World Country Guide

Travel - International

Air
The national airline is Malév (MA), operating flights to more than 40 cities. For further information, contact Malév Hungarian Airlines (tel: 0870 9090 577; website: www.malev.com). Other airlines serving Budapest include Aeroflot, Air France, British Airways, easyJet, KLM, Lufthansa, Sky Europe, Swiss, United Airlines and Wizz Air.

Approximate flight times
From London to Budapest is two hours 20 minutes.

International airports
Budapest Ferihegy (BUD), 16km (10 miles) from the city (travel time – 45 minutes). There are three passenger terminals - 1, 2A and 2B. Facilities include a duty-free shop, florist, newsagent, restaurants and bar, bureaux de change, banks, tourist information centre, gift shop and post office. Regular coach and bus services are available to the city, costing around Ft800 for the centrum bus and approximately Ft2100 or Ft3600 return for the airport minibus, which runs to and from any address in the city. The 93 bus runs an express service between the underground terminus at Kobánya-Kispest and the Ferihegy terminals, however you need a pre-purchased or season ticket. Taxis are available at all times. The major car hire companies are represented.

Departure tax
None.

River
From April to October there is a daily hydrofoil service run by MAHART between Vienna, Bratislava and Budapest. The journey costs approximately ¬75 for a single and takes six hours. Reservations must be made in advance. 20kg of luggage may be carried free of charge. Passengers arriving by boat are advised to reserve a taxi through the shipping line, as none are readily available on the dock. For further details contact MAHART at Belgrád rakpart, 1056 Budapest (tel: (1) 484 4013; fax: (1) 266 4201; e-mail: passnave@mahartpassnave.hu; website: www.mahartpassnave.hu).

Rail
Direct rail links connect Hungary to 16 European cities and there are 47 international trains daily to Budapest. Inter-Rail, Eurotrain and RES concessions are valid on the Hungarian State Railways (MÁV). Between Dresden and Budapest there is a car transport system. The Wiener Waltzer from Basel travels via Zurich, Salzburg and Vienna to Budapest. First- and second-class day carriages run from Basel through to Budapest and both sleeping cars and couchettes (the latter is second-class only) as far as Vienna. There is a minibar service in Switzerland and Austria, and a dining car in Hungary. There are two main routes from London: via Paris or Brussels (Eurostar connection from London) to Vienna (including a Paris-Vienna EuroNight service), where several direct trains run daily to Budapest-Keleti; or via Brussels (Eurostar connection from London) to Munich, where several direct trains run daily to Budapest-Keleti (including a EuroNight service). Luggage allowances: 35kg for adults, 15kg for children.

Note
Travellers leaving Hungary by train must pay their fare in convertible currency. Most generally recognised international concessionary tickets are accepted in Hungary. For further details contact MÁV at Budapest VI, Andrássy út 35 (tel: (1) 461 5500 (international timetables) or (1) 461 5400 (internal timetables); website: www.mav.hu). Seat reservations are strongly advised for all services.

Road
Route via The Netherlands, Belgium and Austria and from Vienna via the E5 Transcontinental Highway which passes near Bratislava (Slovak Republic). Bus connections are available from most major European cities, check for further details with Volanbusz (website: www.volanbusz.hu). Eurolines, departing from Victoria Coach Station in London, serves destinations in Hungary. For further information, contact Eurolines, 52 Grosvenor Gardens, London, SW1V 0AU (tel: (08705) 143 219; website: www.eurolines.com). The Channel Tunnel: Eurotunnel operates trains 24 hours per day through the Channel Tunnel between Folkestone in Kent (with direct access from the M20) and Calais in France. All vehicles from motorcycles to campers can be accommodated. Eurotunnel operates three to four passenger trains per hour at peak times. The journey takes approximately 35 minutes. For further information contact Eurotunnel Reservations (tel: (08705) 353 535; e-mail: callcentre@eurotunnel.com; website: www.eurotunnel.co.uk).