Direct daily flights between Budapest and the United States resuming on Thursday

After a six-year hiatus, starting on Thursday, May 21, there will once again be a daily direct flight connecting the United States and Hungary, according to MTI. The seasonal flight is listed in American Airlines’ schedule through October 5.

The major U.S. airline originally launched its direct seasonal flight to Budapest in 2018, but after air travel was suspended in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic, the service did not resume.

In the coming months, a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner will be transporting passengers between Philadelphia and Budapest, which could mean a total of 3,200 passengers per week in both directions. The direct flight reduces the travel time between Budapest and the U.S. East Coast by several hours. According to the schedule, the flight time from Philadelphia to Budapest is nearly 9 hours. At the same time as launching the Budapest route, American Airlines will also start operating daily flights to Prague.

Fares for the flight to Philadelphia start at 110,000 forints (USD 357) one way, meaning that a round-trip ticket can ideally be purchased for 220,000 forints or a little more. According to Skyscanner data, there are still round-trip tickets for June and July that cost just a bit more than 220,000 forints, and there are plenty of such tickets available for September.