Best way to travel from Budapest to Dubrovnik using Public Transport?
 

I have been researching the best ways to travel between defferent destinations and up till this part of the trip it has been easy - planes or trains!! Looking at www.skyscanner.net for flights to link Dubrovnik with Budapest and Rome does not look easy. And I have read that the train system in Croatia is not that great. Any feedback on the intercity buses in Croatia would be helpful (travel times, cost, comfort, safety, etc).

There is no railway to Dubrovnik, but there is a good bus service down the coast from Split.
Split can be reached by train from Budapest via Zagreb (www.bahn.de). It is just possible to do it in one day, or you can get an overnight train from Zagreb to Split, or stop a night in Zagreb.
Long-distance buses in Croatia are well-organised and, in my opinion, comfortable for journeys of up to three or four hours. Croatian trains are comfortable, but the network is limited.
From Dubrovnik to Roma, it's best to get a ferry to Bari then a train, or a bus to Split, then an overnight ferry to Ancona and a train.

Thanks Geoff.

I will get to work looking at the options you have suggested.

Helen

My wife and I are traveling from Budapest to Dubrovnik on June 1. We plan on taking the morning train from Budapest and then taking a late flight on Croatian Air to Dubrovnik. The flight cost less than $100 for the two of us. It leaves Zagreb at 9 PM and gets into Dubrovnik around 10.

Last year we flew on Sky Europe from Budapest to Dubrovnik. It was great!

Dubrovnik will take on an almost magical appearance (at least for me it did) as you approach from the airport at that hour - it's floodlit and quite dramatic. Hopefully you won't be the one driving so you can take it all in as it's simply amazing!

Airport maybe 20 minutes or so from city center. ENJOY!

I would say take a train to Zagreb, then bus down from there. The train station at Zagreb is just a 10 minute walk from the city center, so you could easily overnight. Then bus down. Many people we met in Croatia were taking flights down to Dubrovnik. Super cheap. Like sometimes under $40 one way. Many small airlines out of Hungary. If time is a concern, I would absolutely fly.
-k.