Backpacking and Baths in Budapest

Of all the places in eastern Europe that I traveled to last year I have to say that Budapest perhaps more than any other city offered the largest selection of things to do, places to go out and party and great buildings to see. Perhaps this isn't that surprising, considering that Budapest is in fact technically speaking 2 large cities separated by the river Danube: Buda and Pest - get it? Ok, so maybe its not rocket science to understand, but what it does mean is you effectively have 2 big cities rolled into one giant capital to walk around and explore. How's that for value for money?!

If you have travelled to the city in summer, you will no doubt notice that the temperatures can get pretty high by Europe's standards. I'm not sure if I visited the city in the middle of a heat wave last year but at 38 degrees centigrade it was pretty warm let me tell you. Combine this burning heat with walking about 10 miles a day around the city to avoid paying for public transport and you are no doubt going to be ready to cool off. Luckily, Budapest has some of the biggest and best Turkish baths in Europe - if not the world - which are great places to take a load off. My favourite which I visited was the grandeur surroundings of the Gellert baths built back in 1918.

The indoor pool has one of the most impressive interiors I have seen - intricate and detailed tiles throughout, huge classical style columns and a glass roof.

The outdoor pool has been recently improved and updated and is in itself something great to behold, with a wave machine that is just like standing in the sea being pummeled by the real thing! No doubt that there is a lot of great fun in the sun to be had in there. There are also a lot of more relaxing chill out areas with benches outside and a smaller, very warm pool to relax in - perfect for the hung over backpacker. When visiting Gellert baths you really can't miss out on the thermal baths either. This unique experience is apparently very good for the skin - but watch out for the transition between the baking steam room and the freezing plunge pool. I felt that the baths also offer very good value entertainment - although I'm told that Gellert is the most expensive of the baths I still spent the entire day there and it only cost me around 10 quid!