TRAVEL AND ACCOMODATION
Hungary - visa free countries
Please click here for the list of visa free countries and their respective conditions.
Pre-negotiated accomodation prices
Links to our recommended hotels:
5 minute walk from the venue:
https://aquahotelkecskemet.hu/en/5-star-service-at-3-star-price/
https://www.fourpointskecskemet.hu/
Further hotels:
https://granadahotel.hu
https://gokarthotel.hu
https://www.hotelharomgunar.hu/
https://aranyhomok.accenthotels.com/hu
https://www.hotelcentralpassage.hu/hu/
https://www.boutiquehotelcenter.hu/hu/
Instructions on how to apply your discount for the recommended hotels
1. Four Points By Sheraton
When using the site of the hotel for booking, please apply your promotional code „RSAI2024” at the dedicated space for promo codes, and you’ll get the discounted price quote. For the discount you’ll need to provide a 50% deposit. To pay the deposit by card, please use the line „message to accommodation” on the next booking page, below your personal data form, and write the message „deposit by bank card”. (Leave the tick box on transfer). Submit your booking. Within a few working days you’ll receive a secure link from the hotel to fulfill the deposit payment.
2. Hotel Aqua
To use your discount, please book your room directly by e-mail at the hotel front desk, using the reference „RSAI2024”:
recepcio@aquahotelkecskemet.hu or group@aquahotelkecskemet.hu
3. Granada Hotel
Please use the booking application site of the hotel and apply the promotional code „NJE2024” in the required field:
https://book.granadahotel.hu/en/booking/search
4. Gokart Hotel
Please book your room directly by e-mail at the hotel front desk, using the reference „RSAI2024”: sales@gokarthotel.hu
5. Három Gúnár Hotel („Three Geese Hotel” city centre)
Please book your room directly by e-mail at the hotel front desk, using the reference „RSAI2024”: bercsenyi.viola@haromgunar.hu
6. Aranyhomok Hotel („Hotel Golden Sand” city centre)
Please book your room directly by e-mail at the hotel front desk by filling in and submitting the booking form (download) in Word: sales@aranyhomokhotel.hu
7. Hotel Central Passage and Boutique Hotel Center
Please book your room in either hotel directly by e-mail at the merged hotel front desk, using the reference „RSAI2024” : info@boutiquehotelcenter.hu
8. Boutique Hotel Gaia
Boutique Hotel Gaia**** special offer with 20 % discount between 5 and 15 April
Our exclusive special offer is ideal for those guests who are coming to the 14th RSAI World Congress from 5 to 15 April. To get the discount enter the following promo code during the reservation process and choose “RSAI World Congress” offer: RSAI2024
Calculation and reservation: https://gaiahotel.hu/en/reservation
Boutique Hotel Gaia**** - „A royal accommodation on the historical main-street of Kecskemét!”
The atmosphere of the 30 uniquely furnished, elegant rooms of the hotel reflects the life-feeling to you, which the all-time nobility, aristocracy owned.
Our boutique hotel opened in 2023 and qualified as a four stars accommodation thanks to its high standards, facilities and wide range of services.
9. Hotel Uno
Book directly at hoteluno@hoteluno.hu
Room types of Hotel Uno: 5 air-conditioned renovated 2-bed rooms with balconies, 4 standard, air-conditioned rooms with 2 beds, 1 balcony suite with 4 beds.
Our recommended room price for RSAI Participants: renovated 2-bed room with balcony, air-conditioning: HUF 14,000/person/night / buffet breakfast included (~36 EUR). Standard, air-conditioned 2-bed room: HUF 12,000 / person / night (~30 EUR). Balcony suite with 4 beds: HUF 14,000 / person / night. The price includes buffet breakfast, wireless internet connection in the entire hotel area, as well as legal taxes. We can provide a limited number of closed parking spaces for private cars in the inner courtyard of the hotel free of charge. Our buffet breakfast is plentiful and varied with unlimited consumption. Cold and hot dishes, egg dishes (ham scrambled eggs, fried eggs, ham&eggs), cold meats, salami, cheeses, jams, pastries, yogurts, muesli, juices, coffee. There is a Billiards club in the building, which is available to guests from 6 p.m. to 2 a.m. For evening relaxation, they have the opportunity to play billiards and darts.
How to get to Kecskemét
Directly from the airport by train
Right at the exit of the arrivals terminal you can get on the bus number 200 E and get off at Ferihegy Train Station. That is the 5th stop and is announced in English as well. The bus transfer from the terminal takes about 12 minutes.
You can buy a single bus ticket (currently HUF 350 HUF ~ 0.90 Euro) at the airport at the post office (located on the mezzanine), at the newsagents Relay or at the vending machines (either by card or cash) right at the exit from the terminal.
There is also an app for buying bus tickets on your mobile device that is also available in English language for Apple, Google Play and the Huawei App Gallery:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=hu.nemzetimobilfizetes.mobiljegyapp&hl=hu&gl=US&pli=1
https://apps.apple.com/hu/app/k%C3%B6zleked%C3%A9si-mobiljegy/id1340923156?l=hu
https://appgallery.huawei.com/app/C101411551
You can check the bus schedule here.
The Train Station is on the other side of the main road. After getting of the bus, you should cross the road using the bridge (helped by an elevator) and come down at the last exit, to train platform nr. 2. That is the fix platform to Kecskemét. You can buy the train ticket to Kecskemét at the train station at a ticket-vending machine with card or cash, or in advance on the internet. The InterCity train leaves every hour. You can check the timetable on the following website: https://www.mavcsoport.hu/en
For planning your train trip, it is useful to know that after your scheduled landing, the total length of time needed from the airport to the train station is about 50 minutes, including your baggage claim. Then it takes about 50 minutes by train to arrive in Kecskemét.
By train from Budapest city centre
If you arrive earlier to Hungary and have plans to stay in the capital before arriving to the venue of the World Congress, you can depart by train from the Budapest Western (Nyugati) Railway Station to Kecskemét. The trains leave every hour. The journey to Kecskemét takes approximately 80 minutes from the central station. You can check the timetable here. The regular price of a single trip is currently starting from HUF 2,375 (~6 Euro).
By bus from Budapest
From Népliget Bus Terminal (goo.gl/maps)
It takes about an hour to arrive in Kecskemét.
Please, check the timetable here.
Kecskemét public transport
Public transport in Kecskemét is free for the participants of the RSAI 2024 World Congress. Just show your conference badge to the driver of the vehicle - or if you have not yet picked it up, show on your phone the image of the badge here below:
Kecskemét maps
Getting around by public transport:
Getting around by car:
BASIC INFORMATION ABOUT HUNGARY
Official name of the country: Hungary
Area: 93 030 km2
Population: 9.772.756 (2019)
Official language: Hungarian
Capital and largest city: Budapest
Currency: Forint (HUF)
Time zone: CET (GMT+1)
Major rivers: River Danube (417 km), River Tisza (597 km)
Largest lake: Lake Balaton (598 km2)
Hungary is in the heart of Europe with many natural and cultural attractions. Hills and plains, big cities and the countryside, bustling life and tranquillity, multicultural environment and Hungarian traditions… “You can find here the lifestyle you wish to lead.”
Emergency phone numbers
Ambulance: 104
Police: 107
Fire service: 105
Central help number: 112
Passport and Visa Requirements
Participants may need a visa. Please check if a visa is needed for your country.
More information: konzuliszolgalat.kormany.hu/en
Climate and Weather
Hungary is protected from extreme weather conditions by the surrounding mountain ranges, the Alps, and the Carpathians. Hungary has relatively dry continental climate. The yearly precipitation is 495 mm on average. The rainiest months are May and June with almost double precipitation than in January, February, and March. Average temperatures range from -1°C in January to 21°C in July. The number of sunny hours is around 2025 a year but can show great fluctuation each year.
Language
The official language of the country is Hungarian (magyar), which forms part of the Finno-Ugric language family. Like Finnish and Estonian, it belongs to the Uralic language family, with its closest relatives being Mansi and Khanty. It is one of the few languages of Europe that are not part of the Indo-European family, so it is not easy to be familiar with at the first time. Hungarian is spoken by 10 million people in Hungary but there are significant number of Hungarian speakers in Slovakia, Romania, Serbia, Ukraine, the Czech Republic, Israel, the U.S., and Australia.
Religion
Hungary is a historically Christian country, but everyone is free to practise their own religion.
The cost of living
Partly, it depends on your own spending habits how much money you will need during your stay in Hungary. In general, living expenses are reasonable in Hungary, especially in comparison with Western European countries.
Banks are usually open from Monday to Friday 9.00-16.00. You can exchange money at any banks, travel agents and larger post offices. They may offer different deals concerning the rate of exchange and the fees charged, so you are advised to look around in the city before exchanging foreign currency. EuroCard, MasterCard and Visa Electron are the most popular bank/credit cards in Hungary, and you can easily find ATM machines in Kecskemét to withdraw money from your home account.
A Cost of Living Calculator is available for foreign students to inform them about prospective monthly expenses regarding accommodation, food, recreation and transportation on the Study in Hungary website. Prices are shown in different towns in various currencies (HUF, GBP, EUR, USD, JPY and CNY).
Here is a list of essential items to give you an idea of prices in Hungary.
Electricity
Electricity is the standard European 220 volts in Hungary. We have a plug with two round prongs and recessed sockets in general.
Shops
Most shops are open from 10.00 a.m. to 8.00 p.m. from Monday to Friday, and from 10.00 a.m. to 6.00 p.m on Saturday. Large shopping centres have extended hours of operation or are open non-stop. In bigger shops you can pay with your bank card.
Stores of the following chains can be found in most cities: Aldi, CBA, Lidl, Spar and Tesco.
Food shops are open Monday–Saturday 6.00 a.m.–9.00 p.m. (there might be differences in opening hours).
How to pay in Hungary?
Although large shops in the touristic areas accept credit cards, in case of smaller shops or markets it is better to pay in cash. Make sure you have enough Forints in your wallet. Exchange offices usually charge 0.03% exchange charge. MasterCard and Visa, wireless payments by Apple Pay and Google Pay are very widely accepted, while some other cards, including American Express, may incur a surcharge when used at certain retailers. Please note that the use of American Express cards is usually not possible in smaller shops, only large department stores. However, ATMs can be found everywhere, including the airport. People can immediately withdraw cash from their overseas bank accounts, however a withdrawal fee might be charged.
Traditional Hungarian cuisine
Traditional Hungarian food is often spicy since hot paprika, which gives a unique taste and a fiery colour to our dishes, is commonly used. Other essential ingredients accounting for a special flavour are sweet paprika, ground black and white pepper, onion, garlic, sour cream, cottage cheese (sometimes sweetened), smoked bacon and a variety of herbs. Though most authentic Hungarian dishes require lard, nowadays most restaurants and housewives use vegetable oil instead of pork fat. Some must-try Hungarian specialties are halászlé (Fisherman’s soup), ’Jókai’ bableves (Jókai style bean soup), Újházy tyúkhúsleves (’Újházy’ chicken broth), pörkölt (a ragout made from pork, beef, mutton or chicken with onions and paprika powder), paprikás (made in the same way as pörkölt but sour cream is mixed in the paprika and onion sauce), nokedli (small dumplings), goulash (a soup of thick consistency eaten as a main dish), túrógomboc (cottage cheese dumplings), szilvásgombóc (plum dumplings), palacsinta (pancake either with sweet filling e.g. sugared cottage cheese, jam, sugared cocoa or cinnamon powder or stuffed with meat ’Hortobágyi’ pancake), rétes (strudel with various fillings e.g. cottage cheese, apple, poppy-seed and sour cherry) and Somlói galuska (sponge cake dumplings with chocolate sauce, rum, walnut, raisins and whipped cream) etc.
Little Hungarian Vocabulary
Magyarország (ma-djar-or-saag) – Hungary
Jó napot kívánok! (yoh nu-pot khee-vha-knock) – Good morning!
Jó étvágyat kívánok! (Yoh-eht-vah-jot khee-vha-knock) – Bon appetit!
Viszontlátásra! (vee-sont-laa-taash-raa) – Goodbye!
Köszönöm! (khoe-se-noem) – Thank you!
Egészségére! (Ag-esh-sheg-eh-reh) – Cheers!
Elnézést! (el-naez-esht) – Excuse me!
Kérem! (khay-rem) – Please!
Igen (egh-an) – Yes
Nem (nam) – No
Gyógyszertár (dgodg-ser-taar) – Pharmacy
Étterem (ai-ther-am) – Restaurant
Reggeli (rhe-ghe-lee) – Breakfast
Ebéd (a-baid) – Lunch
Vacsora (va-cho-rah) – Dinner
Innivaló (in-ni-vha-lo) – Drink
Étel (ai-tel) – Food