Greening up downtown Budapest: celebrate St Patrick’s Day with the local Irish
The Irish-Hungarian Business Circle (IHBC), in collaboration with the Embassy of Ireland, is proud to bring the St. Patrick’s Festival & Parade 2025 to Szabadság Tér on Sunday March 16th. This vibrant celebration of Irish culture is an unmissable event not just for the Irish diaspora, but for families across Budapest.
A Day of Irish Music, Dance & Culture
From 12 to 6 PM, festival attendees will be treated to a fantastic line up of live performances, featuring a blend of traditional and contemporary music and dance. Budapest Gaels GAA will showcase Gaelic football and hurling on Szabadság Tér, whilst dog lovers can meet a pack of pedigree Red Setters and Irish Wolfhounds. Alongside traditional Irish food and drinks, families and festival goers will be treated to balloon bending and face-painting. The Parade kicks off at 14:00, led by the great man himself—St. Patrick – and winds its way through District V, passing some of Budapest’s iconic landmarks, including the Parliament and St Stephen’s Basilica, before returning to Szabadság Tér for more entertainment.
Irish–Hungarian Heritage: Honouring Henry Spelter
This year’s festival honours Henry Spelter – one of 540 Hungarian refugees welcomed to Ireland in the wake of the 1956 revolution. A celebrated confectioner from one of Hungary’s great baking families, Spelter worked at Dublin’s iconic Bewley’s café. In 2022, the ‘Mary Cake’ he introduced there returned to the Bewley’s menu, with funds raised from its sales donated to the Red Cross to support Ukrainian refugees in Ireland. Honouring Spelter’s memory, the Ambassador will be joined in leading the parade by members of the Spelter family and Hazel Carmichael, the Bewley’s baker who rediscovered the ‘Mary Cake’, which the Embassy will serve at its St Patrick’s Day reception.
Charity Gala
Charity is a core value of Irish identity and a feature of St Patrick’s Day celebrations globally. On 22 March, the IHBC hosts its annual St Patrick’s gala at the Marriott Hotel in Budapest. An evening of Irish culture, supported by local Irish businesses, the gala will raise funds for two deserving Hungarian charities: Nők a Nőkért Együtt az Erőszak Ellen (NANE), which provides a refuge for women and children in Budapest who are victims of domestic abuse and Tarnabod és mi (TAMI), which supports orphans and vulnerable youth in the village of Tarnabod.
Commenting on the festival programme, Damien O’Kane President of the IHBC remarked:
“This is not only a wonderful occasion for the Irish diaspora in Hungary but a fantastic opportunity for everyone to experience the joy and warmth of Ireland’s national celebration. Join us as we turn the Danube green in celebration of the spirit of St Patrick.”
Ireland’s Ambassador to Hungary said:
‘‘Distant as we are geographically, Ireland and Hungary share a remarkable history and, through the 10,000 Hungarians who’ve made Ireland home, and the thousand or so Irish here in Hungary, deep cultural ties. The remarkable story of Henry Spelter exemplifies this. Our Embassy is proud to celebrate St Patrick’s Day this year in his honour – and to bring Bewley’s celebrated Mary Cake back to Budapest!’’
Previous St. Patrick’s Day in Budapest:
2023: St Patrick’s Day celebrated in Budapest – PHOTOS, VIDEO
2024: Budapest in green: St Patrick’s Day celebrations in Hungary – Photos, videos