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Fishermen's Bastion, Budapest

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Travel to Budapest

Flying to Budapest

Airlines offering flights to Budapest from the UK include British Airways, Malév Hungarian Airlines, easyJet, Ryanair, Wizz Air and Jet2. If you’re looking for cheap Budapest flights, travel out of season during the late autumn, winter and early spring. Short breaks to Budapest are also popular so avoid weekend travel trips year-round to get cheap flights to Budapest.

Flight times: 

From London - 2 hours 30 minutes; New York - 8 hours 50 minutes; Los Angeles - 19 hours 15 minutes; Toronto - 9 hours 40 minutes; Sydney - 26 hours 30 minutes.

Travel by road

Summary:

The quality of roads in Budapest is generally good. Traffic drives on the right and the minimum driving age is 18 years. Speed limits are 130kph (75mph) on motorways, 90kph (50mph) on main roads and 50kph (30mph) in built-up areas. The pink format EU driving licence is accepted but an International Driving Permit (IDP) is required if a green UK licence is held. A car registration document, country sticker and third-party liability insurance are compulsory.

Motorway vignettes (passes) are required for the M1 and M3 toll roads. You can buy vignettes at the Hegyeshalom border crossing point, at the former motorway gates and at filling stations near the motorways. On-the-spot fines are issued for those who travel without one.

The Hungarian Automobile Club, Magyar Autóklub (tel: (01) 345 1800; www.autoklub.hu), has reciprocal agreements with many automobile associations and provides a 24-hour breakdown service.

Emergency breakdown service:

Magyar Autóklub (tel: 188, (01) 345 1800).

Routes:

Hungary has eight main routes, seven of which start from Budapest. Approaching Budapest, the two main highways are the M1 from Györ and Vienna, and the M7 along Lake Balaton. The A4 from Vienna leads to the Austro/Hungarian frontier at Hegyeshalom, from where the M1 leads to Budapest. The M3 connects Budapest with eastern Hungary. Warsaw is reachable on the E77.

Driving times:

From Prague - 7 hours 40 minutes; Vienna - 2 hours 45 minutes; Warsaw - 11 hours 30 minutes.

Coaches:

Volánbusz (tel: (01) 382 0888; www.volanbusz.hu) operates international services to 20 countries in Europe, including the UK. Buses leave from Népliget coach station, IX Üllöi út 131. Volánbusz also operates services to Hungarian towns and resorts. Services to the west of the country are provided from Népliget coach station, while services to the east of the country are from Stadionok coach station and services to the Danube Bend from Árpád híd coach station.

Travel by rail

Services:

Rail services from Budapest are relatively clean and modern.


Trains are run by Hungarian State Railways (MÁV) (tel: (01) 444 4499; www.mav.hu). MÁV directs the three large international railway stations in Budapest: Keleti (eastern station), VIII Baross tér; Nyugati (western station), VI Nyugati tér; and Déli (southern station), I Krisztina körút. Keleti is the principal terminus for international rail services from Western Europe and Nyugati is the main terminus for trains heading to Eastern Europe.

Direct rail links connect Hungary to over a dozen European cities, with over 50 international scheduled trains arriving at Budapest.


Operators:

Tickets for international journeys should be purchased 24 to 36 hours in advance. You can make reservations on all international trains with MÁV. Seat reservations are strongly advised for all services. Tickets are also available from the MÁV booking office, V Andrássy út 35.

The Orient Express (tel: 0845 077 2222; www.orient-express.com) also provides luxury rail trips between London, Budapest and Venice.

Journey times:

From Bucharest - 14 hours); Bratislava - 2 hours 40 minutes; Zagreb - 6 hours; Ljubljana - 9 hours.

Travel over water

Summary:

From April to early October, Budapest is connected to Vienna and Bratislava by ferry and hydrofoil services on the Danube.

Ferry services:

Boats, which are run by MAHART PassNave (tel: (01) 484 4010; www.mahartpassnave.hu), dock at the Nemzetközi hajóállomás, International Ferry Pier; V Belgrád rakpart in the heart of the city. Bratislava can be reached in 4 hours 30 minutes and Vienna in 6 hours 30 minutes.

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