Any mums moving to Hungary ?

[Budapest89]

Hi
Is there any family’s British /Hungarian moving from the uk to Hungary this year ?

It would be awesome if I could talk to mums also in the same situation as me.

me and my family are moving to Hungary in 8 weeks and I’m very excited but also so nervous to the point I’m making myself sick. My husband is Hungarian. We have two kids 6 and 9.

we have been many many times to Hungary and we all love it and decided to move there for a better life especially for our children. we struggle so much in the uk with cost of living etc etc.

or even talk to some mums who are making the big plunge and moving any where abroad, what are your worries ? How to do you feel ?

Not moving to Hungary but we have been a few times and my husband is Hungarian. What part are you moving to? Are you going to work over there?

Have you or your children learnt the language? It is such a hard language but my children seem to pick it up better than me! Good luck with the move it sounds like a great adventure for you all.

We’re moving about 35 mins south of Budapest. I don’t work at the moment and I don’t plan to for a while until the kids are older.

so my husband only speaks to my kids in Hungarian and they understand it, my eldest is now learning bless her heart, it will be hard as they will be going to a Hungarian school so they will hopefully pick it up. I can get by with very basic Hungarian but I will learn.

children are like sponge’s so you’re learning it is awesome. They may need it one day. Does your husband think about going home much or are you happy in UK?

we already have made really good friends there and have family close by. We inherited a house two years ago when my father in law passed away and we have been going every chance we get, so we pay standing charge bills for that house. It’s a no brainer to move there because we will be mortgage free. The house is liveable and has a big garden but we do need to renovate and built two rooms into the attic for the kids. So it’s a project but we’re happy to do it. It is very exciting but also such a big thing. We have said if we don’t like it we can always come back to uk.

Have you moved yet, OP? Please, make sure you don't burn your bridges here in the UK, so you can always come back, should it come to it...

Of course I won’t burn bridges to the uk. I’m English and have family and friends here. I can always come home if I want to. Hoping that’s not the case though.

https://populationmatters.org/news/2025/01/viktor-orbans-hungary-the-erosion-of-reproductive-rights/

This is really where you want to bring your kids up? I suppose you can come home if you need any basic reproductive rights.

Hungary wants families to have more children became the birth rate is declining what’s wrong with that ?

@metalbottle i agree!

Orbán’s government has sought to tackle this with pronatalist policies like tax exemptions for women with four or more children and other family-oriented incentives, allocating 6% of GDP to these efforts

As someone who worked in social services and education, policies like this are so problematic. The fact is not many parents of four kids + raise them well enough. They shouldn’t be encouraging people to pop out kids just for the economy or whatever. Especially not four which is a lot!

A lot of parents don’t even do a good job with the one or two and should never really have had and- and many times they recognise this themselves and also hate it. Traditionally men have just cowardly walked away and women have stayed and sucked it up silently when they regret it, but increasingly women are now speaking up about it. Kids are not for everyone. People should really think about if they want kids and if they’re cut out for it an if so how many. The world would have less up screwed up adults if we took a bit more care with this decision.

Just make sure you are the ones who have the passports and you know where they are at all times, based on most Mumsnet posts about following the husband to their country and not having a job.

Hungary, under Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, has become a global symbol of the pronatalist movement. These initiatives are designed to combat population decline but raise significant concerns about human rights, gender equality and reproductive freedoms.

Opening paragraph is this and if you read the full article which isn’t long you’ll still why these initiatives are problematic.

As long as you don't want the right to an abortion, none of your kids are gay and you're happy with them growing up in a country where women are just seen as breeders with limited rights of their own. I hope you don't have any daughters.

Yeh that’s one of the reasons I want to
move there. They value families , they are a Christian country, they don’t fill young kids heads with ideas of sex changes etc etc. I have been to Hungary over 20 times and I like that it’s not crazy like the west. No body walks around identifying as a “dog” and a man is a man and a woman is a woman just the way god intended.

yes I do want to bring my children up there in a very safe environment that have traditional values, beautiful architecture, sense of community and yes a leader that doesn’t go along with the wests nonsense.

@Budapest89 You see the surface of what it looks like from the outside. What those choices look on paper, the reality is anything but that. I am happy to give you examples, I was born and was living there until my early 20s. And naturally, in-laws, and the entirety of our wider family is there.
Happy to give you examples why it is a pretty grim place to raise children.

It wasn’t that long ago that god didn’t intend anyone to be gay either. Thank god for progression and not that backwards bullshit I just read.

I was fully on board even after reading the article, thinking politics change all the time, someone else will come in soon etc but I was more concerned reading your message.

I’m a feminist therefore not big on the trans movement but to dress it up as Christianity come on.

My husband is Hungarian and obviously grew up there and he’s is happy to move back. He had a good childhood and early adulthood. I
think everyone’s life is different and we all
have different experiences. I know a lot of Hungarians struggle and it’s not easy I’m aware of that. I think a persons outlook on life has a lot to do it. Hungarians by nature are quite pessimistic. Life is what you make it. we are not happy here in the uk so we will try to make a better life.

What an interesting thread!
Well, general election is coming up Hungary, so the leader might won’t be a leader after the 12th of April…

I hope you will have a better life in Hungary,and find the lifestyle that you after. How old are the kids?
I’m a 45y old female, Hungarian w a Brit family 😀

Finally someone who doesn’t want to start an argument.
hi bajajaj. My kids are 6 and 9. They both love it there. We have a nice house and a big garden over there, here in the uk a small house and garden.
im really excited. Do you ever think about moving back home ?

Good luck to you @Budapest89 , I hope it works out.
The childhood your husband had, or I had - brilliant, free - are not possible any more, especially in Hungary.
The reason why I bothered to comment is that you pointed out children and the cost of living crisis. Moving to a country that used to be on par, and ahead of its least developed neighbours, and now it has a weaker infrastructure, GDP, way worse salaries and opportunities with everything in the drains, education, healthcare absolutely destroyed in a matter of 1.5 decades, you might be in for a surprise. If you had a problem with NHS, wait until you get an appointment for an urgent surgery maybe 10 months down the line - if you are lucky. Wait until you won't find a school for your children because the ungodly state of education there is no teacher willing to stay as one, where they need to buy chalk themselves to write with, etc. They are begging already retired teachers and have people who are not teachers by trade go to schools and fill the gaps. Another important thing when it comes to children - Be prepared for a massive drop in quality of groceries - The fruit juices to actually taste what they should be, for example, with their 5-25% fruit content. Salaries are abysmal, and you have a problem with cost of living crisis - don't be shocked to not get along fine from a Hungarian salary in Hungary.

But, as I said, hope it works out, and it will be a pleasant experience.

Oh dear. Let's hope none of your kids are gay, or is being gay just 'the west's nonsense' too?

Luckily for us we will have private healthcare, my husband will have a British salary because he will still work for the company he is currently with.we own our property and our car outright there so from this point of view we are very lucky. We have already found a school and know others who kids go there and only have good things to say about it. The school system in the uk is no better.

That is perfect! The only way to go, @Budapest89 ! You'll be fine on a British salary there financially, for sure.
When are you making the move?

We’re moving April the 1st

Hungarian is famously difficult as a language, has your DH ensured the kids have good grammar and can read and write and count? Lessons in basic maths as well would help.
A language tutor over the summer would be wise, as school is going to be very very hard for them. You'll need a really brace for the kids being upset and difficult for a good while. And the timing maybe tricky, could they start school after the summer break? Its always easier to be new at the start of a new school year (veteran of 6 school moves myself and 3 for my DC!)

@turkeybootsmy youngest will not speak Hungarian he’s 6, my eldest can speak very basic and is learning on duo lingo. A tutor over summer is a good idea. My eldest knows her numbers well in Hungarian and she’s a smarty pants I think she will be ok, I worry about my youngest though.
I thought it might be best if they started the school just before summer break so as a little taster for them and to make some friends before summer. My son may not be able to start yet because they start their first year age 6 so he would be due to start September any way. My eldest seems keen, I know that will all change. It will be difficult.
wow how may countries did you live in ?

Get your DH to role play school and be the teacher. School life vocabulary will be different and maybe more formal than your DC have been exposed to. Make sure she can ask to go to the toilet correctly, and get a crash course in school lunches, school bags, and snacks from your in laws. It sounds stupid, but helping her fit in as much as possible is vital for helping her settle. Shes going to be the odd one out, especially at this point in the school year, so needs every helping hand going. Id always recommend a new school year start, as if she has a tricky start, going back after the summer break maybe very hard for her.
Otherwise put Hungarian TV and radio on now for the kids. Find the CBBC equivalent and it will help you all.
And good luck. Its going home for your DH, but it will be a challenging move for you and the kids. We moved through 4 countries as kids, all English speaking or with English language schools, and that was hard enough.

Those are all good ideas thank you.