Zagreb - Venice - Budapest: how to optimize time (and money!)
 

I am planning a trip to Zagreb with two over 60s travellers. We must visit Zagreb and then ideally would like to see Venice and Budapest as well.

I thought it would be simple to do a triangular route but am having difficulty finding information about coaches and trains that may run directly from Venice to Budapest or vice-versa (I am under the impression that there may not be a direct train route).

I have resigned myself to the fact that we may have to do a round trip from Zagreb to Venice and head to Budapest by train on our return to Zagreb. I am considering hiring a car in Zagreb but would much prefer to go on a short break package (to Venice) or even travel independently by train or coach.

If anyone has any tip to offer on driving to and parking in Venice, short break holidays from Zagreb to Venice or suggestions about the overall trip they would be greatly appreciated.

Regards.

Why would you not do this trip in a straight line -- home to Venice to Zagreb to Budapest to home? It doesn't make a lot of sense to do it as a triangle unless the country in between is what you really want to see.

And why Zagreb? It is not the best or most beautiful place in Croatia, not to say that it is not worth visiting.

Have done this cars are expensive to rent and park

www.eurpcar.com www.tigercarrentals.com if budget is good.

www.viamichelin.com for best route.

Prefer regional/intercity trains these days cheap just hop on

www.seat61.com best train info.

Otel.com Booking.com Eurocheapo.com good budget lodging info

Recently booked www.hotelpausania.it in Central Venice

in April for 59 euro great value.

www.betterbidding.com bidding Priceline from $80

for 4 and 5 * is big cities can save a tonne for upscale

Also do that...

Have fun,

It sounds as if your flights into and out of Zagreb are already booked.

That is a pity as the Venice-Zagreb-Budapest routing sounds much more convenient to me too.

You can take a direct train Zagreb to Budapest in a little over 6 hours:

Zagreb Glavni Kolod.
Budapest-Keleti palyaudvar
16:20 dep
22:34 arr 6:14hrs

If you want to travel from Venice to Budapest, it appears you must travel through Vienna. This can be done by train or by bus-train combo.

The 8 hr train ride to Vienna is quite picturesque but then you have another 3 hr ride (possibly from a different train station -- depends on the time of day; cd be Wien Sudbahnhof or Wien Westbahnhof) to Budapest.

Malev, the Hungarian airline, flies between Budapest and Venice Marco Polo not too expensively. That's an option that might take less time.

Looks like Zagreb-Budapest return on Malev is about $250 -- quite high compared to what you can get on discount airlines in W Europe

Thank you so much to everyone who has contributed with tips and advice.

I was finding some bus/train websites quite confusing to navigate not to mention frustrating as some of them will take you as far as almost completing a booking only to freeze the screen and tell you that the particular route you are interested in has to be booked by phone.

Zagreb is the main destination for my grandmother who wishes to see family (she is almost 90 and currently lives in Brazil). I understand that she will have a lot of luggage so we thought it would be easiest (although not necessarily better) for them to head straight to Zagreb.

Thank you all, once again.

For starters, tell her NOT to bring a lot of luggage. It is a curse.

Presumably, others will be responsible for managing her luggage, since she is 90. That gives you a right to express an opinion.