User:DenisYurkin/Budapest Get around

Orientation


Orientation is not a big problem in Budapest. River Danube splits the city in two sides: Buda and Pest. Aside from the very center, the city's structure is quite logical. Landmarks in Buda as the Royal Castle or Citadella Castle also help you to find your way. Besides the Danube itself, the best reference points for orienting yourself are the bridges crossing the river. From North to South, they are:


 * Árpád Bridge (Árpád híd), a modern bridge linking to Northern Margaret Island. The longest bridge in Budapest at 973 meters;
 * Margaret Bridge (Margit híd), easily identified thanks to its distinctive shape: it makes an approximately 35 degree turn half way across, at the southern tip of Margaret Island. Trams 4 and 6 cross the Danube here;
 * Chain Bridge (Széchenyi lánchid), completed in 1849, the oldest, arguably most beautiful and certainly the most photographed of Budapest's bridges, floodlit at night;
 * Elisabeth Bridge (Erzsébet híd), completed in 1903. Its original chain structure was destroyed in World War II, and was eventually substituted by a modern cable bridge opened in 1964;
 * Liberty Bridge (Szabadság híd), elegant but simple, opened in 1896; it connects the Gellért Baths (Gellért fürdő) in Buda with the Great Market Hall (Nagyvásárcsarnok) in Pest. Currently under renovation.
 * Petőfi Bridge (Petőfi híd), for a long time the southernmost bridge, it links the inner ring road (Nagykörút) of Pest with Buda.
 * Lágymányosi Bridge (Lágymányosi híd), the newest bridge in Budapest, with modern architecture and a spectacular lighting system where mirrors reflect the beam of the upward facing floodlights.

On foot
Many of Budapest's highlights are easy to approach walking, and in the center you find more and more pedestrian zones from year to year. Car drivers (more or less) respect pedestrians and often give advantage on a cross-walk even if there is no traffic light. Be a bit more wary of bicyclists, as due to the lack of bykeways, they tend to weave around pedestrian traffic at great speeds, sometimes passing within inches of you. Don't wear high-heeled shoes in the downtown as there's lots of stone pavements, especially in the Castle Hill.

Public transport
You find many points of interest within walking distance, but Budapest is a sizable city, so unless you drive your own car, you will inevitably use some form of public transportation. The good news is that the urban area is well covered by three metro lines, blue urban buses, yellow trams and red trolley-buses, and the whole system is easy to understand. The bad news is that the schedules are less than reliable, vehicles are not always clean, and tickets have been increasingly expensive.

Public transportation in Budapest is run by Budapest Transport Limited Company (BKV), which has a useful English-language site including current schedules and fares. Vehicles run from around 5am to 11.30pm. After that an extensive night bus network is available.

If you only visit Budapest for a few days as a tourist, you may find particularly useful the following lines:

If you stay longer, it's worth to buy a public transportation map at any BKV ticket office.
 * metro 1, 2, 3 connect the suburbs with biggest transport hubs, many touristic highlights and central hotels;
 * tram 2 – running along the river Danube on Pest side (currently split in three sections due to the construction of metro 4);
 * tram 4, 6 follow Nagykörút, Pest's inner ring road;
 * bus 7, 73 both connect Keleti railway station with the city center and many points of interest in Buda and Pest;
 * bus 10, 110 go to Buda castle;
 * bus 200 serves the airport.

Tickets and passes
If you intend to travel a lot (and you probably will), travel cards are far less expensive than single tickets, as you should validate a new ticket when transferring (also between metro lines). In 2008 most useful tickets and travel cards for tourists include the following:




 * Single ticket (vonaljegy): valid for only one journey, transfer not allowed. HUF 270. Purchased from the driver (available on designated lines): HUF 350.
 * Transfer ticket (átszállójegy): valid for one journey, one transfer included. HUF 420.
 * One-day travel card (napijegy): valid on the day when purchased. HUF 1550.
 * Three-day travel card (háromnapos turistajegy): valid on the day when purchased and on the following two days. HUF 3400.
 * Fouteen-day pass (kétheti bérlet): valid for 14 consecutive days, with a photo pass (take a passport size photo to the ticket office). HUF 5300.
 * Thirty-day pass (havi bérlet): valid for 30 consecutive days, with a photo pass (take a passport size photo to the ticket office). HUF 8250.
 * Budapest card (Budapest kártya) allows you unlimited free travel in the city, and also gives you discounts at museums and restaurants. Two-day card HUF 6500, three-day card HUF 7800.

You may run into ticket inspectors everytime, everywhere – even on night buses. They have notoriously bad reputation (supposedly being ”rude” and ”cruel”), as they impose a fine literally on everybody travelling without a valid ticket or travel card (no mercy - any plea of ignorance will go unheard). If you get caught, you may choose to pay the fine on the spot (HUF 5000) or later by mail (HUF 10,000 if paid within 30 days).

Metro


Budapest's underground network is an excellent way to get around, it connects the suburbs with railway and autobus stations, many centrally located hotels, museums and sights. The system consists of three lines, crossing at Deák tér station (Deák square, in Pest center).


 * Metro 1 (yellow line) connects Mexikói út (Mexikói road, a transport hub in Central-Northeast Budapest) with Vörösmarty tér (Vörösmarty square in Pest's commercial and touristy center), and also passes the Opera and Hősök tere (Heroes' square). It was built to commemorate the 1000th year of Hungarian nationhood in 1896 (thus often called Millennium Subway). It was the first underground built in the Continental Europe and second in the world after London. Although the vehicles are not original, the beautifully rebuilt, tile covered stations are a gorgeous historical memory of Budapest's richest period (1880-1910).


 * Metro 2 (red line) connects Déli pályaudvar (Southern railway station, in Central Buda) with Örs vezér tere (Örs vezér square, the biggest transport hub of Eastern Pest), and also takes you to Moszkva tér (Moszkva square, Buda's biggest transport hub), Kossuth tér (Kossuth square, around the Parliament in Pest center) and Keleti Pályaudvar (Keleti Railway Station, in Pest). Although the construction started in the 50's, the line was only opened between 1970 and 1972. Having been completely rebuilt since 2004, its stations seem brand new, but trains are still the old, soviet-style ones.


 * Metro 3 (blue line) goes from Újpest-Központ (residential area in Pest's Northern suburbs) to Kőbánya-Kispest (transport hub in Central-Eastern Pest, terminus of bus 200 to the airport), passing Nyugati Pályaudvar (Western Railway Station) and different stations in central Pest. Opened between 1976 and 1990.

All the metro lines are well represented on maps scattered on platforms. A midlet for Java enabled mobile phones is also available here.

Tram
Budapest's 25 tram lines are a tourist-friendly way of getting around, slower – but more scenic – than the subway and particularly useful on the nearly subway-less Buda side of the river. Be careful about doors – they open on different side of the tram on different stops.

Particularly useful lines for tourists are:


 * Tram 4 and 6 both follow Nagykörút, Pest's inner ring road, providing access to all three metro lines at multiple stations, and crossing over to Buda on Margaret Bridge (Margit híd) – another beautiful view. Although technically two lines, 4 and 6 only diverge for their last two stops that the tourist is unlikely to visit.


 * The two lines running along the Danube river (19 in Buda and 2 in Pest) are considered a part of the cityscape. Both offer beautiful view of the opposite side, but note that line 2 is currently split into three different sections (two trams and one bus) due to construction of metro 4.

Bus
Budapest has a dense bus network, which also connects the agglomeration and suburban zones with several metro and train stations and the city center. Regular services have black numbering, while rapid or express services have red numbering: it means that 7 stops more frequently than 7 RED does. Besides, the itinerary of a black and a red service with the same number could be slightly different. And if we add that black numbering often appear as green on the new digital displays – the confusion seem total. Don't worry, in a few days you will understand the system, but until then think twice which bus you take.

Particularly useful lines for tourists include:


 * bus 7, 73, 7 RED, 173 RED, – all connect Keleti railway station with Blaha Lujza square (Blaha Lujza tér, junction with tram 4/6), Pest city center and many points of interest in Buda;
 * bus 10/110 go to Buda castle from Moszkva square (Moszkva tér);
 * bus 200 runs to Ferihegy Airport from Kőbánya-Kispest metro 3 station.

If you aren't using a recently published city map, be aware that some popular lines have been subject to number changes:


 * bus 10/110 (from Moszkva tér to the Castle District) was Várbusz until June 2007;
 * bus 200 (from Kőbánya-Kispest M3 station to Ferihegy airport) was Reptér-busz from 2000 to 2006 and red 93 before 2000.

Trolley-bus
There are 13 trolley-bus lines running in Northeast and Central Pest (mainly in the XIV, VI, VII districts). Some of them pass through the City Park (Városliget) and cross Andrássy avenue (Andrássy út), giving you beautiful views while using this eco-friendly mode of transport. Unless you are a trolley buff, you're unlikely to use them frequently, however, line 70 from Kossuth square (Kossuth tér, next to the Parliament) to City Park can be useful.

Suburban rail
Green suburban railway lines (called HÉV) connect central Budapest with several suburbs, but most of them are of little use to visitors. Note that your tickets and travel passes are valid only within the city boundaries, otherwise you should purchase a supplementary ticket (kiegészítő jegy) at a ticket office.


 * Line Batthyány tér–Szentendre goes upriver to the picturesque village of Szentendre. The same train takes you to Sziget Fesztivál, Central Europe's biggest summer music festival. It connects at Batthyány tér with metro 2, at Margit híd (Margaret bridge) with tram 4/6.


 * Line Örs vezér tere–Gödöllő takes you to the beautiful royal castle of Gödöllő from Örs vezér tere metro 2 station.

Other


Some other means of public transport can be useful if you get tired of regular buses and trams, or if you want to escape from the hustle and bustle to the lush green hills surrounding Budapest.


 * Cogwheel railway (Fogaskerekű vasút) is a tram-like railway running from Városmajor terminus (two stops from Moszkva tér metro 2 station by tram 18, 56 or 118) to Széchenyi hill (Széchenyi hegy), Buda's popular picnic, excursion and sledging place. BKV tickets and passes are valid.


 * Boat.It may sound surprising, but Budapest currently has only one regular boat service, running around five times a day from May to September, from Boráros tér (South-Central Pest) to Rómaifürdő (Northern Buda), making 8 intermediate stops. BKV tickets and passes are NOT valid.


 * Buda Castle funicular (Budavári sikló). This handsome, short funicular line takes you from Chain Bridge (Lánchíd) Buda end to Buda Castle. Built in 1870, completely destroyed in World War II, rebuilt only in 1986. BKV tickets and passes are NOT valid. Overpriced.

Night services
Budapest is covered by 34 night bus lines. Numbers are triple-digit, starting with '9xx'. Buses run every 15-60 minutes from around 11pm until 4 am. The main linking points of the night bus network are Moszkva square (Moszkva tér) tér in Buda and Astoria (junction of Kossuth Lajos utca–Károly körút) in Pest. Daytime tickets and passes are valid.

Most useful night buses are:


 * 906 – Running along the Nagykörút, Pest's inner ring road, basically as tram 4 and 6 do during the day.
 * 907 – Substitutes daylight bus 7.
 * 914, 950 – In the city center substitute metro 3.

On line map and schedule are available on BKV's home page.

On Friday and Saturday nights ticket inspectors gather around the stops and don't let you hop on the bus without a valid ticket or pass. They also sell tickets for HUF 350. If you meet the inspectors on the bus itself, they won't sell you tickets, but surely impose a fine.

By car
Apart from the summer holiday, Budapest has a heavy traffic with long-lasting traffic jams in the morning and in the afternoon. If you don't want to spend your visit to Budapest in a traffic jam, leave your car in the hotel's garage, and use the public transport.

If you drive across downtown, plan your journey, otherwise you can get into tough situations. For example you cannot turn left in most of the crossings of the inner ring road (Nagykörút) or on the main avenues like Andrássy út, Váci út, Üllői út or Rákóczi út.