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Great Synagogue

Great Synagogue

Place · Jewish Quarter (Erzsébetváros)

Photo: Rbrechko, CC BY-SA 4.0
Dohány utcai zsinagógaJewish Quarter (Erzsébetváros), Budapestgo at hour · mid-morning on a weekdayadmission: unknown

Europe's largest synagogue, with the Jewish Museum, the Holocaust memorial garden and the weeping-willow memorial behind it; go mid-morning on a weekday and dress with shoulders covered.

Time on site45–60 minp95 90 min
Best hourmid-morning on a weekdayquietest window
28″ bagsPainful WarningJewish Quarter (Erzsébetváros)
Step-freePartial Warning
Sensory loadModerate3 of 5 · Moderate
  • Go mid-morning on a weekday
  • Queue: switch at 20 min

Highlights come from Voykit's own data and desk notes, not from reviews. Hover a tag to see its source.

Rules in force · 10Non-EU visitors get 90 days in any rolling 180-day window…Castle Hill has cobbles, stairs and a steep approach
  • Europe ↗Non-EU visitors get 90 days in any rolling 180-day window, counted across all 29 Schengen states together — not per country; the Entry/Exit System now logs each crossing, so an overstay is detected automatically.
  • Europe ↗On the first Schengen entry since EES began, non-EU travellers give four fingerprints and a face photo at the border instead of a passport stamp; there is nothing to apply for or pay in advance.
  • Central Europe ↗Six of the nine countries here — Austria, Switzerland, Czechia, Slovakia, Hungary and Slovenia — charge a time-based motorway vignette, mostly digital and linked to the number plate; buy it before the first motorway past the border, because cameras, not toll booths, do the checking.
  • Central Europe ↗Temporary police checks at internal Schengen borders are common in this region in 2026 (Germany, Austria, Poland, Slovenia among others — check): keep your passport on you on every cross-border train, bus and road even though there is no fixed control post.
  • Hungary ↗Hungary is in the EU and the Schengen area: check entry rules, the EU Entry/Exit System and any travel authorisation requirement for your passport on official sources.
  • Hungary ↗The currency is the Hungarian forint (HUF), not the euro: decline dynamic currency conversion at cards and ATMs.
  • Hungary ↗Motorways need an electronic vignette (e-matrica) bought before you drive on them.
  • Budapest and the Danube Bend ↗If you drive out of town on a motorway, buy the electronic vignette (e-matrica) first.
  • Budapest ↗Castle Hill has cobbles, stairs and a steep approach: large suitcases go from the car to the door, never on a walk.
  • Budapest ↗Use a licensed taxi with a posted tariff, or a ride-hailing app; avoid drivers who approach you at the airport or stations.
More
Map & directions
Google Maps Apple Maps
Directions
From where I am

Add your hotel to get directions from it. · stays in this browser; shared with the pocket card.

Plan

Open now, best time to go, opening hours

Go now?

hours and prices: check on the day
Open
Hours not on file: check the official site.
Time to spend
45–60 min · up to 90 min if you linger
Directions Add to a day →

Best time to go

Coach groups mid-morning; quieter in the first hour after opening.

Queue rule: switch if the queue passes 20 min; come back when under 5.

Opening hours
Note
Closed on Saturdays (Shabbat) and Jewish holidays; exact weekday hours vary by season and are not printed until verified.

Weather here, next 7 days

Loading forecast…

Forecast: Open-Meteo (CC BY 4.0), model data for this point.

Not checked in the last 12 months (no check date on file).

On the ground

Getting in, access, sensory load, what to bring, and where to go if it does not work

Getting in

Stop
Walk to Dohány utca, Jewish Quarter
Ticket
on site · official site
Stairs
Level entrance; galleries reached by stairs
Shoes
Shoes on.

Accessibility

  • PartialStep-free entrance · Level entrance; galleries reached by stairs
  • Check firstLifts
  • Check firstAccessible toilet
  • PartialWheelchair · The ground floor and garden are manageable; confirm lift access for galleries.
  • PartialStroller · caution

Sensory load

  • Sensory load3/5 Medium

Exposure: medium

What to bring and the rules

  • Clothing that meets the dress rule · Shoulders covered for all visitors; men cover their heads (kippot are provided free at the entrance).
  • A small bag · A security check applies at the entrance, similar to other major Budapest sights.
  • Shoulders covered for all visitors; men cover their heads (kippot are provided free at the entrance).
  • A security check applies at the entrance, similar to other major Budapest sights.
  • Generally allowed in the courtyard and garden; check current rules for the sanctuary interior.

Rules and prices change: check the official site before you go.

Bailouts

  • crowd: Visit the memorial garden first, then the interior later in the visit

Nearest rescue anchor: A — north-west block: café row (field-verify)

Not checked in the last 12 months (no check date on file).

Map and nearby

Where it is, how to get there from your hotel or from where you stand, and what is around it

Great SynagogueGreat Synagogue

Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors

Google Maps Apple Maps
Directions
From where I am

Add your hotel to get directions from it. · stays in this browser; shared with the pocket card.

The pin marks the centre of Jewish Quarter (Erzsébetváros): this place has no exact entrance point on file.

Eat in Jewish Quarter (Erzsébetváros)

More detail

Everything else we know about this place

Tickets, prices and entry

Know before you go

  • Built 1854-59, it seats around 3,000 and is the largest synagogue in Europe and one of the largest in the world.
  • The complex includes the Jewish Museum, the Heroes' Temple, and the Raoul Wallenberg Holocaust memorial garden, with a metal weeping-willow sculpture bearing victims' names on its leaves.
  • The site sits inside the boundary of the wartime Budapest ghetto; a mass grave for those who died in the ghetto's final months lies in the courtyard.
  • Closed to visitors on Saturdays (the Jewish Sabbath) and on Jewish holidays — check the calendar before you plan the day around it.

Tickets & entry

2026 estimate · check the posted board
Where to buy
  • Buy at the entrance on the day.
  • Buy from the official site or the ticket desk; resellers add a fee for the same ticket.

Official site ↗

Free days

Free entry days in Budapest (pick Budapest in the tool; check)

Dress code
  • Shoulders covered for all visitors; men cover their heads (kippot are provided free at the entrance).

What to wear: dress-code checker

Bags & lockers
  • A security check applies at the entrance, similar to other major Budapest sights.
Photos
  • Generally allowed in the courtyard and garden; check current rules for the sanctuary interior.
Time on site, inside and your plan

Time on site

minutes

Minimum

30min

Worthwhile

45min

Typical

60min

p95

90min

How much time do you have?

from the time-on-site figures above

Enough for a typical visit (60 min).

Visit times are typical figures, not promises; queues and closing times can change them.

Inside, in order

45 min without detours

  1. Main sanctuary

    15 min

    The main prayer hall, seating around 3,000

    extra ticket

  2. Jewish Museum

    20 min

    Religious artefacts and the history of Hungarian Jewish life

    extra ticket

  3. Memorial garden and the weeping-willow sculpture

    10 min

    Mass grave and the Raoul Wallenberg memorial

    extra ticket
Step-free check, who it suits, facilities

Step-free check

wheelchair: caution
  • Step-free entrance: partly · partlyLevel entrance; galleries reached by stairs
  • Lifts: check · check
  • Accessible toilet: check · check
  • Wheelchair: partly · partlyThe ground floor and garden are manageable; confirm lift access for galleries.
  • Stroller: partly · partlycaution

Ground-floor sanctuary is level; the upper women's gallery is reached by stairs.

Combine with

Combine with

nearest first
  1. —Frőhlich Cukrászda (short walk) · eat
  2. —Mazel Tov (short walk) · eat

Walk the Jewish Quarter (Erzsébetváros) area · the cluster page has the walking order, rescue stops and after-dark notes

Best photo time

Best photo time today

sun times for the area

Sun times for today load in your browser.

Deep dive

Questions, photos, and where our facts come from

Questions and answers

Questions and answers

Is the Great Synagogue open on Saturdays?

No. Like other working synagogues, it is closed to visitors on Saturdays (Shabbat) and on Jewish holidays. Plan the visit for a weekday.

What should I wear?

Shoulders covered for everyone; men are asked to cover their heads, and kippot are provided free at the entrance if you do not have your own.

Answers come from Voykit editors, not from other travellers.
Photos

Photos

3 · free licences, credited
Deep dive

Sources

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Directions
79 pages, for the metro and roaming-off days
Not saved offline