Szekszárd’s biggest cultural hub, the Babits Mihály Cultural Center at 7100 Szekszárd, Szent István Square (Szent István tér) 10, is gearing up for a packed 2026. Expect a whirl of stage premieres, concerts, films, exhibitions, a free public lecture series, family programs, and a buzzing playhouse. The center also hosts a constellation of clubs and arts groups that feed into the city’s vibrant cultural life. Under its umbrella you’ll also find the much-loved Agora Cinema (Agóra Mozi) and the House of Arts—making this the city’s go-to address for everything from folk dance to Mozart.
Key Dates You’ll Want to Save
April 29 lights up with two standout events. Forrás Folk Dance Ensemble (Forrás Néptáncegyüttes) and Independent Theater (Független Színház) present Útravaló, a dance-theater performance that blends movement, narrative, and tradition. That same day the free “Health Open University” (Egész-ség Szabadegyetem) tackles Love as Crisis (Not Only as a Romantic Crisis). Speaker: Cecilia Bozzay, mental health professional, complex arts therapist, and family, relationship, and divorce mediator. The evening’s host is Margit Pócs, head of the Mental Health Workshop.
On May 5, Endre Fejes and Gábor Presser’s Good Evening, Summer, Good Evening, Love (Jó estét nyár, jó estét szerelem) returns—a cult musical about a hooligan, staged as the fourth show in the Muse (Múzsa) season-ticket series. Expect grit, melody, and a sharply drawn coming-of-age story.
May 8 offers Individual Short Graphology Analysis for anyone curious about the quirks their handwriting reveals. On May 9, the Origo Dance Studio’s Dance Gala (Táncgála) takes the stage with a showcase of polished choreography and young talent.
Travel meets culture on May 12 with the “Culture Sips Open University” (Kultúrkortyok Szabadegyetem): From Tashkent to the Aral Sea – Uzbekistan, a guided wander across Central Asian history, landscapes, and living culture.
Comedian László Lakatos arrives May 14 with I’m Here — László Lakatos Stand-up Night, supported by opener Olivér Wolf. Tickets run $19.90. The next day, May 15, brings two musical events: Gergő Kovács’s Song Recital and the Szekszárd Youth Wind Orchestra’s Grading Concert, a milestone performance where musicians put their repertoire and skills to the test before adjudicators.
On May 21, nostalgia runs deep with Music—What Am I Without It… a memorial concert for Zsuzsa Cserháti and Péter Máté, two icons whose voices still soundtrack Hungarian pop memory.
Summer Theater, Family Shows, and a Beloved Band
June packs an eclectic punch. June 9 features James Fritz’s 4:12, a contemporary piece known for taut writing and sudden turns. June 10–11 belongs to school audiences as Laura Topolcsányi and Viktor Maráth’s Pocahontas lands in three versions: Elementary School Pass 4th Performance (June 10), Elementary Plus Pass 4th Performance (June 11), and Kindergarten Pass 4th Performance (June 11). It’s the same spirited story, scaled to different ages with lively staging and singable tunes.
June 13 welcomes Apostol, the ever-popular band whose soft-rock hits have the rare power to pull multiple generations into the same chorus. On June 23, Husbands in a Jam (Férjek a slamasztikában), a French two-act comedy, serves up marital mishaps and razor-edged farce—classic boulevard theater with brisk timing and plenty of doors to slam.
Autumn to Winter: Piano Duos, Mozart, and Movie Magic
The fall calendar opens September 7 with a concert by pianists Endre Hegedűs and Katalin Hegedűs—renowned for fleet fingers, ensemble telepathy, and programs that swing from lyrical to thunderous. November 6 brings organist–concert storyteller Gergely Rákász with Mozart, marrying crystal-clear playing to engaging narration and visuals. On November 24, a Film Music Concert celebrates scores that carry scenes and stick in your head—think sweeping themes, tight motifs, and goosebumps in stereo.
Looking ahead to January 23, 2027, the blockbuster arrives: László Dés – Péter Geszti – Krisztián Grecsó’s The Paul Street Boys (A Pál utcai fiúk), adapted from Ferenc Molnár’s classic novel. Expect a heartfelt, high-energy musical about friendship, honor, and a city lot that becomes a universe.
Where to Stay: Wine, Comfort, Easy Access
A few steps from downtown, Hotel Merops**** is a wine hotel beside Mészáros Winery, with tailored services and a calm, small-city vibe perfect for both downtime and activity seekers. The design is distinctive, the staff prepared, and the service range wide. Up north by Route 6, Sió Motel spreads over 2.5 hectares between the Szekszárd and Tolna wine regions, close to the Gemenc Forest and Sárköz. Hotel Zodiaco***, the area’s only three-star hotel, pairs a modern-elegant setting with a philosophy of guest satisfaction, improving year by year for business trips and weekends alike.
Boutique pick: Nádasdi House offers eight rooms and two apartments for visitors, plus the Main Street Bistro, which wows locals and travelers with a broad menu and deft cooking. Wine tastings? They do those, too. Their cellar is made for events with a Szekszárd vibe—birthdays, friendly dinners, corporate nights—memorable, atmospheric, and flexible.
Wine Country, Up Close
Szekszárd’s wine scene is everywhere you look. Attila Estate (Attila Birtok) in Baranya Valley farms 14 hectares, working with Kékfrankos, Kadarka, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Zweigelt. Bodri Winery (Bodri Pincészet) is a 100-hectare destination at the city’s southern edge: winery, event center, guesthouses, Optimus Restaurant with a modern Hungarian slant, a 1,800-square-foot great cellar under 12 domes, a 300-square-foot aging cellar open on tours, and a 1,400-square-foot rosé facility for top-quality volume. Sixty-one guests can overnight; there’s also a thermal-water underground domed Roman bath, jacuzzi, and sauna.
At Borfaragó Cellar (Borfaragó Pince) in the “upper town,” artisan wines meet folk woodcarving, with tastings in a onetime carpentry and carving workshop—discreetly located yet easy to reach. Other producers spotlight Kékfrankos as a solo show and a blending backbone alongside Rhine Riesling (Rajnai rizling), Cserszegi Fűszeres, Kadarka, Blaufränkisch (Kékoportó), Merlot, Cabernet Franc, and Syrah. A natural-leaning winery in Porkoláb Valley bottles only estate-grown fruit and forgoes commercial yeasts, enzymes, fining agents, colorants, flavor or acid tweaks, filtration, sterilization, oxygen dosing, and heat treatment—then bottles every wine. Many cellars experiment boldly with blends, craft rosés from nearly every red variety (awards included), and build reds around local heroes like Kékfrankos and Kadarka, complemented by global staples such as Merlot, Cabernet, and Pinot Noir.
The Eszterbauer family, with Swabian and Serbian roots, runs a tradition-rich estate offering tastings presented by family members in a show cellar and reception house. Tastings and meals for 8 to 50 guests range from simple bites to multi-course dinners, and their webshop carries a line of award-winners. Another family winery farms 6.6 hectares across four Szekszárd sites, led by Syrah, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Kékfrankos—small-scale, focused, and proudly local.
Organizers reserve the right to change dates and programs.
