Dan širuna — Horse Mackerel Day
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Each autumn, schools of širun — horse mackerel — arrive in the waters off Budva, and the town has celebrated the catch since the 1960s with Dan širuna, Horse Mackerel Day. The 58th edition falls on Saturday 11 October 2025, on the square before the Old Town walls.
The scale of the hospitality is the story: around 1,500 kilograms of grilled fish, 1,000 litres of wine and 600 litres of beer are served completely free to everyone who comes. Smoke from the long grills drifts across the square as locals and visitors queue plate in hand — one of the most generous free feasts anywhere on the Adriatic.
The day builds from the afternoon with a children's and sports programme, including folk-sports competitions, before the evening turns to a concert and dancing beneath the Old Town walls.
Everything is free. Mid-October Budva is warm, quiet and golden — the beaches empty, the sea still swimmable — and Dan širuna is the town's thank-you to the season, well worth timing a visit around.
A free feast on a grand scale
Roughly 1,500 kg of grilled horse mackerel, 1,000 litres of wine and 600 litres of beer, all served free.
Six decades of tradition
Held since the 1960s — the 58th edition in October 2025.
Autumn fish run
The festival celebrates the širun schools that arrive off Budva each autumn.
Folk sports and evening concert
Afternoon competitions and children's events lead into a night of music and dancing.
From the afternoon
Children's programme, sports events and folk-sports competitions on the square before the Old Town
All day
Around 1,500 kg of grilled širun, 1,000 l of wine and 600 l of beer served free
Evening
Concert and dancing beneath the Old Town walls
Square before the Old Town, Budva
