All posts tagged Budapest Christmas Opening Hours

Rudas Bath in winter

Is Rudas Bath, one of the most popular Turkish baths in Budapest, open during the Christmas holidays? Can you visit the thermal pools and enjoy the thermal and pool facilities? Yes, similarly to the major Budapest baths, Rudas Baths is open at Christmas and on New Year too, though the opening hours are somewhat shortened on the holidays.

Rudas Bath in winter

Rudas Bath in winter – Guillaume Baviere Photography

Many Budapest travel guides say that Budapest is quiet or dead at Christmas, but this is not true any more. The city is full of life and things to do!

Rudas Baths, just like Szechenyi Baths and Gellert Spa, is open throughout the Christmas holidays in Budapest. Most days Rudas Bath is mixed, but on weekdays outside the Christmas holidays Rudas Bath is either men only or women only! Rudas Bath Christmas holiday  opening hours:

Planned Christmas opening hours 2018

  • Dec 24: opening hours from 6am to 2pm (all the facilities in Rudas Baths are mixed on December 24, both men and women can visit Rudas Bath at Christmas)
  • Dec 25: Rudas Baths is closed
  • Dec 26: opening hours from 6am to 8pm (all pools and the thermal section with saunas, steam rooms, plunge pools, thermal pools in Rudas Baths)
  • Dec 31: open from 6 am to 6 pm. Enjoy some amazing days in Budapest in a stunning historical building (the old Turkish baths have been expanded with more modern pools and facilities of course)
  • Jan 1: Rudas bath is open from 12 pm (noon) to 6 pm. Visiting ‘the Rudas’  is a popular way to get over the New Year’s Eve party symptoms (hangover, stress of the new year, etc.), so the earlier you go there, the better the chance to enjoy a less crowded thermal bath

The opening times above have been basically the same at the Budapest Thermal Baths for the last ten years or so. If you are planning your Budapest Christmas trip for 2018, you can count on the baths staying open on the public holiday dates in December and January in Hungary.

Rudas Bath was one of the party scenes of the awesome Cinetrip parties.

Budapest Basilica Christmas Midnight Mass

The biggest cathedral of Budapest, the St Stephen’s Basilica is one of the tenets of Christmas events in Budapest. In general, the masses / church services are held at 8:30am, 10am, 12pm (noon), and at 6pm in the Basilica of Budapest.

Budapest St Istvan Cathedral

Budapest St Istvan Cathedral

As you can expect, the Basilica has differing opening hours for tourists and for church goers. Please respect the church community during your visit.

Opening Hours of St Stephen’s Basilica, Budapest

December 24

  • 3pm-4pm Bethlehem: the story of Bethlehem will be enacted (traditional Hungarian custom to act out the Nativity play, which is called ‘betlehemezes’ in Hungarian)
  • 12am, Christmas midnight mass at St Stephen Basilica. The midnight mass is usually 1 hour, and not aimed at tourists, but of course, you are free to attend if you wish to visit the mass for itself.

December 25, du 1pm – 5pm. Fun fact: This is also a special day in Hungary as St Stephen was crowned the first Hungarian king on either Dec 25 1000, or Jan 1 in the year 1001 (the beginning of the new year in medieval documents may refer to both)

December 26 du 1pm – 5pm

The church is called Szt Istvan Bazilika in Hungarian (named after St Stephen, the first king of Hungary)

Budapest Basilica

Budapest Basilica – Neil Howard Photography

Budapest Opera Christmas - Ben G Hancock Photography

The Opera House in Budapest is not only open through the Christmas holidays, and giving opera and ballet performances. The traditional Nutcracker ballet performance in Budapest is a huge favorite of locals (and lucky tourists who can still get tickets for the shows).

Budapest Opera Christmas - Ben G Hancock Photography

Budapest Opera Christmas – Ben G Hancock Photography

The opening hours of the Budapest Opera during the winter holidays is as follows:
Dec 24  Nutcracker performance in the morning at 11am. No opera visits or tourist tours.
Dec 25 Closed for opera tours, open for the Nutcracker performance in the morning at 11am, and for the opera in the evening from 7pm, Puccini La Bohéme. No opera visits or tourist tours.
Dec 26 Opera tours in the afternoon as usual, open for the Nutcracker performance in the morning at 11am and in the evening from 6pm.
Dec 31 Opera tours in the afternoon as usual, open for the opera. Nutcracker from 11am, and in the evening from 8:30pm, The Bat / Die Fledermaus by Strauss, operetta in 3 acts with English subtitles.
Jan 1 Opera tours in the afternoon as usual, open for the New Year’s Concert performance from 7.30pm.

See the Budapest Opera Tours information in details on Top Budapest travel guide.

Is Szechenyi Bath in Budapest open during the Christmas holidays? Can you visit the thermal pools and enjoy the outdoor facilities as seen in many winter photos of Szechenyi Baths? Yes, you can! In fact, the major thermal pools in Budapest baths are open even on religious and national holidays with weekend prices. Dec 30 in 2018 brings the New Year Spa Party in Szechenyi Baths!

Szechenyi Bath at Christmas

Szechenyi Bath at Christmas – photo by Leon de Nemea

Many Budapest travel guides say that Budapest is quiet or dead at Christmas, but this is not true any more.

Szechenyi Baths is open throughout the Christmas holiday, with the following opening hours (the hours were the same in the last few years, but the schedule of 2013 has not been confirmed by the bath yet):

Christmas opening hours 2018

  • Dec 24: opening hours from 6am to 2pm (all the facilities in Szechenyi Baths)
  • Dec 25: opening hours from 6am to 10pm (all 3 outdoor pools and most of the thermal section in Szechenyi Baths)
  • Dec 26: opening hours from 6am to 10pm (all 3 outdoor pools and most of the thermal section in Szechenyi Baths)
Szechenyi Baths Party Budapest NYE Sparty

Szechenyi Baths Party Budapest NYE Sparty

New Year Opening Hours 2018 / 2019

  • Dec 30: Bath Party from 10:30 pm: New Year’s Eve Party in Szechenyi Bath Budapest: the spectacular laser disco organized by Cinetrip is perhaps the best New Year’s Eve Party in Budapest.
  • Dec 31: open from 6 am to 6 pm. Book a massage for the last day of the year (from , soak in the baths, and enjoy some amazing days of your life in Budapest
  • Jan 31: Szechenyi bath is open from 10 pm to 6 pm. Visiting Szechenyi Bath is a popular way to get over the New Year’s Eve party symptoms, so you may wish to buy your ticket online

Deals at Szechenyi Medicinal Bath

Aroma Relax Massage Szechenyi Bath Budapest

Aroma Relax Massage Szechenyi Bath Budapest

The best massage deal for your winter holiday in Budapest: 20 min massage at Szechenyi Bath from 21 Euros. Booking in advance online is warmly recommended as available slots get quickly filled up.

The massage therapists of Szechenyi Thermal Bath have a medicinal massage certificate and many years of experience – over 1 million guests at the Szechenyi Bath each year…. They are the cheapest masseuses in the thermal bath complex, which also features other private massage salons whose prices are higher than the Szechenyi Medicinal Bath massage services (also serving patients referred to the bath by Hungarian doctors, yes, on prescription).

More info about Szechenyi Bath, tickets, massages, towel rental, swim wear rental, pedicure, etc.: Szechenyi Baths Christmas opening hours

Szechenyi Bath in Winter – Open Steaming Outdoor Pools

The following video has been made by a tourist visiting Szechenyi Medicinal Bath late November (temperature outside: 4 degrees Celsius = 40 degrees Fahrenheit). As you can see the bath is quite popular, yes, even in winter time and on the holidays in December (Christmas and New Year too!):

House of Terror, Budapest

The House of Terror Museum in Budapest is really special museum, one of the very few places in the world where you can get a spine chilling feel for what it may have been living under a totalitarian dictatorship behind the Iron Curtain in the Cold War era, and what it was like to endure the cold-blooded cruelty of the Communist secret police, and the Nazi regime.

House of Terror, Budapest

House of Terror, Budapest – Anthony Citrano Photography

Opening Times of the House of Terror, Budapest (Terror Háza) during the Christmas Holidays

December 24: not finalized yet, but probably closed

December 25: Closed

December 26: Closed
December 27, 28, 29, 30 regular opening hours apply, from 10am to 6pm (except for Mondays).

December 31: Closed

January 1: Closed

January 2: Open as usual