New Budapest–USA flight: exciting new details have emerged, surge of tourists to Hungary expected

After more than six years, direct air service between Hungary and the United States is set to resume. Tickets are now available for American Airlines’ nonstop flights launching next May, though the prices appear steep for the Hungarian purse. Industry experts expect a significant increase in American tourist arrivals as a result—a welcome development, since U.S. travellers are known to be big spenders in Hungary.

No more red-eye departures

According to a post by Budflyer, booking has opened for American Airlines‘ new Budapest route, though tickets for Premium Economy are not yet available. Economy and Business Class seats, however, are already on sale. Ticket prices between Budapest and Philadelphia range from HUF 363,000 to 500,000, which is considered pricey by Hungarian standards. For now, flights are scheduled through 5 October, as those are the available booking dates.

The flight schedule has also been released: Planes will depart Philadelphia at 6:50 PM local time, arriving in Budapest at 9:55 AM the following day. Departures from Budapest will be at 11:25 AM, landing in the U.S. city at 3:00 AM Eastern Time the same day. The weekly seat capacity between the two cities will be approximately 3,200.

Flights will operate daily using Boeing 787-8 Dreamliners, which have 234 seats. One major advantage is that passengers won’t have to deal with early morning departures in either direction. According to Budflyer, British Airways will also place its code on the flight under BA1620/BA1621.

Direct Budapest-USA link expected to boost tourism

A report by turizmus.com highlights that this is the first direct U.S.-Hungary flight since service was suspended over six years ago, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. Philadelphia was chosen in part due to its more than one hundred onward connections to other U.S. cities and the Caribbean.