Come and visit the Budapest Christmas Fair if you want to buy something unique and original for your loved ones. At the end of November Vörösmarty Square turns into a festive market place.

The location is ideal; Vörösmarty Square is in the heart of Budapest at the end of Váci utca.

Video On the Christmas Fair

Additional Christmas Markets in Budapest

On Map - Vörösmarty Square Christmas Fair

Opening Hours: 18th November-30th December, 10.00-20.00 daily, on 24th December: 10.00-14.00, the market is closed on 25th and 26th December

Many Budapest Hotels are situated nearby, so if you're staying in one of them the Budapest Christmas Fair is just a short walk from your lodging.

Find the Best Budapest Hotel Deals for your Christmas Shopping Trip

Cottage-style wooden stalls and an outdoor stage take over one of Budapest's most attractive squares during the four weeks preceding Christmas.

You can smell the scent of traditional honey cookies, mulled wine, cinnamon and fir from afar. The rich fragrant simply lures you to the market.

TIP: to warm up in the chilly weather drop by BarBÁR Cafe for a mug of Hot Chocolate made from Belgian chocolate and spiced up with a dash of Hungarian pálinka. The cafe is just a short walk from the Xmas market on Vörösmarty Square located in a side street of Váci utca (address: Papnövelde utca 3., 1053 Budapest).

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Culinary Delights

On this year's Christmas Fair you can taste a wider selection of traditional Hungarian foods and cakes: e. g. stuffed cabbage, strudel, grilled sausages and meat, Christmas cookies, kürtös kalács (hollow, cylinder-shaped pastry from Transylvania in origin with different coatings: caramelized sugar, ground walnut, coconut or chocolate).

Making Kürtös Kalács

Look for the open kitchens set up around the Vörösmarty Statue to learn about some traditional culinary secrets: making strudel (stretching the pastry is a sight to see), frying carp, or baking kürtös kalács - a cylinder shape pastry baked over open fire then coated in ground walnut, coconut, sugar, or chocolate.

Try lángos, a dough deep-fried in oil, though nowadays töki pompos (a square shaped flat bread baked in clay oven and topped with bacon and sour cream), a less greasier version is becoming more and more popular on fairs. Today we usually deep fry it, though countrymen baked it in ovens a couple of decades ago. It is baked freshly in traditional clay ovens on the fair too.

You can sip spicy mulled wine from special mugs different in design every year. This year you can chose from four colors: green, orange, mauve and turquoise.
If you get tired of the bustle, have a cup of coffee with a delicious Hungarian cake in Gerbeaud Café.

The famous Gerbeaud Confectionery has an Advent Calendar in its windows. The pages turn over day by day, each day a decorated window opens at 17.00.

This year a spectacular light show will also be played on the wall the Gerbeaud House starting 27th November at 18.00 and then every day between 18.00 and 20.00.

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Do you want to surprise your relatives and friends with something special at Christmas?
Budapest Christmas Fair is the best place to buy Exclusive Christmas Gifts:

All products are hand-made and selected by a professional jury (its members come from several organizations and funds) to guarantee their quality.

You can watch many cultural programs and listen to folk music while you're looking for gifts.

As in previous years a small Betlehem will come alive on the square with a crib and live animals. You can take part in a Christmas tree decorating competition, as well.

Besides the 15-m high Christmas fir, the light of the Flame of Peace brought by scouts from the Church of Nativity in Betlehem greets visitors of the festive market. In the Advent period a new candle will be lighted every weekend till Christmas to mark the approach of the holiday.

Santa Claus at the Budapest Christmas Market

Santa Claus welcomes children on three days: on 4th December at 11.00-13.00, 15.00 - 18.00 on 5th December at 16.00 - 19.00 and on 6th December the Santa Claus from Finland awaits kids from 14.00 till 16.00

The Budapest Christmas Fair at Vörösmarty tér is one of my favourite events in winter. Even if I don't intend to buy anything, I like to stroll among the stalls, have a glass of mulled wine and view some of the cultural programs on the outdoor stage.
I usually end up buying something special for one of my loved ones.

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Christmas Market at Király utca - Gozsdu Udvar

An additional Christmas Market called Adventi Királyi Vásár (Advent Royal Fair) welcomes tourists and locals alike at 13th Király utca in the Gozsdu Courtyard (Gozsdu Udvar) from 25th November till 24th December.

Pleasant festive atmosphere, unique products, design and cultural programs as well as fine food awaits visitors to the market.
Opening hours: weekday: 12.00 - 20.00, weekend: 10.00 - 20.00.

On Map

Gozsdu Courtyard - Christmas Market

The Gozsdu Courtyard was once an important part of Jewish Budapest. The coutyard, that consists of 6 smaller courtyards, links two streets, Király utca and Dob utca. The once neglected spot is being revived and converted into a shopping and enetertainment hub.

Christmas Markets on St Stephen's Square and in Deák Ferenc Utca (Fashion Str.)

Downtown Budapest has a few other festive markets during the Christmas holiday period.

The one in front of the St. Stephen's Basilica was organised for the first time in 2011. A slender 8 m high Christmas tree, tasty nibbles, a free ice-skating rink and a wide range of gifts to buy are the main attractions of this Xmas market.

A tall Christmas tree dominates the holiday fair in Deák Ferenc utca (also known as Fashion Street) The Picanter deli shop next to the tree offers delicious food to nibble on the spot or a selection of cheese, sausages and salamis to take home. There's also kürtös kalács, mangalica products (mangalica is a unique breed of pig indigenous to Hungary) and a variety of other products.

More Xmas Markets in Budapest

You'll find similar Budapest Christmas Markets at Liszt Ferenc tér (Pest, near Oktogon) or at Nyugati tér, (Grand Boulevard, M2 line, trams No.4, 6) but this one at Vörösmarty Square represents the sort of Advent atmosphere that we most long for.

Preparing For Christmas - More Festive Events in Budapest in 2012

Here are some of the coolest Xmas programs taking place during the weeks preceding the holiday. Advent in Óbuda, Fő tér (Main Square), 26th November 2012 Getting there: The Main Square of Óbuda hosts festive programs on the four weekends of Advent: concerts, puppet shows, ice rink, and folk craft market offer entertainment for the whole family. A tall Christmas tree and the life-size Betlehem create a special pre-Christmas atmosphere. Tickets: there's no admission fee but visitors has to purchase a mug for 500 HUF to be able to sip mulled wine or hot tea and taste the culinary delicacies. All concerts, performances and the ice rink are free. More information: Advent in Óbuda Saturnalia - Aquincum Museum, 6th-9th, 11th December, 10.00-16.00 Address: Szentendrei út 135., district III., by suburban railway (HÉV) from Batthyány tér to Aquincum station, from Szentlélek tér in Óbuda: by buses 34, 134, and 106 to Aquincum stop Tickets: adult: 850 HUF, students (6-26 years of age), pensioners (62-70 years of age): 450 HUF An event that introduces visitors to the roots of Christmas in Antiquity. Saturn is the god of agriculture and time in Roman mythology. The ancient celebrations devoted to him were the predecessors of Christmas in Christian traditions. Christmas Concerts in Danube Palace Address: Zrínyi utca 5., district V., a short walk from Deák tér metro station (M1, M2, M3 lines) The Danube Chamber Orchestra will perform a festive concert on 25th December in Duna Palota (Danube Palace). See details and ticket reservation here.

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Related Pages

Christmas in Budapest

Hungarian Christmas Recipes

New Year's Eve in Budapest

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