Sail, cruise and peruse the city – we try out TIER rental e-scooters

After taking many a city walk, the idea of sightseeing by scooter offers a completely new experience, as even life-long city residents can discover Budapest from a different point of view. You need nothing more than someone you’re happy to spend a day with, and a reliable scooter that can take a few knocks.

Fast, easy and super experience

As we headed for our first destination, we downloaded the TIER app, which we used to pinpoint our meeting point at the corner of Nagy Diófa utca with a simple map search engine, where we immediately found our selected vehicles. The app is really straightforward, it’s clear and accurately marks the designated and no-go zones for parking.

More and more scooters are appearing in the city, so it is in our common interest that the scooters are always parked at the designated parking space along the kerb in order to keep the streets in order. And with the TIER rollers, this is easy-peasy, as it is much sturdier than its city counterparts, and it has a double outrigger, making it harder to tip over.


Due to these strictly designated parking zones, we only saw TIER vehicles lined up in neat rows. An additional virtue of the TIER scooters is that they have replaceable batteries that allow for more sustainable use as the scooters do not have to be transported to warehouses after they run out.

From Early Bird to the BÉLA Bar

After figuring out the how our TIER scooters worked, we registered in a couple of minutes and began our city adventure by scanning the QR code on the scooter. As it was morning, our first destination was the Early Bird Café in Erzsébetváros, District VII. After a refreshing cortado, we hurried on to look around District IX.


We popped into the Great Market Hall on Fővám tér then, taking advantage of the bright sunshine, cruised up and down the embankment, admiring the Buda side from a distance. Walking across Liberty Bridge is wonderful in itself, but riding a scooter across it was a whole new experience.

In the meantime, we became a little peckish, so headed towards Bartók Béla út, after bidding farewell to the Gellért Hotel before it closes. On busy Bartók, one of our favourite streets in the district, we could have chosen from several places but headed straight to the BÉLA bar, to give ourselves and our scooters a little rest.


After a refreshing lunch and lemonade, our next destination was the B32 Galéria és Kultúrtér, where there are always great exhibitions, theatre shows and concerts in the evening.


Finally, we popped into Vegan Love for a quick cake.

Roaming around Buda

TIER scooters can now travel through most of Buda, so it was easy to ride along the embankment, where not only a smooth cycle path but also a beautiful panorama awaited, all the way to the Várkert Bazár where, if we hadn’t had our fill of culture at B32, we would have nipped up to Buda Castle to see the current exhibition at the Hungarian National Gallery. TIER scooters are also parked around the Castle District, so you can visit all the sights on two wheels.

From Várkert Bazár, we headed to District XII and the urban park of Városmajor, where we could try out the vehicles after dark. Because the scooters have great headlights and even indicators, we felt safe as we glided along in the evening. Our trip finally ended at Széll Kálmán tér, where we parked our scooters in the designated parking space.

Why we loved TIER scooters

While we had a great experience around the city, cruising through Budapest, it was very easy to forget that we were actually gliding on a scooter because the vehicles almost felt part of us. It was only a matter of minutes before we got used to the TIER two-wheelers, all due to the fact that it has a much sturdier body, and offers a comfortable, wide performance compared to its rental counterparts, the dual drum brakes and suspension making it safer even on narrow bike lanes.

These advantages are sometimes a slight disadvantage, too, as it’s a bit heavier than its counterparts, so it’s not smooth leaving the curve on a bend and not too easy to lift, but this also serves to make the scooters safer.

But you don't have to lift it very often, as the large wheels easily deal with the bumpiest of surfaces. Powerful headlights are a huge plus, and there are indicators on both sides of the scooter and even at both ends of the handlebars.

And there’s also a handy mobile holder on the frame where you can not only look at the route, but even charge your phone wirelessly. The new generation TIER V electric scooters introduced in Budapest have a shelf life of five years, and all their parts can be repaired or replaced, so they almost never have to be taken out of service due to technical failure, thus supporting sustainability.

In addition to sightseeing, we can also imagine using a TIER scooter in everyday life. A seasonal pass allows you an unlimited number of rides for only a modest amount.


In addition, scooters are available in the most frequented areas of Buda and around the city centre, specifically Districts I., II., VI., VII., VIII., IX., XI. and XII.. Thanks to the discounted minute rates, you can even jump on a TIER scooter regularly, but it is worth spending a full day's sightseeing on the scooter, a guarantee of a fun, care-free ride and a wonderful new experience.