Central Market Hall
Central Market Hall
4
6:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Monday
6:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday
6:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Wednesday
6:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Thursday
6:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Friday
6:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Saturday
6:00 AM - 3:00 PM
About
This market hall, also known as the Great Market Hall, is one of the largest indoor markets in Budapest and boasts beautiful neo-Gothic architecture. Here, you'll find lots of fresh produce, fish, meat, spices, cured meats, and dairy products. And on the upper floors, you can taste authentic Hungarian cuisine (like goulash with dumplings) at the food stalls and eateries. Locals come here for their groceries and lunch so it's best to visit in the late morning or early afternoon for fewer crowds. Don't miss the market's best highlights on a private food tour of Budapest. – Tripadvisor
Duration: 1-2 hours
Suggest edits to improve what we show.
Improve this listing
Tours & experiences
Explore different ways to experience this place.
Top ways to experience Central Market Hall
The area
Address
Neighborhood: Központi Vásárcsarnok
How to get there
  • Fővám tér • 2 min walk
  • Kálvin tér • 5 min walk
Reach out directly
See what travelers are saying
  • Amy
    Leeds, United Kingdom12 contributions
    3.0 of 5 bubbles
    Let down
    I was most excited to visit here but was completely let down. There's tonnes of fresh fruit stands and meat stalls and upstairs clothes and bags. There must've been 2/3 food stalls and a restaurant which were completely busy and food had been sat in the open all day. The whole place was completely overwhelming and overcrowded. Got a fruit pot for extortionate price that wasn't very nice.
    Visited March 2023
    Traveled as a couple
    Written March 23, 2023
  • cidre
    15 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Good food but watch out for extra charges and over crowding
    Great food, had the Hungarian sausage and Lángos. Both great, however watch out for extra charges as it can mount up. Sausage was probably one of the best I have ever had, great use of paprika. However quite over crowded but good for some shopping.
    Visited March 2023
    Traveled with friends
    Written March 25, 2023
  • Samantha
    Suffolk, United Kingdom53 contributions
    3.0 of 5 bubbles
    Better for locals than tourists
    Wasn’t what we expected. We got there at 08:30am thinking it wouldn’t be too busy as opened at 06:00am but loads of places were shut and only just opening. Wasn’t really worth going but I image it’s good if you live locally as lots of fresh fruit, veg and meat
    Visited March 2023
    Traveled as a couple
    Written March 25, 2023
  • Dream26270206130
    27 contributions
    3.0 of 5 bubbles
    Pretty but don’t eat there
    Great market hall, very pretty and lots of options for fresh goods. Will say, the food stalls were overly expensive for what it was. One langos averaged to about €9 (just sour cream, cheese, and three thin slices of sandwich ham), that’s absurd. Not to say, 2nd floor where the food stalls were PACKED. Like you have to move with the crowd or else you’d be stuck. It’s unfortunate that there were so many souvenir shops selling the same thing, would’ve loved to see more traditional Hungarian goods. Downstairs market was nice but it seems like it’s more for the locals than tourists. Food you get there, you can find for better and cheaper in town.
    Visited April 2023
    Traveled as a couple
    Written April 9, 2023
  • Ginges_revenge
    Brisbane, Australia4,732 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Go later in the day. Its much busier.
    Go later in the day as its a little quiet in the morning and not all the shops are open. We went in the morning and got a coffee and pastry from breakfast and then went back for lunch and it was a lot busier. There is the usual food and fruit and veg on the ground floor and then there is the food stalls, souvenir shops and clothing stalls on the second floor. It was just the normal market that you find in all cities throughout Europe. It boasts a beautiful building in the neo-classical gothic style and has a beautiful tiled roof. You can catch the tram to it and the stop is Fovam Ter and is just by the Liberty Bridge.
    Visited February 2023
    Written April 11, 2023
  • Polly G
    48 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Huge indoor market
    Huge place. Downstairs are market stalls for meat, veg and everything paprika based. Upstairs are textiles and some food vendors. It was very busy and food difficult to get near. Overall a nice place to wander around but a bit repetitive and priced at the tourist market.
    Visited April 2023
    Traveled as a couple
    Written April 24, 2023
  • Explore207226
    London, United Kingdom29 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Ignore the bad reviews, go and visit it
    I was a bit wary of going to this place due to seeing a lot of bad reviews. We were pleasantly surprised , the place has three floors which sell various items. Lots of souvenir shops, fruit and vegetable stalls, butchers and restaurants. The sellers are not pushy in any way and the majority of the stalls have price of the item indicated. They accept card payments. The hall is clean and tidy and has toilets facilities which you have to pay to use. Really enjoyed our time there and got the correct change when purchasing items.
    Visited April 2023
    Traveled with friends
    Written April 25, 2023
  • John W
    Jindabyne, Australia492 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Try the local food upstairs.
    That was one expensive beer, Trish (review Apr 23). I paid just AUD 13 for a langos (minus the beer), which I thought reasonable. The eateries upstairs are a good place to try out the local dishes at fair prices, but they get very crowded. The market is a good place to get a feel of the city, as it is patronised by locals too. It is as good a place as any to shop for souvenirs, and more fun.
    Visited April 2023
    Traveled solo
    Written April 30, 2023
  • Julie G
    Leeds, United Kingdom5 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Yay! Budapest!
    We had a great time! We were based in Pest great restaurants and a good vibe. Loved Fisherman’s Bastion lots to see and do there. The evening trip down the Danube was fantastic. Wear comfy shoes! Lots of walking!
    Visited April 2023
    Traveled as a couple
    Written May 2, 2023
  • Elena
    26 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Great gifts in one stop
    It’s a great way to find all necessary gifts and souvenirs in one stop. The vendors are very kind- helpful and not pushy. Bought a Hungarian puzzle box, paprika, and souvenir chocolates. I regret that we ate lunch at a cafe prior to coming to the market. The people eating in the Central Market Hall restaurants looked like they were getting really good food.
    Visited April 2023
    Traveled with friends
    Written May 6, 2023
These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.

Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.

Popular mentions

4.0
4.0 of 5 bubbles9,057 reviews
Excellent
3,111
Very good
3,524
Average
1,686
Poor
468
Terrible
270

J E S S
London, UK66 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Nov 2019 • Couples
I saw this was a must visit whilst in Budapest and I love going to markets so I thought it would be a good idea. The ground floor is quite intriguing as there is many shops that sleek the exact same thing just different prices. There was plenty of paprika to take back home as souvenirs but many were really over priced.

The -1 floor had an Aldi and a fish/meat market but most had closed as we had come in too late in the day.

The top floor was ridiculously busy. On one side you had little market stalls selling toot and clothes, shoes, you name it they had it. The other side had little market stalls to eat which was really hectic and loud. There is one sit down restaurant at the top but we decided to get an “authentic experience” which we’d soon turn out to regret.

There’s no assigned seating so you have to find somewhere first,all the tables were dirty as nobody comes round and regularly cleans them after other people. The chairs are all falling apart and the tables were wobbly. We had a paprika sausage and some potatoes and it was so greasy and tasted like cheap meat even though it was extortionate in price. We ended up not being very well later on and felt a bit sick.

Definitely visit but I wouldn’t eat there at all, find a sit down restaurant.

Written March 16, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Dr. F
Nottingham, UK963 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2020 • Solo
Central market hall is a 900 year old market of classic style. It is accessible by Tram via number 2, Buses or by Metro at walking distance from Fovam Ter station.

The market is double storey. Downstairs you find lots of stalls. Some sell stuff focused at locals like meat and bakery items while majority are similar grocery stalls selling paprika and other Hungarian specialties.

Upstairs is mostly Souvenir shops and food stalls. Souvenirs are reasonably priced especially if compared to Downtown shops and Airport. You can further bargain for the price depending on your skills, as I saw many customers doing so. I bought a bag and a souvenir at very good price.

A bit off-putting is the food area as here the tourist awareness among the food stalls is evident. Still reasonably priced and serving better and authentic street food than most of city, you might get tourist treatment especially if you don't speak local language and might get overcharged than locals.

I visited the most busy Langos stall. Langos is deep fried dough and most famous Hungarian street food. My order was taken by a lady who spoke adequate English. I ordered the Meat Lovers Langos and asked her to make it spicy. First she didn't put toppings like other customers and then when I asked why you didn't put spicy Hungarian sauce, she just crammed the sauce at the top of Mozarella Cheese, making the Langos very messy and wet. Second mistake I made was asking for beer, as no price mentioned for drinks on the board, this gives them freedom to charge as they like.My Langos was 1650 HUF yet the beer was charged disproportionate 1200 HUF. I advise to check the prices beforehand as it might save you from getting shredded.

Overall, this is a reasonable place to visit for Hungarian Street Food. If you follow a few precautions, you might end up paying relatively less than others, even if you don't, the prices are still reasonable.
Written March 6, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

VW49
Ashburn, VA5,918 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Nov 2019
Central Market Hall is a huge, crowded marketplace in Budapest. A wide range of products, souvenirs and foods are offered in a large indoor hall packed with vendor booths and stores. Plenty of people were there and it was not easy to navigate on the upper level through the narrow passage ways between all the businesses. A visit is certainly a cultural experience to see the many produce and meat stands and restaurants. We had no idea whether pricing was reasonable or not, but many locals were shopping. More familiar to us was the Aldi store down on the basement level. There also were a few booths selling Soviet military headgear but the sellers objected to photographs of their merchandise.
Written January 5, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

LAD63
Shepton Mallet, UK2,448 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2020 • Couples
After reading up about this and recommendations from locals, my husband and I visited the market during our 4 day break. Lovely building and looked promising on entry. Sadly not so. Lots of veg and fruit stalls- bought some fruit but as we were staying in a hotel no need for veg or meat and sausages. So many of the same stalls selling paprika in hessian bags for tourists at extortionate prices. Bought some by the weight but still very pricey. We had saved ourselves to eat in the food hall upstairs. After fighting our way through the clothes & bag stalls (reminded us of a Turkey market) we reached the food stalls which again were over priced and the eating areas a mess with half eaten food in polystyrene containers and tables neither cleared or wiped down. Left and found a traditional restaurant nearby waiter service for same price- if you have the time visit but there are so many other places to visit better than this
Written March 14, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

DFamily_12
Harrogate, UK265 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2020 • Couples
The outside of the building in particular is magnificent with its colorful tiled roof. However, we found the inside very disappointing. It is obviously in an area with lots of tourists but we felt it had lots it’s authenticity and the food stalls looked poor quality and expensive. We had been to a much smaller market on Hold Utca which was lovely and with excellent food and for a better experience we would recommend a trip there.
Written March 10, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Eric
La Jolla, CA391 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2020
The Central Market can get quite packed as it's filled with locals & tourists. The market has 2 levels. The ground floor features more meats & produce, while the upstairs is very narrow and has several gift shops & quick food options. There are so many visitors waiting in-line & eating on the narrow 2nd floor, that we could hardly walk through. If you hate crowds, stick to the ground level, there is much more space to walk around.

In terms of the food & gift shops, the quality is similar to street food, there were hardly any gourmet food options. The one must-try option when visiting the Central Market is to buy a bottle of Tokaji wine (Hungarian Dessert Wine). If you are looking for something to eat & do not want to deal with the long lines in the Central Market, there are Christmas markets set up around the holiday time with ample tables & seating.
Written March 11, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Mia Milo
Brunei Darussalam207 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jan 2020 • Solo
It is the most beautiful Budapest market hall... It was built in 1897 with beautiful tiled roofs and a colourful facade of patterned orange bricks. You find great food and gifts in this market... You can walk from Chain Bridge to enjoy the beautiful view before reach at Central Market Hall
Written January 16, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

JnVSydney
Greater Sydney, Australia18,466 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2020
Another of our favourite destinations during our perambulations turned out to be the Central Market. Whilst there’s always the possibility it will be chock ful of tourists, turns out about 5 pm is a very chilled out time to visit. One stall in particular sold the best cherry strudel we’ve had anywhere - and was actually cheaper than the bakeries close to our apartment - so ‘via the market for some strudel’ almost became a destination in itself - especially since one piece was about €1 and enough for the two of us.
Written April 17, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

MikeT19278
San Jose, CA174 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Oct 2019
I generally like visiting grocery stores and farmers markets when I travel to get a different view of how the populace live. My wife and I visited on a rainy day, so it might have been more crowded than otherwise. The ground floor is the food level with all sorts of peppers, sausages, and bakery items. Lot of colorful and delicious things to see. The upper floor has some restaurant stands which were all overcrowded when we visited in mid-afternoon. The back end of the second floor is all souvenir stands, and it seemed that every stand sold the same 100 items. Not a lot that we found that was unique.

So we went back down to the ground floor and sampled things from a few different stands for a picnic dinner later (as well as some souvenir paprika paste).

While you're there, look up and marvel at the architecture as well!
Written April 18, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Alex
Hong Kong, China458 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Dec 2019
Biggest market in Hungary but stuff varies in quality..
1. I recommend you to go there if you want to buy traditional food. What i mean is to buy raw food there and bring it back home. Don't dine in any of the restaurants in Central Market Hall as they are not pretty good and there are many better one near by.
2. The souvenirs there are nothing special, all ordinary stuff but sold in an expensive price. I don't recommend you buying souvenirs there.
3. Anyway, if you want to experience the largest market in Hungary, go to Central Market Hall but buy things vigilantly.
Written February 3, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Showing results 1-10 of 4,577
Is this your Tripadvisor listing?
Own or manage this property? Claim your listing for free to respond to reviews, update your profile and much more.
Claim your listing

Central Market Hall - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (2024)

Frequently Asked Questions about Central Market Hall

According to Tripadvisor travelers, these are the best ways to experience Central Market Hall: