Hajós Alfréd Nemzeti Sportuszoda és Széchy Tamás Uszoda

I visited this pool on a July Monday at noon and swam in the 50-metre Széchy pool. I got my own lane. The water was incredibly clear. The pool has the FINA approved, track-start style diving blocks, which you are welcome to use.

The facility has lots of English signage. There' a snack stand located between the pools for a post-swim ice cream. This is one of the best facilities for serious swimmers in Europe.

I have trained here for the last three summers and I love this complex. I usually go around 10 AM and it is moderately crowded. Sometimes I have a lane to myself and other times I have to share. The four pools here are great; it is my favorite place to train.

I swam on a weekday, late morning and paid a special morning swim price. The swimmer ahead of me in line, fluent in English, explained that this fee applies only for the 10:00 to 13:00 time period on "off-season" weekdays. Otherwise the list price is 1800 HUF. Late morning turned out to be a good time - I was in the pool at 11:00 and had a lane to myself for most of my swim in the 50-meter, outdoor pool.

The pool has switched to a bracelet system for access to the change rooms and lockers. The signage looked fairly new and there was English on the signs providing direction to the various pools. This was a great facility.

On Saturday and Sunday mornings it was very quiet and peaceful to swim here, but on weekday mornings it was really busy. On two mornings they did not allow the "normal swimmers" in the outdoor, 50m, pool, at all; fortunately, the 33m pool was available.

A great facility - my only "problem" was deciding which pool to swim in as there were so many pools set up for lane swimming! The first time I went, on a weekday afternoon, all the pools were completely empty so I had that moment of "Am I allowed to be here...?" and I had the entire pool to myself. On my second visit there were only two other people there.

The front-end business of getting in is confusing - even after reading the first review, which explains it very accurately. Figuring out the pools after the changing room is a bit of a task. For showers, definitely use the ones on the 1st floor, by the indoor pool.

Regarding the price: on a Thursday afternoon I was charged 1,800 HUF and on Friday midday 800 HUF.

This is an awesome facility. The buildings might be a bit run down, but the 50 meter outdoor pool is nothing short of spectacular. The water is nice and cool during the summer; it does not feel chlorinated at all. The entry process is a bit convoluted with the hidden cashier and the locks for rent, but was well explained by the preceding review.

I've been there three times over lunch now and each time I had a lane to myself or shared one with one other person.

The facility's monumental architecture, coupled with Spartan locker rooms; monosyllabic staff; absence of visible lifeguards; inadequate signage in an impenetrable language; and limited supply of toilet tissue remind one of the experience of going for a swim behind the Iron Curtain in Cold War days. For me, that made the experience particularly pleasurable: it evoked memories of what were then very daring journeys for a young Brit to make! Memories aside, this is a truly remarkable place that has to be a must on the itinerary of any swimmer finding himself in Budapest. I would happily return again and again.

On my 6:30 AM weekday visits, the outdoor, 50 metre pool and the indoor, 25 metre pool were being used by squads in serious training and were not readily available to the casual swimmer. They were available at weekends, but during the week the 8-lane 33.3 metre pool (like the 50 metre and 25 metre pools, fully set up for lap swimming) was an adequate substitute. As befits the source of supply (a thermal spring), the water was crystal clear. On no occasion did I have to share a lane with more than one other swimmer. Lane discipline was good: even swimmers alone in lanes rigidly observed the keep right rule.

Some tips:
(a) When you arrive inside the grand entrance hall, pay your fee at the cashier’s small window, which you will find directly on the left of the main doors. You will be given a receipt and a bar-coded voucher;
(b) Men enter the facility through a turnstile in the far left corner of the entrance hall – women through a turnstile in the far right corner. The turnstile is operated by holding the bar code against an optical reader mounted beside the turnstile. An assistant is to hand to help you if (like me) this presents you with difficulties, also to lend you a padlock if (unlike me) you haven’t brought one with you;
(c) Although the men’s locker room is directly beyond the turnstile, once changed, you will have to walk a considerable distance to get to any of the pools. Thus, you might want to bring flip-flops;
(d) I’m uncertain whether there are rules concerning the use of Speedo style swimwear and bathing caps, but that seemed to be very much the norm;
(d) There is plenty of space pool-side for stuff that you want to keep with you;
(e) There are not particularly adequate showers adjacent to the 50-metre outdoor pool. Better that, on your way back to the locker room, you use the signposted very generous arrangements on the upper floor of the facility, near the 25 metre pool, adjacent to the indoor 50 metre pool;
(f) The outdoor pools are surrounded by trees so you might encounter the odd floating leaf, particularly if the weather has been stormy. This, however, does not impair the water quality.

Crowded at lunch time but a nice pool. Definitely worth the price.

Opens at 6 AM, usually closes around 3 PM for water polo training and swimming lessons.

Geothermally heated water makes swimming in the outdoor pool in winter with the steam rising off it a sensational experience. Definitely one of the best pools in the world.

A great facility, probably one of the best in the world for serious swimmers.

Circle swimming is the rule; lane etiquette is well observed. Bring your own towel.