Magyar star of the 1960s a suitable theme for the vintage carriage on the Budapest-Split line
What better way to travel between Budapest and the Croatian coast than in a retro dining car themed after one of Hungary’s great players from the 1960s?
Running three times a week until September 30, the Adriatic Express is currently conveying holidaymakers from the Hungarian capital to Dalmatia, breakfast and dinner served in a vintage carriage built in East Germany in the 1980s.
Emblazoned with the sign ‘Flórián Albert, the Emperor’, the local nickname for this star of two World Cups and Ballon d’Or winner in 1967, the dining car is done out with vintage photos of the centre-forward in action, the mirrors etched with a stylised No.9.
Albert himself was partly of Croatian heritage through his mother, although he went on to play 75 times for Hungary and win the Fairs’ Cup with Ferencváros in 1965.
Consisting of couchettes of four and private cabins, the Adriatic Express sets off from Keleti station on Tuesday, Friday and Sunday evenings, returning from Split the following day. For schedules and tickets, see here.
Split station sits diagonally opposite the main harbour, allowing you to hop to one of Croatia’s celebrated islands with ease.
