The coming days won’t be kind to those who struggle with heat: temperatures across the Carpathian Basin are expected to mimic the sweltering Mediterranean summer. But there’s good news, too: a slight cooldown is on the horizon, and Budapest’s only free beach is reopening to the public.

Scorching days ahead

Forecasting the weather is rarely easy, especially considering long-term forecasts, but experts agree that some of the hottest days of the summer are expected this Wednesday and Thursday in Hungary. On Wednesday, orange-level heat alerts will be in effect for the counties of Csongrád-Csanád, Bács-Kiskun, Békés, and Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok, where average daily temperatures are expected to exceed 27°C (81°F). Other counties will see level-one (yellow) alerts, as temperatures may surpass 25°C (77°F).

On Thursday, HungaroMet Ltd. issued the highest-level red warning for Csongrád-Csanád County, where average daily temperatures could exceed 29°C (84°F). Averages above 27°C are forecast for Baranya, Tolna, Fejér, Pest, Bács-Kiskun, Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok, and Békés counties, triggering orange alerts in those regions. Except for Nógrád and Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén counties, all others are under yellow warnings for expected average daily highs above 25°C.

Maps: Temperatures above 35°C (95°F) are expected in the following areas on Wednesday and Thursday (marked in red):

Heat records may be broken

According to HungaroMet’s forecast, Thursday could even bring a new all-time heat record.

Relief is expected by Friday, with temperatures dropping a few degrees to between 27°C and 33°C (81°F–91°F). However, strong winds, showers, and thunderstorms are likely, especially in eastern and northeastern regions. Saturday will bring similar conditions, with temperatures not exceeding 33°C, reports Időkép.

Yield in peril

While beachgoers and vacationers might welcome the heatwave, it spells trouble for agriculture. Significant rainfall has been absent for weeks, and much of the country is facing drought conditions that could devastate this year’s sunflower and corn harvests. “Usable water content in the top 20 centimetres of soil has dropped below 20% in many areas: dangerously low levels. The drought is especially severe for corn, sunflower, and soybean crops,” HungaroMet reported. Trees remain green for now thanks to better water reserves deeper underground.

School over, scorching heat here: Budapest’s unique free beach reopens

Good news for Budapest residents: the capital’s only free-access beach, located at Óbuda’s Római Part, will reopen to swimmers this Friday and remain open through 24 August. According to a post on the Óbudai Nyár Facebook page, the beach offers a clean and well-maintained shoreline, developed infrastructure, colourful lounge chairs, free drinking water, restrooms, baby changing stations, showers, free bike storage, lifeguard supervision, and first aid provided by the Hungarian Red Cross.

There are a few important rules: swimming is only allowed within the designated buoyed area, between 10 AM and 7 PM. The water depth in that zone is 120 centimetres.

In recent months, both professionals and citizens have revived discussions about opening more beaches along other parts of the Danube, including downtown Budapest. Though such river beaches once operated for decades (even in front of today’s Parliament), they were shut down after World War II and never rebuilt. Industrialisation had rendered the Danube water too polluted for safe swimming.

Recent testing suggests, however, that the Danube is safe to swim in, at least when not contaminated by heavy rain runoff. This became evident prior to last year’s Paris Olympics, when Hungarian open-water swimmers like gold medalist Dávid Rasovszky, bronze medalist Dániel Betlehem, and fifth-place finisher Bettina Fábián all credited training in the Danube for their success.

Read also:

• Budapest’s sandy “seashore”, Hungary’s largest natural water beach opens with free entrance weekend
• Budapest’s best budget beaches: where to cool off without breaking the bank

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