Practical guide to Budapest Practical guide to the Aster Apartment and house rules Public transport ....................................................................................................................................................... 2 Arrival ...................................................................................................................................................................... 3 Taxi facts ................................................................................................................................................................. 4 Cycling / scooters .................................................................................................................................................... 4 Parking .................................................................................................................................................................... 5 Money facts............................................................................................................................................................. 6 Internet, phone calls, post offices ........................................................................................................................... 6 Markets, supermarkets, groceries and buying alcohol and cigarettes ................................................................... 7 Dangers, rip-offs etc. ............................................................................................................................................... 8 Orientation in Bp. and interpreting addresses ........................................................................................................ 9 The building and the apartment ........................................................................................................................... 10 Smoking ................................................................................................................................................................. 14 Neighbors .............................................................................................................................................................. 15 Amenities .............................................................................................................................................................. 15 House rules summary ........................................................................................................................................... 17 Emergency phone numbers .................................................................................................................................. 18 Our mobile phone numbers .................................................................................................................................. 18 1 Public transport No other capital in the world operates so many different forms of public transport, from the metro through trolley buses to a cogwheel railway. The public transport in Budapest is very well organized. You do not have to be afraid of language difficulties, as the signs are very clear and logical and you will find a stop about every 200m. For details see the this link: http://www.bkk.hu/en/maps/ or use Google maps to search destinations. Google has integrated the whole network, timetables included. BKK has launched its online journey planner application, the so-called FUTÁR app, available also for smartphones and tablets. The application gives detailed information on schedules of each stop and also is able to show the real-time position of the public transportation vehicles in operation. This app offers both the “door to door” trip planner service and also the accessible route options. The application is available here http://futar.bkk.hu or you can download it for free to your smartphone or tablet from any online store. Tickets: You can find the latest ticket prices here: http://www.bkk.hu/en/prices/ We advise you to buy a 72-hour or 7-day pass, as you can use it without limitations. For shorter periods you can purchase a block of 10 tickets. You can purchase the passes in every metro station and in the arrival hall of the airport, see http://www.bkk.hu/en/2013/09/bkk%E2%80%99s- customer-service-points-help-arriving-visitors-with-information-on-how-to-get-around-by-public- transport/. Newspaper and other kiosks also sell single tickets. Vocabulary: metró = metro földalatti = underground busz = bus villamos = tram troli = trolley vonat = train gyermekvasút = children’s railway HÉV = suburban rail fogaskerekű = cogwheel tram/railway sikló = Castle Hill Funicular libegő = chairlift hajó = boat megálló = stop jegy = ticket bérlet = pass 2 Arrival By plane: You will arrive at Ferihegy (now Liszt Ferenc) Airport Terminal 2. Grab your free citymap at the luggage carousels! You can exchange money here at a bad rate, but we advise you use the ATM in the arrival hall. (Don’t chose the suggested fixed rate at ATMs) There are 4 possibilities to get to the city centre: - You have booked an airport transfer with your plane ticket. Just follow the instructions provided by your airline. - Take a taxi: it will cost you about €30/7.500 Ft + the ‘usual’ +/- 10% tip. It takes 40 minutes to get to our place. Please do not follow ‘cabdriver looking’ people, just go directly to the official taxi station. - Book a Shuttle minibus. You have to buy your ticket in the arrival hall (fee €10/p) and wait for the next departure. They collect passengers and drop them at your desired address. There are some reductions for more people and retour tickets, see http://www.airportshuttle.hu/en/. - Use public transport: you’ll need 2 tickets (1 ticket costs €1 if you buy a block of 10) or buy a pass for 72 hours or for 7 days in the departure or arrival hall. This journey will take about 55 minutes to the apartment. Arriving before 22h50: 1. Bus N° 200E leaves 20m to the right from the exit. You have to get out at Kobanya-Kispest P+R (19 minutes, max. 9 stops). Timetable 2. Take metro (line 3) to Kalvin ter (14 minutes, 9 stops) OR: The last metro will depart at 23h26, so if you cannot catch it on time: 1. Take bus N°200E to Hatar ut (23 minutes, max. 10 stops). Timetable 2. Take bus N°950 (direction to Rakospalota, 14 minutes, max. 8 stops) or bus N°914 (direction to Kaposztasmegyer, 14 minutes, max. 8 stops) to Kalvin ter From Kalvin ter you can easily walk to our address (see further, chapter The building) Reading tip: http://welovebudapest.com/budapest.and.hungary/how.to.get.to.downtown.budapest.from.the.air port (Travelling to the airport: 3 Metro line 3 to Kobanya-Kispest and bus N° 200E to the airport –> you will need +/- 1 hour) By train: taking a taxi or using public transport: - Arriving in Keleti (East) Railway Station: Take metro line 4 (direction Kelenfold, 3 stops) - Arriving in Deli (South) Railway Station: Take metro line 2 to Deak ter (direction to Ors vezer, 4 stops) and change there to metro line 3 to Kalvin ter (direction to Kobanya-Kispest, 2 stops) - Arriving in Nyugati (West) Railway Station: Take metro line 3 to Kalvin ter (direction to Kobanya-Kispest, 4 stops) Taxi facts All the official taxis are painted lemon yellow now, however you will still find them in other colors as the new law is not yet widely implemented. The local government also recently introduced uniform fees. Which can be interpreted as good news for tourists, but, on the other hand, giving reductions is also not allowed anymore… You can order a taxi (we prefer FŐTAXI, the dispatchers speak English, 06-1-2 222 222) or just look for a free taxi on the street. You can recognize a free taxi very easily: if their ‘taxi’ sign is on top of the car lights, they are free. Do not risk going with unofficial drivers because they can overcharge you. Cycling / scooters Cycling is getting more and more popular in the city. You can hire bikes and scooters in the neighborhood. Look at these addresses: http://www.retro-robogo.hu/scooter-rental-budapest/ https://plus.google.com/112922111006281156078/about?hl=nl http://dynamobike.com/ The MOL BUBI public bike-sharing scheme is a new mode of public transport in Budapest, which 4 consists of 76 docking stations and 1100 (light green) bicycles. You can use BUBI in possession of an annual or a semi-annual pass, using a 24-hour, 72- hour or 7- day ticket every day around the clock. The startup is planned for April 2014. All the information is available on their website: http://www.bubi.hu/ Reading tip: http://welovebudapest.com/budapest.and.hungary/grab.and.go.ride.the.new.mol.bubi.bikes.all.aro und.budapest Parking Will you be arriving by car? - Place your car in one of the guarded parking lots for +/- € 13 a day - Or dump the car in one of the free parking areas in district 8, and take the metro line 3 to the apartment - Or use the Park and Ride car park in district 8, 9 or 10 (price is +/- 350Ft/day) and take the metro line 3 to the apartment. For guarded parking’s in the streets around us look here: http://www.holparkoljak.hu/parkolo/Kinizsi%2014 http://starpark.hu/parkolok/ulloi-ut-27/ In the zone with the smiley, you can park, unguarded, in the street for free: 5 You can find the Park and Ride car park addresses here: http://fovinform.hu/szabalyozasok/ppluszr.php?lang=en We do not advise you to use your own car in the city. Because, like in any other big city, it is almost impossible to find a parking place and even if you are lucky, it will cost you too much. It is better