Europe (2017): Great Market Hall of Budapest, Hungary

The thing that I like to do when travel overseas is visiting souvenir markets. I love to hunt for souvenirs such as postcards, fridge magnets, keychains and even their own local products. And when in Budapest, the most recommended place if you are looking for souvenirs for your family and friends back home would be the Great Market Hall.

Also known as Central Market Hall, it is the largest and oldest indoor market in Budapest city. It consists of three-storey hall where the ground floor selling daily products such as fruits, poultry, vegetables and etc whereas for the upper floor where you can find raft of stalls selling variety of souvenirs such as Hungarian dolls, embroidered linens, glassware and more. Obviously the upper floor is my favourite section where I wandered for hours, until sensory overload kicks in. 

You can't imagine how excited I was before going to visit Great Market Hall until I was willing to wake up as early as 6am local time to embark my journey. The walking distance from the hostel I stayed to this market took almost 20 minutes and like what I expected, almost the entire streets and road were empty and quiet.


Early morning walk - entirely empty and quiet 

Now let's begin to venture around ground floor of Great Market Hall first, shall we?


Hungarian paprika - One of unique souvenirs you should buy in Hungary


Salami


Fresh daily products like vegetables and fruits 


Sajtos Rolo is a Hungarian cheesy cream horn

Cakes and pastries - How I wish I could have all of them but travel alone disallow myself from doing so

I didn't bother much on the ground floor as I was more intrigued with whatever sold on the first floor section. So are you ready to see what are selling on the first floor?

Hungarian souvenirs 


Embroidered table runner  


Embroidered shirts - Love to buy one but it's relatively pricey. Plus I was travel on budget






Budapest theme cups and mugs

The upper floor tend to attract more tourists for its rich selection of Hungarian embroidery which is another unique souvenirs you can buy either for yourself, family or even friends. Honestly to say, all the souvenirs sold here are incredibly beautiful and pretty and I really wish I could at least bring one back but unfortunately as I lost my luggage and I was travelling in light, ended up I left this market with empty handed. Too bad! Too bad! Well, at least I managed to grab few small items like fridge magnets (a must everytime I travel), postcards and pin badges.

Items	HUF	€ Euro
Fridge magnets	500 - 600	1.70 - 2.05
Postcards	80 -100	0.27 - 0.34
Stamps	400	1.36

So far, I found out that fridge magnets in Budapest are relatively cheaper than in Austria, Denmark and Finland.

Another reason why you should visit Great Market Hall is in case you are looking for Hungarian authentic local food but then don't want to burn a big hole of your wallet, this is the right place to hunt for cheap and delicious food with modest and ingenious environment. The two authentic local food you should try on the first floor are:

1) Goulash - a stew of meat and vegetables seasoned with paprika and other spices. Originating from the medieval Hungary, goulash is a popular meal predominantly eaten in Central Europe but as well as in other parts of Europe. A bowl of goulash in Great Market Hall cost HUF2,000 (approx. to €6.80)

2) Langos - a feast of deep fried dough with various toppings. Quite number of tourists eventually queued up for this but I didn't manage to try as I was full with goulash.

Getting to Great Market Hall:

Tram 2, 47 or 49 or 5 min walk from Kalvin ter (Blue metro line). Alternatively, one can walk through the famous shopping street called Vaci utca, starting from Vorosmarty Square which takes about 15 min walk and the Grand Market Hall is right at the end of Vaci Street.

Opening Hours:
Monday 6am to 5pm
Tuesday to Friday 6am to 6pm
Closed on Sunday

Note: Don't go too early as not many stalls open yet. The best time would be 10-11am so you could have your lunch at there too. I also found out Great Market Hall offers the best rate if you are looking for money changer to change local currency. 

Next Stop: Vienna!