Travelling by train in Hungary

London to Budapest
Train travel from London to Budapest is easy and takes around 24 hours. Use the overnight 'Orient Express' between Paris and Vienna. If you prefer, you can travel via Brussels and Cologne, which involves an extra change but can work out cheaper.

Train times from London to Budapest (via Paris)
Take the Eurostar from London to Paris, leaving London (Waterloo) at 12:09 and arriving at Paris (Gare du Nord) at 15:59. It's a 10 minute walk from the Gare du Nord to the Gare de l'Est. Then travel from Paris to Vienna on board the Orient Express, leaving Paris (Gare de l'Est) at 17:16 and arriving Vienna at 08:30 next morning. The Orient Express has reclining seats (which we do not recommend for overnight travel), comfortable modern Austrian couchettes (choose a bunk in a 4 berth or 6 berth compartment), and a modernised sleeping car with 1, 2 and 3 bed rooms with washbasin. There's no restaurant car, so you'll need to take your own food and drinks, although the sleeper and couchette attendants can sell you snacks, tea and coffee. For sleeper passengers, a light breakfast is included in the fare. Travel from Vienna to Budapest by air-conditioned InterCity train the 'Avala', with a restaurant car and bar, leaving Vienna at 10:03 and arriving Budapest Keleti station at 12:58.

Return train times from Budapest to London (via Paris)
Travel from Budapest to Vienna by air conditioned InterCity train, the 'Avala', leaving Budapest Keleti station at 15:50 and arriving Vienna at 18:45. Then from Vienna to Paris overnight on board the Orient Express, leaving Vienna daily at 20:34 and arriving in Paris (Gare de l'Est) at 10:27. Travel from Paris to London by Eurostar, leaving Paris Nord at 11:43 and arriving at London Waterloo at 13:25.

Another Train Travel route is from London via Brussels and Cologne shown below.

Buying tickets online - You can book the Eurostar and the Paris-Vienna Orient Express online at www.voyages-sncf.com. You can then book the Vienna-Budapest train online at www.oebb.at.

On www.voyages-sncf.com, the 'English' button is a UK flag at bottom left. We recommended that you book in two stages: from London to Paris and back and then Paris to Vienna and back. First, book the train from Paris to Vienna and back (click 'direct services only' to make sure it only shows the direct train), then click 'add another ticket' and book the Eurostar from London to Paris and back as a separate journey. Don't forget that on your return journey, your departure date from Paris to London will be the day after your departure date from Vienna to Paris. For a one way trip, on Eurostar it is usually cheaper to book a return ticket and throw away the return half.

Select 'Great Britain' if you want tickets posted to a UK address. If you prefer, tickets can be posted to addresses in many other countries including most European countries. For a journey starting in France, you can select 'France' to pick your tickets up at any main station in France. Tickets will not be sent to the USA, Canada, Singapore, Australia or New Zealand - to get round this, if your journey starts in France, you can select 'France' and choose to pick up tickets at the station in France. If your journey starts in the UK, use www.raileurope.co.uk instead and choose to pick tickets up at Rail Europe's travel centre in Piccadilly, London.

Make sure you book the right type of couchette or sleeper - when booking the Paris to Vienna train, use the 'options' link to switch between couchettes and sleepers. Look at the different classes individually and the range of couchettes and sleepers contained in each. For 6-berth couchettes select '2nd class' then '6 berth couchette'. For 4-berth couchettes you'll need to select '1st class' then '4 berth couchette'. For sleepers, you have to select either '2nd class' then '3 berth cabin' or '1st class' then 'Double cabin' or '1st class' then 'Single cabin'. Bookings open 60 days before departure.
The voyages-sncf website may also be able to book the Vienna to Budapest train. Click 'add another ticket' and do this as a separate journey. If you prefer, you can book this train at www.oebb.at (the official Austrian Railways website) which may have cheaper fares. Once booking and payment has been confirmed you print out you own ticket.

Buy tickets by phone - You can book through any UK European rail ticketing agency, such as Deutsche Bahn's UK office on 0870 2 43 53 63 or Rail Europe on 0870 5 848 848.

London to Budapest (via Brussels & CityNightLine hotel train) - You can also travel from London to Budapest via Brussels & Cologne. Due to special fares available on the Cologne to Vienna 'CityNightLine' hotel train, this route can be cheaper.

Travel from London to Brussels by Eurostar, leaving London (Waterloo) at 10:43 and arriving in Brussels at 14:05. Then from Brussels to Cologne by high-speed ICE train, leaving Brussels at 16:28 and arriving in Cologne (Hauptbahnhof) at 18:45. The next stage is from Cologne to Vienna overnight on the excellent CityNightLine hotel train 'Donau Kurier', leaving Cologne (Hauptbahnhof) at 20:18 and arriving in Vienna (Westbahnhof) at 08:51. This is a double deck train with sleeping-cars (1 or 2 bed deluxe sleepers with private shower & WC, 1, 2 or 4 bed standard sleepers with washbasin), couchettes (choice of bunks in 4 bunk or 6 bunk compartments), reclining seats and a bar restaurant car. Special fares are charged for this train covering travel, sleeper or couchette accommodation and a 'welcome aboard' drink and breakfast. You can have a 3-D virtual tour of the sleepers, couchettes and bar-restaurant on this train, by visiting www.citynightline.ch. The train travels along the famous Rhine Valley line from Koblenz to Frankfurt, so if you are in a sleeper and your compartment happens to be on the left hand side of the train, switch all the lights out and watch the Rhine, mountains and castles illuminated in the moonlight. A real treat. Travel from Vienna to Budapest by air conditioned InterCity train the 'Avala', with restaurant car and bar, leaving Vienna at 10:03 and arriving Budapest Keleti station at 12:58.

Returning from Budapest to London (via Brussels & CityNightLine hotel train) - Travel from Budapest to Vienna by air-conditioned InterCity train, the 'Avala', leaving Budapest Keleti station at 15:50 and arriving Vienna at 18:45. Then from Vienna to Cologne overnight, leaving Vienna (Westbahnhof) at 20:28 and arriving at Cologne at 08:42 next morning on the CityNightLine hotel train 'Donau Kurier'. Travel from Cologne to Brussels by high speed ICE train, leaving Cologne at 09:14 and arriving Brussels 11:32. Then travel from Brussels to London by Eurostar, leaving Brussels at 12:58 arriving London 14:27.

Buying tickets online - You can book the CityNightLine train online at www.citynightline.ch, but you will need to book the London to Cologne Eurostar and Thalys fare by phone with Deutsche Bahn's UK office, on 0870 2 43 53 63. You can buy the Vienna to Budapest ticket either at the station in Vienna or from Deutsche Bahn or online at www.oebb.at (the official Austrian Railways website) which may have cheaper fares. Once your booking and payment have been confirmed you simply print out you own ticket.

If you prefer, you can book both the Eurostar, Thalys and CityNightLine train travel details by phone with a number of UK agencies, including Deutsche Bahn's UK office on 0870 2 43 53 63, Ffestiniog Travel on 01766 512340 or Rail Europe on 0870 5 848 848.

Escorted holidays to Budapest by train
If you would rather travel as part of an organised group to eastern Europe by train with other travellers and a guide, there is a well-known UK-based company called Great Rail Journeys which offers upmarket rail-based holidays to Europe, including a tour covering Vienna, Budapest and Prague starting from London by train. Great Rail Journeys also offer rail-based holidays to other European countries. Decide on your dates and where you want to travel to and then call 0845 402 2068 to book.

General Information
The main train travel operator in Hungary is MAV (Magyar Allamvasutak) - www.mav.hu. Also visit www.elvira.hu for times & fares. For Eurostar times and fares: www.eurostar.com. For train times anywhere in Europe: http://bahn.hafas.de.

The Thomas Cook European Timetable
The Thomas Cook European timetable has train travel, bus and ferry times for every country in Europe, plus currency and climate information. It's essential for any independent traveller. It costs around £11.50 and is available from the 'Books on Rail Travel' section of this website.

Recommended guidebooks
Never travel by train, independently or in a group, without a good guidebook. The best guides are the Lonely Planet or Rough Guide. Both guidebooks have the same excellent level of practical information and cultural and historical background. Again these are available from the 'Books on Rail Travel' section of this website.

Backpacker hostels
If you're on a very tight budget you may find a room or a bed in a dorm at a backpacker hostel. Take a look at www.hostelbookers.com.

Travel Insurance
Travel insurance isn't a luxury - it's a necessity. Ensure its included in your holiday budget. There are many providers these days so shop around to get the best deal but always make sure you have adequate cover and that it is underwritten by a reliable insurer. Sometimes an annual multi trip is cheaper than separate policies for each trip.

EU health card
UK citizens travelling in Europe should carry a European Health Insurance Card. This replaces the old E111 forms as from January 2006. The EHIC card is available free from www.ehic.org.uk and entitles you to free or reduced rate health care if you become ill or get injured in many European countries, under a reciprocal arrangement with the UK's NHS.

Article Source: http://www.articleexpose.com

About the Author

Please Rate this Article

5 out of 54 out of 53 out of 52 out of 51 out of 5 

Not yet Rated