TRIP REPORT | INDEX
Written by Marko
Written by Marko
As many people use alternative airports, due to very high ticket prices when trying to fly from Belgrade, this trip report will be about a flight from Budapest to Prague, on Ryanair.
Since Hainan stopped flying between Belgrade and Prague, it is no longer possible to find a ticket that costs around €100 for a return trip, therefore I had to fly from Budapest to Prague and back with Ryanair.
The ticket was cheap-ish, €60 for a return trip (Sunday to Wednesday). If you add up the cost of the shuttle that runs multiple times per day to Budapest airport from Belgrade (€50 return), some would say that it's not worth the hassle, but as I had some business in Budapest, it worked out perfectly.
This trip report will cover only the outbound leg of the journey.
Flight : FR4091
Terminal : T2B Gate : A11
Scheduled time of departure : 16:20 h / Actual time of departure : 16:41 h
Scheduled time of arrival : 17:30 h / Actual time of arrival : 17:34 h
Aircraft registration : EI-FZM
Flight time 00:53 h
Arriving to Budapest Airport is quite easy, there are two options when it comes to using public transport - a bus 100E, which is a direct shuttle from the Deák tér (city center), runs every 20 minutes, and the price is 900 HUF (around €3), and a bus 200E, which runs from Kőbánya-Kispest metro station, which is cheaper, but you need to use M3 metro to get to that station first.
Security was quite busy and it was displayed that the average time to get through is about 15 minutes.
After that, you end up in a quite large Duty Free, which you can’t circle, which I find interesting, as it’s a nice way to make people buy stuff.
The Budapest SkyCourt, which connects two terminals is really nice, it gives a nice view of the planes parked around and the ATC terminal. It features multiple fast food and coffee chains and a nice seating/dining area. There is also a Master Card lounge on the upper floor.
I had to wait a little until my gate was announced and was really surprised that it wasn’t departing from the “shed” terminal, as many call it, used primarily by low cost carriers. We were boarded through a regular gate, although, there was a bus downstairs that would take us to the plane.
The plane was only a year old and looked very nice and clean, both inside and outside. The new interior really improves the general image of Ryanair and the Boeing Sky interior gives a feeling like you’re flying on a much bigger jet.
We took off, with a small delay, from runway 13 L. Even though I was stuck in the middle seat, due to the new seats, I had plenty of legroom, although seats were a bit narrower when compared to other competitive LCCs. Service was non-existent and didn’t last more than 3 minutes, after which they tried to sell scratch cards that they are famous for. Ryanair doesn’t have seat pockets on their seats and the safety card is actually glued onto the seat, which explains how they manage their 25 minute turnaround out of the base, as the only thing crew have to do after a flight in the cabin would be waste collection, if there is any.
The flight lasted only 53 minutes. We landed at runway 24, and after a short taxi we were parked at the terminal. Disembarkation took place via front door, as there was a jet bridge in place.
It took only a couple of minutes to exit the terminal building, which was pretty empty around that time.
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Nice report. Can I ask what the scratch cards they sell that you mentioned?
ReplyDeleteScratch cards that they sell on every flight are like those you can get on kiosk, one can get you a car or some money awards, although one is 2€, and they sell a pack of 5, as well, for some promo price. They claim that money they earn goes to charty, or at least a portion of it, but many criticize it as it’s not clear what percentage it actually goes to charity. The crew doesn’t seem happy while doing it, and I’ve read somewhere that company is forcing crew to sell more.
DeleteHaha wow crazy concept. Thanks for the explanation. Certainly unique.
DeleteSky Interior looks very nice.
ReplyDeleteI think an exit-fee needs to be introduced on all Serbs subsidising Hungarian travel industry.
ReplyDeleteIt is totally crazy to spend 8 hours on buses, crossing borders only to save a few cents. In such scenario you should have taken a minibus all the way to Prague or a train. It's certainly not worth the hassle.
DeleteI think a communism-fee should be introduced on anyone wanting to limit consumer choice in any way in 2019. It's not up to you to decide what is worth the hassle and what isn't. An individual can easily save 150€+ by flying to some destinations from BUD as opposed to BEG. Couples and families save multiples of that. So don't talk about "a few cents" when the reality is very different.
DeleteBy the way, you're also "subsidising the Hungarian travel industry" when you fly WizzAir from BEG, seeing as they have a Hungarian AOC and pay zero taxes in Serbia.
Wizz Air doesn’t pay tax in Hungary...
DeleteYou would be surprised actually how many people from Serbia are using Budapest airport. As long as the situation with low cost carriers in Belgrade is like this, people will continue to fly from airports as Budapest, Timisoara, etc.
DeleteSerbian market is very price sensitive, and not to mention that you can fly to places like Malaga, Valencia, Marrakech or even Amman in Jordan, for as much as 60€, or even less, for a return flight.
Excuse me but what is the situation with LCCs in Belgrade? The last time I checked they were free to add flights and there are no restrictions whatsoever.
DeleteBUD might be cheaper but that's only because the airport trashed their charges after Malev went bankrupt. They are probably working with LO now as a way out of this predicament.
Also, I doubt many are flocking to TSR, if they were then their passenger numbers wouldn't be in a free fall. Sure, there are going to be people who are going to fly from neighboring airports but those numbers are far from those we saw in the past.
I was flying last November TSR to Valencia for 17.99€ and back from MAD to TSR for 24.99€, minivan BEG TSR was 30€ return. 73€ altogether. 83€ with priority. Try doing that from BEG.
DeleteThat's probably why FR shut down their TSR base. Who can make money from those fares?
DeleteIt was W6, the plane was full on both flights. They have 2 A320 based in TSR and they are expanding with 4 new routes and 1 extra A320, so they obviously can make a buck.
DeleteWhen you add up all the costs - no luggage - we're looking at a 150$ price tag.
ReplyDeleteIf not Air Serbia, there are plenty options out of BEG for less than 200$ that offer food, flexibility and luggage.
There is also Ryanair from INI to Bratislava.
So why bother?
"There is also Ryanair from INI to Bratislava."
DeleteWow, you must be good with geography. Bratislava is a 4-hour drive from Prague.
Bratislava is almost as far form Prague as Budapest is! Believe me, I live in Prague, BTS is not really an alternative. Plus if you're in the Belgrade area or north of Serbia, just going to Niš adds on enough time anyway.
DeleteI think you're all missing the point of the OP too - "I had business in Budapest as well". It suited him to do it this way.
Nice report
ReplyDeleteInstead of speculating about someone's reason to travel from BUD/TSR better focus on the trip report.
ReplyDelete