🇭🇺 Cross-border drive · Hungary → Netherlands 🇳🇱
Driving from Budapest to Rotterdam
- Drive time
- 14h 11m
- Distance
- 1,405 km
- Same day?
- Split it
- 12 h+, plan a stop
- Fuel cost
- ≈ €221
- petrol · diesel ≈ €188
- Tolls
- ≈ €38
- vignette
- EV charging
- Plenty fast
- 27 of 120 ≥50 kW
On this page
Route map
Route options
Other paths OSRM found between the two cities — handy when traffic, tolls, or scenery matter more than raw speed.
Avoids motorways
+9h- Distance:
- 1,434 km (+29 km)
- Duration:
- 23h 11m
Via: B 279 · 63 · 20 · B 22
How else can you make this trip?
Driving is the focus of this guide; here's how cycling, coach, and (soon) train and plane stack up for the same pair.
14h 11m
1.405 km · €221 fuel
See details ↓
Not realistic
1.405 km is far beyond a typical multi-day cycle tour. Try a shorter pair like a day or weekend stage.
20h 25m
FlixBus-eu
See details ↓
2h 51m
from €40
See details ↓
19h 12m
OEBB Personenverkehr AG Kundenservice · DB Fernverkehr AG
See details ↓
Trip plan
How to think about the drive: one day, split, or overnight.
Overnight recommended
Too long for a single-driver day. Plan on 1 overnight stop(s) to do this trip right.
A natural overnight stop near the halfway point: Erlangen (de).
- Distance:
- 1,405 km
- Duration:
- 14h 11m (free-flow, no traffic)
Where to stop
Places along the route that make natural breaks for coffee, lunch, or a night.
-
Jánossomorja 🇭🇺 hu
≈176 km≈ 16.6 km detour from the main route
-
Amstetten 🇦🇹 at
≈351 km≈ 31.1 km detour from the main route
-
Passau 🇩🇪 de
≈527 km≈ 4.4 km detour from the main route
-
Neumarkt in der Oberpfalz 🇩🇪 de
≈703 km≈ 10.2 km detour from the main route
-
Wertheim 🇩🇪 de
≈878 km≈ 7.4 km detour from the main route
-
Wirges 🇩🇪 de
≈1,054 km≈ 3.1 km detour from the main route
-
Rheinberg 🇩🇪 de
≈1,230 km≈ 3.3 km detour from the main route
Key moves
Things to know before you set off — borders, sides of the road, tolls.
Multi-country chain · HU → AT → CZ → DE → NL
You'll cross 5 countries on this drive — each with its own toll system, fuel pricing, and motorway rules. Skim the must-know section below before you set off, and have your registration plus insurance card in the door pocket for any roadside check.
Vignette required in HU / AT / CZ
Austria, Switzerland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia, Bulgaria, and Romania require a sticker or e-vignette for motorway use. Buy at the border — missing one is a heavy on-the-spot fine.
Long rural stretch on S1 Wiener Außenring Schnellstraße
Plan for about 15 km of two-lane country roads. Slower than motorway, but often the pretty part — fewer overtakes after dark.
Must-know before you go
The things a driver from another country wouldn't think to ask about — fines, stickers, payment cards, opening hours.
City access & emission zones
Berlin, Munich, Stuttgart need a green Umweltplakette
Must knowGermany's low-emission zones (Umweltzone) are simpler than the French system but stricter on entry. You need a colour-coded sticker physically on your windscreen before entering. The vast majority of zones today require a green sticker (Euro 4+ petrol, Euro 6+ diesel). Order via TÜV / DEKRA / certified workshops — about €6–13, ships in days. Driving without one costs €100 even if your car would qualify.
Tolls, vignettes & road payment
Digital vignette before crossing the border
Must knowAustrian motorways need a vignette — €10.10 for 10 days, €30.40 for 2 months, or €103.80 annual. The digital version (linked to your plate) is bought online at asfinag.at and activates from a chosen date — if you buy on the Austrian side of the border, it's only valid 18 days later under consumer-protection rules. Buy ahead.
Czech e-vignette is plate-linked, no sticker
Must knowCzechia replaced paper vignettes in 2021. Buy on edalnice.cz with your plate, valid from the chosen date. 10-day is CZK 290 (~€12), annual CZK 2,300 (~€95). Police read plates electronically — no display required. The first 90 minutes after purchase, the system sometimes hasn't synced; keep your purchase confirmation accessible.
Hungarian vignette tied to plate AND vehicle category
Must knowHungarian e-vignette costs depend on category — D1 covers most passenger cars (HUF 5,150 / ~€13 for 10 days). Buy on autopalya.hu or at any major fuel station. The system is plate-linked, no sticker. Critical detail: a roof box that pushes you over 2m height triggers category D2 — pay the higher rate or risk a fine.
Brenner, Tauern and Karawanken tunnels are extra
UsefulEight Austrian routes charge separate tolls on top of the vignette: Brenner (A13, ~€11.50), Pyhrn (A9, ~€6.50), Tauern (A10, ~€14), Karawanken (A11, ~€8.50) and others. Pay at the booth — no vignette discount. If you're heading south to Italy via the A13, budget for it.
No motorway tolls, but Westerschelde tunnel charges
TipDutch motorways are free for cars, but a few specific crossings charge. The Westerscheldetunnel near Vlissingen is €5–7. Kil Tunnel (A29) and Liefkenshoektunnel (Antwerp side) are similarly priced. Pay contactless on entry — there's no booth queue.
What your car must carry
Triangle, first-aid kit, hi-vis vest — all three
Must knowGermany requires a warning triangle, a first-aid kit (compliant with DIN 13164, with a "use by" date — €10 at any pharmacy), and a reflective vest in every passenger car. Roadside checks do happen at borders. The first-aid kit is the one foreign drivers most commonly miss.
Driving rules & habits
Left lane is for overtaking only — return immediately
UsefulOn unrestricted Autobahn sections (where you'll see no speed-limit-end signs), faster cars expect to use the left lane unobstructed. Drift into it without checking the mirror and a 911 closing at 250 km/h becomes your problem. Indicate, overtake, return right — every time. Slowing in the left lane to "make space" is more dangerous than predictable speed.
Phone-mounted radar warnings are illegal
UsefulActive radar-detector apps (and the "police nearby" feature on Waze / Google Maps) are technically banned in Germany — fines hit €75. Most drivers leave them on without consequence, but if you're stopped for any reason, the officer can ask to see your phone. Switch the warning layer off when crossing into DE if you want to play it strict.
Plan your stops, not just your finish time
UsefulOSRM gives you free-flow drive time. Realistic add: 10% on motorway-heavy routes, 25% if you're crossing two cities. Eat at off-peak hours (11:30 lunch, 18:00 dinner) — service-area queues at noon kill 20 minutes. EU fatigue research is consistent: 15-minute break every 2 hours, full 45-minute break before 6 hours. The drive between hours 7 and 9 is where avoidable accidents cluster.
Bicycles have right-of-way at unmarked junctions
UsefulIn the Netherlands, cyclists are treated as full traffic and often given priority you'd expect from a pedestrian crossing back home. Always check the bike lane before turning. At a roundabout in town, cyclists get the inside line and you yield. The rule that bites is unmarked junctions in residential streets — yield to the bike.
Avoid Margaret Bridge between 16:00–19:00
TipBudapest
Budapest crossings between Buda and Pest pile up in late afternoon. Margaret Bridge (Margit híd) is the worst — single lane each way once you account for the tram-only middle section. Liberty Bridge (Szabadság híd) and the Lágymányosi/Rákóczi bridges flow better. Adjust your sat-nav arrival time to match.
Fuel stations
Contactless cards work at virtually every motorway pump
TipMajor brand stations (Shell, Total, BP, Repsol, Cepsa, OMV, Eni, Esso) take Visa and Mastercard contactless without an issue. American Express and Diners are spotty south of the Alps. A €100 pre-authorisation hold is normal — it releases within 5 days. Carry €50 cash for the rare independent station.
Money & connectivity
EU roaming covers calls, texts and data at no extra cost
TipYour home EU SIM works at home rates across every EU member, plus Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway. The "fair use" cap on data only applies if you're abroad more than four months. For a 2-week road trip, just use your phone normally — but switch off "data roaming" if you're leaving the EU into UK / CH for any segment.
Rules, fees, and thresholds change. Always verify against the official source the day before you drive — this page is a checklist, not a legal reference.
Main roads
The highways this route spends the most kilometres on.
-
A 3 —693 km
-
M1 —160 km
-
A1 West Autobahn143 km
-
A15 —64 km
-
A8 Innkreis Autobahn61 km
-
A4 Ost Autobahn58 km
-
A 57 —46 km
-
A21 Wiener Außenring Autobahn37 km
-
A73 —28 km
-
A25 Welser Autobahn19 km
-
A 42 —17 km
-
S1 Wiener Außenring Schnellstraße15 km
Route character
How much of the drive is motorway vs. secondary vs. rural.
Motorway drive — fast, predictable, uneventful.
- Motorway
- 96%
- Secondary
- 3%
- Other / rural
- 1%
Drive difficulty
At-a-glance feel: how demanding is this drive for one driver?
Overall
Demanding
Tough drive — multiple complicating factors compound fatigue. Strongly recommend splitting across days.
- Long drive: 14h 11m behind the wheel at free-flow speeds.
- Cross-border: hu → nl. Keep documents accessible and check border rules.
Elevation profile
Highs, lows, and the total climb / descent along the route.
- Lowest point
- 0 m
- Highest point
- 510 m
- Total ascent
- ↑ 1,092 m
- Total descent
- ↓ 1,190 m
Fuel & tolls
Rough cost expectation for a typical EU passenger car. Treat as an estimate — pump prices change weekly.
Petrol (RON 95)
≈ €221
105.4 L × €2.10 / L · 7.5 L/100 km
Diesel
≈ €188
84.3 L × €2.22 / L · 6 L/100 km
Electric (DC fast)
≈ €146
246 kWh × €0.59 / kWh · 17.5 kWh/100 km
Public DC fast charging — slower AC charging at home or hotels typically costs about half.
Motorway tolls & vignettes
≈ €38
- HU — Vignette (motorway sticker / e-vignette) — €15.00 for 10 days Annual vignette is €130.00 if you drive often
- AT — Vignette (motorway sticker / e-vignette) — €10.10 for 10 days Annual vignette is €103.80 if you drive often
- CZ — Vignette (motorway sticker / e-vignette) — €13.00 for 10 days Annual vignette is €88.00 if you drive often
Prices last refreshed 2026-10-12.
Fuel and EV charging along the route
Stations within a few kilometres of the road, sampled at evenly-spaced waypoints.
EV charging
27 at 50 kW or above (fast / ultra-fast).
Fastest first
- Ionity Parndorf 350 kW
- IONITY St. Valentin — St. Valentin 350 kW
- IONITY Bayerischer Wald Süd — Hunderdorf 350 kW
- IONITY Bayerischer Wald Nord — Hunderdorf 350 kW
- Tesla Supercharger Parndorf 250 kW
- Tesla Supercharger Geiselwind — Geiselwind 250 kW
- Tesla Supercharger Oberhausen 250 kW
- Autohof Geiselwind — Geiselwind 175 kW
- Chamer Straße 50 — Straubing 150 kW
- Parkplatz Donaugasse — Straubing 150 kW
- Comfortcharge Ladestation — Duisburg 150 kW
- Tesla Supercharger St Valentin — Gemeinde Sankt Valentin 120 kW
Weather by month
Average daytime high / overnight low and typical monthly rainfall, over the past five years.
🇭🇺 Budapest
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
6°
-0°
|
8°
0°
|
14°
4°
|
17°
7°
|
21°
11°
|
27°
16°
|
29°
18°
|
30°
18°
|
24°
14°
|
17°
8°
|
9°
2°
|
5°
0°
|
| 51mm | 24mm | 58mm | 55mm | 95mm | 60mm | 58mm | 60mm | 57mm | 55mm | 68mm | 55mm |
hot mild cold
🇳🇱 Rotterdam
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
7°
2°
|
9°
4°
|
11°
4°
|
14°
7°
|
18°
10°
|
22°
14°
|
22°
15°
|
23°
15°
|
21°
13°
|
16°
11°
|
10°
6°
|
8°
5°
|
| 100mm | 60mm | 67mm | 74mm | 84mm | 51mm | 115mm | 68mm | 84mm | 114mm | 108mm | 76mm |
hot mild cold
Next 5 days at Rotterdam
Live forecast — refreshes every few hours.
-
Mon 26
🌧️
13° / 11°
3.1mm
-
Tue 27
🌧️
17° / 11°
14.2mm
-
Wed 28
⛅
14° / 9°
—
-
Thu 29
⛅
15° / 10°
0.2mm
-
Fri 30
⛅
12° / 7°
0.2mm
Forecast: MET Norway
Directions
Turn-by-turn summary of the main manoeuvres, generated by OSRM.
Show all 39 manoeuvres
- Clark Ádám tér (2; 3; 4; 5; 6; 7; 10) 0.1 km
- Budaörsi út (M1; M7) 8 km
- (M1) 160 km
- Ost Autobahn (A4) 58 km
- Wiener Außenring Schnellstraße (S1) 15 km
- Wiener Außenring Autobahn (A21) 37 km
- West Autobahn (A1) 143 km
- Welser Autobahn (A25) 19 km
- Innkreis Autobahn (A8) 61 km
- (A 3) 136 km
- — 0.6 km
- (A 3) 106 km
- — 0.4 km
- (A 3) 221 km
- (A 3) 9 km
- — 0.3 km
- — 0.4 km
- (A 3) 161 km
- (A 3) 30 km
- (A 3) 31 km
- — 0.6 km
- (A 42) 17 km
- —
- — 1 km
- — 0.4 km
- (A 57) 46 km
- Gennep-Autoweg (A77) 9 km
- (A77) 0.9 km
- (A73) 16 km
- (A73) 12 km
- Maas en Waalweg (N322) 8 km
- (N322)
- Maas en Waalweg (N322) 7 km
- Prins Willem-Alexanderweg (N323) 4 km
- (A15) 64 km
- (A16) 2 km
- (A16) 5 km
- Abram van Rijckevorselweg (S107) 0.3 km
- Coolsingel
By coach from Budapest to Rotterdam
Indicative duration of the fastest direct long-distance coach found in the FlixBus and BlaBlaCar Bus EU schedules.
- Travel time
- 20h 25m
- Direct
- Operator
- FlixBus-eu
- Departures / day
- ~1
- Approximate based on the published schedule.
Show coach corridor on map
Schedules sourced from the FlixBus and BlaBlaCar Bus GTFS feeds via transport.data.gouv.fr. Times are indicative; verify on the operator's site before booking.
Booking link coming soon.
By plane from Budapest to Rotterdam
Indicative travel time on a non-stop flight, based on great-circle distance, average commercial cruise speed (850 km/h), and a 90-minute allowance for taxi, security, and boarding.
- Total time
- 2h 51m
- Door-to-door from :from airport.
- In the air
- 81 min
- At ~850 km/h cruise speed.
- On the ground
- 90 min
- Taxi + security + boarding (typical short-haul).
- Route
- BUD → RTM
- 1.154 km great-circle.
Indicative fare: from €40 — fares vary by season, day of week, and how far ahead you book. Always check the airline or a meta-search before planning around this number.
Show flight path on map
Estimate-only. We don't pull live schedules or fares for flights — see the methodology page for how this number is computed.
Air travel emits roughly 5–10× the CO₂ per passenger-km of rail for the same distance.
By train from Budapest to Rotterdam
Fastest cross-border rail itinerary from the public Transitous planner. Times reflect a typical Monday-morning departure on the next available service-day.
- Fastest journey
- 19h 12m
- 8 changes
- Lead operator
- OEBB Personenverkehr AG Kundenservice
- + 2 more
- Alternatives
- 5
- Itineraries returned by the planner.
Trains on the fastest itinerary
- EC 142
- RJX 19956
- ICE 114
- ICE 526
All operators across alternatives
- OEBB Personenverkehr AG Kundenservice
- DB Fernverkehr AG
- NS
Includes a high-speed rail leg (TGV, ICE, AVE, Frecciarossa-class).
Show route on map
Routing via the public Transitous OTP planner (community-run MOTIS instance). Cached 24 hours; verify on the operator's site before booking.
How this page is built
Compiled by COD Solutions Oy from open European data — OSRM over OpenStreetMap for the route geometry, Open-Meteo for monthly climate normals, OpenTopoData SRTM 30m for elevation, EU Weekly Oil Bulletin for cross-border fuel-price bands, and Open Charge Map for EV charging stations. See our methodology for refresh cadence and limitations.