When is Hanukkah 2026 and where can travellers see public menorah lightings in Europe?

Hanukkah 2026 dates and the Shabbat problem

Hanukkah starts on the 25th of Kislev in the Hebrew calendar, so its Gregorian dates move every year. In 2026:

• First candle: Friday 4 December, lit before sundown because Shabbat starts that evening.

• Eighth candle: Friday 11 December, again before Shabbat.

• Ends: nightfall on Saturday 12 December.

Hanukkah itself is not a day off: Jewish museums and synagogues open as normal on its weekdays. What closes them is Shabbat, from Friday afternoon to Saturday night. The Prague Jewish Museum is closed every Saturday, and the Dohány Street Synagogue in Budapest is closed every Saturday and shuts at 14:00 on winter Fridays. So a weekend trip of Friday 4 to Sunday 6 December loses a day of sightseeing. Plan the Jewish quarter visits for Sunday to Thursday.

Hanukkah 2026 also overlaps the Christmas markets in both cities, which is useful if you are travelling with people who want both: see our Budapest markets guide and Prague markets guide.

Budapest: Nyugati tér, Gozsdu udvar and the Dohány Synagogue

Budapest has the largest Jewish community in this part of Europe and the most public Hanukkah. In 2025, according to the organisers' listings, EMIH (the Chabad-affiliated Hungarian Jewish community) lit a large menorah at Nyugati tér, outside Nyugati station, at 18:00 every evening except Friday, and also lit at Szent István park in Újlipótváros. The Budapest Jewish Community (BZSH) held an 18:00 lighting with live music at Gozsdu udvar, the passage between Király utca and Dob utca, and Mazsihisz ran a HanukaFeszt at the Goldmark Hall and the Rumbach synagogue. Nyugati tér has hosted a public lighting since 1998, which organisers describe as Hungary's first.

The 2026 programmes had not been posted when we checked; in 2025 they appeared in early December. Look at zsidoprogramok.hu or the EMIH and BZSH sites in the first days of December.

Dohány Street Synagogue is Europe's largest synagogue and the place to start in the Jewish Quarter. Jewish Tour Hungary, which runs visits, lists winter hours from 2 November to 31 December 2026 as Sunday to Thursday 10:00 to 16:00 (last entry 15:00) and Friday 10:00 to 14:00 (last entry 13:00), closed Saturdays and on 24 and 25 December. There is no extra closure for Hanukkah. Visits are by guided tour; the ticket covers the synagogue, the Hungarian Jewish Museum, the Raoul Wallenberg Memorial Park and the cemetery. A guide updated in September 2026 lists adult tickets at 14,500 Ft. The Rumbach Street Synagogue opens only on Sundays in winter, so Sunday 6 December is your one chance during Hanukkah week.

Dress rules at the Dohány: shoulders and knees covered, and men cover their heads (a kippah is provided). There is a bag check, and large backpacks are not allowed.

Then walk Kazinczy utca, Dob utca and Gozsdu udvar. For where to stay, see where to stay in Budapest and our Budapest guide.

Prague: the Rudolfinum menorah and the Jewish Museum's winter hours

Prague's Chabad House puts up a giant menorah each year on Jan Palach Square (náměstí Jana Palacha), in front of the Rudolfinum and just outside the old Jewish Town. Expats.cz reported a 6:30pm lighting on the first night in 2022, and Radio Prague has covered the ceremony over many years. Smaller lightings happen elsewhere in the city, such as the Jerusalem Synagogue. No 2026 schedule had been published when we checked, so look for the Chabad Prague announcement in late November.

The Jewish Museum in Prague runs the Maisel, Pinkas, Klausen and Spanish synagogues and the Old Jewish Cemetery on one ticket. Its published hours:

• 18 October to 31 December 2026: 9:00 to 16:30.

• 24 December 2026: 9:00 to 14:00. 1 January 2027: 11:00 to 16:30.

• Closed every Saturday and on Jewish holidays. Hanukkah is not on its closure list.

The museum lists adult tickets at CZK 600, valid for three opening days, with children 7 to 15 at CZK 200. The Old-New Synagogue, which is run by the Prague Jewish Community rather than the museum, opens 9:00 to 17:00 in winter and closes about an hour before Shabbat begins, which in December means early on Friday afternoon.

Winter light is short in Prague, so do the Jewish Town in the morning and leave the evening for the menorah. Our where to stay in Prague and Prague guide cover the rest; Prague to Budapest by train or bus links the two cities.

London: the Trafalgar Square menorah

The Jewish Leadership Council puts a large menorah in Trafalgar Square each Hanukkah, with a free public evening called ChanukahLIVE! In 2025 the menorah stood from 14 to 22 December and the main event ran on 16 December from 5pm to 6:30pm, according to the Mayor of London's listing; Jewish News described the menorah as 8 metres high. In 2024 it stood from 25 December to 2 January. The 2026 dates were not on the Mayor's events page when we checked; with Hanukkah running 4 to 12 December, expect the display that week.

Security is visible at Jewish events across Europe, including this one. Expect bag checks and follow stewards' instructions.

Hanukkah food to look for

Hanukkah food is fried, in memory of the oil that lasted eight days. Look for sufganiyot, round jam doughnuts dusted with sugar, and latkes, potato pancakes served with apple sauce or sour cream. In Budapest, also try flódni, the Hungarian Jewish layered pastry of apple, walnut, poppy seed and plum jam, sold in Jewish Quarter bakeries.

Budapest's kosher restaurants cluster on Kazinczy utca and Wesselényi utca; Chabad Hungary keeps a list. Kitchens change hours for Shabbat, so check before planning a Friday dinner. Our what to eat in Budapest and what to eat in Prague cover the wider food scene.

Frequently asked questions