How To Get Naked, Or Nearly So, And Dance All Night In Budapest, Vol. II

The good news is that — for its annual December 30 New Year’s outdoor swim/disco/bacchanal in Budapest’s (and Europe’s) most grand Belle Epoque public bath, the Szechenyi — the producers expect a low of “just” 39 degrees Fahrenheit (4 Celsius), a tad above freezing. That’s at about 11 p.m., as the rager traditionally really gets going. At 1 a.m. on December 31, the weather gods are expected to smile on the revelers by raising the temperature to a hale 41 degrees Fahrenheit (5 Celsius) for the last couple of hours before the 3 a.m. close on December 31.

Not that a single one of the expected 2000-plus guests who have booked in for what’s come to be known as the Szechenyi’s “Spa-rty” can be made to care about something as trivial as the weather, although they are parading between the bars and the pools in their best summer bathing togs.

Because: The Szechenyi’s two huge, constantly warm 77-degree outdoor pools — heated by naturally hot springs whose waters must be cooled down before it’s routed into the pools for the spa’s patrons — envelop the writhing masses in a soft, natal embrace. In this sense we could argue that, as a kaleidoscopic side trip if you’re already in Europe, dropping on down to Budapest for this bracing party is just the tonic for putting your mind in its right “rebirth” mode at the dawn of the new year. Your party persona is reborn as that of an eel, a water moccasin, an otter, a seal, a gator. Pick one, move on down to the dance “floor” and get with it, the new year’s around the corner.

A few notes for the wise travelers who undertake this mode of ringing out the old and ringing in the new: The founder/uber-producer of the event is Laszlo Laki, whose Cinetrip/Sparty group has been staging these now-famous club nights at several of Budapest’s baths for the last twenty-five years. This means they’ve had a lot of practice, and the production, so to speak, can now be said to be seamless. One books best online.

At the Szechenyi, as you register to receive your locker, you receive an electronic bracelet which doubles as your wallet for the several bars and spots for snacks to fuel your frugging the night away. There are also what we’ll diplomatically describe as a robust team of extremely fit lifeguards and security, who are extremely well mannered but who brook no nonsense. Groups are welcome.

The esteemed Mr. Laki’s advice is: “In the Budapest baths, thanks to our beautiful hot springs, we have been bathing for over a thousand years. We have manners. So do you. When you come to Budapest, please bring yours.” In short, it’s a safe space at the Sparty New Year’s event, and a more rip-snortingly unusual mash-up of the Belle Epoque and new-Europe is hard to find.

The parties are traditionally on December 30 because the Szechenyi is open 365 days a year, and its regular patrons desire access on New Year’s Eve day, and especially, on New Year’s day to sweat out the inevitable price of overindulging. Theoretically, then, you could book in for the Sparty on the 30th, retire to the hotel, book back in on the afternoon of the 31st for a few hours resuscitation, and then return for your third bath of the weekend on New Year’s Day.