Bars & clubs
Auróra
Communal hub and bar Auróra (District VIII. Auróra utca 11) near Rákóczi tér market prepares for Christmas this year with a LGBTQ Parents and Support Group and members of Budapest Pride. “The Auróra Christmas is a loose pub-confectionery party, where guests can shape the agenda,” says Auróra’s Eszter M Balázs. The big Christmas party here begins with a screening of that seasonal classic Love Actually – along with an optional drinking game. All the fun takes place in the afternoon, from noon to 4pm.
Fogasház/Instant
Budapest’s largest and most popular nightspot (District VII. Akácfa utca 51) opens on Christmas Eve for the fourth year running. The crowd is usually a Hungarian/foreigner mix, about half and half. The organisers do not have a separate Christmas agenda, so expect one of their regular weekend parties with resident DJs – without the huge queues for drinks or entrance. Everything starts up at 10pm and winds down by 6am. Admission free.
Garzon Café
This bar at Wesselényi utca 24 in the Jewish Quarter is a traditional stalwart for Christmas Eve. A homely place created in the style of a studio apartment, it runs as normal from mid-afternoon on 24 December, accommodating mostly regulars along with a few random foreigners.
Lámpás
For over a decade now, this atmospheric bar in the Jewish Quarter has encouraged regulars and friends alike to spend Christmas Eve on Dob utca. Many here are people passing through or those without familial or religious ties. “We felt the need for a place where guests would feel welcome on a night like this. One guy broke up with his girlfriend a couple of Christmases ago, and has been volunteering here every year since. The place is intimate, everyone is surrounded by friendly faces, we clink glasses, we do up the tree and sample treats from each other’s countries.” Open 24 December from 8pm-2am, with music by Dj AdamSalman. Admission free.
Why Not
This spot (District V. Belgrád rakpart 3-4) on the Danube not only runs on Christmas Eve, but also on 25 and 26 December, primarily but not exclusively for the gay community. “There are a number of gay people who don’t get on with their families so we open the bar for our Christmas get-together. This year, ten guests have already booked a table who enjoyed Christmas here last year. Other visitors are not from the regular crowd. It’s not a huge party, rather an intimate gathering.” For Christmas Eve (7pm-11.55pm), admission is free, as is the meal served to guests.
Christmas restaurants
See here for our round-up of which hotels are offering special meals this Christmas Eve – reservations esssential!
Christmas Mass
St Columba’s Scottish Church in District VI will be holding a Christmas Eve candlelight service in English from 11.30pm-12.30am, then a Christmas Day service from 11am-noon.. The church leads weekly Bible Study groups on Wednesday evenings, and has an active community presence. All are invited to attend the Christmas services.
Gorgeous Matthias Church, towering above the Fishermen’s Bastion with its iconic spire and beautiful roof tiles, will be offering a Midnight Mass (in Hungarian) on the 24 December from midnight to 1am. More information can be found on their website. Two other churches in the city centre hold midnight Mass in Hungarian on 24 December: St Stephen’s Basilica and Saint Francis’ Church on Ferenciek tere.
Transport
On Christmas Eve, trams, buses and trolleybuses run until around 3.30pm, the last metro trains stopping shortly before 4pm. After that, night buses take over. The number 6 tram along the Grand Boulevard runs every 10mins until 8pm, then every 15mins. Airport 100E bus runs according to its Saturday timetable, from town until 12.40am, from Ferihegy until 1.20am. Transport on 25 and 26 December runs according to the weekend timetable. For all details, see here. For an overview of getting around Budapest, see here.
