Arriving by Car

Either you arrive in Hungary on a motorway or wish to use Hungary's motorway network you need to buy an e-vignette. It's a virtual vignette, replacing the traditional windscreen stickers. You can buy the e-vignette at retailers, petrol stations, on-line on the internet or by mobile phones. This map contains the border crossings and toll sections of the Hungarian motorway network (the purple/violet sections are toll sections for passenger cars and motorcycles).
For passenger cars and motorcycles you need to buy a D1 category e-vignette, the minimum length is 10 days.

If you arrive to Hungary on Motorway, buy the e-Vignette right at the border or latest at the first petrol station. In summer there can be long queus at the petrol stations, so buying the e-sticker in advance on the web can be a good idea. Actual toll fees you find on the website of the State Motorway Management Company.

Arriving by Plane

In Budapest your plane will arrive to Budapest Ferenc Liszt International Airport. Originally, it was called Budapest Ferihegy International Airport, but in 2011 it was officially renamed, in honour of Franz Liszt (in Hungarian: Liszt Ferenc), a world famous Hungarian pianist and music composer. The website of the airport does not even mention its official name, just call itself simply Budapest Airport, and makes branding of its IATA code BUD. Just to avoid any confusion, when you hear/read Ferihegy Airport, Ferenc Liszt Airport or Budapest Airport, it's the same airport, but all names are in use.

The plane will arrive to Terminal 2, since Terminal 1 was closed down after Malév Airlines the Hungarian National Carrier bankrupted in February 2012. Terminal 2 is a modern facility, however you might need to wait long for your luggage, because the capacity of baggage handling and luggage carousel is undersized and sometimes work is not properly organised. After passing through passport and customs control you can get to the city either by taxi, minibus or by public transport. For 1-2 travellers the minibus can be cheaper than taxi but for 3 passengers taxi is a better choice. The zones are slightly different for minibus and taxi, so comparison is not straight forward.

The official taxi provider at the airport is Főtaxi who has stands at Terminals 2A and 2B. All cars of Főtaxi are equipped with POS terminals, so you can pay with credit card. From 1 September 2013 a new Taxi Decree was introduced in Hungary regulating the price of the taxis at a fixed tariff of 280 HUF/Km (appr. 0.95 EUR/Km) in addition to the one-off basic fee of 450 HUF (appr. 1.50 EUR) and waiting fee (prices include VAT). A ride to the city center should typically cost around 6500 HUF (appr. 22 EUR) depending on traffic conditions. In Budapest, all taxis must use the same tariff system, so prices are the same. Beside Főtaxi we can recommend City Taxi whose service is likely the best in Budapest.

You find information on the Airport Shuttle Minibus service including prices and zones here.

If you have a tight budget you can use the Budapest public transport. The blue public transport bus 200E takes you from the airport to Kőbánya-Kispest metro station, where you need to change to Metro line 3 (blue metro line), which takes you to the city centre.