Festivals, Activities For A Fun Autumn
October in Budapest looks to be just as exciting as the event-rich September was.
Although the so-called vĂ©nasszonyok nyara (also known as Indian summer– a 8-10 day warm period at end of September the beginning of October) seems to be less warm and sunny than it was in previous years a couple of
- Foodie events,
- Art festivals,
- Concerts, and
- Halloween Parties offer entertainment in the middle of autumn.
Table of Contents
Table of Contents – October In Budapest
NEW Program: Wine Tasting in The City Centre
The Wine Tasting Experience in Palinka Museum
Savor the complexity and heritage of Hungarian wines as you explore a curated selection, ranging from the renowned Tokaj to the robust Kadarkas of VillĂĄny, guided by our knowledgeable specialists.
9 different wines for tasting / 9 different charcuteries
Saturdays: 18.00/6 pm – Limited Places!
Duration: 120 min. â Price âŹ57
Halloween Programs, All Saints Day, 26. October – 01. November
If you plan to celebrate the last day of October in Budapest here are some tips on Halloween parties, festivals.
On 1st and 2nd November we remember our dead relatives, friends in Hungary.
People pay a visit to their dead relatives’ graves in cemeteries, lighting candles and lanterns.
This is a great time to take a walk in one of Budapest’s famous cemeteries.
Some Halloween Program Recommendations.
- Budapest Zoo will have exciting programs on the evening of October 27, Friday. Entry for kids uner 14 yrs: 300 HUF, adults: 6 000 HUF
- Halloween Nights In Gozsdu Court between October 28 – November 01
- Most escape rooms offer halloween themed programs
Note: 1st November – All Saints Day is a public holiday: shops, markets, services are closed.
The baths are open according to weekend schedule and pricing.
TIP: Halloween Boat Parties: Booze/Cocktail Cruise
Date & Time
Halloween Booze / Cocktail Party Cruise
Dates: 28.October and 31.October
Departure Time: 10PM
Duration: 120 min. â Price: âŹ45
- October 28 and 30 at 22.00 till 00.00
Have fun on a special, Halloween decorated party boat.
- Welcome drink
- All-you can drink (wine, beer, prosecco, soft drinks, coffee, tea, minearl water) or 3 cocktails of your choice including halloween-themed creations
- Raffle ticket
- Lively party music and atmosphere
- 2-hour sightseeing excursion on the Danube are all included in the price.
Tickets:
- 45 EUR
TIP: Browse also our hand-picked list of the greatest boat parties in Budapest, available all-year round!
Ruin Bar Crawl – Drunken History Of Budapest
Join a crazy fun bar crawl party with a local tour guide! You’ll visit three of the city’s best ruin pubs during the 3 hour walk tour.
Come and connect with other travelers, share stories, and make lasting memories while trying Hungary’s best drinks.
What’s Included?
- 4 local drinks
- Skip-the-line entry to 3 famous ruin bars
- Guiding
Price:
- 39 EUR/person
Wine Festival In The Whale/Vingardium, October 28
Location/Address:
- Whale (BĂĄlna) Shopping Centre, FĆvĂĄm tĂ©r 11-12, Bp 1093
Opening Hours:
- 17.00 – 20.00
Tickets:
- Early bird: 10.00 HUF (Sold out)
- Online ticktes: 12 000 HUF
- At The Door: 14 000 HUF
What’s Included In The Ticket Price?:
- Unlimited tasting from wines of nearly 30 Hungarian wine makers
- Live music in the afternoon will add more color to the program
- DJ will take care of the party atmosphere in the evening
The Whale/BĂĄlna, a spectacular event venue in the Pest riverbank, hosts a wine festival this Saturday where you can choose to try from a wide selection of local wines.
Besides the wines, you can also sample the delicious bites in the food court:
Grill dishes, tapas & more, coffee and desserts – a feast of flavors ensure that you can chill in the bean bags between or after tasting,
Not to mention the most panoramic views of Budapest that you can take in from the covered terrace. It really is a great indoor program if the weathaer is not so nice on the last Saturday of October 2023.
Concerts in Budapest – Enjoy Some Classical Music!
October in Budapest also offers a nice selection of classical music concerts. You can choose from a wide array of cultural entertainment
- Organ Concerts in the city’s St. Stephen Basilica,
- Folklore performances combined with a night boat excursion with dinner.
Bach Festival In Buda Castle, October 18 – November 01
Location, Address:
- Lutheran Church in Buda Castle (BudavĂĄri Evangelikus Templom), TĂĄncsics MihĂĄly utca 28, Bp 1014 (on Google Map)
Dates of Concerts:
- October 18, 20, 22, 24, 26, 28, 30
- November 01
Outstanding musicians pay tribute to the work of J.S. Bach through 8 concerts exclusively using historical, baroque instruments.
Admission is free, and donations to support the festival are gratefully accepted on-site.
The concerts start at 19.00 / 7:00 pm.
TIP: The Baroque Church of St. Michael in VĂĄci Street also hosts concerts on Wednesdays and Saturdays starting at 19.00.
The historic church with its outstanding acoustics is a perfect place to enjoy an orchestra or soloist performance.
There will be:
- Paganini & Liszt in Budapest in the Liszt Academy Concert Center
- Strauss & Mahler, Budapest Festival Orchestra in the Palace of Arts
- Mozart & Chopin Piano Concertos in the Liszt Academy Concert Center (Liszt F. tér 8., district VI.).
See also other Concerts Halls in Budapest.
Museum Exhibitions in October In Budapest
This month offers a range of fantastic exhibitions for both grown ups and kids.
World Press Photo Exhibition, till November 05. 2023
Venue, Address
- Hungarian National Museum, MĂșzeum krt. 14-16., district VIII.,
Opening Hours:
- Tuesday- Sunday: 10.00 – 18.00
- Extended opening hours on Oct 23 and Nov 05: 10.00 – 20.00
Tickets:
- Full price: 4 500 HUF,
- Students, senior (above 62 years): 3 000 HUF
The World Press Photo (WPP) exhibition and photo contest is one of the most famous and largest photo exhibitions in Hungary and around the world, attracting enormous interest wherever it is held.
The award winner photos are taken on a travelling exhibition around the world.
Between September 22 – November 05 Budapest gives home to the exhibit so you’ll still have this month to drop by the National Museum and see these extraordinary photos.
Café Tip of the Month
Budapest is a cafe capital with a nicely growing number of 3rd wave cafes as well as several classic coffee houses and places in between.
Mantra Specialty Coffee Bar
Address: Veres Pålné utca 17., district V.
Opening Hours:
- Mon – Fri: 07.30 – 20.00,
- Sat: 09.00 – 20.00,
- Sun: 09.00 – 17.00
New wave coffee bars are popping up almost monthly in Budapest.
Mantra in a small street just off VĂĄci utca in downtown opened in 2014 has quickly become a popular place for those who can’t start the day without proper coffee.
The place has the two essential ingredients for excellent espresso and other coffee drinks made with more gentle, pour-over methods (Chemex, Clever Dripper, AeroPress) – the best way to enjoy the terroir characteristics of an excellent single origin roasted to light brown:
- Expert baristas – two young guys KrisztiĂĄn and Attila manage the cafe, who are passionate and educated about all things coffee.
- Freshly roasted, top-quality, farm-selected coffee beans supplied by an Italian artisan roaster Gardelli, and the local Casino Mocca micro roastery.
You can opt for espresso (single-420 HUF, double or naked), americano or filter coffee.
Milk-based drinks are naturally also on the menu made from the slightly darker roast of Gardelli Coffee: macchiato, cortado, flat white, latte.
Mantra is also known for the wide variety of cold brews and chilled coffee drinks (V60 Fretta, Iwaki, Mizudashi, Iced Aeropress- all between 640-890 HUF, Iced Double Americano: 590 HUF ) that are popular during the summer waves.
But with days getting colder and colder you’ll appreciate Mantra’s hot chocolate or tea selection as well.
The chai latte is also exceptional here though I haven’t tried it yet.
The food selection includes quality bakery goods and cake. I had cocoa snail made supplied by PékmƱhely.
Professional, coffee enthusiast and kind staff, great pastries and first and foremost good coffee. Highly recommended!
Past Events In October
OktoberFest Budapest, Sept 29-Oct 01, & Oct 06 – 08
Although Budapest’s Oktoberfest is not as big an event as the one in Munchen it is still a great place to be at the first weekend of October.
Venue:
- #1 – Fröccsterasz-, next to ErzsĂ©bet Square in the city centre, address: ErzsĂ©bet tĂ©r 11-13., Budapest 1051, (M1, M2, M3 metro lines, DeĂĄk Ferenc tĂ©r station, a short walk from there
- #2 – Margaret island, gastro Promenade, take tram 4 or 6, get off at Margitsziget
Entry: FREE
Opening Hours – Fröccsterasz Location Sept 29 – Oct 01 & Oct 06 – 08:
- Friday: 17.00 – 22.00
- Saturday: 12.00 – 22.00
- Sunday: 14.00 – 20.00
Opening Hours – Margaret Island Location, Sept 29 – Oct 01:
- Friday: 17.00 – 22.00
- Saturday: 12.00 – 22.00
- Sunday: 12.00 – 20.00
The festival welcomes beer lovers at two venues
- Fröccsterasz – an outdoor bar in downtown right next to ErzsĂ©bet tĂ©r park, easily accessible from any point of the city.
- Margaret Island Gastro promenade
Some Of The Programs:
- lots of beer inc. the award-winner brew of the Munchen Oktoberfest
- Great food: street food, local specialties
- Concerts
Chimney Cake Festival (KĂŒrtös KalĂĄcs FesztivĂĄl), October 13-15
If you love sweet things and want to taste this popular Hungarian pastry in as many flavours as possible then put the dates of the Chimeny Cake Festival in your calendar.
Venue:
- Budapest Zoo and Botanical Garden
- Address:
Opening Hours:
- October: 12.00 – 22.00
Entry:
- Zoo entry ticket
A wide selection of the iconic pastry in more than 30 flavours as well as great programs await visitors to the 3-day festival in Budapest Zoo and Botanical Garden in City Park.
On Friday you can get a choice of your sekler cake at half price at every booth.
You can bake your own kĂŒrtös kalĂĄcs, a traditional Transylvanian pastry in cylinder shape baked on open fire then coated with
- Sugar,
- Ground walnut,
- Cinnamon or
- Coconut flakes
Besides the cake, Transylvanian and Hungarian wines, pĂĄlinka, craft chocolate and other goodies make the Sekler Cake Festival a great weekend program in October.
Lots of activities, games for children in the Gyerekliget area.
Programs each day in the Charcoal Courtyard where you can see a grill show have food made on charcoal that you can wash down with craft beer.
DIY Chimeny Cake: Make your own cake with the help of the bakers of VitĂ©z KĂŒrtöskalĂĄcs. You’ll learn to roll the dough onto the bake roll then bake it on special Bake ‘n Roll party ovens. Two cakes will cost: 1 500 HUF.
WAMP Design Fair In The Ethnography Museum, October 15
Location:
- Museum Of Ethnography, 2nd Floor, DĂłzsa György Ășt 35, Budapest 1146 (VĂĄrosliget/City Park) – See On Google Map
Getting there:
- Tram 4, 6 KirĂĄly utca-ErzsĂ©bet körĂșt stop, Trolley No 70- travel 6 stops, tram 4, 6 to Oktogon then M1 underground (yellow line) till HĆsök tere station, 5 min (300 m) walk from there
Opening Hours:
- Sunday, October 15: 10.00 – 18.00
Entry: FREE
At the WAMP Design fair, Hungarian designers will showcase their own designed, limited-edition products, whether it be clothing, jewelry, accessories, home decor items, photography, or even culinary delights.
What’s more the October edition of the fair moves in to the striking building of the new Ethnography Museum in Budapest’s City Park.
Budapest Marathon & Running Festival, October 14-15, 2023
With nearly 20 000 participants the Budapest Marathon has evolved into a major sport event during its 30 decades of history.
The 42 km route includes the most scenic part of the city (the Danube banks with the bridges, Castle Hill, GellĂ©rt Hill, Heroes’ Square) all part of the UNESCO’s World Heritage program.
Even the CNN felt that the Budapest Marathon must be included in its month-by month Running Calendar in which they recommend an exciting race from all over the world for each month.
Grape Harvest Festival In Hunyadi Square Market, October 21
Location, Address:
- Food Market at Hunyadi tér 6, Budapest 1067, district VI.
Opening Hours:
- Sunday, October 21: 09.00 – 14.00
Entry: FREE
The grape harvest is in full swing at the vineyards, and you can expereince this autumn tradition amongts hustle and bustle of Hunyadi Square in the city centre!
The market stalls will be filled with homemade products from local producers, including
- Grapes,
- Cheeses perfect for wine, and other treats.
You can also taste wine of various Hungraian wineries.
TIP: Besides the best-known Great Market Hall, Budapest has a dozen of other great fod markets that we wrote about in this post.
RAKPART/Danube Embankment Programs, October 21 – 23
The lower embankment in Pest will be open to pedestrians, bikers for the last time in 2023 during the long weekend of October 21-23.
Concerts, children’s programs, and a candlelit dinner await visitors along the familiar route: from the IrĂĄnyi Street ramp near the Elizabeth Bridge to the Margit Bridge.
You can enjyo one of the most beautiful and world-famous panoramic city view in a quiet, peaceful, and vehicle-free environment.
Jane Haining Quay offers a leisure park and public space for pedestrians, while the Viaduct is open under the tracks of tram 2.
Various entertaining, musical, and educational programs will add color to this year’s final embankment opening.
You can participate in:
- Tai chi or yoga exercises, while enthusiasts
- Can get to know the cargo bike or take part in a
- Bicycle tour combined with a historical journey.
Dinner By Candle Light On Monday, October 23, 17.30 –
There will also be handicraft workshops, community theater, concerts, children’s programs, and on Monday, a candlelit dinner with music will bid farewell to this year’s embankment opening.
Don’t expect a fancy menu though: bread slices spread with lard and red onion slices will be served with hot tea.
October 23. National Day – Hungarian Revolution 1956
October 23. is a public holiday in Hungary when we commemorate the revolution of 1956 against the Russian-communist oppression.
- Shops, markets, services are closed,
- Public transport services run according to holiday schedule.
- Note: thermal baths are open according to Sunday schedule and pricing!
- Most museums are free to visit (the permanent exhibits only)
Learn more about the historical background and programs on 23. October in Budapest.
Related:
Budapest in September – November Festivals, Programs – December Things To Do
