Hungarian Natural History Museum

About the museum

The museum's public exhibition building stands at Ludovika tér 2–6. in District VIII; the institution's administrative seat at Baross utca 13. is not a visitor address. The museum belongs to the Magyar Nemzeti Múzeum Közgyűjteményi Központ (MNMKK). Its Budapest site holds exhibitions, collections, work rooms and laboratories, and the exhibition programme covers biodiversity, the dinosaurs of the Iharkút fossil locality, minerals and gemstones, coral reefs and the natural-science collections. Records for the museum's Mátra Museum in Gyöngyös and the Bakony Natural History Museum in Zirc are separate and their hours, prices and notices do not apply here.

Opening hours

Tickets & prices

Adult

3,000 HUF

Youth

1,500 HUF

Senior

1,500 HUF

Family concession adult

1,500 HUF

Family ticket

6,000 HUF

Adult group

2,700 HUF

Youth group

1,300 HUF

Senior group

1,300 HUF

Free admission

Free

Check official prices (opens in a new tab)

What to see

• Hungarian dinosaurs

  Original fossils and reconstructions from the Iharkút site introduce dinosaurs and other reptiles that lived in what is now Hungary, including Hungarosaurus and Ajkaceratops.

• Fin whale skeleton

  A roughly two-tonne fin whale skeleton hangs above the entrance hall, with a history stretching from its acquisition in 1900 to surviving fire damage in 1956.

• Minerals, meteorites and “Grandpa”

  Underground Secrets displays around 2,000 geological specimens, including meteorites and the 136.5 kg smoky quartz crystal nicknamed “Grandpa”.

Current exhibitions

• Colourful Life – An Expedition in the Hungarian Countryside

  Until 1 January 2030 · Permanent exhibition · Exhibition Hall (Nagyterem)

  The museum's new permanent biodiversity exhibition, exploring the development and variety of life and the habitats of present-day Hungary through original specimens, life-size reconstructions and photographs, with material on geological and evolutionary processes. Hungarian title: Sokszínű ÉLET – Felfedező úton Magyarország tájain.

• Lost Worlds – The Age of Dinosaurs in Hungary

  Until 1 January 2030 · Exhibition Hall (Nagyterem)

  Dinosaurs and other reptiles found at the Iharkút fossil locality in western Hungary, shown through original fossils, reconstructions and complete skeletal displays — among them Hungarosaurus, Pneumatoraptor, Ajkaceratops, Iharkutosuchus and Bakonydraco. Hungarian title: Eltűnt világok – A dinoszauruszok kora Magyarországon.

• Underground Secrets – Minerals, Rocks and Gemstones

  Until 1 January 2030 · Exhibition Hall (Nagyterem)

  Around 2,000 geological specimens, from minerals and gemstones to meteorites roughly as old as the Solar System and some of the oldest terrestrial rocks. Includes "Nagyapó" ("Grandpa"), a 136.5 kg smoky quartz crystal. Hungarian title: Titkok a föld alatt – ásványok, kőzetek, drágakövek.

• Wonderful World of Coral Reefs

  Until 1 January 2030 · Great Hall

  A coral-reef display built around an approximately 122 m² glass floor, presenting reef types and marine biodiversity together with living fish and corals in built-in aquariums.

• Time-path

  Until 1 January 2030 · Main entrance, outside the building

  Large rock specimens arranged outside the museum entrance to illustrate hundreds of millions of years of the Earth's geological history. Included with the visit, not separately ticketed.

• Fin Whale Skeleton

  Until 1 January 2030 · Main entrance / Entrance Hall dome

  A fin whale skeleton weighing about two tonnes — the skull alone roughly one tonne — hangs above the entrance hall. The animal was taken in the Atlantic in 1896 and acquired by the museum in 1900; burn marks on the skull remain from the museum fire of 1956.

• Natural Reserves of Peru

  Until 31 December 2026 · Exhibition Hall (Kiállítási csarnok)

  Peru's nationally protected natural areas, their biodiversity and the conservation work of SERNANP; the museum notes that Peru has 77 nationally administered protected areas covering more than 17% of the country. Hungarian title: Peru természeti rezervátumai.

• Kalandos erdő

  Until 31 December 2026 · Exhibition Hall (Kiállítási csarnok)

  An interactive natural-history exhibition made for children aged 3–8, using play-based stations to introduce the forest as an interconnected ecosystem and to encourage responsible behaviour in nature. The museum publishes no English title; in English this is an interactive forest exhibition for young children.

Practical information

Accessibility

Accessible access currently affected by lift outage

The museum has a passenger lift in the visitor building, intended primarily for visitors with reduced mobility, visitors who have difficulty using stairs and visitors with strollers. The accessibility lift at the main entrance is currently out of service for technical reasons, and staff are assisting wheelchair and stroller users with entry and exit while repairs are pending. Visitors with a disability and one accompanying person enter the permanent exhibitions free under the museum's eligibility conditions. Assistance animals are permitted.

Cloakroom and bags

Compulsory and free cloakroom

Use of the cloakroom is compulsory and free. Umbrellas and bags or backpacks larger than 30 cm long × 25 cm high × 15 cm wide must be left there; the measurements apply to the bag as carried, so it may not be compressed, folded or turned to fit the measuring template. No bag of any size may be worn on the back inside the exhibition spaces — a small backpack that is otherwise allowed must be worn on the front or carried by hand.

Photography

Personal photography permitted, no flash or tripod

No separate photography ticket is required. Flash and tripods are not allowed and video recording is prohibited. Photographs may be used for personal purposes only and may not be commercialised.

Children and strollers

Under-14s must be accompanied by an adult

Visitors under 14 may only be in the museum under adult supervision. Children under 2 may enter the exhibition spaces only in a stroller or in a front-mounted body carrier; a stroller must be pushed and may not be carried around folded. The temporary Kalandos erdő exhibition is designed for children aged 3–8.

Animals

Assistance animals permitted

Live animals may not be brought into the museum, with the exception of assistance animals.

Tickets

Online tickets via Jegymester; no registration needed during opening hours

During opening hours the exhibitions can be visited without registration. Admission to the permanent exhibitions is free for every visitor on the Hungarian national holidays 15 March, 20 August and 23 October. On the first Sunday of each month, visitors under 26 and up to two adults accompanying a family member under 18 enter the permanent exhibitions free under the museum's eligibility conditions.

Guided tours

Available by advance arrangement, in Hungarian and English

Pre-registration is required two weeks before the visit. A guided exhibition tour in Hungarian costs 10,000 HUF for 1–15 people, plus 900 HUF per extra person up to a maximum group of 20. In English it costs 17,000 HUF for 1–15 people, plus 1,000 HUF per extra person up to 20. Museum admission is charged in addition to the tour fee.

Groups, collection visits and classes

Group rates from 10 people; collection-store visits by arrangement

Group admission starts at 10 people or above. Collection-store tours are pre-arranged specialist visits, not ordinary admission: 15,000 HUF in Hungarian and 20,000 HUF in English for 1–10 people, with advance registration on +36 30 471 2773, a maximum of 15 people at one time, and 1,000 HUF for each additional visitor. A museum-education class in the Scientific Discovery Room (Természetbúvár Terem) costs 900 HUF per person in addition to museum admission, booked two weeks ahead on +36 30 471 2773 or muzeumpedagogia@nhmus.hu.

Café

Café currently not operating

The museum's visitor-services page states that its café is not operating. No reopening date is published.

Museum shop

Open without a museum ticket

The museum shop sells natural-history and children's books, animal and dinosaur gifts, minerals, rocks and fossils, and can be visited without buying museum admission. The museum publishes shop hours of 09:00–16:50 Monday to Sunday; the museum itself is closed on Mondays.

Payment

Cash, bank card and OTP SZÉP card

Parking

Limited spaces in front of the museum, validated at the Information Desk

Visitors may use the road and parking spaces immediately in front of the museum, but must validate parking at the Information Desk in the Entrance Hall right after arrival. Parking elsewhere in Ludovika Square is not available. Bus parking is provided in Korányi Sándor utca before the Ludovika Square junction. Street parking in Korányi Sándor utca, Illés utca and Üllői út is paid on weekdays, and parking on the pavement or curb is prohibited.

Contact

+36 1 210 1085 · info@nhmus.hu

The Hungarian contact page also publishes +36 30 074 6747 as a current visitor number. The public exhibition building is at 1083 Budapest, Ludovika tér 2–6.; Baross utca 13. is the institution's administrative seat, not a visitor address.

Getting there

Address

1083 Budapest, Ludovika tér 2–6.

Area

Ludovika / Orczy neighbourhood

Nearest transport

Semmelweis Klinikák / Nagyvárad tér

• Semmelweis Klinikák — Metro M3 — 7-minute walk (shown as Klinikák on the museum's own directions page)
• Nagyvárad tér — Metro M3 and tram 24 — 7-minute walk

Visitors may use the road and parking spaces immediately in front of the museum, but parking must be validated at the Information Desk in the Entrance Hall right after arrival. Parking elsewhere in Ludovika Square is not available, and the road in front of the Ludovika main building (National University of Public Service) requires the university's permission. Visitor buses may turn there but not park; bus parking is provided in Korányi Sándor utca before the Ludovika Square junction. Nearby street parking in Korányi Sándor utca, Illés utca and Üllői út is paid on weekdays. Parking on the pavement or curb is prohibited.

Directions