Here’s how to travel in Hungary on a budget during Easter 2024
For some days now, we have been blessed with pleasant and sunny weather in Hungary. Easter is approaching, giving us the perfect opportunity to leave our houses and travel in Hungary a bit, whether exploring new towns, castles, or thermal baths. Here is how to get the best deals when choosing public transportation for your journey.
24-hour ticket
As Turizmus.com writes, from 1 March, Hungary and county daily tickets were introduced. These brand-new tickets offer a great alternative for those who would like to travel in Hungary and explore the country’s most beautiful corners by train and bus.
If you are staying within a single county – and do not have a county or country pass already – the simplest solution is a 24-hour county daily ticket. Meanwhile, for cross-county travel, a country daily ticket may be a good option.
When purchasing your ticket, please keep in mind that with the 24-hour country tickets, you can also travel on trains that require a seat reservation. On the other hand, it is not possible with county tickets.
The pricing
These 24-hour tickets can only be used on interurban services, such as trains, ferries, and blue and yellow buses operated by Volán. Therefore, they are not valid on BKK or other local services, for example. However, for travel within Budapest, both daily tickets are valid even on InterCity trains.
Furthermore, in this exceptional situation, you do not need to buy a seat reservation ticket. The 24-hour county ticket is HUF 999 (EUR 2.53), while the 24-hour Hungary ticket is HUF 4,999 (EUR 12.67).
Free travel in Hungary
As usual, children get a special discount, which is even more important during Easter, as it is only natural that families travel together. From 1 March, all children under 14 can travel free of charge. In addition, all young people aged between 14 and 25 can buy a half-price ticket. For students over 14 years of age, it is cheaper to buy a monthly pass than a 24-hour ticket. A monthly county pass costs HUF 945 (EUR 2.40), while the Hungary pass costs HUF 1,890 (EUR 4.79).
Families with at least 3 children travel in Hungary for free. This discount can only be applied if the parents are travelling with at least 3 children and can prove their identity and that they are a family with documents.
Travel in Hungary with your bike!
When you travel in Hungary, you do not need to leave your bike at home. From March, bicycles can be transported with a single 24-hour, one-way bike ticket for a uniform fare of HUF 500 (EUR 1.27), regardless of distance. However, on certain trains, you must book a bicycle reservation in addition to your bicycle ticket. It typically affects InterCity and express trains, and all trains in the Balaton region regardless of the season.
The price of the bicycle reservation ticket depends on the local conditions and the capacity of the train to carry bicycles. The cost is usually 300 HUF (EUR 0.76), but there may be tickets for HUF 100 (EUR 0.25), HUF 650 (EUR 1.65) and HUF 990 (EUR 2.51) as well. It is always worth booking your bicycle reservation ticket ahead, as you cannot put your bike on the train without a valid ticket. If the tickets are sold out for a certain train, you must choose another one.
From the 29th of March, even those who prefer travelling by bus can take their bicycles along for their travel in Hungary on certain routes. In addition to buses running between Budapest and the Mátra, Bükk and Lake Tisza regions, bicycle tickets are also available for certain services from the capital to Salgótarján, Eger, Szilvásvárad, Kazincbarcika, Jósvafő and from Gyöngyös via Eger to Miskolc.
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