Transportation and Nightlife in Hungary
GETTING THERE
Arriving by plane
Ua Lufthansa (LH), Euro Wings (EW), Austrian Airlines (OS) and Swiss International Air Lines (LX) fly to Budapest. Lufthansa (LH) also flies from Munich to Debrecen. Swiss also flies direct to Budapest from Geneva. Austrian also flies to Pecs from Vienna. Tuifly (X3) flies from numerous German cities and from Zurich to Budapest. The Hungary specialist Mutsch Ungarn Reisen offers direct flights from Düsseldorf, Frankfurt and Hamburg to Lake Balaton on Saturdays from April to October.
Flight times
Frankfurt – Budapest: 1 hour 30 minutes; Vienna – Budapest: 50 minutes; Zurich – Budapest: 1 hour 35 minutes; Geneva – Budapest: 1 hour 50 min.
Arrival by car
Car: Arriving by car from Germany and Switzerland via Austria and the Slovak Republic. The European route E 60 from Vienna is one of the cheapest connections. Drivers in Austria heading towards Hungary and changing from the A 1 west autobahn to the A 4 east autobahn can bypass Vienna south on the Vienna outer ring expressway S 1.
With the M 7 there is a continuous route from Budapest over the east bank of Lake Balaton to the Croatian border in the direction of Zagreb (border crossing Letenye).
The most important border crossings are:
from Austria:
Nickelsdorf – Hegyeshalom;
Holy Cross – Rábafüzes;
Klingenbach – Sopron;
German Cross – Kópháza;
Rattersdorf – Liebing – Köszeg and
Schachtendorf – Szombathely.
from the Slovak Republic:
Rusovce – Rajra;
Slovenské Darmoty – Balassagyarmat;
Kral – Bánréve;
Komárno – Komárom and
Sahy – Parassapuszta.
Bus: There are good long-distance bus connections from Austria, Germany, Italy, Poland and the former member states of the Soviet Union. Eurolines buses (Internet: www.eurolines.com) and Flixbus (Internet: www.flixbus.de) travel to and from Hungary. The Hungarian agency is Volanbusz AG (Internet: www.volanbusz.hu).
Arriving by train
There are direct rail connections between Budapest and numerous European capitals. Numerous international trains with sleeping and dining cars reach the Hungarian capital.
The Imperial Express luxury train also makes a stop in Budapest on its round trip from Vienna.
The EuroNight Wiener Waltz offers a connection to Budapest from Zurich via Innsbruck, Salzburg, Linz and Vienna.
There are various EuroCity connections to Budapest.
Nightjet – night trains (Internet: www.oebb.at/de/angebote-ermaessigungen/nightjet) run from Zurich via Feldkirch and from Munich via Vienna to Budapest.
Further information from Deutsche Bahn (Internet: www.bahn.de), ÖBB (Internet: www.oebb.at) and SBB (Internet: www.sbb.ch).
Most international special tickets and passes (including InterRail passes) are also valid in Hungary. There is also a group discount for the Euro Mini Group (max. 4 adults and 1 young person). Details see Germany.
Seat reservationsare recommended for all trains. Information about international train connections in Budapest under Tel: (01) 461 55 00 (24 hours) and Tel: (01) 342 91 50 (Mon-Sun 6 a.m.-8 p.m.).
Fare information for international train services in Budapest at tel: (01) 322 90 35 or online at www.mav.hu.
Note on arriving by train
Baggage allowance: 35 kg for adults, 15 kg for children.
Arrival by ship
A hydrofoil operated by MAHART runs from Vienna to Budapest between the beginning of May and the end of September. The journey time is 5.5 hours; Advance booking is required. Further information from: MAHART Vienna, Tel: (+43) (01) 729 21 61. or MAHART, Belgrád rakpart, H-1056 Budapest (Tel: (01) 484 40 00. Internet: www.mahartpassnave.hu).
On the way by ship
Regular shipping from spring to late autumn on the Danube (Internet: www.danube-river.org) and on the Balaton.
In addition, MAHART (address see International Travel) and the Budapest Transport Company (BKV) operate ferries in the city center and on the Római Part, among other places. Due to the bridge between Esztergom and Párkány (Sturovo), ferry traffic has been discontinued.
From May to October hydrofoils operate from Budapest via Visegrád to Esztergom in the Danube Bend (travel time: 1 hour 30 minutes). Departure is from Vigadó Square below the Pest bank of the hotel (Internet : www.mahartpassnave.hu or www.ungarn-tourismus.de)
Additional ferry services on Lake Balaton (May-September) between Tihanyrév and Szántódrév. Liner boats operate according to plan on Lake Balaton from the end of May to the beginning of October, while the ferries (Internet: http://www.balatonihajozas.hu/) (Szantod-Tihany) run every 40 minutes from the end of May to mid-September (high season) and from Run every hour from mid-September to the end of November and from the end of February to the end of May (low season).
NIGHTLIFE
Introduction
According to softwareleverage, Budapest has the most diverse nightlife in the country to offer. There are many nightclubs, bars and discos here, most of which are located on VII Liszt Ferenc tér and IX Ráday utca. Local DJs play electronic house music in many nightclubs. In the summer months, some clubs open an outdoor event area on the banks of the Danube. Friends of jazz music are also drawn to the Hungarian capital, in whose numerous jazz clubs not only Hungarian musicians but also foreign artists often perform. Current events are in the English-language journals Where Budapest or the Budapest Sun to find.
In the opulent ambience of the Hungarian State Opera (Tel: (1) 814 7100; Internet: www.opera.hu) opera and ballet performances as well as classical concerts take place all year round. The admission prices are very moderate for the quality offered, tickets can be bought in advance via the Internet or directly at the ticket booth in the entrance area of the opera house.
The nightlife in the larger university towns of Debrecen, Györ and Szeged is a little less diverse, but at least as lively. During the summer months, the holiday resort of Siófok, located on the southern bank of Lake Balaton, has a colorful nightlife, which has earned it the reputation of being the “party capital of Hungary”. Especially in the west of the country there are many wine cellars that are open late into the night. The cinemas in the big cities often show films in English. Anyone interested in folklore should distinguish between Hungarian (Magyar Zene) and real Gypsy (Zigànyzene) folk music.