The city in a bottle!

Soft and spicy all at once, the “Pearl of the Danube” - that is how the character of the scent of Budapest (or “BUD” according to the IATA code) is specified by Gerald Ghislain, the perfume creator asked by Heinemann Duty Free to create the collection. The father of the Scent of Departure considers Budapest, and thus the scent inspired by the city, to be majestic and contemplative at the same time, always with a hint of paprika and spice. It is a mix of an exciting and soothing nightfall atmosphere and the romanticism and excitement of a stroll between the Buda Castle and Gellért Hill. That is how the world-famous perfume creator sees Budapest – through the refraction of the perfume bottle.

Each scent of the five-part collection costs EUR 30 per bottle (50 ml). The perfumes are available in Heinemann shops at five European airports: in addition to Budapest, in Frankfurt, Munich, Vienna and Istanbul. This is what inspired the design resembling a bag tag, and the names of the perfumes: BUD, FRA, MUC, VIE and IST. The limited edition perfumes are not available outside the transit shops of airports, so you can only get them with a valid boarding pass, i.e. if you fly from the given city. You should hurry if you would like to buy a bottle of these special fragrances; the Heinemann Duty Free located in the SkyCourt received only 110 bottles for this travel season, i.e. for this promotional period, although the “BUD” fragrance will continue to be available subsequently.

Gerald Ghislain, the French fragrance creator exploded onto this truly difficult market ten years ago with his luxury brand Histoires de Perfums, which was followed by a few other successful brands. According to his account, he first and foremost drew inspiration for the Scent of Departure brand from his travels; he was driven by the joy of life, sensuality and the desire to capture the very essence of cities when creating these scents. Ghislain was assisted by French designer Magali Sénéquier during the elaboration of the concept; she envisaged and created the colors of the bottles and the boxes of The Scent of Departure line, as well as their displays in the shops. The Heinemann shop in Budapest decided to take BUD and The Scent of Departure on board because of the special nature of the brand, and due to the shop’s intention to widen its product range, as this is a gift which you can only get here and take abroad to your loved ones and friends.