Thermal baths in Budapest

If you plan to spend more than one day in Budapest, it's worth visiting one of the Hungarian capital's thermal baths. Budapest is rich of thermal springs: about 120 mineral and medicinal water springs are located, many of them have hot water, feeding about 10 thermal baths. Its thermal water containing mineral substances, above all against inflammation, rheumatism and arthritis, and it's suitable for bathing cure. The baths dating from the Turkish era (between 1541-1686) are still operating, but who started and developed the bathing culture in Hungary were the Romans. They built the first public and private baths channelling the hot water from the springs of Buda Hills when Hungary, alias Pannonia Province belonged to the Roman Empire. Aquincum, meaning in Celtic "five springs" ("aquae quinque"), was the capital of the province, situated today in the north part of Budapest, on the right site of Danube.
Budapest, due to the tourist developments, became bathing city in the 20th century, obtaining this title exactly in 1934. In the traditional Hungarian thermal baths you can find saunas (dry and steam), steam room, medical treatments (for example physiotherapy, inhalation), healing gymnastics, drinking cure, massage service. Gellért, Rudas, Rác, Széchenyi, Király, Lukács are the most famous thermal baths of Budapest. Rudas and Király Baths were built by the Turks at the end of the 1550s, both still preserve its Turkish aspects. Széchenyi is the first thermal baths of Pest and one of the largest spa-complexes in Europe such as Teplice Spa in Czech Republic. If you going to enjoy the healing effects of the baths, pay attention: most of them are strictly segregated by sex (for example Rudas, Király).