m pool is 2.1 m deep throughout and for swimmers only; the wave pool gets deep fast.
• Children: under-14s must be with a parent at all times.
• Cold plunge: shower and cool down before using the 63-66°F17-19°C plunge pool.