DINING
Panorama Restaurant with terrace offering Hungarian cuisine. Gipsy music from spring to autumn. Brasserie and café with terrace in the summer, lobby bar.

CONFERENCE AND BANQUET FACILITIES – DANUBIUS QUALITY CONFERENCE
7 function rooms with seating capacities between 10-250. Gellért Bath hall with a capacity of 300 persons.

Danubius Hotel Gellért - History of the Gellért

Danubius Hotel Gellért is one of the oldest and most famous hotels in Hungary. Set in picturesque surroundings, it lies on the bank of the Danube at the foot of Gellért Hill making its location exceptionally advantageous. The easily accessible, downtown area is just across the beautiful Szabadság (Liberty) Bridge.

Bishop St. Gellért

Encyclopedias, travel and history books, as well as prayer-books commemorate the bishop who suffered martyrdom in 1046 AD. Gellért Hill and the hotel was named after him. Since 1904, the bishop’s statue has overlooked Erzsébet Bridge from above the well-known waterfall.

He was born to a rich family around 980 AD in Venice, Italy. The Benedictine monk obtained great knowledge in the sciences of the time. According to some sources, he was bound for the Holy Land, when accepting the invitation from a Hungarian Benedictine he decided to stay here. Other sources claim that he was invited by King Stephan I to facilitate the country's conversion to Christianity. Later, he became the mentor of the king’s son, Prince Imre. In 1030, then as bishop of Marosvár (Csanád), he founded the Cathedral and Monastery there. After the death of Stephan in 1038, Gellért lived a retired life. Legend has it that pagan Hungarians revolting against the institution of Christianity locked him up in a barrel and threw him off the - at that time - Kelen Hill into the Danube. Along with Stephan and Imre, Gellért was canonized in 1083.

Gellért Hill

Gellért Hill is one of Budapest’s most commonly known sights, offering spectacular views over the capital.  The 778-feet high hill appealing to hikers and rich in both history and natural habitat is located in the 11th District. Often referred to as the ’Gem of Budapest’, the hill and the adjoining areas of natural preservation are parts of the Unesco World Heritage.

The Citadella, which is an important historical and tourist site for Hungary, is also to be found here. The fortress was built between 1850 and 1854, after the repression of the Hungarian revolution against Habsburg rule in 1849. Construction was ordered by Haynau, an Austrian general, to provide oversight to the potentially uprising Hungarians. The Statue of Liberty by sculptor Zsigmond Kisfaludy Stróbl commemorates the end of the Nazi rule and the ’liberation’ of Hungary by the Red Army.

Gellért Hill is home to a great number of natural values. It has geological significance, as tectonic lines at its foot are responsible for thermal water springs found throughout Buda, such as the Árpád, Rákóczi and Mátyás springs. Caves in Gellért Hill are subject to national preservation, including Cave Iván and its chapel, as well as the spring caves of the Gellért and Rudasbaths.

Saint Gellért Cave Chapel is a national sanctuary. It consists of two parts: the ancient upper cave (Iván Cave or Lourdes Cave) and the lower artificial caves found further inside the mountain. The temperature remains 21°C. year round. The Cave Chapel was built inside the natural caves by the only Hungarian-founded order, Pálos (Order of St. Paul, the First Hermit). It was turned into a church in 1926 by Kálmán Lux and was designed after the Lourdes Cave. By the end of the 1950’s, the communist regime dismissed the Paulian order and walled up the entrance. Later, the temple was used as an observation site for karst topography, while the cloister served as a dorm for students of the Hungarian State Ballet Institute. The complex was reopened on 27 August 1989.

The cloister can be accessed through the St. Stephan Chapel. Fretworks decorating the walls were carved by Béla Ferenc. The most valuable artifact of the Paulian order is also kept here: the shinbone of St. Paul the First Hermit. The altar is from the Zsolnay factory in Pécs.