The daily times at Lukács are simple: 07:00 to 19:00, every day of the year. The one exception is Tuesday, when it stays open until 22:00 as the operator’s late night, and that is the only evening bathing here.
What complicates it is the sections. The Sauna World does not open until 14:00 on weekdays, the drinking hall works two days a week, and medical treatments are a weekday service. This page has the timetable for each, the cut-offs at the end of the day and when we would come.
Opening hours
Bath and pools
| Monday | 07:00-19:00 |
| Tuesday | 07:00-22:00 |
| Wednesday | 07:00-19:00 |
| Thursday | 07:00-19:00 |
| Friday | 07:00-19:00 |
| Saturday | 07:00-19:00 |
| Sunday | 07:00-19:00 |
Open every day. Tuesday is the bath's late night, its turn in the operator's rota of baths open until 22:00. Cash desks close one hour before closing time, and the pools and pool areas must be left 20 minutes before closing time.
Sauna World
| Monday | 14:00-19:00 |
| Tuesday | 14:00-22:00 |
| Wednesday | 14:00-19:00 |
| Thursday | 14:00-19:00 |
| Friday | 14:00-19:00 |
| Saturday | 07:00-19:00 |
| Sunday | 07:00-19:00 |
Opens at 14:00 from Monday to Friday and runs the full day on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays. It takes a ticket of its own and is swimsuit-free.
Drinking hall
| Monday | Closed |
| Tuesday | Closed |
| Wednesday | 11:00-18:00 |
| Thursday | Closed |
| Friday | 11:00-18:00 |
| Saturday | Closed |
| Sunday | Closed |
Two days a week, for the bath's own medicinal water. The bath gives a recommended dose of 300 to 350 millilitres and says to ask a doctor before starting a drinking cure.
Two cut-offs catch people out at the end of the day. Ticketing ends one hour before closing time, so the last chance to go in is 18:00 on most days and 21:00 on Tuesday. The pools and pool areas then have to be left 20 minutes before the bath closes.
Medical treatments run on weekdays from 07:00 to 19:00 and are not part of a normal visit. They are prescription services, and an appointment has to be made in person at the patient desk.
Best times to visit Lukács
Time of day
The morning, which is also what the operator advises, because it warns of afternoon peaks when it cannot promise entry without a queue. Doors open at 07:00, and a weekday morning is the version of Lukács people come here for, with the regulars in the water and space around them.
Late morning still works on a weekday. By mid-afternoon the bath is at its fullest, and the last hour before the desks shut is a rush of people arriving for a short soak.
Day of the week
Monday to Thursday, when the bath’s own prices are lower and the crowd is at its most local. Friday to Sunday costs more and draws more visitors, though Lukács is never packed the way Széchenyi is at a weekend.
Public holidays are the ones to avoid, or to arrive early for. Tuesday is worth planning around from the other direction. It is the only day you can come after work, and the Sauna World stays open until 22:00 with the rest of the bath.
Season
The hours are the same all year, and both courtyards stay open through the winter. Cold weather is when the outdoor adventure pool is at its best, at 33 to 35°C with the steam coming off it.
Summer turns the bath into something else. The two swimming pools, at 22 and 26°C, are the reason to choose Lukács in a heatwave, when hot thermal water is the last thing anybody wants.
How long to spend at Lukács
Two hours
The indoor medicinal pools and a turn in the courtyard. Enough to see what the bath is, not enough to settle.
Three to four hours
What we would plan for. Indoor pools, the adventure pool, the saunas and a rest between rounds.
Half a day with the saunas
Add the Sauna World, and a Tuesday or a weekend for the sauna programmes.
A Tuesday evening
Come at about 18:00 and there is still the best part of four hours in the water, with the desks open until 21:00.