Did you know that you can travel from Vienna to Budapest on a budget? Yes, you don’t have to spend that much money if you are thoughtful and careful in your planning. There is a distance of 214km between these two cities, and it takes approximately 2 hours and 40 minutes to travel by car, or train and about 3 hours by bus.

Well, here are a few tips on how you can travel from Vienna to Budapest on a budget.

Book Early
You can spend much less if you book your ticket early. For instance, if you are going by train, you will spend almost half of what you would have paid if you book in advance. So, a ticket that costs $40 at the station will cost $20 when you book six months in advance.

With the train, you will travel in comfort. If you are traveling using OBB Railjet, they have air-conditioned carriages, comfortable seats, great food, and Wi-Fi.

If you travel by train, you will enjoy the scenery of the countryside settings including low hills, all on a budget. You will get to Budapest Keleti in 2 hours and 40 minutes.

Use the Bus
A bus ticket from Vienna to Budapest costs $10. That is, if you shop around for deals to get these cheap tickets. This is way cheaper than any other means of transport. Besides, it will take you approximately 2 ½ hours. So, if you are not looking at too much comfort like that of the train during the journey, you can take the bus.

There are approximately 15 buses that ply the route including Eurolines, RegioJet, and Flixbus.

While comfort should not be your goals when traveling by bus, some such as Flixbus have comfortable coaches with ample legroom, reclining seats, and large windows.

With just 10 bucks, you can be on your way seeing the beautiful landscapes of wooded hills and farm fields.

You could catch the bus at Vienna Erdberg at the coach interchange, Vienna Central Station for those using the train or at Vienna Airport if you had taken a flight.

Shared Rides
Car sharing is another budget-friendly way to travel from Vienna to Budapest. The journey will take less than three hours with the cost starting from $10, although this depends on the driver.

To find someone to car share, you will need to go online. There are websites dedicated to car sharing. Visit the website, search for a driver who is looking to car share, establish contact, and then decide on where to meet and the cost.

Ridesharing will provide you with a chance to meet other people as you travel on a budget.

Hitchhiking
If you are the fun-loving and the risk-taking type, then consider hitchhiking. It might be your lucky day and you find a car that can take you from Vienna to Budapest.  The best place you can get a ride is at the A4 motorway gas station. If you are lucky you can find a ride up to Budapest or to Gyor.

https://www.eurail.com/en/get-inspired/popular-routes/how-get-vienna-budapest-train