Budapest

Budapest Travel Tips: Getting Around, Money and Tourist Traps

Last checked October 8, 2026

Most of Budapest's highlights sit within walking distance of each other, but a few local habits — how the airport express ticket works, when you actually need to validate, and how to tell a service charge from a tip — make the practical side of a visit far simpler.

Arriving

Budapest Liszt Ferenc International Airport (BUD) is about 16 km southeast of the centre, with all flights using Terminals 2A and 2B. The 100E Airport Express runs around the clock to Deak Ferenc ter, via Kalvin ter, in about 40 minutes — but it needs its own airport shuttle ticket, since ordinary single tickets and passes aren't accepted on it. You can buy it on board with a bank card, in the BudapestGO app, or from a vending machine.

Bus 200E also serves the airport using standard tickets, running to Kobanya-Kispest where you change onto metro M3. For a taxi, Fotaxi is the airport's official partner, having won the tender for the third time; the 2025-2030 tender also added Uber's Hungarian partner, F Mobilitas Kft., the press has reported. Don't accept offers from drivers or touts waiting in arrivals.

Licensed taxis are yellow, with the left front door marked as a qualified Budapest taxi, and all of them charge the same official fare by taximeter at any time of day, shown on a fare table on the dashboard and rear doors. You can pay by cash or card, and the licensed app operators are Bolt, City Taxi, Elit Taxi, Fotaxi and Uber Taxi.

A classic first orientation on the Buda side climbs Castle Hill to Buda Castle, on to the Fisherman's Bastion above the Danube, then across the Chain Bridge toward Pest and the Hungarian Parliament on the river's far bank. Expect cobbles and uneven paving on Castle Hill.

Getting around

The network has four metro lines plus trams, buses and trolleybuses, all run by BKK; the BudapestGO app plans journeys and sells tickets. On the metro, validate your paper ticket at the station entrance; on trams and buses, validate it immediately after boarding, before the vehicle departs. A single ticket allows transfers between metro lines, but buses and trams allow no transfer on a single ticket.

You can skip paper tickets altogether with Pay&GO: tap a bank card or phone on the terminal as you enter a metro station or board the 100E, and it buys and validates a single ticket in one go — for an inspection, tap the same card again on the inspector's device. If an inspector finds you without a valid, validated ticket, you'll face an on-the-spot fine, so following the purchase and validation rules matters. Ride-share services including Uber and Bolt are both available and considered safe to use, and in Budapest both dispatch licensed taxis.

Money and tipping

Hungary is not yet a member of the euro area — its currency is the forint. Don't change money on the street; city-centre exchange offices near Deak Ferenc ter tend to give better rates than those at the airport or railway stations, and some restaurants accept euros but at a rate that's usually far worse than an exchange office. Check that any change you're given is actually in forints, since Wikivoyage notes some taxi drivers have handed over obsolete Romanian lei by mistake. As with any card terminal or ATM abroad, decline an offer to charge you in your home currency.

In Budapest, almost all businesses and services relevant to tourists support card payments. Many restaurants add a 10-12% service charge (szervizdij), which must be stated on the menu — trade press reports that once applied, a service charge is compulsory for the guest and goes toward wages, while a tip stays separate and voluntary. If a service charge is already on the bill, tipping isn't expected; if not, about 10% is usual, told to the server when you pay rather than left on the table.

Tourist traps

Wikivoyage advises steering clear of restaurants and bars on Vaci utca, especially between Vorosmarty ter and Elisabeth Bridge — restaurants there are required to post a full priced menu outside, so avoid any that doesn't. The UK Foreign Office warns more broadly that some bars, clubs and restaurants overcharge for food and drink, so ask to see the menu and price list before ordering and check your bill; it adds that some taxi drivers take a commission for steering visitors to these venues.

A related "consumption" scam, described by the US State Department's security office, typically targets men who are invited for a drink and then grossly overcharged — always ask about prices before entering a club. On Buda Castle Hill, stay away from street shell-game gamblers; the other apparent players are usually part of the same group.

For taxis, insist on using the meter and avoid agreeing to an unmetered fare. If you're considering a Budapest Card, check whether it suits your plans first — Wikivoyage notes it often gives only a discount rather than free entry at many attractions.

Staying safe

Hungary is generally a safe place to visit, per the US State Department's security office, but take care in crowded tourist areas, train stations, buses, trams and the metro. The UK Foreign Office notes that bag-snatching and pickpocketing are common on busy public transport, in stations and at markets, and the security office adds the trains between Budapest and Vienna specifically. There have also been reports of drinks being spiked in Budapest's bars, so buy your own drinks and keep them in sight.

Always carry your passport — police can ask to see ID, and a copy isn't acceptable. For an emergency, dial 112; the security office also lists an English-language tourist police line, +36-1-438-8080, at Vigado utca 4.

Budapest's tap water is drinkable: Fovarosi Vizmuvek, the city's water utility, states plainly that it's healthy and safe to consume, though Wikivoyage notes that water on trains is a different matter.