Direct train from Istanbul to Budapest

Flo
Traveller
10724 comments

Hi!

No, there is no direct train.
You can either travel Istanbul - Sofia - Beograd - Budapest or Istanbul - Bucuresti - Budapest.
Have a look at the blog posts: [u]https://rail.cc/blog/bucharest-sofia-istanbul-train/[/u] and [u]https://rail.cc/blog/to-istanbul-by-train-part-2/[/u]


Flo 8)

Dagney
Traveller
4 comments

Thanks so much Flo - I am trying to get from Zagreb - Budapest - Iasi - Istabul - Budapest - Zurich. Does Rail Dude have a way to map out an entire journey like that? With gratitude - Margaret

Flo
Traveller
10724 comments

Hi Margaret,

well we can certainly help you with planning your trip.
Zagreb - Budapest is easy, there are two daily trains and you can just purchase your ticket locally.
There are no direct trains Budapest - Iasi so you would have to change trains at least once; one possibility would be Budapest - Timisoara, then night train Timisoara - Iasi. You can buy the ticket Budapest - Timisoara online at the website of MAV at rail.shop/mav the ticket for Iasi - Timisoara online at website of CFR at rail.shop/cfr
Iasi - Bucuresti can be bought online as well at the CFR website, Bucuresti - Istanbul locally at the station in Bucharest Nord.
For the way back from Istanbul to Budapest it should be all explained in the blog, just ask if you have questions.
Budapest - Zürich can be bought online at the website of MAV once again. You could also split the journey at buy Budapest - Wien and Wien - Zürich (at the ÖBB website) separately which might be cheaper.


Flo 8)

Dagney
Traveller
4 comments

Thanks so much Flo - great information! I forgot to mention that I will be buying a global inter-rail pass - and since I live in Zurich will have to change just outside the Swiss border. That should be straight forward. Are reservations mandatory for any of the routes you mentioned? I guess otherwise I can just use my railcard as I go. Thank you so much for such great help. - Margaret

Flo
Traveller
10724 comments

OK, what kind of InterRail pass do you want to buy (2nd or 1st class?)? It would be great if you would buy your ticket in our partner at [ux]https://rail.shop/interrail[/ux] to support or work and the free information on the website, thank you. :)

You will need reservations for trains from Hungary to Romania (3€ for a seat); long distance trains within Romania (1€, buy locally); as well as for night trains: [u]https://rail.cc/en/interrail-night-train[/u]

Dagney
Traveller
4 comments

Hi there- yes I am planning to buy my pass from you - 2nd class for 15 consecutive days. How about trains from Iasi to Istanbul?

So basically I will go :

Zagreb to Budapest.
Budapest to Timisoara
Timisoara to Iasi
Iasi to Istanbul (maybe make a stop??)
Istanbul to Plodiv
Plodiv to Sofia
Sofia to Budapest
Budapest to Zurich (via Vien?)

Very excited to start planning :)

With gratitude
Margaret

Flo
Traveller
10724 comments

Thanks for supporting! :)
...well I would strongly recommend to get the 10in22 pass instead: Much cheaper and you will be fine with having just 10 travel days for this route.
Are you going to start in Zagreb or at home in Zürich?

Consider that if you want to use sleeper accomodation on domestic night trains in Romania you would need a 1st class ticket; 2nd class only allows the use of couchette accomodation (but if you want to use a sleeper, just buy the difference from 2nd to 1st class locally).
From Iasi to Istanbul I would recommend to make an overnight stop in Bucharest so you do not have to worry about your connection onwards to Istanbul.

Sofia to Budapest would be best done by going to Belgrade and change there to Budapest.

Dagney
Traveller
4 comments

Hi there.

I have two questions. I am going to purchase an inter-rail card but don't see the 'senior' option on your site. I would like to support your site, but also like to save money :)

Also, when you have an inter-rail card are you able to make reservation in advance for train tickets that require a mandatory reservation? Especially in my case for overnight trains that I am planning to use. Many thanks for all your help.

With gratitude,
Margaret

Flo
Traveller
10724 comments

Hej, you just have to enter your age in the box at [ux]https://rail.shop/interrail[/ux] and the system automatically shows you the reduced senior fares. :)
For instance: 5in10 253€ vs 281€ or 10in22 360€ vs 399€

You can make reservations in advance at a train station, in Switzerland this is normally possible without already having the actual pass, while in other countries you might be asked to show your ticket while purchasing your reservation.