March 12, 2020 - Budapest Guide

Not all cinemas close because of the Coronavirus in Budapest!

Posted on March 12, 2020March 12, 2020 by Budapest Guide

Yesterday, it was said that all indoor gatherings with more than 100 people present had to be canceled. As a result, theaters, cinemas, and other cultural programs were expected to be canceled from March 12th. But, some cinemas have fixed the problem, meaning that they only sell 99 tickets to each movie. So, if you want to watch a movie in a Budapest cinema, you still have the chance!

Some cinemas remain open even though the coronavirus regulations are strict

A few weeks ago, we wrote an article dealing with the price of a cinema ticket in Budapest. We also told you how much you will have to pay for popcorn and a nachos with some salsa dip. But, did you know that you can still enjoy a movie in a Budapest cinema combined with some popcorn?

If you visit www.cinemacity.hu, you can still reserve tickets, purchase tickets, and prepare to have a nice evening out, even though people fear the coronavirus. So, they have set a limit on 99 tickets per film, meaning that there will not be more than 100 people present. In that way, they will stay clear of the regulations from the government, and those who care more about movies than about the coronavirus will have a chance to give heed to their interest.

Want to know more about the coronavirus in Hungary?

But, people will most likely stay at home. The upcoming James Bond premiere has been postponed, because of the virus. Anyone releasing a movie now will know that it will get a big minus, so I guess other big releases coming in the upcoming weeks and months might do like James Bond and postpone their premieres as well.

Three new people infected by the coronavirus in Hungary

Posted on March 12, 2020March 12, 2020 by Budapest Guide

Every day we are given information once about the progress of the coronavirus in Hungary. The daily update on March 12th tells us that three new people have been infected by the virus.

The three new people are:

A lady who has been isolated in the Szent Janos hospital for days.
A person from Iran who has been infected by one of the other people from Iran.
A Hungarian man who was infected during a recent trip to Israel.

As of today, all theaters, and cinemas are closed. Children are still attending schools and going to kindergarten. Both parents and teachers hope that the government will decide to close school and kindergartens as well, but still, that is not happening in Hungary, even though it has happened in neighboring countries such as Austria, Romania, Slovakia, and Poland.

It has also been reported about empty shelves in many grocery stores, as people prepare for isolation from crowds.

Would you like to know more about the coronavirus in Hungary? Click the link to get daily updates in our coronavirus report.

Empty shelves in many Budapest stores

Posted on March 12, 2020March 12, 2020 by Budapest Guide

After the announcement made by Gergely Gulyas yesterday, people flocked to the stores to purchase groceries, flour, and other articles in Budapest. The announcement was about closing universities, and also about not allowing anyone to visit Hungary from Italy, China, South Korea, or from Iran.

His announcement worked as a catalyst, and a few hours later, people started to report about the most important goods to be impossible to find on the shelves of many stores.

Find out daily updates about the coronavirus in Hungary here.

But, are people starting to store up for the coming weeks? We paid a visit to a local Aldi store in Budapest this morning at seven o’clock. That is just after opening, and we expected the shelves to be packed with ingredients and ready for a new day. What is the truth?

Here you can see what met us.

Some milk for long storage could be found…

If you want to buy chocolate, orange juice, or maybe some cucumbers, you wouldn’t have trouble doing so. But, if you went to the store looking for flour, tomato sauce, spaghetti, pasta, rice, and all sorts of meat, you will soon find it harder to shop with success. And let us not forget, this was early in the morning when the shelves were supposed to be full.

We had a similar incident with empty shelves a few weeks ago, but then things turned quieter, and all products slowly returned to the shelves. Let us hope the same will happen once again. But, if there will come more critical announcements, or if we will start to see people infected in larger numbers, this might get worse!