Do you plan to spend Easter in Budapest? The Hungarian capitl offers plenty attractions and things to do for a wonderful Easter weekend.

By Easter which is in March or April Budapest revives from its winter sleep and the parks and gardens are lively green. The colurful flowers arranged in artful shapes add vibrant hue to the citycsape.

Spring and especially the Easter weekend s a wonderful time to travel to Budapest and explore its numerous sights and attractions.

Sightseeing Tips in Budapest for the Easter Holiday

The Castle District

Budapest has historic sights and fine architecture at every corner. You can easily explore the top attractions during the Easter Weekend.

The Castle District in Buda offers magnificent views from the Fishermen's Bastion:

the majestic Danube wih the Chain Bridge (Széchenyi Lánchíd)

and the impressive Budapest Parliament.

The Castle District forms the centre of historic Budapest and some of the most important cultural monuments stand in the area, like the Royal Palace and the Matthias Church.

Matthias Vhurch Budapest

The narrow cobbled streets are ideal for romantic walks. The district has some fine restaurants and cafés.

Tips

The Litea Bookshop and Tearoom on Hess András tér, opposite the Hotel Hilton has a very relaxed atmosphere with books in English and fine teas. In the Faust Wine Cellar within the Hilton Budapest Castle District (Hess András tér 1-3.) you can taste delightful wines from the country's best wine regions and wine producers.

Read more details and about other attractions in Budapest Castle District.

The Cable Car (sikló) takes you down from the hill to Clark Adam tér in a few minutes.

Clark Adam Tér

The flowery Clark Adam Square with the Tunnel

Near the Pest end of the Chain Bridge stand two architectural masterpieces on Roosevelt Square

the Hungarian Academy of Sciences,

and

the Art-Nouveau Gresham Palace that gives home to the luxury Four Seasons Hotel.

Gresham Palace Budapest

Vörösmarty Square and Váci Street

Walk down along the river on the Danube Promenade and turn onto Deák Street at the Vigadó Hall. The street takes you to Vörösmarty Square, the heart of Budapest.

The white carrara statue of the famous 19th century poet, Mihály Vörösmarty, dominates the square.

The prominent Gerbeaud Café flanks the side of the plaza. Sit in for a cup of fresh café with a slice of delicious Hungarian cake and absorb the traditional coffee house aura.

Vörösmarty Square in Budapest

The famous pedestrian and shopping street, Váci utca opens from the south end of the square. The street together with Vörösmarty tér is a centre of social and cultural happenings that attract both tourists and locals throughout the year.

Fancy boutiques and chic cafés line the sides of the street, that mainly target tourists. You can have better bargains at the Great Market Hall at the south end of Váci utca.

Andrássy Avenue, Liszt Ferenc Square

A walk along this tree-lined hip boulevard connecting downtown Budapest with the City Park abounds in fine architecture, cultural institutions, trendy restaurants and cafes, and high-end shops. Find out more about attractions along Andrássy avenue.

Andrássy avenue

More Budapest Sightseeing Tips.

Splashing in Budapest Spas

After long hours of walking refresh yourself in Budapest Spas. In the famous Gellert Bath you can admire the fine interior while you relax in the hot water.

The grand Széchenyi Bath belongs to the largest spa complexes in Europe. The water in the outdoor pool is hot enough to enjoy bathing even in cold weather. The baths are open on Easter Sunday according to their Sunday schedule. On Easter Monday all baths are closed.

Walking in Parks

If you have time and long for lots of green, trees, fresh air take a walk in one of Budapest's parks, the largest is the City Park with Zoo and other amenities.

Margaret Island is another peacful gem of Budapest, between Margaret Bridge and Árpád Bridge.

TIP: The following pages provide you further help in planning your sightseeing during your Budapest Easter vacation:

Top Budapest Attractions

Budapest City Centre

Budapest in One Day

Walking Tours in Budapest

During the Easter weekend there'll be some great parties in Budapest, so you won’t be bored at night either.

Where to Stay at Easter in Budapest

Most Budapest Hotels offer special Easter packages.

Use the search box on the right to find the best Budapest hotel rates and special deals.

Note that you should book your accommodation well in advance, because a lot of tourists visit Budapest at Easter every year.

Budapest Hotels

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Rooms:

View all Budapest hotels

TIP: Stay at a 5 or 4 star downtown hotel and everything important will be within easy reach. Price of Easter packages in 5 or 4 star hotels is around 300 €/double room/2 nights.

Some Hungarian Easter Customs

A 40-day lent precedes Easter, when people rarely eat meat. Some have meatless meals only on Fridays. Women clean the whole house, wash the windows and a few days before Easter they start baking cakes and pastries and prepare kocsonya, a rich jellied soup cooked with pork meat, smoked meat and spices.

Egg painting is practiced mainly in the villages. On Good Friday afternoon religious people go to the church to commemorate the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.

The church bells will remain in silence until Sunday, the day of resurrection. On Holy Saturday the religious commemoration continues with a procession.

Saturday evening marks the end of the Lent and people have traditional dishes: smoked ham with pickled horseradish, hardboiled eggs and fresh white bread or milk-loaf.

On Easter Sunday morning the Easter bunny brings presents for the little ones.

The master or the mistress of the house takes a basket packed with ham, eggs, horseradish, milk loaf and a bottle of wine to the church where the priest blesses the food. The content of the basket varies slightly from region to region.

The family eats all the blessed meat for breakfast, not a crumb should be wasted because the blessed food considered to possess magical powers. For example the crumbs of the milk loaf are given to the hens so that they lay more eggs.

Mainly meat dishes (poultry, pork, lamb, rabbit) dominate the traditional Easter Sunday lunch with various garnishing. Many housewives bake beigli (pastry rolls with walnut or poppy seed stuffing) not just for Christmas but for Easter too. See our Hungarian Easter Recipes.

On Easter Monday morning boys and men sprinkle women with parfume or with cold water, for which women give chocolate eggs or some change in return.

Men of course gather strength with a shot of pálinka (Hungarian fruit brandy) and they spent the rest of the day with more boozing.

Public Transport and Opening Hours at Easter in Budapest

On Holy Saturday public transport vehicles run according to Saturday schedule.

On Easter Sunday and Monday supermarkets and large stores are closed, however some shops and services that are usually open on holidays will be open on Easter Sunday and Monday:

Daytrip - Easter Festival in Hollókő

The picturesque Hollókő village lies in Nograd county in the North East corner of Hungary. You can get there in two hours by car. The village people will wear folk costumes and revive the Easter traditions.

Getting there: take the M3 motorway as far as Hatvan, than drive on route 21 towards Salgótarján, before Pásztó the road branches off, take the road to Szécsény Hollókő direction. The village is about 100 km far from Budapest.

The Weather Around Easter in Budapest

By Easter the city awakens from its winter sleep. The first buds on the trees appear and spring flowers adorn the parks and squares.

The sun shines warmer and warmer, though the weather is rather unpredictable in spring.

Daily temperatures can vary from 2-15°C/36-59°F. At some nights temperature can go below 0°C/32°F Usually there are some rainy and windy periods in March and April, so don't forget to pack in your umbrella and warm sweaters. See more on weather in Budapest in spring.