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OPENING HOURS, HOLIDAYS AND
FESTIVALS |
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During the week, general office hours are from 8am to 4.30 or 5pm,
but it's worth remembering that some smaller places may close for an
hour at lunchtime and shut around 3pm on Fridays. Aside from shops and
tourist offices, which have the most varied of opening hours (see below),
the most obvious exceptions are museums, which are almost always closed
on Mondays. Otherwise, opening times are affected by public holidays,
when most things shut down - museums have opening times that vary
according to the holiday, and are not reliably open; we've given a list
of holidays.
Shops are generally open Monday to Friday from 10am to 6pm and on
Saturdays from 9am to 1pm, although many shops in the capital, plus the
larger shopping centres, have longer opening hours. In addition, most
shopping centres now open for a few hours on Sundays. Supermarkets and
grocery stores open from 7 or 8am to 7 or 8pm, but again expect longer
opening hours in the larger centres. In Budapest and larger towns there
are numerous 24-hour shops - the signs to look for are Non-Stop, 0-24 or
Ejjel-Nappali. Post offices in most places are open Monday to Friday 8am
to 6pm and Saturdays 8am to 1pm, although in larger towns and cities,
these hours may be an hour or two longer. Conversely, those in smaller
towns and villages typically close at 4pm. Most banks open Monday to
Thursday from 8am to 3pm or 4pm, and on Fridays until 1pm or 2pm.
Pharmacy opening hours are normally Monday to Friday 9am to 6 or 7pm and
Saturdays 9am to noon or 1pm; signs in the window give the location or
telephone number of the nearest all-night ( éjjeli or ügyeleti szolgálat
) pharmacy.
Of all the institutions, tourist offices have the most convoluted
opening hours with inevitable and wide-ranging differences between the
summer and winter periods. Summer opening times (typically June to
September) are, generally speaking, weekdays 8am to 6 or 7pm and
weekends 10am to 4 or 5pm, and during the winter Monday to Friday only
from 9am to 4 or 5pm. However, many offices deviate from these hours;
opening hours for all offices are detailed throughout the guide.
Museums are generally open Tuesday to Sunday 10am to 6pm (winter 9 or
10am to 4pm, or earlier), but there are many exceptions; current hours
are detailed in the guide. As public subsidies are withdrawn, many of
the smaller museums may close down altogether over winter. Hungary's
thermal baths are usually open daily from 8 or 9am to 6 or 7pm, although
some open at 6am - as most of the baths in Budapest do.
Public holidays
On the following days, most things in Hungary shut down. When these
holidays fall on a Tuesday or Thursday, the day between it and the
weekend may also become a holiday, and the previous or next Saturday a
working day to make up the lost day.
January 1 New Year's Day
March 15 Independence Day
Easter Monday
May 1 Labour Day
August 20 St Stephen's Day
October 23 National holiday
December 25 (Since Christmas celebrations start on the 24th, many shops
will be closed the whole day, and by the afternoon everything closes
down.)
December 26
Festivals
The Hungarian calendar is replete with some marvellous festivals and
events, and whilst most of the bigger ones take place in Budapest,
you'll find plenty happening throughout the rest of the country too.
Naturally enough, most festivals take place over the summer but if
you're visiting any other time, you shouldn't have too much difficulty
in tracking down some kind of event; Tourinform can fill you in on
what's happening.
Most Hungarian festivals typically feature a varied programme of
classical and contemporary music mixed with art and theatrical
performances, but there are many other uniquely "Hungarian" events
taking place. More generally, religious festivals have been busily
revived in recent years, and at Christmas and, more so, at Easter, the
churches and cathedrals are packed - particularly in Esztergom, the seat
of Hungarian Catholicism. Wine festivals are an integral and immensely
enjoyable part of the Hungarian festival scene, with each wine-producing
centre staging its own celebration at some time during the year (typically
between May and October). The key ones occur in Balatonboglár, Eger,
Koszeg, Sopron, Szekszárd and Tokaj. Historical pageants , taking place
at Veszprém, Tihany, Gyula, Esztergom and, most notably, Visegrád, are
extremely popular, as are the equestrian shows with their "rodeo"
atmosphere and amazing displays of horsemanship at Nagyvázsony,
Apajpuszta, Tamási, Kisbér, Szántódpuszta and Hortobágy.
It is also worth knowing about the tradition of name-day celebrations ,
which are as important to Hungarians as birthdays are in other countries.
Customarily, the celebrant invites relatives and friends to a party, and
receives gifts and salutations. Lest you forget someone's name-day,
tradition allows congratulations to be rendered up to a week afterwards.
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