Bucharest Airport (OTP) Transfers
Henri Coandă Airport sits at Otopeni, 16.5 km north of the city center in a straight line, and handled about 17 million passengers in 2025. Verified carriers quote per vehicle to central Bucharest, Brașov, Sinaia and the Black Sea coast at Constanța, before you fly.
IATA Code
OTP
To Piața Unirii
19 km
To Brașov
155 km
To Constanța
243 km
North of the center, straight line
Opened to civilian traffic
Passengers in 2025
Airport train to Gara de Nord
One terminal, two buildings: Arrivals and Departures, joined by a walkway. The 2026 works have moved the buses, the ride-sharing pickup and the car parks, so the pickup is the part to get right.
Terminal Pickup Information
The Arrivals hall, the Departures curb, and the car parks that the works have closed or moved.
Arrivals hall
After baggage claim
Meeting point
Your driver meets you in the Arrivals hall; the carrier confirms the spot and where the car stands
Train and taxis
Taxi touch screens on floor 1, a taxi stand and the way to the station on the ground floor
Ignore anyone offering a ride inside; touting is sanctioned by law
Departures
Through the walkway from Arrivals
Buses 100 and 442
The only airport stop during the works, in front of Departures
Uber and Bolt
Pickup at Departures since 23 April 2026
Short-stay parking is P7, by Departures
Car parks and the works
Until 28 February 2027
Arrivals car park P2
Closed for consolidation works
More than 7 seats
Minibuses and large vans park only in P5
Coaches moved to P5 on 10 August 2026
Short-stay parking tariff
The airport's own figures, paid at machines in both terminals, at the desk on the corridor between them, at the exit or online. 10 lei is about €1.90.
Why the pickup is agreed in advance
The Arrivals car park is closed, the buses and app rides have moved to Departures, and anything with more than 7 seats may park only in P5. So the meeting point is not improvised at the curb. Your carrier tells you in the booking chat where the driver meets you and where the car is waiting.
Pickup Time and Flight Monitoring
You choose the pickup time, so pick the moment you expect to walk out with your bags. Flights from London or the United States still clear passport control, because Romania joined Schengen for air travel on 31 March 2024 and those flights come from outside it. Your carrier follows your flight. Running much later? Call or message your carrier to agree a new time.
Popular Routes from Bucharest Airport
Compare verified carriers into the city, up the Prahova Valley to Transylvania, and east to the sea.
The city, Brașov, Sinaia and Constanța, both directions
Bucharest City Center
OTP Airport → Piața Unirii
From
€35
City Center to the airport
Bucharest → OTP Airport
From
€35
Brasov
OTP Airport → Transylvania
From
€190
Brasov to the airport
Brașov → OTP Airport
From
€190
Sinaia
OTP Airport → Prahova Valley
From
€130
Sinaia to the airport
Sinaia → OTP Airport
From
€130
Constanta
OTP Airport → Black Sea coast
From
€275
Constanta to the airport
Constanța → OTP Airport
From
€275
Castles, mountains and the coast
About Bucharest Henri Coandă Airport
Otopeni, the 2026 works, and the roads north and east
Your driver meets you in the Arrivals hall, and within a few minutes the car is on the DN1. Bucharest Henri Coandă International Airport, IATA code OTP, is Romania's busiest, with about 17 million passengers in 2025, up about 6.6% on the year before. Most travelers still call it Otopeni, after the town it stands in; Băneasa, the city's other airfield, is a business airport.
Otopeni, not Bucharest
The airport is 16.5 km north of the city center in a straight line.
By road the city center at Piața Unirii is about 19 km and 25 minutes in free flow, and Gara de Nord about 17 km and 25 minutes. That northern position is the quiet advantage for anyone heading to the mountains: the airport is already on the road out.
The 2026 works
Older guides still send you to the wrong door.
The Arrivals multi-story car park is closed until 28 February 2027. Buses 100 and 442 now stop only in front of Departures, and since 23 April 2026 the Uber and Bolt pickup has been at Departures too. The way to the train station runs through the ground floor of Arrivals. Unlike the bus and the app rides, a driver who meets you in the Arrivals hall spares you the walk to Departures with your bags.
The train, and where it stops
The airport train runs one way only, to Gara de Nord.
It runs 24 hours a day, every 40 minutes, takes 20 to 25 minutes and costs 6.50 lei with CFR Călători if you buy before boarding. For one traveler with a backpack and a hotel near the station, it is the right buy, and we are not going to pretend otherwise. The catch is everything else. Piața Unirii and the Old Town are a further change, and any rail trip to Sinaia or Brașov starts by riding into the city first, the opposite direction to the mountains.
Airport Facts
North to the mountains, east to the sea
Most of the long runs from Otopeni skip Bucharest entirely.
The table puts the main drives side by side, every figure a free-flow estimate from the terminal; city, weekend and holiday traffic are not in them.
- Piața Unirii, city center
- By road19 km
- Drive, free flow25 min
- Which wayInto the city on the DN1
- Sinaia
- By road109 km
- Drive, free flow1h 45min
- Which wayNorth on the DN1, Prahova Valley
- Predeal
- By road129 km
- Drive, free flow2h 5min
- Which wayNorth on the DN1
- Brașov
- By road155 km
- Drive, free flow2h 40min
- Which wayNorth on the DN1, past Ploiești
- Bran Castle
- By road157 km
- Drive, free flow2h 45min
- Which wayNorth on the DN1, then the DN73A
- Constanța
- By road243 km
- Drive, free flow2h 50min
- Which wayRing road, then the A2 east
| Destination | By road | Drive, free flow | Which way |
|---|---|---|---|
| Piața Unirii, city center | 19 km | 25 min | Into the city on the DN1 |
| Sinaia | 109 km | 1h 45min | North on the DN1, Prahova Valley |
| Predeal | 129 km | 2h 5min | North on the DN1 |
| Brașov | 155 km | 2h 40min | North on the DN1, past Ploiești |
| Bran Castle | 157 km | 2h 45min | North on the DN1, then the DN73A |
| Constanța | 243 km | 2h 50min | Ring road, then the A2 east |
Read the "Which way" column first. Only one row goes into the city; the rest leave Otopeni north or east without touching it.
The Prahova Valley and Brașov
One road north, and the towns are strung along it.
The DN1 runs north past Ploiești into the Prahova Valley. Sinaia is about 109 km and 1h 45 from the terminal, Predeal about 129 km, and Brașov about 155 km and 2h 40, so Sinaia is about an hour closer. Bran Castle and Poiana Brașov leave the DN1 for the DN73A, at about 157 and 158 km.
Land mid-morning with one bag bound for Sinaia, and the train via Gara de Nord is workable.
Land late with a family and ski bags bound for Poiana Brașov, and the car booked before you fly is the answer.
Constanța and the Black Sea
The coast is a motorway run.
The drive to Constanța takes the ring road and then the A2 east, about 243 km and 2h 50 in free flow, without crossing central Bucharest. Mamaia, the resort on the coast, is about 249 km, the same 2h 50.
How Much Does a Bucharest Airport Transfer Cost?
Carriers quote per vehicle, for your flight, your party and your luggage.
It depends on four things, and every carrier on TransferBnB prices them into one quote per vehicle before you fly:
- The vehicle. A sedan for two, an MPV or a minivan for a family or a group, so nobody is split across two cars.
- The party and the bags. Ski bags for Poiana Brașov or a family's beach luggage for Mamaia need a bigger boot, so put them in the request.
- The distance. From the short run to Piața Unirii to the 243 km drive to Constanța; the route cards above carry each drive.
- The waiting. A late landing, or a long queue at passport control, is part of what the carrier quotes for.
The one published per-km fare at Otopeni is the licensed taxi tariff, 2.29 to 3.50 lei per km. For the 19 km to Piața Unirii that is about 43 to 66 lei on distance alone, about €8 to €12, before any start fee.
Where published fares back a figure, the route card shows it as a from-price per vehicle; every other run is quoted by the carriers on request.
Get a QuoteTransport Options Compared
Every way out of Bucharest Airport, side by side.
- Private transfer
- Journey timeAbout 25 min to Piața Unirii, 1h 45 to Sinaia, 2h 40 to Brașov, 2h 50 to Constanța, in free flow
- PriceQuote per vehicle before you fly
- Door to doorYes
- Where it endsYour door
- Best forFamilies, luggage, the mountains and the coast
- Airport train
- Journey time20 to 25 min to Gara de Nord, every 40 min, 24 hours
- PriceRON 6.50 bought before boarding, RON 13 on board
- Door to doorNo
- Where it endsGara de Nord
- Best forOne traveler, light luggage, a hotel near the station
- Express bus 100
- Journey timeThe road into the city, with stops; every 15 min by day, 30 at night
- PriceRON 3 for a 90-minute trip
- Door to doorNo
- Where it endsPiața Unirii
- Best forThe cheapest seat into the center
- Licensed taxi
- Journey timeThe same roads as a transfer
- PriceRON 2.29 to 3.50 per km
- Door to doorYes
- Where it endsYour door
- Best forThe short run into Bucharest
- Uber or Bolt
- Journey timeThe same roads, pickup at Departures
- PriceSet in the app
- Door to doorYes
- Where it endsYour door
- Best forLight bags and a walk to Departures
- Hire car
- Journey timeThe same roads, plus the hire desk
- PriceSet by the hire desk
- Door to doorYes
- Where it endsWherever you can park
- Best forA week of touring Transylvania
| Option | Journey Time | Price | Door to door | Where it ends | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Private transfer | About 25 min to Piața Unirii, 1h 45 to Sinaia, 2h 40 to Brașov, 2h 50 to Constanța, in free flow | Quote per vehicle before you fly | Yes | Your door | Families, luggage, the mountains and the coast |
| Airport train | 20 to 25 min to Gara de Nord, every 40 min, 24 hours | RON 6.50 bought before boarding, RON 13 on board | No | Gara de Nord | One traveler, light luggage, a hotel near the station |
| Express bus 100 | The road into the city, with stops; every 15 min by day, 30 at night | RON 3 for a 90-minute trip | No | Piața Unirii | The cheapest seat into the center |
| Licensed taxi | The same roads as a transfer | RON 2.29 to 3.50 per km | Yes | Your door | The short run into Bucharest |
| Uber or Bolt | The same roads, pickup at Departures | Set in the app | Yes | Your door | Light bags and a walk to Departures |
| Hire car | The same roads, plus the hire desk | Set by the hire desk | Yes | Wherever you can park | A week of touring Transylvania |
On price alone, bus 100 wins for one person going to Piața Unirii. With bags, a party or the mountains on the list, it does not.
Every public option ends at a station or a stop, Gara de Nord or Piața Unirii, and two of them start at Departures, not Arrivals. A private transfer starts in the Arrivals hall and ends at the door, for the whole party and its luggage in one vehicle.
Why Book Your Bucharest Airport Transfer with TransferBnB
A meeting point agreed before the works can surprise you.
Met in Arrivals
Buses and app rides now leave from Departures. Your driver meets you where you come out.
Verified carriers
Every carrier is verified by TransferBnB before it can quote on your trip.
Quote before you fly
One price per vehicle for the whole party, not a meter running up the DN1.
Straight to the mountains
From Otopeni to Sinaia or Brașov without going into Bucharest first.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where does my transfer driver meet me at Bucharest Airport?
How do I get from Bucharest Airport to the city center in 2026?
How much is a taxi from Bucharest Airport to the city center?
Where do Uber and Bolt pick up at Bucharest Airport?
Is there a train from Bucharest Airport, and where does it go?
How far is Brașov from Bucharest Airport?
How long is the drive from Bucharest Airport to Constanța?
Can I go straight from Bucharest Airport to Sinaia or Bran Castle?
Do I go through passport control at Bucharest Airport from London or the US?
Is the arrivals car park at Bucharest Airport open?
What our customers say
Driver was already outside arrivals when we landed in Geneva - he'd tracked the flight and knew we'd come through early. Three sets of skis loaded and we were on the road to Chamonix before most passengers had cleared customs.
Thomas B. - London, UK Good experience. Chose from three offers for Munich Airport to Kitzbühel, picked the one with the best rating. Straightforward.
Marta R. - Munich, Germany Four of us split the cost from Zurich Airport to St. Anton and came out cheaper than the shared shuttle per person - plus we went straight to the chalet door instead of stopping at every hotel in the valley. Hadn't expected it to work out that way but it did.
Olivier D. - Lyon, France Travelled with two small kids and a lot of luggage from Rome Fiumicino. I mentioned the stroller in the booking notes and the driver showed up with a large estate. No fuss.
Sarah K. - Dublin, Ireland Eight people, Geneva to Verbier, all ski gear. One minibus, one price, door to chalet. We paid less per person than the shuttle and didn't have to share with anyone else.
Pieter V. - Amsterdam, Netherlands I book private transfers for work fairly regularly across different platforms. What TransferBnB does differently is that you get the driver's name, direct number, vehicle, and plate before you travel - not just a confirmation number. For business trips where timing matters, that's the part that actually counts.
Anna-Lisa M. - Vienna, Austria
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