Best of Budapest & Hungary

More than a hundred events await those celebrating Hungary's birthday in the capital this year. Starting on August 18, the free festival will be crowned with a spectacular fireworks display on the evening of August 20.

    More than 20 venues will offer a wide range of events to celebrate the biggest national holiday, St Stephen's Day. You can taste traditional Hungarian dishes and enjoy a variety of cultural and musical programs, the organizers told MTI.

     They said that this year's holiday is also an opportunity to discover Budapest and its historical heritage.

     The backbone of the program in 2023 will be the traditional state events: the program of the August 20 holiday will begin with the flag-raising ceremony and the St. Stephen's Day parade, followed by an air parade, then the festive mass and the Holy Right procession (carrying a Hungarian relic, assumed to be the naturally mummificated right hand of King Saint Stephen I, the first king of Hungary), while the fireworks will close the program in the evening.

    The evening program, which has become a tradition over the decades, will see 34,000 pyrotechnic effects light up the sky from 230 launch points along the Danube between Margaret Bridge and Petőfi Bridge, and on Szabadság and Erzsébet Bridges.

    During the three-day event, visitors will be able to see the iconic Golden Train, originally built in 1938, while the Walk of Cities will feature a spectacular installation of flags and flags of 348 Hungarian cities, counties and 102 towns of historic Hungary, and the Heroes' Way will introduce the heroes of the Hungarian nation.

    The Street of Hungarian Flavors will showcase the gastronomic culture of the Carpathian Basin, while the Csárdafesztivál will feature the country's most popular csárdas ['taverns'].

    The music program at the Retro Tabán will feature pop and rock music, with Charlie, Rózsi Demjén and the Neoton Família. Fans of classical music can listen to their favorite tunes at the Panorama Classical venue in the Philosopher's Garden, while the new Vigadó Square venue will host bar music lovers at the Vigadó Piano. Electronic and live music will be played at Road Movie Live and the Szabadrét Festival, with concerts by the Bagossy Brothers Company, Tankcsapda and Mystery Gang, among others.

     The Fashion & Design Festival, in its third year as part of the St. Stephen's Day program, will welcome Hungarian fashion, jewellery and design enthusiasts to a new venue in Millenáris Park. The center of the children's program will again be the Varázsliget, the area from Vajdahunyad Castle to Kós Károly promenade.

    As part of the St. Stephen's Day celebrations, the Festival of Crafts in the Buda Castle will be open to the public free of charge. The country's largest folk art festival will be held this year with the participation of around a thousand craftsmen from home and abroad. The event will feature numerous stage productions, dance and music performances.