Budapest: Getting there & around

Orientation

Budapest is in north-central Hungary, some 250km (155mi) southeast of Vienna. The focal point is the Danube River, which bisects the city into two distinct parts: Buda is mostly residential and built on the hills and high river terraces of the western side; and commercial Pest is on a large, sandy plain across to the east. It is a sprawling city, with the areas beyond the Nagykörút (literally the `Big Ring Road') in Pest and west of Moskva tér in Buda mostly residential or industrial and of little interest to visitors. It is also a well laid-out city; you'll have done well to get yourself lost. Ferihegy international airport is 24km (15mi) southeast of central Budapest.

Getting There

• bus

  All international (and some domestic) buses operate from Pest's Népliget bus station. The international ticket office is upstairs. Stadionok bus station serves cities and towns to the east of Budapest. Buses to southwest Hungary use Etele tér bus station in Buda, while the Árpád Bridge bus station on the Pest side of Árpád Bridge, is the place to catch buses for the Danube Bend and parts of northern Hungary. Some of the journeys are long, so take a cushion to avoid flat bottom syndrome.

• train

  Most international trains arrive at and leave from Keleti station, but always check the station when making bookings. Hungarian trains are clean and punctual but hardly luxurious, so bring along snacks and drinks for longer voyages.

• hydrofoil/catamaran

  For the extravagant traveller, a hydrofoil along the Danube to Vienna is a luxurious possibility.

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Getting Around

• bus

  The ultra budget option between the airport and town is the airport bus between the airport and Köbánya-Kispest metro station, 20 minutes from Budapest. Look for the stop marked 'BKV Plusz Reptér Busz' between terminals 2A and 2B.

• taxi

  If you are compelled to take a taxi from the airport into town, phone one from arrivals - it will save you about one-third off the posted airport fares.

• rail

  Public transport is by far the supreme way of getting around Budapest, with links between the metro, HÉV (green trains), yellow trams, red trolleybuses and blue buses abounding. Tickets are readily available from kiosks, newsstands or metro entrances.

• Disabled Travellers

  Budapest has a very long way to go before it becomes truly accessible to the disabled. Wheelchair ramps, toilets fitted for the disabled and inward-opening doors are few and far between, though audible traffic signals for the blind are becoming increasingly commonplace and the higher-denominated forint notes have markings in Braille.

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