Do you want to know more about Hungary? Choose from the topics below.
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See more facts and figures about Hungary and its tourism:
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Climate
Temperate zone, continental climate, four seasons.
Hottest months: July, August (temperatures can reach 28-35°C)
Coldest months: December, January (temperatures can fall as low as –15°C)
Budapest has a relatively high number of hours of sunshine per annum. It exceeds 8 hour per day between April and September.
Time zone
Budapest is on Central European time (CTE)
GMT +1 hour
Summer time (March to the middle of October):
GMT +2 hours
Non-working days: national holidays (15 March, 20 August, 23 October) and 1 May (May Day) plus Christian holidays: 1 January, Easter Monday, Whit Monday, 1 November (All Saint’s Day), 25-26 December (Christmas and Boxing Day).
Hungary - a member of European Union
NATO, OECD, WTO
Land: 93,030 km²
Population: 10.1 million
Form of state: Republic
Capital: Budapest
Capital’s population: 1.8 million
Official language: Hungarian
Density of population: 108 people/km2
Time zone: GMT +1 hour
Average temperature: +4°C in Jan, +21.5°C in June
Sunny hours / year: 2,038 hours
Hungarian Economy
GDP growth: 0.5% (est. 2009: -1%)
Export growth: 4.6% (est. 2009: 3%)
Average wage: 780 EUR
Unemployment rate : 7.9% (est. 2009: 8.4%)
Average inflation rate: 6.1% (est. 2009: 3.1%)
Currency: HUF (Forint)
Exchange rate: 1 EUR/298 HUF, 1 USD/230 HUF (20.04.2009 rate)
Facts and Figures
Economically, culturally and socially, the tourism industry plays a key role as it generates a significant income for Budapest.Currently, the tourism industry accounts for more than 490,000 jobs in Budapest and 8-8,5% of the GDP.
A significant proportion of investments and developments carried out in the city over the past few years are tourism related. These new features enhancing the established values and tourism services to an unprecedented level, and in the process they have become a driving force behind business life in the capital.
As regards the future, in the increasingly important to develop tourism and coordinate the widest possible palette of resources and means in order to maintain the capital’s ranking among the leading destinations on the global tourism market.
10 reasons to visit Hungary
Rich culture, cultural diversity
Historical cities and sites
Architectural diversity
Mixture of old and modern art
Crafts and fine arts
Warm springs and SPAs
Gastronomy
Top events (Formula1, Sziget Festival)
Safe
Good value for money
Reasons for visiting Hungary
Reasons for outbound travel
Top 10 Destinations - Inbound tourism
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| Ranking |
Country |
Inbound Traveler
|
| 1. |
Germany |
562 057
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| 2. |
Great Britain |
255 276
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| 3. |
Austria |
244 824
|
| 4. |
Romania |
243 376
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| 5. |
Italy |
171 203
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| 6. |
Poland |
154 627
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| 7. |
Spain |
141 547
|
| 8. |
France |
135 792
|
| 9. |
Czech Rep. |
108 767
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| 10. |
the Netherlands |
92 123
|
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Top 10 Destinations - Hungarian travellers' outbound tourism
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| Ranking |
Country |
Outbound Traveler
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| 1. |
Greece |
177 500
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| 2. |
Italy |
121 100
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| 3. |
Croatia |
101 400
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| 4. |
Austria |
78 600
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| 5. |
Tunisia |
76 800
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| 6. |
Turkey |
63 100
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| 7. |
Spain |
59 600
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| 8. |
Egypt |
59 500
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| 9. |
France |
35 200
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| 10. |
Germany |
25 300
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International Guest Nights by Type of Accommodation
Capacity of Commercial Accommodation
MICE Tourism - International Conferences
Geogpraphical Breakdown of Conferences: 79.5% Budapest, 20.5% countryside.
Venues: Budapest, Great Plain, Transdanubia.
Themes: economics, medicine.
Nationality of Meeting Planners: 51.8% Hungarian, 14.4% British, 4.7% USA, 4.5% German.
Participating Nations (percentage of conferences): 76.9% Hungarian, 67.1% German,
57.0% British, 42.1% French, 33.1% USA, 32.2% Austrian, 31.1% Italian.
International conferences include events with a minimum of 50 participants and 3 participating countries.
Did you know that...?
Hungary is the land of 1,300 thermal springs, 10 national parks, 8 World Heritage sites and 22 wine regions.
Budapest’s neo-Gothic Parliament, the gold-plated Grand Synagogue, and the eclectic Széchenyi Bath are all the largest of their kinds in Europe.
Louis XIV, the French monarch declared Tokaji Aszú, the Hungarian dessert wine “the wine of kings, the king of wines”.
Queen Victoria was one of the many royal buyers of hand-painted Herend porcelain, and that the company’s leading pattern was named after her.
The spicy Pick salami is still made to the original, 150-year-old recipe.
Budapest is called the “Pearl of the Danube” or the “Queen of the Danube” as it is situated on the banks of the River Danube.
Budapest can boast with three buildings designed by the Eiffel company: the Western Railway Station, the Margaret Bridge and the Palm House in the Zoo. The building of the Western Railway Station is also home of the “most beautiful McDonald’s in Europe”, as tourists say.
The oldest underground on the European continent is to be found in Budapest. It was completed for the Millennium ceremony in 1896, the 1000 year-old anniversary of magyar’s conquest. The opening ceremony took place in the presence of the royal couple of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy, Franz Joseph and Elisabeth. The first electric underground railway still functions with its original tracks. There is also a small underground museum.
In Budapest you can see the only square on earth with three parliamentary buildings. There was an international competition to design the Parliament building in the 19th century. There were some excellent designs, therefore, the committee decided to build the first-, the second-, and the third-prize winners on the same square. The first prize winner became the Parliament; the other two are the Ministry of Agriculture and Regional Development and the Museum of Ethnography.
The Museum of Fine Arts houses the second largest Spanish collection after the Prado in Madrid and there are excellent Dutch, German, Italian, English and French paintings as well.
The Budapest Zoo is the second oldest in Europe and it is home of 5000 animals and 15000 different species of plants.
In his novel “Budapest” Chico Buarque writes that the Hungarian language is the only one that the devil respects.
For decades under communism, German families with members in East and West were reunited at Lake Balaton each summer.
Legend has it that the lake appeared when a giant named Balaton fell into the valley holding a mermaid-blessed stone. Water flowed from underneath him to create the lake.
Hungarians call Balaton the Hungarian Sea because it is the largest freshwater lake in Central Europe and the country is otherwise landlocked. It’s funny nickname is Balcsi (Ball-chee).
Lake Hévíz is the second largest thermal lake in the world and bathers can enjoy a warming wallow at any time of the year – even in coldest winter.
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