Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
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K&H Bank logo
Centre
Local card telephone
Right
Post ofice sign
Banking and Communications
!
Money
%
Credit Cards
(
Daily Newspapers
Hungary's currency
is the forint (Ft). Coins in
circulation are 1, 2, 5, 10,
20, 50 and 100 Ft. Bank-
notes come in denomina-
tions of 200, 500, 1,000,
2,000, 5,000, 10,000 and
20,000. It can be dificult
to use Ft10,000 and
20,000 notes, especially in
small stores, and is best
to have smaller notes.
@
Banks
and Traveller's
Cheques
Credit and debit cards are
now almost universally
accepted in Budapest.
Traveller's cheques can
usually only be changed
at banks, at high commis-
sion rates. However, the
American Express ofice
cashes its own traveller's
cheques free of charge.
^
Telephones
Unless you read Hun-
garian, you will be limited
to yesterday's news, as
international newspapers
arrive on the following
day -
The Guardian
is an
exception. Foreign news-
papers are available at
most newsstands, but the
best selection is at the
World Press House.
)
Television
Although Hungarian
television stations broad-
cast foreign programmes,
all of these are dubbed
into Hungarian. However,
most hotels offer satellite
TV, which carries interna-
tional channels, including
CNN, BBC and EuroNews.
Most banks are open
9am to 5pm. Well-known
banks are CIB Bank,
Budapest Bank, Citibank
and OTP Bank. All banks
have ATM machines.
They also offer the best
currency exchange rates.
£
Changing Money
Public telephones all
over the city are operated
by telephone cards, avai-
lable at any newsstand or
post ofice. To ind a num-
ber, call the directory ser-
vice listed below. Most
Hungarians have mobile
phones, and the opera-
tors Vodafone, T-Mobile
and Pannon offer pre-
paid SIM cards at costs
far cheaper than roaming
charges. SIM cards are
sold at most newsstands
and kiosks, or you can
contact local operators.
Directory
Banks
• Budapest Bank: V,
Báthory utca 1;
269 41 85
• CIB Bank: VI, András-
sy út 70; 374 82 00
• Citibank: Vörösmarty
tér 4; 288 23 52
• National Bank of
Hungary: 1054 Szabad-
ság tér 8/9; 428 26 00
Traveller's Cheques
• American Express: V,
Deák Ferenc utca; 235
43 40
Directory Enquiries
• 199
Internet Cafés
• Ami: V, Váci utca 40
Daily Newspapers
• World Press House:
V, Városház utca 3-5
The best place to
exchange foreign curren-
cy is in a bank. Though
independent exchange
houses may appear to
offer better rates, they
usually advertise their
rates for buying, not sell-
ing, local currency, and
most have hidden costs.
$
ATMs
&
Post
There are post ofices
at both Keleti and Nyugati
Stations, open from 7am
to 9pm Monday to Friday
(weekends vary). Apart
from stamps, they offer
mail-holding (poste res-
tante) services and inter-
national phone booths.
*
Internet
The best way to
obtain local currency is
with a credit or debit card
from an ATM. These are
ubiquitous and though the
bank that issues the card
will charge a small fee for
each transaction, the
exchange rate is the same
as that offered by the
Hungarian National Bank.
It is a far cheaper method
than changing money or
traveller's cheques.
There are Internet
cafés at every turn in the
city. Favourites are Vista
Café
(see p108)
and Ami.
Cafés charge upwards of
Ft700 per hour.
110
When calling Budapest from abroad, preix +36-1 before the local
7-digit number; within Hungary (outside Budapest), preix 06-1.
