Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

Best Programs Between Christmas and New Year's Eve

Best Programs Between Christmas and New Year's Eve

Hungary, and especially Budapest, offers a wide range of holiday programs between Christmas and New Year’s Eve for those who wish to get out with their family or friends.
Theater


Those who are interested can see perhaps the most famous Christmas ballet performance, The Nutcracker with Tchaikovsky’s music in Erkel Theater until January 8, 2022. More information about this year’s performance, including tickets, can be found here.




Circus


Theater is not the only kind of performance one can enjoy. From October 29 to December 31, the Capital Circus of Budapest awaits children and adults with a circus show called Sky Dance. They promise a real Christmas atmosphere. This season, the stage belongs to foreign world stars but the circus also has its own stars: heroic artists and charming dancers, jugglers, funny clowns, and acrobats, according to their website.



Moreover, Szilvia Kárászy provided the Budapest Grand Circus with a special instrument using bells, unique in Europe, created by the pianist and composer with masters of instrument making. The sixteen metal bells are played by metal hammers controlled and guided by an electric piano. It is an innovative experiment to put such a special instrument in the nine-member functional orchestra of the Budapest Grand Circus. The special atmosphere of the bells evokes the spirit of Christmas.

Ice skating


The inevitable winter activity can be enjoyed in many places in the Hungarian capital. The most famous is the City Park Ice Rink, which reopened this year after taking a break last year due to the pandemic. The rink’s history goes back to 1870. It began to receive the first masses of skaters on January 29, 1870, when it was ceremonially inaugurated by Crown Prince Rudolph.

A new spot that skaters can try for the first time is Budapest Park. Previously used as a large dance floor, the area now caters to skating and winter enthusiasts with a monumental ice rink of over 1,200 square meters, open seven days a week.

Those who want to sip a hot beverage and slide on the ice above the city can try WestEnd’s Winter Wonderland on the rooftop of the shopping center until December 31.


But ice skating rinks are not exclusive to Budapest. For example, a new one has been built in Szigliget. There, visitors can enjoy the view of Lake Balaton from the castle courtyard of Szigliget.



For more ice skating spots, click here.

Christmas Markets


Another must when it comes to winter programs is visiting Christmas Markets and there is no shortage of them in Hungary. We have already collected the most beautiful ones outside of Budapest. In the capital, the biggest and most popular are the ones in Vörösmarty Square and at St Stephen’s Basilica. The latter has been voted as the best in Europe for yet another year, after already being first in 2019 and second in 2020. The 11th annual Advent Feast at the Basilica is open to visitors until Jan. 1. It features a photo exhibition, an ice rink, a selfie spot, a 3D light show projected onto the facade of the Basilica, and around 100 arts and crafts and culinary exhibitors.

Christmas trams


While going from one program to another, people can hop on a tram, and if they are lucky, it might just be one that is decorated with Christmas lights. As every year for 13 years now, trams are decorated with lights, but “this year, even more Budapest citizens will be able to see the vehicles decorated in this way, as they will travel to even more places in the capital than in previous years,” said Gergely Karácsony, mayor of Budapest. As we also reported before, not only did trams receive the LED lights, but some trains and even one cogwheel train did as well.

Hiking


The most popular hiking spot in Budapest, especially in the winter, is Normafa. For the residents of the capital, winter in Normafa means skiing, sledding, and even cross-country skiing, so it is not surprising that the high attendance on snowy weekends multiplies. A first-aid service is also provided on snowy weekend days for the safety of visitors.


The website of Normafa recommends using public transport, as unfortunately there are often not enough parking spaces for visitors on weekdays, and on weekends visitors can find the parking lot already full at 10 am.

Thermal baths


As we also reported before, an article from The Guardian suggesting 10 new winter holidays in Europe for skiers and non-skiers also lists Budapest as one of the possible destinations. They suggest that a three-day visit “is enough to pack in the city’s thermal spa baths, Buda Castle, clubbing in the Jewish Quarter, and the Christmas markets.”


There may not be anything as relaxing as visiting the thermal baths, especially after spending the days before skating, walking around a Christmas market, or hiking. A list of Budapest’s baths can be found here. The most famous ones are Széchenyi, Gellért, and the Rudas baths. One can even choose to celebrate New Year’s Eve in Rudas with a DJ set all night, with champagne, and dinner at midnight. Tickets for the event are available here.

While there are exceptions, especially in the case of programs that are held outside, most of them require a Covid-19 immunization certificate and a face mask too, so it is important to check what applies to each event before heading out.

AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
German Finance Minister Criticizes Trump’s Attacks on Institutions
India Rejects U.S. Tariff Threat, Defends Russian Oil Purchases
United States Establishes Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and Digital Asset Stockpile
Thousands of Private ChatGPT Conversations Accidentally Indexed by Google
China Tightens Mineral Controls, Curtailing Critical Inputs for Western Defence Contractors
OpenAI’s Bold Bet: Teaching AI to Think, Not Just Chat
U.S. Tariffs Surge to Highest Levels in Nearly a Century Under Second Trump Term
Ong Beng Seng Pleads Guilty in Corruption Case Linked to Former Singapore Transport Minister
BP’s Largest Oil and Gas Find in 25 Years Uncovered Offshore Brazil
Italy Fines Shein One Million Euros for Misleading Sustainability Claims
JPMorgan and Coinbase Unveil Partnership to Let Chase Cardholders Buy Crypto Directly
Declassified Annex Links Soros‑Affiliated Officials and Clinton Campaign to ‘Russiagate’ Narrative
UK's Online Safety Law: A Front for Censorship
Parents Abandon Child at Barcelona Airport Over Passport Issue
Bus Driver Discovers Toddler Hidden in Suitcase in New Zealand
Switzerland Celebrates 734 Years of Independence Amid Global Changes
China Enforces Comprehensive Ban on Cryptocurrency Activities
Grok 4 Video plus Voice, can identify wildlife!
George Soros tells the World Economic Forum: "President Trump is a con man and the ultimate narcissist, who wants the world to revolve around him."
Hamas are STARVING the hostages.
The UK Does Not Have a ‘Far-Right’ Problem
British Tourist Dies Following Hair Transplant in Turkey, Police Investigate
WhatsApp Users Targeted in New Scam Involving Account Takeovers
JD Vance Warns Europe Faces “Civilizational Suicide” Over Open Borders and Speech Limits
Germany Enters Fiscal Crisis as Cabinet Approves €174 Billion in New Debt
Trump Administration Finalizes Broad Tariff Increases on Global Trade Partners
JD.com Launches €2.2 Billion Bid for German Electronics Retailer Ceconomy
Azerbaijan Proceeds with Plan to Legalise Casinos on Artificial Islands
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
House Republicans Move to Defund OECD Over Global Tax Dispute
France Opens Criminal Investigation into X Over Algorithm Manipulation Allegations
Trump Steamrolls EU in Landmark Trade Win: US–EU Trade Deal Imposes 15% Tariff on European Imports
ChatGPT CEO Sam Altman says people share personal info with ChatGPT but don’t know chats can be used as court evidence in legal cases.
Intel Reports Revenue Beats but Sees 81% Rise in Losses
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
UN's Top Court Declares Environmental Protection a Legal Obligation Under International Law
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
The Podcaster Who Accidentally Revealed He Earns Over $10 Million a Year
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
President Trump Diagnosed with Chronic Venous Insufficiency After Leg Swelling
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
Tulsi Gabbard Unveils Evidence Alleging Political Manipulation of Intelligence During Trump Administration
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Trump Announces Coca-Cola to Shift to Cane Sugar in U.S. Production
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
×