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Budapest public transport to run on special timetable over Christmas and New Year
Budapest’s Centre for Transport (BKK) will introduce a special public transport timetable during the Christmas holiday period and on New Year’s Eve, adjusting services to changing passenger demand and running more services than in previous years.
Christmas Eve: Adjusted services and earlier last departures in Budapest
In a statement to MTI on Wednesday, BKK said that on 24 December, services will operate according to the Saturday timetable in the morning and during the day. On Christmas Eve, as in previous years, daytime surface services will make their last departures from termini between 3 PM and 4 PM. However, metro lines serving the city centre will continue running longer than other daytime services, operating until 6 PM.
Due to earlier closing times at large suburban shopping centres, most services will make their final stops at these locations between 1:30 PM and 2:30 PM. The only exception is bus 22, which will continue to serve shopping centres until the end of operations.
Travel options after daytime services end
After daytime services finish, passengers will be able to travel between 4 PM and 6 PM using metro lines and night services. Some night routes will operate on modified routes during this period to ensure connections with the metro.
The 100E and 200E airport buses, as well as tram 6, will continue to run around the clock as usual. Tram 6 will operate every 10 minutes between 4 PM and 8 PM, and every 15 minutes from 8 PM onwards.
After 4 PM, bus 200E will run every 8–10 minutes. Once the last metro service has finished, buses will depart from and arrive at Határ út metro station every 20 minutes, providing connections to metro and night bus services.
Night services and increased frequencies
Night services will begin operating between around 3:30 PM and 4 PM, generally with frequencies similar to the standard night timetable. Between 4 PM and 6 PM, some night routes will run on modified routes aligned with metro services, in some cases more frequently or using articulated buses instead of single vehicles. Services including buses 907, 909A, 923, 956, 973, 979 and 979A will operate more frequently.
Due to expected tourist traffic in Buda Castle, bus 916 will run at increased frequency every 5–10 minutes between 4 PM and 9:30 PM. Bus 916A will also operate more frequently between Széll Kálmán Square and Deák Ferenc Square until 6 PM.
After 6 PM, when metro services stop, all night bus routes will operate along their full routes at standard weekday night frequencies. However, additional leisure-focused services will not operate on Christmas Eve. Suburban HÉV lines crossing Budapest’s administrative boundary (H5, H6, H8 and H9) will run until their normal late-evening closing times, but with reduced frequency.
BKK advises passengers not to rely on routine travel habits on Christmas Eve and recommends using the BudapestGO app to plan festive journeys.
Public holiday timetables on Christmas and New Year’s Day
On 25 and 26 December, Christmas Day and Boxing Day, as well as on 1 January, daytime services will operate according to public holiday timetables. Due to lower airport traffic on 25 December, the 100E airport bus will run less frequently than usual.
Year-end schedule changes before New Year’s Eve
From 29 to 31 December, reduced passenger numbers and lighter road traffic will mean that many metro, tram, trolleybus and bus services will operate on a year-end timetable. Most routes will follow the school holiday weekday schedule, while routes 33A and 10 will not operate.
All-night transport on New Year’s Eve
On the night of 31 December, New Year’s Eve, many high-capacity services will run throughout the night, including all metro lines, all HÉV services, trams 4 and 6 on the Grand Boulevard, as well as trams 14, 17, 47, 50 and 56A, trolleybuses 75 and 80, and buses 5, 7, 8E, 16 and 223E. According to MÁV, HÉV services will operate all night on every line.
On the night bus network, several routes will run on modified timetables to connect with metro and tram services. Airport buses 100E and 200E will continue to operate according to their regular schedules.
Parking rules between the holidays
Finally, BKK reminded drivers that from this year onwards, on working days between Christmas and New Year, on-street parking is subject to payment. This means parking fees apply on 29, 30 and 31 December, which fall on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday this year.