Changes

'''Budapest''' is the capital of [[Hungary]]. It is often abbreviated as BP, which is easier to see for car drivers to see on a [[signs|sign]].      

If your driver is only going around Budapest on the ring road, and not entering the city, the best exit points are '''Dabas-Soroksár ''' (close to M5, south-east) from which you can take a bus to Népliget, and '''Dunakeszi-Újpest ''' (close to M2, north) from which you can take bus 104. Dabas-Soroksár is the exit from the M5 to the local road number 5. If you get from the highway onto the 5, walk or ask the driver to bring you 2km in direction of the city center (towards the M51). After you pass the M51 there will be a MOL petrol station. Behind the petrol station is the bus number 66. This one will go inside the city and will bring you to the next metro station, too.

2. ==== Option 1 : OMV petrol station BAH-csomópont ====Take metro 4 bus 8E, 110, 112 from ''Keleti pályaudvar'' to the last stop , or 139, 140, 140A from ''Széll Kálmán tér'', in direction of Kelenföld vasútállomásM and get off at ''BAH-csomópont''. Walk through the underpass Alternatively, trams 17 and up the steps in northwest direction61 stop here. Continue along the footpath till Also, you reach can walk ≈4.5km west from Keleti train station to the main road beginning of ''Budaörsi út''. Cross <br/ >This place is relatively close to the main road center and turn left there is a lot of traffic to the M1 and walk west for 250m along Budaörsi út till you reach M7. It appears like this is the only option in the list that nobody has specifically spoken against. *''Great place to hitchhike. It took us half an hour to get a ride all the OMV petrol station / McDonaldsway to Prague.' -- September, 2017 [[User:Kossabossa|Kossabossa]]

This petrol ==== Option 2: Motorway service station is at the very beginning of the motorway that splits after a few kms into motorways M1 and /M7(OMV) '''Kelenföld''' ====1. Many cars stop here also because Take bus 8E from ''Keleti pályaudvar'' (Keleti train station) in the direction of the McD's Kelenföld vasútállomás M, (thumbing and change at BAH-csomópont for bus 139), or take bus 139 from ''Széll Kálmán tér'' in the exit works welldirection of Gazdagréti tér, as many cars go only to McDand get off at ''Nagyszeben út''s and do (not tankNagyszeben tér!). Alternatively, there is also an Agip Walk back 100m east in the direction the bus came from along Budaörsi út and you will see the OMV petrol station about 200m further along and McD on the roadright.

2. Take metro 4 from ''Keleti pályaudvar'Edit July 2015'to the last stop '': Kelenföld vasútállomás'''Do not go there!''' Motorway under construction = bad place! Much better option is to take bus 272 from Moricz zsigmond . Walk through the underpass and up the steps in northwest direction. Continue along the footpath till you reach the main road Budaörsi út. Cross the main road and turn left and stop at Budaörs, benzinkútwalk west for 250m along Budaörsi út till you reach the OMV petrol station / McD.

'''Edit August 2015''': We went there This petrol station is at the very beginning of the motorway that splits after a few kms into motorways M1 and after M7. Many cars stop here also because of the McD (thumbing at the petrol stationexit works well, as many cars go only to McD and do not tank). Alternatively, there is also an other one (like 1 minute walking Agip petrol station about 200m further), and you can hitchhike directly on along the road front of it. The construction is actually great because cars aren't going that fast. Got a ride to Vienna in 10 minutes.

==== Option 2 However, people using this spot say:  (The construction work is over, and the junction is significantly rebuilt! Do not trust on Google Streetview, it shows the old system. Most traffic heading to the motorway AVOID the McDonalds on new lanes, you can try at the exit of the OMV station, or at the area of the AGIP (will be rebranded to MOL) petrol station BAH-csomópont ====.) Take bus 8E, 110, 112 from *''Keleti pályaudvar'', or 139, 140, 140A Do not go there! Motorway under construction = bad place! Much better option is to take bus 272 from ''Széll Kálmán tér''Moricz zsigmond and stop at Budaörs, as in benzinkút. [See Option 1 but get off closer to the city centre at stop 3]''BAH-csomópont- July 2015*''. AlternativelyWe went there and after the petrol station, there is another one (like 1 minute walking further), trams 17 and 61 stop here. Also, you can walk ≈4hitchhike directly on the road front of it. The construction is actually great because cars aren't going that fast. Got a ride to Vienna in 10 minutes.5km west from Keleti train station'' -- August 2015to the beginning of *''Budaörsi útDefinitely don't go here, it's a really bad spot.<br/ >This place is closer Cars coming around the corner, driving fast and they have no time to see you. Got picked up after 3 hours luckily because the centre than in Option 1, but guy knew there is were a lot of traffic to the M1 and M7hitchhikers on this spot.'' -- July 2016

It has a lot of traffic to both motorways and can be a great place if you get a chance to talk to drivers, though the staff of the petrol station may not allow it. NoteOne person using this spot cautions: ''"This is a bad spot, even though it looks perfect -- it's next to the motorway, but most cars come there from the small local road and are driving only in the vicinity. Went from there 4 times, waiting time from 1h to 3.5h."''

If you are ready to invest some time to get to the first petrol station after the motorway splits, you should do so because it is a perfect spot because as essentially all the cars there are going towards Vienna/Bratislava.  However, one person says:  *''I tried this option and it is not working. There is not local train nor bus going to "Biatorbagy".'' -- January 2017**As of July 2017, both S10/G10 (direction Győr) and S12 (direction Oroszlány or Komárom in the late evening) go from Budapest-Déli via Kelenföld to Biatorbágy - check https://www.mavcsoport.hu/en for timetable and price (still HUF 370) -- [[User:Ans|Ans]] ([[User talk:Ans|talk]])This option works super good in June 2019

Starting from inside the city (between Moszkva tér and Kelenföld) is a possibility worth trying, especially because there are some good spots that are quite popular among local hitchhikers. Pros are that you don't need to spend any money on transport; cons are that there is a lot of local traffic and so waiting times could be very long. (In real nobody will take you, go out to the edge of the city).

=== South towards [[Szeged]], [[Serbia]], [[Arad]] ([[Romania]]) (M5) {{European Route NumberE|75}} ===

There These spots are several possibilities for leaving ordered by their proximity to the city in this directioncenter.

#Take the metro to ''Határ ==== Option 1: Gyáli út''. Then take bus [http://www.bkv.hu/busz/84e.html #84E], [http://www.bkv.hu/busz/89e.html #89E] or [http://www.bkv.hu/busz/294e.html #294E] to the stop ''Naszód utca (Használtcikk piac)''. You should see a Citroen car lot on the other side of the road. Here you can start to hitch. A sign "Szeged" is useful. If you take bus 84E, you can continue straight onto the motorway to a OMV petrol station that you can hitch from.#Take tram 4 or 6 to ''Boráros tér'', then take bus 54 or 55 to the stop ''Radnó utca''. There is a petrol station on the other side of the noise barrier wall. You could also thumb at the bus stop on the bus-only lane. Don't go any further, this road will change into a motorway in few hundred meters.====#Take tram 4 or 6 to ''Boráros tér'', then take bus number 54 or 55 to the stop ''Gyáli út''. Walk straight for 75 m and then turn left on the street ''Gyáli út''. After about 150 m there is a curve in the road, turn right there and walk to the motorway (it's not yet a motorway officially, so you can hitchhike there). There is no road or pavement leading there, but it's easy to cross. You will see a half complete ramp on your right going on the motorway. It's basicaly a 100 meters long lane with no traffic on it, it's ideal for cars to stop, and you are also visible from a long distance. As of January 2017, there is some construction which leaves no space for stopping except on the exit lane of the petrol station nearby. The spot still worked quite well, but [[User:Zenit|Zenit]] would recommend options 2 or 3 instead.#==== Option 2: Petrol Station OMV on Nagykőrösi út ====Take tram 4 or 6 to ''Boráros tér'', then take bus 54 or 55 to the stop ''Radnó utca''. There is a petrol station on the other side of the noise barrier wall. You could also thumb at the bus stop on the bus-only lane. If you have got HUF 1want to go any further,000 option 3 is about 800 meters down the road. Edit from other hitchhikers: Petrol station seemed to be a good spot. However we (or 2 guys) waited almost 2 hours. It's a good idea to bring a metro ticket Hungarian flag. * [[User:justgettingaround|Justgettingaround]] we (2 girls) got on this in August 2019. Didn´t have much luck at the petrol station - most people just staying around town - so we walked up to the other side of the noise barrier and HUF 650) left you can take got a ride within 15-20 mins. Took us all the metro way to Belgrade (line number #although the border was about a 2 hour wait) in just one day :) ==== Option 3, HUF 350 as : Start of Sep 2015) M5 motorway ====Take the metro to ''NépligetHatár út''. At the Then take bus station there you can buy a ticket [http://www.bkv.hu/busz/84e.html #84E], [http://www.bkv.hu/busz/89e.html #89E] or [http://www.bkv.hu/busz/294e.html #294E] to the stop ''Inárcsi elág. Naszód utca (M5-ös útHasználtcikk piac)'' . Here you can start to hitch (eyou should see a Citroen car lot on the other side of the road.gA sign "Szeged" is useful. If you take bus 84E, you can continue straight onto the motorway to a OMV petrol station that you can hitch from one of . (This information is unconfirmed; maybe this is the domestic ticket machines, HUF 650 as of Sep 2015OMV in option 2.) and take  ==== Option 4: Motorway service station M5 Inárcs ====Take the metro 3 to ''Népliget''. Take bus [http://www.volanbusz.hu/en/timetable/lines/line/?menetrend=2204 Volánbusz #608] out of the cityto ''Inárcsi elág (M5-ös út)''. After approximately 30km , it will leave the motorway and go to Inárcs. Remember the way, leave and get off the bus at the first station stop (shortly behind past where the town starts) and walk back to the OMV petrol station where the bus left the motorway. Take care, because there is no sidewalk and cars/trucks can be quite fast. It is the first big petrol station on M5 after Budapest [http://www.openstreetmap.org/#map=16/47.2750/19.3289] and there will be cars and trucks to all the Southern southerly destinations - just ask around. You can look for foreign plates if you want to leave the country.<br/ >Transport will cost 350 HUF for a metro ticket and HUF 650 for the bus (November 2019) *[[User:Movethathoof|Movethathoof]] made the trek out here in November 2019 (be sure you find the right bus buy at the terminal!) and had a ride to Timisoara in Romania with the very first car that passed him (and the station looked like it would have been an excellent spot even if he hadn't had such luck).

 To get out of Budapest, get to the public transportation hub ''Móricz Zsigmond körtér''. You can take Take tram 61 from near the train station ''Déli Pályaudvar'', or tram 6 from ''Blaha Lujza tér.'' , or ''Ferenc krt''. You can also take bus 7 from ''Ferenciek tere''. Once you are at , to ''Móricz Zsigmond körtér''. From here, cross the street, and walk further on for about 20 m and get on 20m. Take bus 33 or 33A. After approximately 27 minutes, you’ll see a big shopping mall called Campona on your left. Get and get off at the next stop, ''Budatétényi Sorompó''(the stop after the big shopping mall Campona on your left). From the bus stop, turn back and walk in the way direction the bus just camefrom. Cross the street at the first crossing to your right(Növény ut. There’s no street sign, so no name). That street has a railway overpass that crosses over it. Walk under the overpass and in a couple of minutes you'll arrive at a busy road. This is road #6 that goes south to Pécs. Turn left on that road and start hitching before the traffic light near the bus stop. There is enough room for cars to pull over there.

For food, bathroom, and buses, get dropped of at the Tesco in Pécs. There's a bus station there where cars can stop.

#==== Option 2: M3 Junction ==== Take trolleybus [http://www.bkv.hu/trolleybus/74.html #74] from the centre (near the metro station ''Astoria''). You can go until the last stopbus 7, but it is better to get off one stop before the last. From there7E, you should hear the noise of the M3 motorway. Just follow it8E, walk back a bit (the opposite direction of the cars)108E, and you'll find an entrance and also a petrol station. #From the metro stations ''Astoria'' or 133E from ''Blaha Lujza tér'' take bus [http://www.bkv.hu/english/busz/173evissza.html #173E] and get off at the last stop ''Újpalota, Nyírpalota út''. Walk northwest 1km along Szentmihályi út. to the big street on your left for about 10 minutes, check sliproad at the signs and get onto beginning of the motorwayM3 proper. It's not the best hitchhiking spot, but it works after a while. If you get stuck here, walk 2km along the motorway to the service station. ==== Option 3: M3 Junction Mogyoród ====#Take the metro 2 to the last stop ''Örs Vezér tér''. Cross the big square and then from From the HÉV (regional train station), take a train 8 in the direction ''Gödöllő'' and get off at the station ''Mogyoród''. Five minutes' From the station, walk left 20m on Vasút ut. Turn right and walk ≈400m along Gödöllői ut. Then turn right and walk from here is an ≈500m along Szadai út. until you reach the entrance sliproad to the M3 motorwayon the right. Alternatively, while two kilometres further on, there is also a petrol stationon the motorway.#To get to [http==== Option 4://hitchwiki.org/maps/?placeMotorway service station M3 ====6982 this spot] take the bus [http://www.bkv.hu/Take bus/5.html #5] from somewhere ''Blaha Lujza tér'' in the centre. Quite a long ride as you need to direction of Rákospalota, Kossuth utca and get off in the stop Szentmihályi at ''Juhos utca''. Walk ≈450m northeast along Régi Fóti út. Walk You will see a Lidl supermarket on the [http://mapsright.googleTurn right on the small road and walk southeast for 1km crossing over the motorway bridge.com/maps?saddr=Budapest,+Fogat+utca,+Magyarorsz%C3%A1g&daddr=Szentmih%C3%A1lyi+%C3%BAt&hl=en&ie=UTF8&sll=47(You can see the service station on the left from the bridge).556285,19Take the first road left after the bridge and walk ≈700m until you see the big Praktiker store.127476&sspn=0.008298,0.021136&geocode=FTiy1QIdk8MjASm_8iAXWNpBRzFKKo2vPH0kSQ%3BFYqd1QIdCOwjAQ&mra=dme&mrsp=1&sz=16&dirflg=w&z=16 big Turn left and walk through the car park to the end and jump over the small-ish fence and once past the road], youwill be on the petrol station. There is a McDonalds and KFC here too.  ''''''Option 5:''''''ll see Kacsóh Pongrác út bus station'''''' Take M1 to Mexikói út metro station and cross the railways in the underpass to the bridge over itRóbert Károly körút where you will find Kacsóh Pongrác út bus station. ThatIt's a very safe place to stop and it is directly before the motorwayentrance to the M3 highway.(Waiting time as a woman 10-15 min, hichhiked many times here)

#==== Option 1: Agip petrol station on national road 4 ====Take metro line 3 to the end of the line where you will find a at ''Kőbánya-Kispest''. Walk to the bus stationon the other side of the #4 road. Take the airport bus, it will stop 200E and get off at terminal 1, stay on the bus until the second to last stop before the airport. You will notice that the city ends quite abruptly. Prior to this you will see a petrol station, this is the last petrol station for at least 10–15 km. From the second to last bus stop you will have to walk back to this station. There is no good place to hitch after this point for around 10–15 km as the road is motorway. Later on there are more hitching opportunities and it: 's easy to get dropped off somewhere useful. #Take a regional train from the train station 'Vecsés-nyugat'Nyugati Pályaudvar'' to . Walk back along the station ''Üllő'' (it costs about HUF 550 road ≈600m and takes 30 minutes). You can walk through you will reach the town to a big roundabout where there is a MOL Agip petrol station& McDonalds.<br/ >

=== M2 = Option 2: Üllő roundabout & MOL petrol station ====Take a regional train from train station ''Nyugati Pályaudvar'' to ''Üllő'' (550 HUF and 30 min ride). Walk ≈700m southwest on Deák Ferenc ut. till you reach the main road through the town Pesti út. Turn left (southeast) here and walk 2km along Pesti út to the large roundabout and MOL petrol station at the end of town. You can also hitch 100m past the roundabout on national road 4; although there's no shoulder, there is some space for cars to pull over and stop. 20/09/17 Tried option 1 for 3 hours and then went to option 2, waited maybe 30min. === Option 3: M3 Highway for Debrecen ===Take a subway till station Mexicói út after walk 4 km ( it's pretty far and I saw a bus 25, but didn't check from where is it going ) till you cross Ozman utca( or around it) it will be a gas station OMV, the road is going among M3 highway, and here some cars are going to a gas station from Highway to this road and back to the highway, and also there is a bus stop after a gas station, where is very convenient to stop the car. I spent 10 mins and caught a straight car to Debrecen. ( dec 2017) *July,2018 I used the google map to go to this OMV station, got off at metro station Mxicoi Ut and took the bus 25,price 350Huf, you cannot blackride because the driver only open the front door, got off after 8 stops, walked 300m aross the bridge. There is little traffic comes to the petrol station, so I stood on the petrol station roadside, and it took me 5 minutes to get a lift. === North towards [[Slovakia]], [[Kraków]] ([[Poland]]) M2 {{European Route Number|77}} ===

Get on one of the very frequent ''Vac''-bound trains ==== Option 2: Motorway service station (Shell) ====Take a train from ''Nyugati Pályaudvar'' (which is the main train station) and get off at the ''Sződliget''-stop which is roughly a half hour train ride(HUF 550/EUR 2) . When you get off the train walk find the road and take a left. Follow it for about 200 meters until you get to the motorway and then just stand on the motorway hitchhiking instead of the onramp as there's a a lot of space to pull over and people don't really drive to fast at that stretch of the road.  Alternatively, you can take train from Nyugati to "Dunakeszi Gyártelep‎" (HUF 150/300) and walk 3.5 km to the petrol station on the E77 (Hungarians call it Road Number Two). The walk is 40+ minutes but its pretty straight-forward straightforward - check this [http://goo.gl/maps/bCKPV map] . From Pipa st. you can see the sign of the petrol station in the distance, and it will help you to navigate.

The motorway only has two lanes, and cars are going pretty slow, so it's not a problem to cross it. Once you get there its great spot to catch a long drive! You can be picky, so best wait for someone going straight to Poland because once you get to the Slovak border , the road is getting bad and this is your best shot.

If you're heading to [[Poland]] , you'd most likely be better of off finding a direct lift to Poland from the Hungarian- Slovak border rather than getting short lifts through Slovakia. Trucks go until the Chyzne border crossing between Slovakia and Poland, where it's easy to get a lift to Krakow or further to Warsaw.

Budapest has an extensive public transportation system consisting of a metro, buses and trams. A single ticket is about 1.15 (a set of 10 tickets is about EUR 9.90). After you buy your ticket, you have to validate it. There are red machines on buses and trams that punch a hole in a different place on your ticket each day, which is how they determine if you validated your ticket that day (or at least not the day before...).

Inspections on buses and trams are rare except for the most popular lines (e.g. buses 7, 7E, 173 and 173E and trams 2 (very frequent), 4, 5 and 6). Rush hours are usually safe when the trams/buses are too crowded for the inspectors to walk through the vehicles. If you want to be safe, hang around the machine and if you see an inspector coming, punch your ticket immediately. You can usually also get off the carriage when you see inspectors getting on as usually at least some of them will wear uniforms.

In '''Be careful: the system has changed, and the metro there controllers are inspectors posted at often escorted with a public area inspector who has the entrance right to the platforms during all operational hours who will stop you and demand to see for your ticketID cards. Most of the time they check those who are entering and don't bother with people who are leaving the platform (Keleti railway station is one notable exception), so if you see no conductors at the entrance then you are fine. Either you take your chance that there will be no checking at the exit, or take the bus/tram, you can get pretty much everywhere without the metro'' Its better to buy a day ticket for such EUR 3.

If you get caught without a valid In the metro there are inspectors posted at the entrance to the platforms during all operational hours who will demand to see your ticket, . Most of the official fine on time they check those who are entering and don't bother with people who are leaving the spot platform (Keleti railway station is HUF 8one notable exception),000, which is about EUR 27so if you see no conductors at the entrance then you are fine. Do not let yourself Either you take your chance that there will be fooled with another amountno checking at the exit, it is HUF 8or take the bus/tram,000, and you can get pretty much everywhere without the received paper is valid for travelling that daymetro. But if you are cool enough Oftentimes you can get away also just walk past these inspectors at the entrance or flash them a used ticket without paying stopping. Be careful changing lines at allDeák Ferenc tér, usually there are controllers on stations of Line 2 and 3.

At around 20:30 or laterIf you get caught without a valid ticket, the ticket inspectors that stand at official fine on the entrance to the escalators go homespot is HUF 8,000, which is about EUR 27. Do not let yourself be fooled with another amount, it is HUF 8,000, meaning you can get on and the metro received paper is valid for freetravelling that day. Be aware also that But if they have controls while you exit the station, they announce it as are cool enough you can get off away without paying at all. On the train trams and again every 2 minutes buses the inspectors legally aren't allowed to touch you. Avoid speaking English or so ("Please have your tickets ready for inspection as German to the controllers. Instead, pick the most obscure language you leave know and keep them busy until the stationnext stop.") If this happensWhen the doors open, simply get back on exit the next train tram and get off a stop before walk away. Never give the controllers your ID or passport. Maybe try searching for it or after your chosen ticket until the next stop, then get off the tram/bus then. Do not Some of the controllers will try and run past any inspectors to take you to a cash machine if they you say you have a control no money. Same system applies - they are notoriously aggressive simply walk away from the controller. I've also heard of people stalling the controller for so long that the controller gets bored and will have no problem chasing youwalks away.

On At around 20:30 or later, the trams and buses ticket inspectors that stand at the inspectors legally aren't allowed entrance to touch the metro go home, meaning youcan get on the metro for free. Avoid speaking English or German to Be aware also that if they have controls while you exit the controllers. Insteadstation, pick they announce it as you get off the most obscure language train and again every 2 minutes or so ("Please have your tickets ready for inspection as you know and keep them busy until leave the next stopstation. When the doors open") If this happens, simply exit get back on the tram next train and walk away. Never give the controllers get off a stop before or after your ID or passportchosen stop. Maybe Do not try searching for it until the next stop, then get off the tram/bus thenand run past any inspectors if they have a control -- they are notoriously aggressive and will have no problem chasing you.

Some of On the controllers will try to take you to green line there are security guards stationed on the platforms, but don't worry, they won't check your tickets. They're just a cash machine if you say you have no moneysecurity precaution. Same system The same thing applies - simply walk away from on tram 4 or 6 at night (they run 24 hours). They will stand at some entrances to the tram and check peoples' tickets as they enter the controllertram (They'll be wearing either a yellow vest or a green armband. I) Choose a different entrance and you've also heard of people stalling ll be fine, because the controller for so long that controllers stand at one door and don't move through the controller gets bored and walks awaytram.

On For finding connections between two points in the green line city, there are security guards stationed on the platforms, but don't worry, they won't check your tickets. They're just s a security precautionvery good route planner available also in English: [http://www. The same thing applies on tram 4 or 6 at night (they run 24 hours)bkk. They will stand at some entrances to the tram and check peoples' tickets as they enter the tram (They'll be wearing either a yellow vest or a green armbandhu/en/timetables/ http://www.) Choose a different entrance and you'll be fine, because the controllers stand at one door and don't move through the trambkk.hu/en ]

For finding connections between two points in the city, there's There is a very good route planner available also in English: [http://www.bkkimdb.hucom/entitle/timetablestt0373981/[http://wwwvery good Hungarian movie] about the controllers on Budapest's public transportation.bkkFinding English subtitles is easy, too.hu/en/timetables/]

If you want to sleep outside in summer, you can do so anywhere in Buda hills. ''(Double check the place at daytime: these places are abandoned after dark, far from people, and sometimes used by homeless people. Its much better and safer to find some other alternative).'' Other possibilities are the two big parks, Margitsziget (47.528694,19.047618) and Városliget (47.513566,19.085126). Margitsziget is an island in the Danube and it's a popular place to walk and escape from the busy city in the nice weather. Városliget is about the same. In both places you could find hidden places where nobody would bother you at night. Although there are sometimes people still awake at nights, especially young ones, but they won't harm you. Homeless people are harmless. ''(Margitsziget: strong police control, they will not leave you to sleep there. At the Városliget there are construction works with plenty of security guards, also not an ideal place).''