How much does the transfer from Budapest airport to the city center cost? How to get to the capital by train, bus, shuttle, taxi? We will try to give an answer to these and other questions in the material presented.
general information
The central hub for international flights in Budapest is known as Liszt Ferenc Airport. In total, Hungary has 5 major airports. Most of them are able to serve foreign flights. But precisely Liszt Ferenc Airport is considered the main one and is the largest in the country.
The airport was named after the famous composer in 2011. The object was renamed on the occasion of the celebration of the 200th anniversary of its birth. However, residents of the Hungarian capital still continue to call Ferihegy airport, since this name is consonant with the area in which it is located.
The Liszt Ferenc International Airport is located quite far from the central part of the capital. To get to the city, the traveler needs to overcome 16 kilometers along a busy highway with numerous traffic intersections. Therefore, it can be difficult for an inexperienced tourist to get out of here on his own.
Airport terminals
Budapest Liszt Ferenc Airport consists of Terminals No. 1, No. 2A and No. 2 B. Between the last two, you can make quick crossings on foot, as they are located close to each other.
As for terminal No. 1, in 2012 the airport management decided to temporarily close it. This led to a significant decrease in passenger traffic as a result of the bankruptcy of the main Hungarian airline Malev. The terminal building itself is unique in its kind, as it is made in the form of an airplane. Getting here is quite difficult, but you can see the original structure in detail from a close distance.
Currency exchange
Immediately after arriving at the Budapest airport, it is recommended that you resolve monetary issues. Since the calculation of travel in the city’s public transport, like in a taxi, takes place in local currency, you should immediately proceed to one of the many ATMs that are available at the airport. With their help, credit card holders of an international standard can exchange euros or dollars for Hungarian forints without any problems. It is much more profitable to withdraw money from a card than to contact exchange offices for help, since the latter offer a fairly unfair rate.
Having figured out the currency exchange, you can proceed with specific actions, determining the most suitable transport that will allow you to get to the central point of the city. To do this, you can use one of the cars of the local taxi service, take a train ticket, a bus or rent a personal car with or without a driver. We will talk about each of the presented solutions in more detail later in the material.
Bus
The Budapest - Airport bus is one of the most affordable, relatively cheap solutions. From 3:30 a.m. to midnight, transport on the 200E route runs here. The indicated bus leaves from terminal No. 2, after which it moves towards the Kőbánya-Kispest metro station, and then goes towards the Ferihegy railway station. A flight is served to the airport with a frequency of 7-8 minutes. Therefore, getting into such a bus is not so difficult.
By boarding Budapest public transport on flight 200E, you can get to the nearest metro station. From here you should make a transfer to the line that leads to Ferenc Deak Square. In general, such a trip will cost about 350 Hungarian forints.
Shuttle bus service at night
How to leave the airport in Budapest at night? How to get to the city after midnight? From 23:00 to the airport terminals buses that run on route number 900 are served. They run at intervals of one hour. To get to the center by such transport, it is enough to get to the Bajcsy-Zsilinszky metro station, after which change to bus number 950A, which runs here every 30 minutes.
It is most convenient to get from the city center back to the airport on the same regular bus on route No. 950A. Transport stops at Ferenc Deka Square. After landing, it is enough to get to the stop Honvéd utca. Here you need to transfer to bus number 900, which actually takes you to the airport.
You can also leave the Ferenc Deka Square in the direction of the airport on minibuses No. 950, 914 and 914A. Having reached the metro station Hatar ut, you will have to make a transfer to the same scheduled transport that follows route 200E.
Where to get bus tickets?
To make a transfer from Budapest Airport to the city center without any problems, you should take care of buying travel documents in advance. You can buy bus tickets using the services of information desks, which are available at the airport. They are sold at local newsstands, post offices, and at bus stops.
If you wish, you can buy a travel document directly from the driver during boarding a vehicle. However, in this case, the ticket will cost about 100 forints more.
Taxi
One of the most comfortable ways is to order a taxi from Budapest to the airport. The car parks of the local Főtaxi company are located at the exit of all existing terminals.
What is the cost of a taxi in Budapest airport - city center? Since 2013, a law has been in force in Hungary, according to which, such transfers are carried out at fixed prices, which amount to no more than 0.95 euros per kilometer (280 forints). However, for one landing, you will have to pay 1.50 euros (450 forints). In general, the cost of a taxi in Budapest (airport - city center) cannot exceed the amount of 22 euros (6500 forints).
To be guided by the above provisions, it is recommended to pre-arrange with the driver about the transfer cost. Indeed, in practice there are quite often crooks who act bypassing the law and are always ready to “rip off” a few extra euros from an inexperienced tourist.
Personal car to order
If a taxi ride does not look like the most preferable solution, you can use the more comfortable option by ordering a personal crew to one of the terminals. You can apply for the service at one of the local companies that provides such transfers for business clients. It is convenient to order a personal car on the Internet. At the same time, a driver with an appropriate sign will be waiting at the exit from the terminal.
Stopping at this option, passengers do not have to fear dishonest taxi drivers, carry luggage independently, make any transfers, think about how to get to the metro from Budapest airport, and solve other problems. In addition, with a private car with a driver, you can easily get not only to the center of Budapest, but also go to other resort cities of the country. The only disadvantage of this solution is the rather high cost of services, which is exorbitant for tourists, who plan to save as much as possible on travel.
Rent a car at the airport
How to leave the airport in Budapest, how to get to the city? This can be done on a rented vehicle. Renting a car is quite simple. To do this, you just need to turn to the services of one of the relevant offices. Representative offices of such organizations are available directly at the airport terminals. Here for a moderate fee, about 100 euros per week, you can get at your disposal a comfortable car, which will become the main means of transportation for the entire stay in the city.
Minibus Shuttle (Airportshuttle)
The best option for a group of travelers who arrived in Budapest and do not want to burden themselves with a trip by public transport, looks like a so-called shuttle rental. The specified transport will cost much cheaper than a taxi. However, only if enough passengers are gathered to fill it.
How to leave the airport in Budapest, how to get to the city by shuttle? The idea is as follows. Such minibuses transport those who leave the airport. The only requirement is that all passengers must be sent to the same destination or leave at the necessary points of the city as the traffic moves, without deviations from the previously planned route.
The fare here will depend on the distance. In most cases, drivers claim a starting price of about 7-8 euros. But even this amount is much lower compared to the amount that you have to pay for a taxi ride.
A train
How to get to the metro from Budapest airport? One of the most convenient solutions for this, in terms of saving time and money, looks like a train ride. After the recent reconstruction of the airport terminals, getting to the train station has become quite problematic. You can get here by the same bus that runs from terminal No. 2 along route 200E.
Once at the station, you need to purchase a travel document that will allow you to board the train, which follows to the Nyugati station, located in the central part of the city. Here you will need to make a metro transfer, take a tram or immediately check into one of the expensive hotels in the historical center of Budapest.
Every day, about 25 trains leave from the railway station, which is located close to the airport. At the station you can buy a ticket with the right of one-time transfer, as well as a pass, which will allow you to travel for a week without the need for an additional fee.
Return transfer from Budapest to the airport
How to get from the city center to the airport at the end of the trip? Carrying out the return transfer, you should focus on the above instructions. In order not to get confused in the routes, it is often enough to pay attention to information signs indicating the directions that are available at every stop in the city.
When planning a transfer from the metro to the bus to the airport, it is recommended that you familiarize yourself with the timetable in advance. If a decision is made to take a taxi, it’s worthwhile to arrange a car call in advance by contacting the hotel staff at the reception. Only in this case, the car will be delivered to the exit of the hotel at the right time, which will not allow you to be late for the desired flight at the airport.
Finally
So we found out how to leave the airport in Budapest, how to get to the city. Obviously, for this there is a whole host of quite convenient methods. To resort to one or another option is depending on the requirements of comfort, the breadth of the available budget, the time during which you need to get to the central part of the Hungarian capital.