Hungary’s Christmas tree sets off: When it arrives at Parliament and what traffic disruptions to expect

Hungary’s national Christmas tree will set off on Sunday evening and arrive in Budapest early Monday morning. This year’s tree is a 23-metre-tall, 5–5.5-tonne, forty-year-old silver fir. It will be transported from Ibrány, a town in Szabolcs-Szatmár-Bereg County, to Kossuth Square, where it will stand as one of the key festive symbols of the Advent season.

Ibrány’s tallest fir chosen as Hungary’s Christmas tree

The Office of the National Assembly selected this year’s Christmas tree from 31 offers. During on-site inspections, 18 trees were measured, with height, shape, foliage density and the technical conditions required for transport all taken into account.

The chosen silver fir grew for more than four decades in the garden of a family home in Ibrány. The donating family, who wished to remain anonymous, decided last Christmas—at the suggestion of their grandchildren—to offer the tree to the nation. They said they were delighted that the fir they had cared for over the years would become one of the capital’s festive centrepieces.

Special route and major transport operation

The tree will be cut down on Sunday morning by specialists from the National Directorate General for Disaster Management, then lifted onto a 40-tonne special transport vehicle provided by the Hungarian Defence Forces. The illuminated and decorated fir will leave Ibrány at 7 PM on Sunday, escorted by police and military officers.