We will be in Budapest for 4 nights (3 full days) in April, and are wondering if we should purchase the Budapest card for getting around the city. I saw somewhere that the buses and trams are free for seniors (we both are)--but then later I saw that this applies only to EU citizens (we ran into that a lot in Spain last year.) Any advice?
Posted by
Rick Steves' Europe
16895 posts
The 72-hour Budapest Card is double the price (4750 forints or $17 more per person) of just a 72-hour transit card sold alone. So that's the amount of value you'd need to get out of the covered walking tours, museums, or museum discounts.
Rick's books don't usually give much space to senior discounts (e.g., where they vary by museum, etc.), but he would mention free transport if it applied to travelers; it makes sense that this offer does not.
Posted by
Magyarország / Rep of Texas
20458 posts
For Senior Citizens discount (free actually) you have to be Hungarian or a resident of Hungary. Sorry.
For three full days, unless you are planning on spending a whole lot of time in museums the a 72 Hour Travel Card is probably more economical. More information here: http://www.bkk.hu/en/tickets-and-passes/prices/ Including an instructional video on how to use the vending machines. Actually very easy.
Posted by
7 posts
In my case the price was a deal, but it depends on what you are going to see (and the senior discount may change the result for you too). The discounts worked out to 7780 Ft (National Gallery, National Museum, Danube cruise, Hospital on the Rock, Memento Park, Opera tour, and Buda Castle Labyrinth) plus 4150 for a 72 hr transit pass which meant I saved 2525 Ft with the card (about $9, so not a big deal either way).
Posted by
Magyarország / Rep of Texas
20458 posts
If you spend as much time in museums and the like as Erik did, then it would pay off. You can find a list here:https://budapest-card.com/en
Posted by
OP
44 posts
Thanks for the advice everyone.