Budapest underground
 

Okay, I am embarrassed about my stupidity. Recently when I was in Budapest, the receptionist at the hotel told me that the easiest way to get to my destination was to take the underground. So I walked down the block to the train station, found the sign for the underground and walked down the steps. I was in the tunnels of the underground.<BR><BR>BUT, where were the subway cars? I walked all over for fifteen minuits. I tried to ask for help but, no use. I seemed to be in a large underground shopping mall.<BR><BR>So tell me, is there a subway train down there or is it just an underground walkway? What's the Deal? (FYI, I was easily able to use the subway in other cities like Paris, Madrid and Munich.)

Yes, there is a subway in Budapest. I took it at the Kelti Station. There are also trams and buses too.

In some of the stations, there are small malls and you have to find other esclators down to further levels to find the trains.

Budapest's subway is not just another subway.<BR>It is the oldest on the European continent, dating back to 1896...

Aad; during our city tour we were informed that one of the lines of the underground was the oldest in Europe and was recently refurbished. So, that is what made me even more confused and feel even more stupid. Based on what we came across, I was wondering if the underground was just an underground walkway to keep people out of the weather.<BR><BR>We managed fine using the trams and buses, but I wish that I would have found the esculators to go down further into the actual subway train station.<BR><BR>So is it hard to find at all locations or did I just happen to choose the most confusing location (at the train depot).

I'm not sure where you were, so can't judge the station/configuration you had to face. That said, the oldest &quot;subway&quot;/underground train/metro in Europe is indeed that of Budapest's #1 line. The #2 and #3 are newer. The three lines all meet at one station (Deak ter), but otherwise are distince. The #1 train lines are not as deep underground as the others (my sense was construction was &quot;cut and cover&quot; rather than tunneling), and the cars are smaller.<BR><BR>Art's remarks are correct that at some stations one must first descend from street level, then find the escalators down to train level. It shouldn't be as confusing as evidently you found it, but one or two of the stations unfortunately are like that.<BR><BR>Finally, there are some undergorund walkways (that at Astoria comes to mind) designed for pedestrians to cross otherwise near-impossible intersections, but at least the one at Astoria also has escalators to the Merto station below.

It sounds like you were at the Nyugati metro station. It is next to the Nyugati train station. You can get lost in this station. It has an entrance to the west side City Center Shopping Mall. This is a very nice shopping mall. It is a huge modern style shopping mall. It is now one of the main shopping areas of Budapest.