Budapest nightlife runs on two things: ruin bars in the old Jewish Quarter and clubs that stay open until 05:00 or 06:00. Szimpla Kert opened the first ruin bar in 2002 and still fills a stripped apartment block on Kazinczy utca. Entry is often free, a beer costs 1,350–2,000 Ft (about €3.40–5), and the big rooms charge 2,000–10,000 Ft depending on who is playing. Pest has most of the bars; Buda has the river venues, including a concert hall on a former Ukrainian stone carrier. When the metro stops, tram 6 runs all night along the Grand Boulevard. Worth knowing: buy a ticket before you board, because a single costs 700 Ft on board against 500 Ft in advance.
Ranked by popularity. Tap a card for opening hours, door tips, getting there and tickets.
For the drinks before and after. Hours, prices and the best nights are on each page.
Start in a ruin bar, finish in a club. The Jewish Quarter in District VII is where most nights begin: courtyard bars built into crumbling apartment blocks, free to enter and open until 04:00. From there it is a short walk to Instant-Fogas, open until 06:00, or a tram ride to the river venues.
It is cheap by Western European standards, and cheaper still off the main strip. A beer in Szimpla Kert costs around 2,000 Ft (≈€5) and a rooftop cocktail 4,200–6,200 Ft (≈€10.50–15.50). Step off the Kazinczy utca strip and the price drops: the house lager at Élesztőház is 1,350 Ft.
The serious music is spread across the city. International names play Akvárium under Erzsébet tér, the techno crowd goes to Toldi Klub and Turbina, and A38, a converted stone carrier at Petőfi bridge, books concerts and DJs most nights. Check the listings before you choose a district.
Szimpla Kert has nine bars, a courtyard and a Sunday farmers' market. Go early in the evening, before the queue.
A Kannon Audio system at Toldi Klub, techlab.bp nights at Turbina and international DJs at Akvárium. Doors from 22:00 or 23:00.
A38 and Dürer Kert book everything from metal to hip-hop, and Akvárium's main hall takes the bigger touring acts.
Boutiq'Bar, Hotsy Totsy and Black Swan are within walking distance of each other, with cocktails from about 4,350 Ft.
Instant-Fogas has free entry, seven clubs under one roof and stays open until 06:00 every night.
360 Bar on Andrássy út and High Note facing St Stephen's Basilica. Both open in the afternoon, so go for sunset.
Not for you if you want a quiet ruin bar on a Saturday night. The famous ones in District VII fill with visitors, and Szimpla has been reported to see 5,000 people in a night. Go midweek or go early.
Rooftops for sunset. 360 Bar and High Note are open from the afternoon, and the cocktail bars open at 18:00.
Dinner, then the first ruin bar. Szimpla Kert is still manageable before 21:00.
Lock opens its doors and the Jewish Quarter is at full volume.
Club nights start at Toldi Klub and Ötkert. The floors are still half empty.
Peak. Most cocktail bars and 360 Bar close; the ruin bars have two hours left.
Szimpla closes. Instant-Fogas and, at weekends, Akvárium keep going until 06:00. Then tram 6 or a night bus home.
Start at Szimpla Kert, Kazinczy utca 14, and work through the Jewish Quarter. Entry is free; budget around 2,000 Ft a beer.
A38 is moored at the Buda end of Petőfi bridge, with a concert hall in the hold and a rooftop deck. DJ parties start at 2,000 Ft in advance.
Three large rooms under Erzsébet tér, open until 06:00 at the weekend, and a minute from Deák Ferenc tér.
Toldi Klub is a cinema close to a hundred years old with a Kannon Audio sound system and club nights from 23:00.
High Note SkyBar faces the dome clock of St Stephen's. Cocktails cost 5,900–6,200 Ft and it closes at midnight.
Szimpla Kert opens at 09:00 on Sunday for its farmers' market, and the courtyard looks different in daylight.
District VII, around Kazinczy, Klauzál and Akácfa utca. Szimpla Kert, Instant-Fogas, Doboz and the cocktail bars Hotsy Totsy and Black Swan. The best area to go out in Budapest if you want everything within ten minutes on foot. Busy and loud at weekends.
District V, the inner city. Akvárium under Erzsébet tér, Toldi Klub on Bajcsy-Zsilinszky út, Ötkert by the Gresham Palace, and the High Note and St Andrea rooftops. Every metro line meets at Deák Ferenc tér.
The streets around Andrássy út. Boutiq'Bar on Paulay Ede utca and 360 Bar on the roof of a former department store. A drinks area rather than a dancing one.
Districts VIII and IX, south of the centre. Turbina for techno nights and Élesztőház for more than 20 craft taps next to the Trafó arts centre. Cheaper and more local than District VII.
District XI on the Buda side. A38 on its ship at Petőfi bridge and Dürer Kert on Öböl utca for alternative gigs and parties until 04:00 at weekends.
The Buda bank between the Chain Bridge and Margaret Bridge. Kassa Boat at Szilágyi Dezső tér for electronic nights and Lock by Margaret Bridge for grown-up house music on Friday and Saturday.
Most Budapest doors are relaxed. Ruin bars and Instant-Fogas charge nothing, and most clubs sell tickets per event rather than judging outfits. The exceptions are Ötkert, whose door has a reputation for being strict, and the best cocktail bars, which want a booking: 360 Bar requires a table reservation and Boutiq'Bar asks pairs for an 8,000 Ft deposit on busy weekends. Carry photo ID.
Nothing at the ruin bars and Instant-Fogas. 2,000 Ft in advance or 3,000 Ft on the door for a DJ party at A38, 2,000 Ft in advance or 5,000 Ft on the door at Lock, around 4,000 Ft for a domestic act at Akvárium and up to 10,000 Ft for a major foreign DJ. That is roughly €0–25.
Tram 6 runs 24 hours a day along the Grand Boulevard, and night buses, whose numbers all start with 9, cover the rest of the city, with hubs at Astoria, Deák Ferenc tér, Blaha Lujza tér, Széll Kálmán tér, Móricz Zsigmond körtér and Örs vezér tere. Regular tickets are valid at night: a single costs 500 Ft in advance and 700 Ft on board. The night network was reorganised on 1–2 July 2026, so check your route in the BudapestGO app. For a taxi, order through an app or by phone and use only licensed yellow cabs.
| Club entry | 0–10,000 Ft (≈€0–25) |
| Beer in a club | 1,350–2,000 Ft (≈€3.40–5) |
| Cocktail | 2,500–6,200 Ft (≈€6.25–15.50) |
| Cloakroom | Varies by venue; check at the door |
| Night transport ticket | 500 Ft, 700 Ft on board (≈€1.25–1.75) |
| Taxi across town | About 3,000–5,000 Ft (≈€7.50–12.50) |
| Late-night food | About 2,000–3,500 Ft (≈€5–9) |
| Hostel bed, weekend | From about 6,000 Ft (≈€15) |
Two house lagers at Élesztőház, free entry at Instant-Fogas, two beers inside and a single ticket home on tram 6.
A cocktail at Hotsy Totsy, a 3,000 Ft club door, four drinks, a late snack and a ticket home.
Two cocktails at High Note, a 10,000 Ft headliner at Akvárium, drinks until 06:00 and a taxi back.
A single costs 500 Ft in advance and 700 Ft from the driver, and the same tickets are valid on night services.
It runs all night along the Grand Boulevard, past Nyugati station, and stops at the Buda ends of Margaret Bridge and Petőfi bridge, close to Lock and A38.
The official capacity is 600 and it has been reported to see 5,000 people in a night. Before 21:00 you get a seat.
Black Swan has 28 seats, 360 Bar needs a table reservation and Boutiq'Bar takes a deposit at weekends.
That is the transport authority's own advice. Use only licensed yellow cabs.
Pontoon on the Pest embankment opens only from May to September. A38 runs all year.
Szimpla opened in 2002 and moved in 2004 into a block of former homes and a stove factory on Kazinczy utca, saving the building from demolition.
A38 is a former Ukrainian stone-carrier ship. It opened as a venue on 30 April 2003 and has topped a Lonely Planet readers' poll of the best bars.
Line M1 was inaugurated by Emperor Franz Joseph on 2 May 1896, the thousandth anniversary of the arrival of the Magyars, and still runs under Andrássy út.
Sziget has taken over Óbuda Island every August since 1993, when it started as Diáksziget. In 2025 it drew 416,000 visitors.
Most clubs close between 05:00 and 06:00. Instant-Fogas runs to 06:00 every night, Akvárium to 06:00 on Friday and Saturday, and Lock, Ötkert and Toldi Klub to 05:00 at weekends. Ruin bars like Szimpla close around 04:00.
The Jewish Quarter in District VII for ruin bars and late clubs, Belváros for the big clubs and rooftops, and the Buda riverside and Újbuda for boats and gigs. For one night, start in District VII and finish there too.
Akvárium for international names, A38 for concerts on a ship, Toldi Klub and Turbina for techno, and Instant-Fogas for a free, late, seven-room night. Our list of the 10 best clubs in Budapest has the full ranking.
No. Szimpla Kert and Instant-Fogas are free to enter every night. You pay for drinks: around 2,000 Ft for a beer at Szimpla and 1,600 Ft for a lager at Instant-Fogas.
Tram 6 runs 24/7 along the Grand Boulevard, and night buses, whose numbers start with 9, cover the rest of the city from hubs such as Astoria and Deák Ferenc tér. A single ticket costs 500 Ft in advance or 700 Ft on board.
Less than most Western European capitals. A cheap night is about 7,000 Ft (≈€17.50) and a normal one around 16,000 Ft (≈€40). Rooftop cocktails at 6,000 Ft are where it adds up.
See which clubs and bars are open right now, who is playing and where to get tickets. Live in four cities, with more on the way.
