Are you coming to Budapest this Easter? Are you wondering whether or not stores, museums, thermal baths, and restaurants are open? What about the river cruises? What should you expect if you come to Budapest for Easter? Will you meet closed doors, or will life be as normal?
First of all, grocery stores, restaurants, thermal baths, and museums are normally open on Sundays. But, Easter is different. Here you can read about the different important Easter days and how they influence opening times in Budapest.
Opening times during Easter in Budapest.
Opening times on Palm Sunday in Budapest.
The first day many people are curious about is Palm Sunday, the day on which Jesus came into Jerusalem on the back of a donkey. This is an entirely normal Sunday, meaning grocery stores, museums, thermal baths, restaurants, and other institutions operate with their normal opening times. As a result, almost everything is open and available on this day.
Opening times on Maundy Thursday in Budapest.
Thursday is the day of the Last Supper with Jesus and his disciples. Hungary does not give much attention to this day, meaning that life goes on as normal, giving you the chance to shop in H&M, eat cake in Gerbaud, and enjoy the hot springs in the Gellert bath.
Opening times on Good Friday in Budapest.
Good Friday has been a national holiday in Budapest for some years. As a result, all grocery stores are closed, and so are fashion stores. Luckily for tourists, restaurants and museums remain open on this day, and the same is true about the thermal baths and the boats traveling up and down the river. Cinemas are also open if you want to watch a movie. On the day after, Saturday, business is back to usual, meaning you can once again go to grocery stores and fashion stores.
Opening times on Easter Sunday in Budapest.
Easter Sunday is very identical to Good Friday. In other words, grocery stores and fashion stores are closed. Besides that, most restaurants, thermal baths, river cruises, cinemas, and similar activities operate at full power due to the large number of tourists coming to Budapest to celebrate Easter.
Opening times on Easter Monday in Budapest.
Easter Monday is identical to Good Friday and Easter Sunday. You might find some 24/7 mini grocery stores open here and there, but all the big brands (Aldi, Lidl, Spar, CBA, Tesco, Auchan) are closed. This is not a day for shopping in Zara or Pull&Bear either, but if you are eager to go shopping, you should check out the Easter market which normally is open at the Vörösmarty square every day throughout Easter.
What are normal opening times like in Budapest?
- On a normal day, a grocery store opens at 6.00 or 7.00 and remains open until 20.00 or 21.00. Some close earlier on Saturdays and even earlier on Sundays.
- On a normal day, a clothes store opens at 10.00 and remains open until 20.00. Many fashion stores close earlier on Sundays.
- Thermal baths open at 6.00 or 7.00 and remain open until somewhere between 18.00 and 22.00.
- Museums often open at 10.00 and remain open until sometime between 18.00 and 20.00. Some museums are closed on Mondays.
Other programs in Budapest
Would you like to enjoy other programs in Budapest? Take a look at our Budapest calendar to find out what’s going on in Budapest while you visit the city.
There are of course some exceptions to the rule, especially in smaller restaurants (like Comme Chez Soi) and if you visit Szentendre most shops there only accept payment in cash. However the general “rule” is that shops in the shopping street Vaci utca, shops in the malls and so on accept payment with VISA.