All posts in Xmas Gifts

Christmas gifts from Budapest, Hungary

Hungarian Folk Shows are a mixture of folk dances and folk music. Lively shows to make your Budapest Christmas break more festive, though the dance choreographies themselves are not especially Christmassy (they are folk shows of traditional dances, beautiful clothes and nice music).

Hungarian folk show December

Hungarian folk show December

Further info, videos, ticket prices here: Hungarian Folk Dance Show

Instant booking in advance online here:

Booking Folk Show

It makes a nice Christmas gift for the whole family as the programs appeal to all ages.

Dates of Hungarian Folk Shows in December 2013

  • December 7, 2013: 8 pm Folk Show
  • December 26, 2013: special Christmas folk show on Boxing Day! 8 pm Folk Show
  • December 28, 2013: 8 pm Folk Show
  • December 29, 2013: 8 pm Folk Show

Hungarian Folk Packages in December

Cruises Budapest Christmas

Cruises Budapest Christmas – Steve Calcott Photography

Hungarian Folk Show tickets can be combined with a Christmassy cruise on the river Danube: Budapest Folk Show + Christmas Dinner cruise or Budapest Evening Cruise with 2 Drinks (we think it is a good deal for Dec 26):

Folk Show & Cruise: starting from €27.85 (2 Drinks) and €47.3 (Dinner & 2 Drinks)

Dates of Hungarian Folk Shows in December 2013 in case you are planning your 2013 Budapest Christmas

2013, December: 2, 26. 28. 29.

Hungarian Folk at Christmas

At the Budapest Christmas markets you will see lots of traditional Hungarian folk crafts along with recent designs of contemporary craftsmen. You can buy lovely little Christmas decors with Hungarian (folk) motifs or beautiful potteries and jewelries. Hungarian folk is in the limelight of Hungarian Christmases, which strive to preserve as much tradition as possible. Of course, outside the traditional Christmas markets you can get all sorts of commercial, international products (at shopping malls, or in fashion boutiques).

We have been walking around the Budapest Christmas Markets this year to take a look at the amazing gingerbread Christmas tree decorations, some of them with Hungarian folk motifs and a Hungarian twist. On a traditional Hungarian Christmas tree, you can always find some Christmas Candy, the Szaloncukor, and often see home made gingerbread Christmas tree ornaments, often made together with the kids. Or, bought at the Budapest Christmas Fair. Like these beauties.

You can see many of the Hungarian gingerbread Christmas tree decorations here: Hungarian Folk Motifs on Christmas decorations

Hungarian Folk Motifs on Christmas decorations

Hungarian Folk Motifs on Christmas gingerbread decorations

If you want to do some gingerbread decorations yourselves with the children, there is a playhouse in the middle of Vorosmarty Square at the Budapest Christmas market where you can join the locals to do some Xmas workshops, like decorating gingerbread hearts, bells, etc. The playhouse is open in the afternoons and at the weekends. Free to join.

These are some that we liked most. Please send in your photos of the gingerbread Christmas decorations you liked most to BudapestChristmas [at] gmail [dot] com.

 

The Budapest Design Terminal Christmas Market is a design focused fair in the city centre of Budapest. For designer items, you can also visit the WAMP Winter Fair in Millenaris building.

Do you like quality design? Fashion? Art? Being stylish?

Hungarian shepherd figures

Hungarian shepherd figures

Budapest Design Terminal on Erzsebet Square in the heart of Budapest will launch its Christmas market in December to feature the works, designs, art pieces and everyday objects of approx. one hundred Hungarian designers, many of whom are considered to be the best contemporary designers in Hungary.

Of course, the pieces on display are for sale and can make a really special Christmas gift from your Budapest winter visit.

The December design fair will be held in the heated gallery of the Design Terminal, 2 min walk from Deak Square.

You cannot miss the building guarded by two strange wooden dogs, sort of like quirky Trojan Dobermans.

Design Terminal Christmas Fair

Artista Hungarian Dresses

Artista Hungarian Dresses

Date: December 3 – 23

Opening Hours at the Christmas Design Terminal
Mon-Fri : 12pm – 8pm
Sat-Sun : 10a m -9 pm

Location of the Design Terminal Christmas Market

13 Erzsebet Square, District V

Elisabeth Square is in the heart of Budapest, right in the city centre next to Deak Square (where 3 metro lines meet). This is where the old bus central has been transformed into a retro chic Design Terminal Pavilion.

Upcoming Events

Events at the Design Terminal are enlisted on their official page.

There are many sorts of  design goods and pieces, from clothes and jewellery, through paintings and graphics to furniture and interior decor. Do take a look at this high quality selection to find something really special and tastefully designed.

The charity auction has raised over 1.5 million Forints for the Ecumenic Church.

Design Terminal Budapest Christmas Charity Auction

Design Terminal Budapest Christmas Charity Auction

 

Vaci Utca, the oldest and longest Budapest Shopping Street is not only decorated at Christmas with Xmas themed street lights, but you can also buy wonderfully smelling winter style street foods in Vaci street, like roasted chestnut, mulled wine, or the Hungarian Chimney cake (kurtoskalacs) etc.

Christmas Lights on Vaci Street at Christmas

Christmas Lights on Vaci Street at Christmas – Ben G Hancock Photography

The shopping street is right in the heart of the city of Budapest.

Vaci street actually connects Vorosmarty Square (where the best Budapest Christmas market can be found, and the Cafe Gerbeaud is), with the highly popular Central Market Hall of Budapest (likewise the best in its category). The street runs parallel with the river Danube, from the Chain Bridge to the Liberty Bridge.

You can find many international brands and some lovely buildings in Vaci street (like the Art Nouveau Florist, which is a peculiar flower shop indeed), but in recent years Vaci utca has lost its glory. Not only because of the shopping malls, or the overly touristy restaurants along Váci street.

Chimney cake on Vaci Street at Christmas

Chimney cake on Vaci Street at Christmas – Ben H Hancock Photography

The nearby Budapest Fashion Street and the high brand shops on Andrassy Avenue are also the reason, they are simply more elegant, and for many visitors more attractive – and of course, just as touristy. Having said that, it is worth a 15 minute walk to go through on Vaci street. There are some nice art galleries, several Hungarian souvenir shops, and tiny details that make the street a nice attraction, and a nice walk between the Great Market Hall (Vasarcsarnok) and Café Gerbeaud on Vörösmarty Square.

More about Vaci Utca

Vaci Street Budapest: history, art galleries and Vaci street on Budapest tourist map.

Vaci utca on Budapest travel guide

Related to Budapest Shopping:

Live music, festive lights, Christmas preparations, gift shopping on the main shopping street of Budapest called Vaci utca (the street which used to lead to the town of Vac). We are grateful that the street music and the folk / world music on the Christmas markets take away the commercial edge of the Advent in Budapest, and let us enjoy the tunes of our beautiful city.

For over a hundred years, Hungarian families have been decorating the Christmas tree with a decorative candy called Szaloncukor (szalon meaning parlour, and cukor meaning sugar).

For most Hungarians celebrating Christmas also means a hunt for the best Hungarian szaloncukor. But why is it a special candy? It is certainly the most traditional Hungarian Christmas sweets, a gift and a decor in itself.

Hungarian Christmas Fondant

Szaloncukor on the Christmas Tree

Szaloncukor on the Christmas Tree

Szaloncukor is the Hungarian Christmas Fondant. It is easy to carry, not so expensive to buy, and makes a good Christmas gift if you are visiting Budapest in winter time. You can also try them before just buying them to make sure that you really love what you give as a Christmas gift from Hungary.

What is Szaloncukor?

Szaloncukor is made of fondant, then covered by a thin chocolate layer (or not, but most of them are), and then wrapped into a nice, Christmassy paper or wrapping sheet with a special shape. The oval shaped fondant candy keeps its ovalness, and the szaloncukor as a whole has a bow tie shape with two frilly ends.

More traditional szaloncukor candies were wrapped in real paper and the frills were made of a very fine flimsy paper of a distinctive color. These days, the Christmas candy comes in shiny wraps.

Flavors of the Christmas ‘Fondant’ Candies

The Christmas fondant candies are not so fondant any more. The Xmas candies come in dozens of flavours. According to a recent vote on the best szaloncukor makes in Hungary, the top two manufacturers are Stühmer (Stuhmer Korfu got tons of votes, it is made of honey, egg white, frappe and covered in dark chocolate) and Szamos Marzipan fondants (made of marzipan of course).

This is the top ten list of Hungarian Xmas fondants, which locals like:

Hungarian Christmas Fondant Top List

Hungarian Christmas Fondant Top List

Top Favorite Flavors of Szaloncukor (based on the thousands of votes on szaloncukor.hu, December 2011)
  • Gelatin (sort of wine gum filling, covered in cholocate): Zselés Szaloncukor
  • Marzipan – probably the best one is made by Szamos Marzipan
  • Caramel
  • Cognac dipped sour cherry
  • Coconut
  • Hazelnut (Milka seems to be the leading brand in Hungary for the mogyoros szaloncukor)
  • Chestnut
  • Rum cocoa
  • Rum nut
  • Chocolate
  • Yoghurt & fruit
  • Apple cinnamon
  • Quark
  • Tiramisu
  • Strawberry
  • Sour cherry
  • Almond
But Szamos can be enjoyed. Excellent sour cherry variants. the marzipan is filled with a sour cherry cream (slightly alcoholic).
Expensive approx Huf 4,600 / kilo, but high end szaloncukor boxes can cost as much as HUF 8,000 / kg too (e.g. Stühmer’s luxury fondants).
Szaloncukor shaped handcrafted decor

Szaloncukor shaped handcrafted decor (made by Diavackai)

Szamos marzipan szaloncukor are tasty and great value, their price range is around the same as the well known Milka branded szaloncukor fondants. Milka is the market leader in the milk chocolate Christmas candies with hazelnut filling, which are quite sweet.
You can also try a much cheaper local Christmas fondant candy branded as Norbi. Norbi is a Hungarian fitness guru who is a great divider in Hungary. He has a range of products, foods, meals etc which are supposedly healthier products with fewer calories (e.g. Norbi update mustard, Norbi update ketchup, etc.) He even has a good and very popular lunch diner selling very cheap Hungarian meals as lunch menus. Norbi Xmas candy is not top tier szaloncukor but a good value option.

Oops, where is the szaloncukor from the Christmas tree?

Oops, where is the szaloncukor from the Christmas tree? (emmanyuszi’s photo)

Where can you buy Hungarian Christmas Sweets?

Szaloncukor, the traditional Xmas candy is sold all over Budapest, in every shop and supermarket. But Supermarket brands are for decor only. You have been warned. In addition to grocery stores and supermarkets, you can buy the specialty szaloncukor brands in  the brand shops, like the Szamos shop by Vorosmarty Square (Szamos Gourmet House, right next to the Christmas market on Vorosmarty Square), or Stuhmer shop in Budapest in Pozsonyi Street, District XIII (Stühmer Bolt).

Szaloncukor the fondant candy is a seasonal product, so you will only find it in Budapest from October to January, definitely not in the summer, sorry. Many tons of Christmas fondant candies are sold all over in Hungary before Christmas, and then what is left after Christmas is often sold at a reduced price. They do not store well for a long time, which is a good sign usually that it has not been full of preservatives.

The prices of szaloncukor boxes are quite high, as if you were buying handmade chocolates: in general the average price of good quality szaloncukor is approx. HUF 4,600 / kilo. The boxes come in all sizes, some of them are quite decorative and good for storing little tid bits in them.

Make sure you only buy szaloncukor fondants in a manufactured box, as these candies have been tested. At some of the Budapest Christmas markets, you can buy fondants by the kilo, but these candies may not have been tested, so it is better not to risk your health, especially if you wish to take it home as a small Christmas gift or souvenir from Budapest, Hungary.

Hungarian Traditions related to the Fondant

Many families hang the szaloncukor fondants on the Christmas tree, and place a basketful of them on the Christmas table. Still, somehow a szaloncukor taken from the tree tastes better. Hungarian children develop a special skill to make the Christmas candy wrap look as if it had been untouched, still full (parents cannot guard the tree well enough, so this usually develops into a traditional family game, who is ‘stealing’ the sweets from the Christmas tree, who is eating the candy after cleaning teeth in the evening, etc.).

You can also buy little metal hooks to pierce the paper of the szaloncukor so that it is easy to hang on the Christmas tree. Other families take a thread and make a string of szaloncukor as a decor on the Christmas tree.

Hungarian Christmas Sweets

Hungarian Christmas Sweets – Candy (crafted by zsizsu72)

History of Hungarian Szaloncukor

Nobody knows for sure how the special Christmas candy tradition started in Hungary, but one thing is sure, it wasn’t until the late 19th century that it started to be part of the Christmas celebrations. Hungary was part of the Austria Hungary dual monarchy, when the richer Hungarian noble families had nice parlors (or salons) to erect a Christmas tree (often for each child) and put up Christmas decor on the trees. Amongst them Salon sugar (szaloncukor), which were handcrafted from soft fondant with added flavors. The candy most probably came to Hungary via German sweets traders and makers (fondant was originally made in medieval France). One of the most popular Hungarian novelists, Mor Jokai called them Szalon czukkedli, which also shows that the name of the candy started off as a borrowed word from German.

It was only years later that the top Hungarian sweets manufacturers of the 19th century started to make the szaloncukor candies by the kilos. The easy production and delicious flavors made it and instant success, so many Hungarian families started to buy them from Cafe Gerbeaud and from Stühmer (both still in production). Budapest led the fashion, but the tradition of szaloncukor fondants were quickly picked up by families living outside Budapest. These days it is very widespread, from small villages to the Hungarian capital.

While fondant was typical during the Socialist era, after that, since 1989 the fillings have been made from all sorts of exquisite chocolate bonbon fillings. So we may as well call them Hungarian Christmas truffles, festive bonbons, silky smooth winter sweets.

 

Photo of the single szaloncukor, close up from Mistinguett blog