At the beginning of August, Bernie Ecclestone's Formula 1 circus comes to Budapest, with the Hungarian Grand Prix at Mogyoród (to reach the circuit take the M3 motorway east out of Budapest). Facilities for spectators at Hungaroring are very good. For tickets  contact: Ostermann Formula-1 Kft. 1052 Budapest, Apáczai Cs. u. 11, Tel: 317-2811, website: www.hungaroring.hu (official ticket sales) or www.formula1.hu (unofficial website).

Date: 3-5 August, 2008

Sziget Festival - the music at its best in Budapest

While the first Sziget festival in 1993 saw just over 40,000 music fans attend for a week of entertainment and music, numbers have swollen over the years to well-over 300,000. Sponsorship from Pepsi (and coverage by MTV) have also ensured that famous names such as Lou Reed, David Bowie, Oasis, Foo Fighters, Fun Loving Criminals, Faithless and the Prodigy have appeared at previous festivals.
For further information contact: Óbudai-sziget Sziget Kulturális Menedzseriroda Kft, ('Island' Cultural Management Office Co.), 1117 Budapest, Orlay u. 5-7, Tel: 372 0650, E-mail: sziget@mail.matav.hu, Website: www.sziget.hu.

Dates: 8th - 15th August, 2007

Budapest Autumn Festival's aim is to present to the public of Budapest important progressive artists and achievements in all branches of the arts in the present and over the past decade. The series of events sets itself the task of making new art known and recognised in Hungary. www.festivalcity.hu 

Dates: 12th-21st October, 2007

Friedensreich Hundertwasser (1928–2000), painter, graphic artist and architect, was one of the most unusual artistic personalities of the 20th century. His rich creative fantasy was revealed equally in painting, graphic art, architecture and design. He used every means to express his life philosophy of the creation of harmony between humanism, man and the surrounding environment. www.szepmuveszeti.hu

Dates: 12 October 2007 – 16 December 2008

If you open a pop-encyclopaedia, you will find several notes on Gwen Stefani: American singer, songwriter, fashion designer... in brief a versatile personality, pop- and fashion icon, a cool chick and everything… meaning that it is well worth to plan your life to include her concert in the Papp László Budapest Sport Arena . Don’t miss it!
Tickets are available on the national network of Ticketpro, on the website www.ticketpro.hu

Dates: on 19 October 2007

The second exhibition examining the processes of graphic reproduction features the oldest deep pressed graphic technique, copper plate, with the help of two hundred pieces selected from the Museum of Fine Arts rich collection of reproduced graphic works.  www.szepmuveszeti.hu 

Dates: 07/09/2007 - 28/01/2008

The biggest international marathon in Hungary will be held for the 22nd time. The first event was organised in 1984, when only 625 male and 25 female runners reached the finish line. Even then it was already an international event, attracting runners from 18 countries.  www.budapestmarathon.com

Dates: 30/09/2007

This exhibition features many pieces from the marvellous private art collection of a fabulously rich aristocratic family. This collection is characterised by a unique richness and versatility of genre. It includes glittering precious metal objects, jewellery, valuable weapons, beautiful textiles – mainly aristocratic costumes – and large-size full portraits depicting some important events from the early history of the Esterházy family. The majority of the works of art exposed were made in the 16th-17th centuries. The artists who made them – among others Hans Petzolt from Nurnberg, the Drentwett artist family from Augsburg and the renowned Hungarian goldsmiths and silversmiths of the age – rank among the most talented and outstanding masters of the European mannerist and baroque applied arts.

Dates: 12/12/2006. - 31/12/2007

Following the sweeping success of 2006, MAMMA MIA!, of the most successful musicals of all time, arrives in Budapest in October 2007.
Over the past 2 years the show’s international tour has been seen by 1.3 million people in Dublin, Edinburgh, South Africa, Tallinn, Lisbon, Paris, Brussels, numerous cities across Germany, Vienna, Zurich, and Belfast.
A total of 7 performances will be held in Hungary between the 24th and 28th of October at the Budapest Sport Arena.
Based on the eternal hits of ABBA and written by Catherine Johnson it is a story with many twists of love, friendship and humour, set on a Greek Island. The plot, in brief, features a young girl who, before her wedding, would like to discover which of the visitors to the island 20 years ago who fell in love with her mother is her real father. To do this she invites all three of the candidates to her wedding and the party that precedes it.
One of the demands of the musical’s writer was that the auditorium should only have seats that allow for the complete experience with a full view of everything that happens on stage. According to this, only three thousand tickets will be available for each performance, even through the capacity of the Sport Arena is normally 12 000.
MAMMA MIA! is a world-wide success and there are currently 11 productions around the globe. Just like the original production in London in 1999, the international company has achieved success on Broadway, in Las Vegas and throughout North America, in Hamburg, Stuttgart, Stockholm, Madrid and Osaka and with a Russian language production performed recently in Moscow. Last year the show played to 24 full houses in Vienna, where MAMMA MIA will run for an additional week in spring 2007.  www.muco.hu

Dates: 24th – 28th October 2007

The Spa & Wellness and Snow-Show exhibitions and trade fairs will be held simultaneously this year. Spa & Wellness provides a business forum and an opportunity for service providers and suppliers in the wellness tourism industry to meet. In addition visitors who are interested in a healthy way of life can find further information as the wellness lifestyle is promoted on a domestic and international stage. The Snow-Show is a fantastic opportunity for winter sports enthusiasts to select travel agencies, ski centres and hotels and to purchase new equipment and accessories.
www.hungexpo.hu

Dates: 8th – 11th November 2007