Best Christmas Markets in Budapest: dates, fair, events and more

It’s becoming more and more fashionable to organise a trip to a European Christmas destination to visit markets and soak up the Christmas spirit, and Budapest is a great place to do just that! In this article I’ll tell you about the best Christmas markets in Budapest and their opening dates for 2024.

Budapest is already a beautiful city, but Christmas makes it even more spectacular. Plan a trip of at least 3 days to combine days of sightseeing in Budapest with the city’s Christmas markets. Keep in mind that in winter it gets dark very early, as it gets dark around 16:00h. So it will be easy for you to see the Christmas markets in Budapest, both at night and during the day, as they are even more magical when illuminated at night.

St. Stephen’s Basilica Christmas market

• Address: Budapest, Szent István tér 1
• Dates: from 17 November to 1 January
• Opening hours are:

Sunday to Thursday from 11:00 to 21:00h

Fridays and Saturdays 11:00 to 23:00h

24 December will only be open from 11:00 to 15:00h

25th and 26th December from 11:00 to 20:00h

31st December from 11:00 to 22:00h the craft and decoration stalls but the food and drink stalls will be open until 03:00 in the morning.

The Christmas market at St. Stephen’s Basilica in Budapest, which is known as ‘Advent in the Basilica’, has been awarded as the best Christmas market in Europe by European Best Destinations in 2024. This is already the fourth time it has won the award, which it has already won in 2019, 2021 and 2023. There’s a reason for that, isn’t there?

The whole square is full of the typical wooden stalls, where you can find handicrafts, Christmas decorations (not much) and many food and drink stalls.

The most spectacular thing is the mapping of lights and colours projected on the façade of the basilica every day from 16:30 to 22:00h, every half hour. It’s incredible!

On 2 December at 4 p.m. the first light of the Advent wreath on the Christmas tree will be switched on and on 6 December there will be an event ‘waiting for Father Christmas’ dedicated to children, where Christmas carols will be sung and Christmas stories will be told.

If you feel like skating, there is a free ice rink and you can rent skates for 1000 HUF/ 3 hours.

Don’t forget to climb the dome of St. Stephen’s Basilica for a nice view of the square and the Christmas market.

Vorösmarty Square Christmas market

• Dates: from 17 November to 1 January
• The opening hours:

Sunday to Thursday from 10:00 to 20:00h.

Fridays and Saturdays from 10:00 to 22:00h

24 December will only be open from 11:00 to 15:00h

25th and 26th December from 11:00 to 18:00h

31st December from 11:00 to 22:00h the craft and decoration stalls but the food and drink stalls will be open until 01:00 in the morning.

The Vorösmarty Square Christmas market is one of the most famous Christmas markets in Budapest, along with the Basilica market.

More than 100 stalls sell typical local food such as Kürtőskalács, langos, Debrecziner or mullen wine, gifts, Christmas decorations and various handicrafts.

In addition, the Christmas market on Vörösmarty Square hosts free folk, jazz and blues concerts every evening.

On weekends there is a puppet theatre for the little ones and several children’s workshops where children can make Christmas tree decorations, paper or wooden toys, Christmas greeting cards…

And if your travel date coincides with the 6th of December, Santa Claus will be there from 3 to 4 p.m. collecting children’s letters.

Christmas Market in Városháza park

If you are in Vörösmarty Square and walk up Fashion Street (Vaci Street) you will arrive at the Town Hall Square (Városháza park), very close to Deak Ferenc Square.

There you will find another small Christmas market with food stalls, typical Budapest sweets and handicrafts. Also, right in the park across the street on Erzsébet Ter is the Budapest Ferris wheel, which you can ride if you want to enjoy a nice view of the Hungarian capital.

Fövám Square Christmas Market

• Address: Budapest, Fővám tér, 1056 Hungary
• Dates: 1-23 December 2024
• Every day from 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.

The next market you are going to visit is very close to the Central Market in Budapest. It’s not very big, so it’s a quick visit. Like most markets, you’ll find stalls selling clothes, other handicrafts, as well as food and drink.

Christmas Market at Buda Castle

• Address: Budapest, Szent György tér, 1014 Hungary

Also called Castel Bazar. This market is only open on Sundays in December until Christmas. This year 2024 it will be open on December 1st, 8th, 15th and 22nd from 10:00 to 19:00h.

It is a very small market with very few stalls where most of them are craft and food stalls. It is quite likely that at dusk, you will find people singing Christmas carols. Unfortunately, I was only able to see how it was set up.

Advent market in Óbuda

The Obuda Christmas market is the furthest away from the centre of Budapest, and therefore the one you will find the least crowded and with the most locals. In addition, the prices of the food stalls are a bit cheaper than in the rest of the market, which I have already told you I find very expensive.

It will be open from December 1st to December 23rd 2024. The opening hours are: Monday to Thursday from 14:00 to 21:00h and Friday to Sunday from 10:00 to 22:00h.

It has two skating rinks, which are also free of charge. They are located on the main market square Fő tér and on the Békásmegyeri Piac Közösségi square. They will be open from 1 December 2024 to 31 January 2025.

The opening hours are Monday to Thursday from 08:00 to 20:00 and Friday to Sunday from 08:00 to 22:00. You will only have to pay for the rental of the equipment, which costs 1000 HUF (2,50 eur) for children and 1500 HUF (3,80 eur) for adults.

Fisherman’s Bastion Christmas market 

• Address: Budapest, Szentháromság tér 2, 1014 Hungary
• Dates: from 1 to 23 December
• Open Monday to Thursday from 10am to 8pm.

In the Fisherman’s Bastion there is a Christmas market in front of the Church of St. Matthias (The Church of Our Lady of Buda Castle). There are about 15 stalls where you can buy souvenirs, Christmas decorations, hats, scarves, gloves…

The best thing about this Budapest Christmas market is the surrounding environment and the Christmas tree that is set up in front of the bastion.

Gozsdu Passage Christmas market 

• Dates: from 8 to 24 December
• Open: from Monday to Thursday from 12 to 7 pm; Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 10 am to 7 pm

Gozsdu Passage is one of the most lively nightlife spots in Budapest, perfect for partying or having a drink. Every weekend there is a designer and antique market, where you can buy antique and vintage goods.

In December, they decorate the courtyard with Christmas trees and lights and hold a craft market. If you’re lucky, you might run into some giant elves 😉.

You can enter the Gozsdu Courtyard from 13 Király Street or 16 Dob Street.

WAMP Christmas Market (Bálna)

The Bálna shopping centre (named after the whale-shaped building) is located at övám tér 11-12.

At Christmas they have an ice-skating rink on a terrace and an original market of local designers, which has nothing to do with what you’ll find in the rest of Budapest’s Christmas markets.

🗓 The dates for the WAMP Christmas Market 2023 were 3, 10 and 17 December. The dates for 2024 are still to be confirmed.

Other Christmas markets in Budapest

If you are going to spend more than 3 days in the city and want to visit other less touristy Christmas markets in Budapest, here are some suggestions:

Mádach Square Christmas Market: from 3 to 22 December.

Corvin Hütte Christmas Market: 23 November to 24 December.

Christmas market in the Allee shopping centre: from 1 to 24 December.

Castle Bazar Christmas Market, a good plan to do in Budapest at Christmas with children.

Note

• In Budapest, the main Christmas markets usually open at the end of November. But my advice, if you want to experience the magic of Christmas 100%, is to travel in December.
• There are some smaller markets that don’t open until 1 December, such as Obuda or Castel Bazar, and some streets are not yet illuminated.
• It’s a very cold destination, so dress warmly. We had two days of snow at the end of November and temperatures ranged from 5°C to 0°C. So pack warmly. So pack warm T-shirts, hats, scarves and a Christmas jumper.
• On the street leading up from the Danube, Zrínyi u Street (where the statue of the fat policeman is) you’ll also find stalls.
• Try a hot chocolate at the New York Café, one of the best things to do in Budapest at Christmas.
• Café Gerbeaud is another of Budapest’s Christmas attractions and one of the most beautiful cafés in the city and one of the oldest in Europe. It is located in Vörösmarty Square and its interior is elegantly decorated.

We hope that our post about visiting Budapest at Christmas will help you to enjoy the city at this beautiful time of the year. If you have any questions or suggestions you can write to us in the comments.