How to get to Budapest
The most common ways to get to Budapest are by plane, train or by road by either car or bus - although you can even get a boat from Viena and Bratislava.
Budapest is relatively easy to get to since it's located right in the heart of Central Europe. The most frequent ways to get to the Hungarian capital are by plane, train, coach, or high-speed ferry from Vienna and Bratislava.
If you're touring Europe and are planning to visit Prague and Budapest, we recommend flying from Prague to Budapest or the other way around instead of taking the train. If you book your flights in advance, it's cheaper than the train and a lot quicker, since the train between both cities takes seven hours.
Traveling from the U.S.
Presently, there are no direct flights from the U.S. to Budapest. Most airline stopovers are in London, Frankfurt, Amsterdam, Munich, Paris, or Vienna. In the past, American Airlines used to offer non-stop flights between Budapest and JFK (New York), as did Delta Airlines.
Other airlines to fly to Budapest:
- Delta Airlines: New York, San Francisco, Las Vegas, Boston, Los Angeles, Detroit, Seattle
- American Airlines: Washington, Philadelphia, Boston, New York, Miami, Huston
- Lufthansa: Chicago, Atlanta, New York, Orlando, Miami, Los Angeles and Houston.
Traveling from Canada
In 2015, the Canadian carrier Air Transat inaugurated a seasonal one-way flight between the two cities of Toronto and Montreal and Budapest. In 2016, Air Canada launched a non-stop Toronto – Budapest seasonal service, operating three times a week.
Other airlines to fly to Budapest (with one or two stopovers):
Traveling from Australia
The biggest carriers that fly from Australia to Budapest are the following:
Traveling from Europe
Budapest and the United Kingdom are very well connected, with various airlines flying to Hungary’s capital daily. The following low-cost airlines have good and generally inexpensive flights from various cities in the country to Budapest:
- Wizz Air: Birmingham, Liverpool, London Luton,
- Ryanair: London STN, East Midlands, Bristol and Manchester.
- EasyJet: London Gatwick,
- Jet2: Manchester, Edinburgh, Leeds, East Midlands
To find the best deals, check out our search engine, where you'll be able to search and compare flights and airline companies:
- Flight search engine – Search and compare flights.
Once you have your flights, find out the best ways to get to the city center from Budapest Airport.
Travelling by train
Budapest has three international railway stations and is well connected with nearby European capital cities such as Vienna and Bratislava. Every 3 hours, trains depart from Budapest to these two destinations.
Getting to Budapest by bus
One of the cheapest ways to travel to Budapest from nearby European cities is by coach. The international bus station is located in Népliget (Address: ker. Üllői út 131. See map).
Getting to Budapest by river cruise
Every year, from April until late October, visitors can take a Danube river cruise from Bratislava (Slovakia) to Budapest or from Vienna (Austria) to Budapest. This is probably the most romantic and memorable way to travel to Hungary’s capital. Boats from Bratislava take 3 hours and 4 hours and a half from Vienna. The tickets cost approximately € 90 (US$ 95.30) per journey or € 120 (US$ 127.10) for a return ticket.
