Danubius Hotels and Spas Group is Hungary’s largest hotel chain boasting 56 hotels in the city and other locations such as the Czech Republic, Great Britain, Romania, and Slovakia. It began as a state-owned company, being an initiative by Former Ministry of External Trade aimed at developing the city’s spa tourism.
The company first started to manage hotels in 1972 with the acquisition of existing Hotel Helikon in Keszthely and Grand Hotel Margitsziget. It was also awarded the building permit of the Budapest Hilton.
On July 1991, the privatization of Danubius Hotels was completed. It launched its initial public offering at Budapest Stock Exchange the following year. One of its milestones in over two decades of operation was the successful granting of 85% of the property right of HungarHotels or HungáriaSzálloda Rt. under its management in 1996. It received a full property right in 2004.
The group started to expand internationally in 1999 with the acquisition of Hotel Villa Butterfly in Marienbad, Czech Republic. Subsequent partial purchases followed with other properties including LéčebnéLázněa.s. (Marienbad, Czech Republic), and SlovenskeLiecebneKupelea.s. spa complex in Slovakia.
The hotel chain has five distinct brands, namely Danubius Health Spa Resorts, Hotel Gellért, Hilton Budapest, Danubius Hotels, and Classic Collection.
