ed4000
Traveller
0 comments
Posted 9 years ago
Hi, my wife and I are doing a 3 week trip in May. Budapest to Bucharest to Istanbul. Will spend around 4-5 days in each city, leaving us around 4-5 days extra. Thinking of taking train from Budapest to Bucharest during daylight hours (to see the countryside along the way) and stopping along the way over the extra 4 or 5 days if I can find some interesting stops. Decided not to try this from Bucharest to Istanbul due to train service ending and transfers to bus etc. due to construction near Turkish border.
So, I was thinking of picking out 1-3 stops if I can find any really interesting places. We like smaller towns that have something to visit and a slower pace with a nice hotel/b&b and restaurants. This would give us a more intimate experience with life outside the major cities we plan on visiting.
My question are about approaching this. Before I research the stops to see what looks good I need to know the options on routes.
1. The main route I have found is here: [u]https://rail.cc/en/train/budapest-to-bucharest[/u]
This route appears to travel through western Romania before then turning east to Bucharest. So could we pick our daily stops, and purchase tickets and reservations for each leg after we arrived in Budapest? For example: Monday - leave Budapest at 7:10, arrive Curtici 11:47 spend afternoon and night there, then Tuesday leave Curtici at 12:12 and go on to the next stop etc.
2. Another route I have seen is here: link timed out. This route appears to be different than above, and is more to the east of the other route. It is the line of the overnight Ister train THROUGH BRASOV. Brasov appears to be a potentially good tourism stop. In the info for this route it states: Option 2, by daytime train...
There are a couple of comfortable air-conditioned daytime trains between Budapest & Brasov or Bucharest. They take most of the day, but take a bottle of wine and a good book and enjoy the great scenery as you cross Romania.
Fares start at an unbelievably cheap €29 if you book in advance direct at the Hungarian Railways website [ux]https://rail.shop/mav[/ux] - Booking opens 60 days ahead.
I can't find the route and timetables for this route on the Mavstart website during the day. I may be overlooking it, or looking at it wrong.
So to summarize: 1. It appears these are 2 different daytime route options? 2. Would either/both work for a multi-day journey as I described? 3. Which would be better for scenery/comfort/tourism/overall experience?
Thanks in advance for any input or advice on this idea, and for reading this long post! :|
Flo
Traveller
10724 comments
Hi!
There are two main border crossings between Hungary and Romania: Between Lököshaza and Curtici and between Biharkeresztes and Episcopia Bihor.
Have a look at the maps here: [ux]http://www.bueker.net/trainspotting/map.php?file=maps/hungary/hungary.gif[/u] [u]http://www.bueker.net/trainspotting/map.php?file=maps/romania/romania.gif[/u] (railcc maps will follow at some point next year...)
All international express trains between the two countries run there; the other crossings are only served by local trains.
The first large cities across the border are Arad and Oradea; from there you have additional domestic services all across Romania in addition to the international trains.
The only daytime through service between Budapest and Bucharest runs via Arad - Timisoara - Craiova, covering a scenic bit along the Danube but since the trains lacks a proper restaurant car I would not recommend to travel the whole route in one bit.
The link under 1. in your post suggests only the principal connections between Budapest and Bucharest, not all of these run via the same route:
The train at 0710 is the through day train I mentioned above
The train at 1900 is the through night train mentioned under the link at 2. in your post, running via Brasov.
Do you really want to stop in Curtici?
I would rather opt for slightly larger cities; Brasov for instance is indeed quite nice (see pics below), you could also go hiking in the vicinity; other options could be Cluj, Timisoara, Sighisoara, Sibiu. Also you could look for the around Suceava with the painted monasteries.
Regarding tickets:
Fortuna ticktes from MAV are available for international journeys; you will be booked on a certain train on a certain date, these are usually the cheapest option.
If you want to remain more flexible you can buy a regular international ticket; while a Fortuna ticket Budapest - Bucharest can be as cheap as 29€, a regular single ticket would be 57,10€. This regular ticket would also allow you to make a stopover along the route and is valid one month (I dont have the 2015 version of the tariff at hand, this might have been shortened to two weeks). Take in mind that you would need additional seat reservations which are 3€ for international journeys (seat reservations are included in the Fortuna ticket).
Domestic tickets for Romania can be bought online at [u]https://rail.shop/cfr[/ux] where you will get a few % off the price as online bonus or simply locally at stations. All long distance trains in Romania have compulsory reservation.
If you want to experience a comfortable overnight journey (since the trip to Istanbul wont be exactly that) I would recommend an overnight trip from Budapest to Brasov on the Ister night train in a Double Deluxe compartment (with ensuite shower and WC) including dinner in the restaurant car (which has quite a unique atmosphere; ask and insist for the menu to avoid being ripped off!). :)
However this would force you to travel back eastwards if you want to visit other places such as Timisoara or Cluj.
Flo 8)