Hungary Info
Joined: 20 Apr 2007
Posts: 16
Home Country: hungary
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 Posted: Tue May 22, 2007 6:41 am Post subject: GETTING AROUND IN HUNGARY / HUNGARY TRANSPORTATION GUIDE |
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GETTING AROUND IN HUNGARY
BY AIR
There are currently no scheduled internal air services in Hungary. Some are planned for the near future, however. As Budapest lies in the centre of the country and pretty much any point can be reached within three hours by train or bus.
BY RIVER/ LAKE
There are regular services on the Danube and Lake Balaton from spring to late autumn. MAHART and the Budapest Travel Company (BKV) ( www.bkv.hu ) also operate ferries in the city centre, the Roman Embankment (Római Part) and at some crossing points. On Lake Balaton, a ferry operates during the year between Balatonföldvár and Tihany, and between Révfülöp and Balatonboglér. Contact MAHART for further details.
BY RAIL
Services are operated by MÁV. All main cities are linked by efficient services but facilities are often inadequate. Supplements are payable on IC and express trains. Reservations are compulsory for IC trains and recommended for express trains, particularly in summer. Tickets can be bought 60 days in advance on domestic railway lines, as can seat reservations. The most popular tourist rail routes are: Budapest–Kecskemet–Szeged– Budapest and Budapest–Siofok–Lake Balaton.
Intercity (IC) trains are the fastest, and they're up-to-date, well maintained and cleaned. They link the major cities with Budapest. Compared to the majority of Western European ticket prices, Hungary's IC trains are amongst the cheapest with an excellent record of speed and comfort. In almost all cases they also have a restaurant car. At the weekends many students use these IC trains to commute between Budapest and other cities, so an early advance booking is recommended on Friday afternoons for the trains leaving Budapest and on Sunday evenings for trains towards Budapest. Working with a notebook is generally safe, unless it's heavy overcrowded.
During summer period trains linking Balaton to Budapest are sometimes overcrowded. Pricing depends only on the distance and on the car class. Cash desks assume 2nd class by default for non-IC trains (at least in Budapest for English speakers), so if you didn't catch your IC, consider asking 1st class, paying small extra for much more comfort. When in the train, keep in mind that there are smoking and non-smoking cars--check a sign over a door inside a car.
Rail-bus services are available between the main railway stations within Budapest at fixed rates (tel: (1) 353 2722; website: www.mav.hu). There are also narrow-gauge railways in operation in many parts of the country. The website www.elvira.hu has up-to-date travel information and timetables.
Concessions are available for groups (minimum of 10 persons), children, students, families and pensioners. Children under six and pensioners over 70 travel free. Children aged six to 15 pay approximately half of the full fare. Balaton and Tourist Season Tickets (seven to 10 days) are also available. Contact MÁV for details (see Travel – International section for contact details). The Hungarian Flexipass, sold by travel agents worldwide and by Rail Europe, offers unlimited first-class train travel for five days in a 15-day period or for 10 days in a 30-day period. The Hungarian Tourist Card offers discounts on rail, bus, taxi and ship services, as well as accommodation, restaurants and museums. The Hungarian National Tourist Office can provide further information.
BY ROAD
Traffic drives on the right. There are eight arterial roads in the country: all but the M8 start from central Budapest. Tolls are payable on some roads and all motorways. Season tickets can be purchased. From Budapest the two main highways are the M1 to Györ and Vienna and the M7 along Lake Balaton. The M3 connects Budapest with eastern Hungary. Generally the road system is good.
Bus & coach
Budapest is linked with major provincial towns. Tickets are available from Volán long-distance bus terminal, Budapest, and at Volán offices throughout the country. A bus season ticket is also available.
Bus lines often are more complete than train lines, the prices and the speed is quite similar. Buses are normally clean.
Car rental
Available at Ferihegy Airport or at Volán and Budapest tourist offices as well as at major hotels. Speed limits are 50kph (31mph) in built-up areas, 90kph (50mph) on main roads, 110kph (62mph) on highways and 130kph (75mph) on motorways. Seat belts are compulsory. Children of 16 years and under must sit in the rear seats. Petrol stations are frequent and there are no special tourist petrol coupons. There is a total alcohol ban when driving; severe fines are imposed for infringements. It is obligatory to keep headlights dipped at all times when on the open road. Mobile phones are allowed only with headsets. Child seats are compulsory. The Hungarian Automobile Club operates a breakdown service on main roads at weekends and a 24-hour service on motorways. For further details contact the Hungarian Automobile Club, Rómer Flóris utca 4/A, H-1024 Budapest (tel: (1) 345 1800 or 1755 (24-hour emergency helpline); website: www.autoklub.hu).
Documentation: Pink format EU licence accepted but International Driving Permit required if green licence held.
URBAN TRANSPORTATION
There is good public transport in all the main towns. Budapest has bus, trolleybus, tramway, suburban railway (HEV), a three-line metro and boat services. The metro has ticket barriers at all stations. The bus–trolleybus–tramway system has pre-purchase flat fares with ticket puncher on board. Day passes are available for all the transport modes in the city. Trams and buses generally run from about 0430-2300. Some night services also operate. The metro runs from 0430-2310 and stations can be identified by a large ‘M’. There is also a cogwheel railway (Városmajor–Széchenyi Hill), a Childrens’ Railway (Hüvösvölgy–Széchenyi Hill), a chairlift and a funicular. There are tramways in some of the other towns, or else good bus services. Day passes and season tickets are available in Budapest.
If you are taking taxis, inspect the change that taxi drivers give you. Taxi drivers commonly rip off tourists by giving them change in outdated Romanian currency, which looks similar to Hungarian currency, but is worthless and cannot be redeemed. |
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