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Hungarian Market photo by Valerio Pillar
Hungarian Market photo by Valerio Pillar

Budapest Market Halls

Budapest boasts not one but several historical market halls, most of which are in, or close to the city centre, like the Central Market Hall also known as the  Budapest Great Market Hall , which is the most well known of them. It has been the belly of Budapest since the 19th century, a central fresh food market nowadays with gift, clothes, bag etc. stalls and lots of street food vendors. Visit the hall on your own, or book a food tour to have some guided tastings in a Budapest Market & Food Tour, learn about the history of the Market Halls, and Hungarian traditional foods, tips for recipes.

Free Entry to the Historical Market Halls in Budapest

You can visit the market halls in Budapest free of charge as all of them are functioning as lively market places. There is no extra admission, you can browse the goods of the food / drink / craft stalls like at any other market in a city.

How to Get to City Central Market Halls in Budapest?

Great Market Hall – by the river Danube on the Pest side of Budapest near the green historical bridge (Liberty Bridge), overlooking the UNESCO World Heritage (the Danube embankment with major sights like the Buda Castle, Gellert Hill, etc.), and more architectural attractions like the green Liberty Bridge or Gellert Spa.

Downtown Market Hall (Hold Street) – within walking distance to the Hungarian Parliament building in a less touristy Hold Street. Its interior is very similar to the Great Market Hall (as the photo shows) but on a less grand scale. That said, one of the favourite markets of locals in Budapest.

Perfect Rainy Day Programme

As the hall is covered with a beautiful roof, you can plan your visit for rainy days.

Other Market Halls in Budapest

Other market halls worth visiting include

  • the Rakoczi Market Hall near the tram 4/6 – Pest side of Budapest
  • the Klauzal Square Market Hall in the old Jewish District (not at its best, waiting for restoration) – – Pest side of Budapest
  • Lehel Market Hall – colourful and kitschy modern building withing walking distance from WestEnd Shopping Mall  – Pest side of Budapest
  • the Batthyany Square Market Hall on the Buda side (nowadays with groceries and offices, no food stalls)  – Buda side of Budapest
  • Feny Street Market – contemporary building next to Mammut Shopping Mall  – Buda side of Budapest

 

34 comments

  1. Fernando Silva

    Hello! I really love tour market, beautiful, good Food and drinks!
    Also nice people and friendly.I watt to visit again!
    The only bad thing is that on May 28th I was stolen my Nike black handbag with my wallet, money, all documents, panasonic fs35 câmera and NEW Samsung galáxy s3 cellphone,blue.
    The tourism help are very nice and try help, the security nice but did….nothing!
    Then come 2 police Who did nothing and went away!!!
    I would love to gente my Sd Card with all my photos. I will give reward if somobody finds it.
    Thank you

    Fernando silva

    • Budapest Market Hall

      Dear Fernando, we are terribly sorry to hear about your misfortune.
      The Market Hall is a very busy place often full of people. Just like in any big city, including Budapest, London, Lisbon, Paris or Tokyo, bustling with hundreds of thousands of people, leaving your bag unattended is a major risk of getting it stolen.
      We hope that your card full of photos will be recovered.

      • Hi – will you be open on Easter Monday (March 28)? We are visiting from London and would love to stop by. If so, what are your hours?

        Thank you,
        Alex

        • Budapest Market Hall

          Hello Alex, thank you for visiting Budapest from London, hope you will love our city.
          On Easter Monday the market halls are usually closed unfortunately.

      • Hi there,

        I would like to ASK you at what time are you closing todas, monday Novemeber 1st?

        • Budapest Market Hall

          Hello Jose Maria,
          Nov 1 is a national holiday, therefore the Market Hall will be closed all day. Hope you can visit on a different day.

  2. Hola! I would like to know when is the next event of Mexican Food in the Market Hall? I recently moved to Hungary from Acapulco and i would like to purchase some ingredients from my Country. Thank you very much and have a nice day!

  3. Is the Great Market Hall (Central Market Hall) open on October 6, 2015? A Budapest tour guide told me that it would be closed that day due to a National Holiday. However, I have been unable to determine what holiday is on October 6, 2015. This is the only day I have available to visit the market. Can you clarify?

  4. Dear, is the Central market place in Bydapest Open on Friday 21 August 2015?
    Kind regards

  5. We purchased some embroidered linens from the market when we were there and would like to purchase more to be shipped to us. Is there a directory of vendors available for us to shop online or wholesalers?

  6. Any days coming up for 2015? It is almost over…

  7. Hello

    I have about 50 tons of wild blue fin tuna that we can deliver from Croatia until the New Years. Daily we can deliver between 1000 to 2000kg. Each Tuna is between 40 and 60 kilograms; sometimes it can be between 100 and 150 kilograms. The price is very competitive and GUG ( not guts or gills)
    How would it be possible to see this Tuna at the Market in Budapest ?

    Warm Regards

    John McGrath

  8. When is the Polish festival days in summer 2017?
    We would like to visit again as I really enjoyed last summer.
    Thanks.

  9. Hello, I would Know if the Central Market Hall will be open on first of may!
    Thanks

  10. Patryk Sielecki

    Dear Sir or Madam

    I am an executive producer of a television programme ‘David in Europe’, which focuses on the topics both cooking and travelling. The programme is produced by TV WORKING studio and aired on Polish channel Kitchen+, which belongs to the Canal+ group.
    During each series, our host David Gaboriaud, a Poland-based French chef and traveler explores the most beautiful regions of Europe and reveals their characteristic cuisine and culture. Additionally, in each episode David cooks two dishes, which refer to the regional cuisine. To provide the audience with the best representation of the local culinary traditions, David focuses on using local products and visiting domestic markets. So far, he has visited Spain, Portugal, France, Italy, Scandinavia and the Baltic States.
    The Episodes aim to explore the culture and cuisine of Hungary, along with promoting the top outdoor activities of the country. By showing the most stunning culinary attractions alongside with the natural beauty of the three following cities – Kesztheley, Budapest and Szeged, we hope to encourage the viewers of Canal+ to visit Hungary.
    One part of our program is cooking the courses. We are doing it from local products. So another important part is buying ingredients. We always visit local markets. In following episode We would like to visit your place. In this episode it would be grate to show the oldest and biggest market in Budapest. So I would like to invite you to our program. We will be in Budapest at the 12th of June and the morning hours would be the most convenient.

    To conclude, It would be grateful if you will be interested in collaboration. Please let me know and i will send you the details.

    Below I would like to present you key benefits of cooperation with TV WORKING studio:

    1. Three magnificent episodes of ‘David in Europe’ dedicated exclusively to the cultural promotion of Hungary in one of the most often watched thematic channels in Poland.
    2. Promotion of Hungary in Poland by presenting its attractions: culinary, history, cultural, as well as active recreation.
    3. Uploading pictures of Hungary on social media such as Instagram and Facebook.
    4. Placing the logo and acknowledgments for Hungary and your company in the closing credits.

    I would really appreciate if you could help us.

    I look forward to hearing from you.
    Yours sincerly,
    Patryk sielecki

    Patryk Sielecki
    executive producer

  11. Sandra Rowntree

    Please can you tell me if the Market is open on Saturday 21st October 2017. I know that 23rd is a National holiday and that the Market is usually closed on Sundays so Saturday would be the only day to buy food before everything closes for the Monday Festival for 60th anniversary.

  12. Dear Sir/Madame
    I was wondering if the Market will be open on Easter Monday, April 2nd.

    Thanks for answering

  13. Hello,
    I would like to know how much costs the market tour, we are a group of 80 students. Are there any discounts for students?

  14. Hi from Új-zéland!

    My father had a stall at the central market during World War 2 and earlier. Does the market retain any historical records about stall holders from 1920s and 1930s please?

    Köszönöm szépen!

  15. I bought the worst and the most expensive food today during my entire stay in Hungary. For 2 rolls with sausage, I paid over 8,000, despite the price on the menu. I was so shocked that I paid and left. What’s worse, the food was nasty. Never again

  16. Hello,
    We would like to visit The Market Hall on Sunday, December 16th. Does the market have modified hours on Sundays due to the Christmas shopping?

    Thank you…

  17. Hi, is there an entrance fee we need to pay before going in?

  18. Hello!

    I’m doing a research on Market Halls redevelopment and would like to use Nagyvásárcsarnok as a benchmark.
    Could you please share some statistics on attendance dynamics and operational performance, area program, concept and marketing strategy.

    Thank you in advance

    Nikolay Kovalev

  19. Hi I am planning for a trip to Budapest in mid-August, will the market open on 19th August? as we understand 20th August is the Hungarian National day

  20. Peter & Mei Lawson

    We wanted a local’s view of the Great Market, and got it from Dora. We met at the Hard Rock Cafe, and as we walked to the market, Dora filled us in on the complex history of Hungary, and pointed out some of the more interesting sites on the way to the market. Dora was also very thoughtful in ensuring we had cash for the market, as most stalls had no facility for credit card. We walked through all 3 levels of the market, stopping initially for some langos, Hungarian lunchtime comfort food, followed by a large variety of preserved meats, a sampling of pickled vegetables, including pickled baby watermelon! Do be wary of the pickled pepper, it blew the top of my head! We finished off with some wonderful Hungarian deserts. We asked for some authentic Hungarian restaurant recommendations and the meal was delicious! we unfortunately didn’t have time to sample them all. Dora was informative, helpful and friendly throughout and I would recommend her to other travellers.

  21. Hi please can you tell me if you can handle an enquiry about buying something at the market? We went a few years ago to it and bought lovely hand painted glasses, we have broken some and need more. There aren’t any on line. Your help would be much appreciated

    • Budapest Market Hall

      Hello Briget,

      Thank you for your question.
      We are specialising in market and food tours. Each stall holder is their own entrepreneur / self-employed so they are in charge of handling their own trade.
      Unfortunately we cannot be of help with purchasing goods from the market. Does the glass have a stamp perhaps on the bottom side that shows the brand or maker?

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