Editorial Policy

What earns inclusion

A place or route belongs in Star Budapest when it helps a traveller make a clearer choice: understand the city, use time well, reach a genuine interest, or avoid a preventable mistake. Familiar landmarks are not included just because they are famous; they need practical context. Smaller places are not excluded because they are less photographed.

The resulting guides are selective by design. A short list should explain why an option fits, what it asks of a visitor, and what its limitation is. It should not create a false sense that every good Budapest day looks the same.

Sources: budapestinfo-welcome

Rankings, partnerships and money

Editorial order is based on the page’s stated purpose, not on a payment, gift, affiliate commission or invitation. If a commercial relationship is ever introduced, it will be clearly labelled at the relevant recommendation and will not buy a more favourable ranking.

Prices are handled conservatively. Star Budapest uses HUF as the primary currency, links volatile prices to the operator, and avoids casual currency conversions that can make an old page look current. A price is useful only when readers know where it came from and when it was checked.

Sources: bkk-prices, bkk-tickets

Research before recommendation

A recommendation starts with a defined visitor question and a source brief, not with a ranking template. If a page discusses transport, the team checks BKK. If it discusses heritage context, it checks the relevant public institution or UNESCO. If it carries an access condition, it seeks the operator that can describe the route, facility or temporary limitation. The copy then distinguishes what is factual, what is current and what is editorial interpretation.

This process is intentionally more demanding than collecting a consensus from travel-list articles. Repetition does not make a fact current, and a popular venue does not automatically answer a visitor’s need. The editorial test is whether the information makes a concrete choice clearer and whether the source is strong enough to carry the claim.

Sources: bkk-tickets, unesco-budapest, bkk-accessibility

How we handle changes to a page

A factual update should be proportionate and traceable. When an operator changes a fare, service rule, access condition or schedule, the relevant wording is reviewed against the new primary source. If the change is material to a visitor’s decision, the page’s updated date changes and stale detail is removed or replaced rather than left to coexist with the correction.

Editorial revisions are treated differently. A guide may change its view of how to group a day or which option suits first-time visitors as new evidence and route coverage improve. Those decisions are not disguised as operator facts. The page should make it clear whether it is describing a controlled condition or offering a reasoned planning preference.

Sources: bkk-tickets, bkk-accessibility, budapestinfo-welcome

No exchange of coverage for access

Editorial access, invitations, gifts, discounts or commercial conversations cannot purchase inclusion, a favourable ranking or the removal of a relevant limitation. If any relationship could reasonably affect how a reader understands a recommendation, it must be disclosed near the recommendation itself, in clear language.

The same rule applies to negative information. A page does not suppress a meaningful ticket, accessibility, timing or practical caveat because a place is popular or commercially important. Readers need the condition that changes the decision, even when it makes the recommendation less tidy.

Sources: bkk-tickets, bkk-accessibility

What this policy does not promise

This policy does not promise personal travel planning, emergency support, medical advice, legal guidance or a real-time answer about a service condition. It defines how Star Budapest researches and presents editorial material. For a live decision, the controlling operator and relevant public service remain the final source.

Sources: bkk-tickets, police-emergency

Corrections and changes

Material errors are corrected when evidence supports a change. A material correction is one that could alter a traveller’s decision: an incorrect transport rule, a discontinued access feature, a wrong ticket condition or a misleading safety instruction. Editorial judgments may evolve too, but they are treated as judgments rather than hidden factual rewrites.

To report a problem, send the page address, the sentence or feature at issue, a concise explanation and an authoritative source. The correction route is kept separate from sponsorship or marketing requests so evidence can be assessed on its own terms.

Sources: bkk-accessibility