The Hungarian National Gallery, perched on Szent György Square in Buda Castle, is rolling out a packed slate of guided tours in Hungarian and English across its permanent and temporary exhibitions. As the country’s largest public collection charting the rise and evolution of Hungarian visual art, the museum is leaning into winter with curator-led walks, kid-friendly workshops, musical evenings, and deep dives into two towering modernists: Adolf Fényes (Fényes Adolf) and Lajos Tihanyi (Tihanyi Lajos). Phone booking is encouraged. All images are protected by the Museum of Fine Arts – Hungarian National Gallery copyright.
Highlights This Week
On February 6, Budapest–Berlin–Paris. Lajos Tihanyi’s Road to Abstraction pairs writer-art historian Rita Halász with a tour tracing Tihanyi’s journey from the Hungarian avant-garde to European modernism, spanning the capital and onward to Germany and France.
February 7 brings Adolf Fényes’s Art, framing the painter’s poetic realism and soft-lit interiors. On February 8, Rebellious Forms, Bold Colors – The Art of Lajos Tihanyi picks up the modernist thread, focusing on Tihanyi’s sharp color fields, angular forms, and restless experimentation. The same Tihanyi program returns February 11–12. February 14 folds in romance with The Most Beautiful Hungarian Love Paintings, a Valentine-ready wander through tender canvases and luminous portraits. On February 15, Adolf Fényes’s Art returns with a curator’s tour led by Ágnes Horváth, adding fresh scholarship. The month wraps February 28 with The Taste of Sunlight, a curator tour by art historian Edit Plesznivy that promises a luminous look at radiance on canvas.
Exhibitions Running Through Winter
Three major shows anchor the season. Images of Silence. Adolf Fényes (1867–1945) Memorial Exhibition runs October 10, 2025–March 15, 2026, offering the fullest recent survey of Fényes’s refined realism, hushed atmospheres, and late works. From November 6, 2025–March 1, 2026, Endre Tót: Night Visit to the Museum opens a conceptual, nocturnal dialogue with the institution itself. And November 21, 2025–February 15, 2026 marks TIHANYI 140. Lajos Tihanyi (1885–1938) Retrospective, centering the restless painter-graphic artist who helped redefine Hungarian modernism and later thrived in European capitals.
February: Tours, Talks, Music, Family Days
February 7 stacks the deck: alongside Adolf Fényes’s Art and Rebellious Forms, Bold Colors – The Art of Lajos Tihanyi, the hands-on workshop Create! – Naked Reality invites visitors to make art. February 8 offers Budapest–Berlin–Paris. L’art de Lajos Tihanyi in French and an architectural walk, Building Tour – From the Crypt to the Dome, taking guests inside the Gallery’s monumental shell.
On February 10, an Online Guided Tour of the Adolf Fényes exhibition makes the show accessible from anywhere. That same day, Toddlers – Venetian Carnival opens the galleries to the smallest visitors with a costume-bright twist. February 11 launches Color It Anew! – a museum workshop for children and returns to Tihanyi’s rebellious forms and bold colors, repeating on February 12, which also hosts Look, Mom! – The Beauty of the Human Body, an early-years program focused on body positivity and classical form.
February 13 broadens the language palette with Visita guidata in italiano and an English-language tour: Rebellious Forms, Bold Colors – The Art of Lajos Tihanyi | Guided tour in English. Valentine’s Day turns musical with a guided tour featuring musicologist Ádám Bősze and art historian Gábor Bellák. Also on February 14: Love Is in the Air floats through romantic themes, while art historian Gergely Barki’s bonus lecture Two or None: Doublings and Gaps in the Oeuvre of Lajos Tihanyi digs into missing works, versions, and mysteries. The Most Beautiful Hungarian Love Paintings caps the day’s romance.
February 15 swings back to Fényes with curator Ágnes Horváth. On February 18, Color It Anew! returns; February 19 offers Look at That, Mom! – The Beauty of the Human Body in English. February 21 spotlights Adolf Fényes’s Art and hosts Adventure in the Gallery – Carnival Transformation, a playful, dress-up exploration. February 22 turns to turn-of-the-century Nude Sculptures from the Fin de Siècle (Aktszobrok a századfordulóról), a tour of fin-de-siècle nude sculptures. February 24’s Preschoolers in the Gallery – How Colorful! and February 25’s Mental Fitness – Sculpture Brought to Life keep the family-friendly thread going, alongside another Color It Anew! workshop. February 26 repeats Look, Mom! – The Beauty of the Human Body. And on February 28, curator Edit Plesznivy leads The Taste of Sunlight, closing the month on a warm note.
Where to Stay Near the Gallery
Staying near Buda Castle puts everything within reach. A four-star boutique hotel at the foot of the Castle by the Danube offers panoramic rooms just a 10-minute walk from Buda Castle, Matthias Church, and Fisherman’s Bastion, all UNESCO World Heritage sites. The Chain Bridge lands you in Pest for business, shopping streets, cafés, and wine bars. In the quiet Buda Castle District, Buda Castle Hotel nestles in a side street steps from the sights. Budavár Panzió sits right on UNESCO-protected ground at the foot of Fisherman’s Bastion, close to Matthias Church. For value, Gold Hotel Budapest serves up air-conditioned rooms with LCD TVs, minibars, hairdryers, and free Wi‑Fi.
Hilton Budapest blends modern interiors with the ruins of a 13th-century Dominican monastery, centered around the atmospheric Dominican Courtyard for concerts, receptions, and weddings. Views stretch over the Danube, bridges, Margaret Island, Parliament, Pest’s skyline, and the Buda Hills. Hotel Castle Garden stands by the gate of the UNESCO-listed district, a stroll from Matthias Church, Fisherman’s Bastion, and Buda Castle. Hotel Charles offers leafy calm, hearty dishes, and comfort; Hotel Clark Budapest sits by the Széchenyi Chain Bridge with knockout Danube and Castle views. Smaller options include a 30-room property with Wi‑Fi, minibars, kettles, and desks, and the Maison Bistro & Hotel with a cozy bistro, vaulted event cellar, street terrace, 25 bespoke rooms, and an inner courtyard garden.
Eat and Drink Around Buda Castle
Old-school Hungarian cuisine with a 21st-century lift awaits at 21 Hungarian Kitchen (21 A Magyar Vendéglő): the romantic Szindbád-era flavors are lightened but traditional tastes stay concentrated. For specialty coffee by Goosebumps, Zhao Zhou teas, raw, vegan, and gluten-free cakes, cold-pressed juices, and ice cream, a nearby café has you covered. In historic walls, another spot reimagines classic Hungarian dishes with serious wines. Angelika is more than a café—an international restaurant serving Hungarian flavors plus house-made desserts and coffee specialties; it seats 350, with 200 on a Danube-view terrace.
Arany Hordó Restaurant (Arany Hordó Étterem) once housed the royal cup-bearer; its stone cellar bar extends into a branch of the 500-year-old Buda Labyrinth for candlelit tastings and dinners that feel like a time slip to King Matthias’s court. Arany Kaviár has delivered fine dining for over twenty years, blending imperial Russian opulence with modern elegance, recognized by Gault Millau since 2010 and recommended by the Michelin Guide since 2009. For fast-casual Mexican, Arriba Taqueria serves fresh, quick plates with friendly service. Down on Bem rakpart, an art bistro-bar mixes international cuisine with bistro classics, while Budapest’s first Belgian pub offers hearty food, great beers, and a summer terrace with views.
Organizers reserve the right to change dates and programs. Phone bookings are welcome.
