Budapest Airport is located about 20 km southeast of the city centre on the outskirts of Budapest. It is by far the largest airport in Hungary, actually the only major airport in the country. The official name is “Budapest Liszt Ferenc Airport”. The Hungarian name of the famous composer Franz Liszt is Liszt Ferenc.

Our recommendation minibuses from the airport to the city: Minibuses have a very important advantage over public buses. They take the passengers directly to the hotel in the centre of Budapest. The casual, repeated changing and searching for the right metro, tram, etc. is therefore not necessary. You are also expected directly at the airport with a name board and taken to the bus. The start of your trip to Budapest could hardly be easier and less stressful. >>>  On this link you will find more information and you can book the minibus transfer.

It’s a medium-sized airport. Terminals 2a and 2b (directly adjacent) are currently in operation, while Terminal 1 of Budapest Airport is no longer open. The ground floor is for arrivals, the first floor is for departures, on the second floor there are some offices etc. and access to the visitors’ terrace.

Budapest Airport Restaurants, shops and prices

In the airport there are, as usual internationally, several cafes, fast food restaurants and the like. The prices are quite high for Hungary. A coke to go or a coffee costs about 3 Euro, a smaller meal about 5 to 10 Euro.

There is, however, a possibility to buy cheaply: On the far left of the ground floor is a Spar supermarket. Here, the prices are like in all supermarkets in Hungary, thus even a little lower than in German supermarkets.

Those who want and need to save money can at least buy drinks here. Fresh baked goods are also extremely cheap at the Spar supermarket at Budapest Airport, for example.

There are also good buses from the airport to the city in Dublin (Ireland), see: Airport Dublin Bus (booking, prices, information)

Boat tours on the Danube in Budapest are very popular among tourists. There are many different offers. Some tourists take a simple 1-hour tour, others an exclusive dinner tour with a 4-course menu. Many of these tours on the Danube can be booked on the great German website Getyourguide.de. Link to booking at Getyourguide

Budapest Airport Visitor Terrace

Anyone who, like many people at an airport, has to wait can go to the “visitor platform” or “visitor terrace”. You can reach it on the right side of the terminal via the 2nd floor. From here you have a great view of large parts of the runway and can also watch the planes taking off.

The visitor platform is outside, there is a small cafe. The Budapest Airport Visitors’ Terrace is free of charge.

Hop-on/hop-off bus tour: Explore Budapest by bus at your own pace. Almost all of the major sights are visited: >>> More information and booking

From Budapest Airport to the city (transfer to the centre)

There are several ways to get from Budapest Airport to the city without using your own car.

Taxi: Because of the long distance (about 35 min) taxis from Liszt Ferenc Budapest to the city centre are quite expensive.

Public bus in 2024: This is very cheap. There are 2 lines. Bus 200E is a city bus, which you can use with a normal ticket for Budapest (also day ticket, weekly ticket, monthly ticket etc.). Tickets can be bought at the vending machines for Hungarian change. At the airport there are money exchange and EC machines. As far as we know the ticket machines also use plastic cards as a means of payment.

Bus 200E runs to the nearest underground station from the airport (journey time over 30 min). Then you can take the Metro 3 and often have to change to the hotel again. Be careful with single tickets: you need a new ticket every time you change in Budapest. But these only cost about 1 Euro.

For the bus 100E you need another ticket, a ticket for the airport bus costs about 3 euros. You can also buy this ticket at the vending machine.

The bus 200E leaves very often, every few minutes. The 100E runs less frequently, but several times per hour.

With the bus 200E, if there is no traffic jam, you can reach Budapest in about an hour by changing to the metro, with the 100E it is a few minutes faster.

A kind of suburban railway to Budapest Airport is in the planning phase.

Our recommendation to book minibuses from the airport to the city: Minibuses have a very important advantage over public buses. They take the passengers directly to the hotel in the centre of Budapest. So there is no need to change buses casually several times and to search for the right metro, tram etc. You are also expected directly at the airport with a name board and taken to the bus. The start of your trip to Budapest could hardly be easier and less stressful.  >>>  On this link you will find more information and you can book the minibus transfer.