Life hacks for settling in and thriving

So you’ve arrived in Budapest – you have a whole new city to enjoy and explore, but you’re fresh out of the airport with a suitcase in hand. What do you do next? How do you settle in? Read further and you’ll learn some tips from locals to help you save on costs, avoid some mistakes and really get solid footing by the time your studies start.

Tip 1 – Tickets and travel passes

Luckily for you, Budapest has an amazing transportation network that comes at a low cost. You can live in Budapest very easily without having a car or ever needing to take a taxi, but getting tickets might be confusing at first – especially if you don’t speak Hungarian!

If you don’t want to use an app (maybe you don’t have mobile data yet) you can find ticket booth machines next to larger bus or tram stops – these can be used in English, so look for a purple box!
However, the best option that I’d advise most people to use is definitely the BudapestGO app. You can navigate through this app in English, and you can buy tickets easily with your card. You can buy either individual tickets or monthly passes at your leisure, and the app will give you a QR code that ticket inspectors can scan if they’re doing ticket checks.

Important note: Single tickets must be verified before being valid – if using the app, you can scan the QR code found on the side of the bus or tram, and if using a physical ticket you can put it into a machine (orange looking box) on the vehicle. Tickets for the airport bus follow different rules, and require a specific ticket that you can typically buy in person with the people doing ticket checks at the bus stop – or you can buy them on the app.

Tip 2 – Fun & Efficient way of transportation

Besides the traditional means of public transport that you will find in Budapest, it’s worth mentioning the well-known and beloved bike-sharing service – “MOL BUBI.” There are 209 BUBI stations in the city and approximately 2,500 bikes available 24/7. Great efficiency, comfort, speed, affordability, and the user-friendly mobile app make the service widely accessible and appealing to students.

To become a BUBI user, just download their mobile app, register with your phone number, activate the account, and get the monthly pass that costs 1,000 HUF (~3 EUR). Every time you want to get a bike, just scan the QR code located on the frame of the bike. Keep in mind that the 1,000 HUF subscription only allows you to ride a bike for 30 minutes for free. After 30 minutes, you should return the bike to any of the BUBI stations, and you can pick a new one up right away. This way, you get unlimited access to the bikes, but for 30 minutes each.

The bike-sharing system serves as a lifesaver in the rushed, hectic lifestyle of students.

Tip 3 – Student card discounts

Okay, now you know how to at least travel around. But what if you could do that for cheaper, and reap many other benefits? Having a student card that has an up-to-date sticker grants you all this and more, so that’s what this life hack is all about.

Some of the benefits having an up-to-date student card gets you:
50% discount on the monthly travel pass
90% discount on the country travel pass (valid for a month, you can travel anywhere in Budapest and many trains across the country!)

Special student discounts at many businesses, including fast food restaurants, gyms and others. You can see all of these discounts on the MyCorvinus app.
Great, all of this sounds amazing – but how do you get this student card? See a step by step guide here.

Tip 3- Learn basic Hungarian

While many people in Budapest speak English, learning some basic Hungarian phrases can go a long way in making your life easier and showing respect to the local culture.

Here are a few essential phrases to get you started:

Hello: Szia/Hello (informal)
Good day: Jó napot! (formal)
Good morning: Jó reggelt!
Thank you: Köszönöm
Yes: Igen
No: Nem
Please: Kérem
Excuse me: Elnézést
Sorry: Bocsánat
How are you?: Hogy vagy?

Following these steps, you’ve got a solid basis for living in Budapest! In the following blog, you’ll learn more about how to meet other people in Hungary and about student organizations so that you can really settle into your life here by getting some friends and knowing where to find events.

Written by: Vlad Demenski (International Student Ambassador, PPE)

26 Jun 2024