Headed to Europe later this month for the Krakow DO. Haven't really travelled through Europe by rail before, but I've tried to do as much online research as possible. My itinerary and cities are relatively fixed, so I just need to confirm that I'm planning on things that are actually achievable and get a sense of cost. Here's what I've got so far:
22 Aug Arrive VIE
(2 days in Vienna)
24 Aug 10:08PM Depart Wien Westbahnhof on Schnellzug D 406
(overnight train)
25 Aug 6:51AM Arrive Krakow Glowny
(2 days in Krakow)
27 Aug 11:50AM Depart Krakow Glowny on Tanie Linie Kolejowe TLK35100
(3h 5m train)
27 Aug 2:55PM Arrive Warszawa Centralna
(2 days in Warsaw)
29 Aug 9:25AM Depart Warszawa Centralna on Eurocity EC 110
(8h 25m train)
29 Aug 5:50PM Arrive Praha hl.n.
(3 days in Prague)
01 Sep Depart PRG
A couple of questions:
1) The overnight train Vienna-Krakow is the one I'm most worried about. I want to make sure there is a single sleeper available as I'm not too keen on sharing. Is it OK to wait and buy this ticket at the station?
2) It seems the Krakow-Warsaw route has several different options, hard to tell if any are better than the others. Not too worried about this one, expecting to buy at the station.
3) Getting from Warsaw to Prague seems to be a long slog by rail. Currently the 'best' option is an 8+ hour day train. Czech Airlines and LOT both have ~$215 tickets that cover the journey nonstop in 90 minutes. Might be better to just fly?
Any other advice or input would be appreciated.
KQ321
Aug 8, 12, 12:40 pm
Headed to Europe later this month for the Krakow DO. Haven't really travelled through Europe by rail before, but I've tried to do as much online research as possible. My itinerary and cities are relatively fixed, so I just need to confirm that I'm planning on things that are actually achievable and get a sense of cost. Here's what I've got so far:
22 Aug Arrive VIE
(2 days in Vienna)
24 Aug 10:08PM Depart Wien Westbahnhof on Schnellzug D 406
(overnight train)
25 Aug 6:51AM Arrive Krakow Glowny
(2 days in Krakow)
27 Aug 11:50AM Depart Krakow Glowny on Tanie Linie Kolejowe TLK35100
(3h 5m train)
27 Aug 2:55PM Arrive Warszawa Centralna
(2 days in Warsaw)
29 Aug 9:25AM Depart Warszawa Centralna on Eurocity EC 110
(8h 25m train)
29 Aug 5:50PM Arrive Praha hl.n.
(3 days in Prague)
01 Sep Depart PRG
Looks like a fun tour.
1) The overnight train Vienna-Krakow is the one I'm most worried about. I want to make sure there is a single sleeper available as I'm not too keen on sharing. Is it OK to wait and buy this ticket at the station?
I don't have direct experience on this particular train, but I would strongly advise against leaving it until you're in Vienna to try to book at the station. On a Friday night in August, it seems highly likely that the sleeper compartments could all be fully booked (especially if you're looking for a whole compartment to yourself - if you were just looking for one couchette berth, you might have a bit more luck, but I still wouldn't count on it).
I'm not sure if this can be booked online. The ÖBB website only seems to offer seats options for this train on 24th August, but I think that's because it's not set up to sell sleeper tickets online (rather than because none are available). I would strongly suggest that you phone ÖBB (+43 (0)5 1717) ASAP to book this sleeper - it should be possible to pay by credit card, and collect the ticket at Vienna Westbahnhof before departure. ÖBB will hopefully have a discounted price for a combined ticket+sleeper reservation for this route.
2) It seems the Krakow-Warsaw route has several different options, hard to tell if any are better than the others. Not too worried about this one, expecting to buy at the station.
Note that an increasing number of Polish trains now seem to be 'reservation required'. You'd probably be alright getting the ticket+reservation at the station (say, the day before travel) but you can also now book online, at https://bilet.intercity.pl/irez/ (bilet.intercity.pl/irez/). Your route seems to be 61zl in Second or 91zl in First Class.
3) Getting from Warsaw to Prague seems to be a long slog by rail. Currently the 'best' option is an 8+ hour day train. Czech Airlines and LOT both have ~$215 tickets that cover the journey nonstop in 90 minutes. Might be better to just fly?
Personally, if I was doing this journey I would take the D407/R442 sleeper, leaving Warszawa Centralna at 21:10, and arriving Praha hl. n. at 07:38. This means you don't waste any daytime travelling (if you're flying, even if the flight is only 90 mins you have to count for getting to/from the airport at each end, sufficient time for check-in, waiting for baggage, etc) and so you can have an extra day in Warsaw or Prague. I would hope you can get the sleeper for less than $215.
Although https://bilet.intercity.pl/irez/ (bilet.intercity.pl/irez/) now has an international booking option, I don't think you can book this particular train online. You could either try a Polish travel agency (see Seat61 (http://www.seat61.com/Poland.htm) for suggestions), or if you phone ÖBB for the Vienna-Krakow sleeper, see if they can also book you the Warsaw-Prague sleeper. However, ÖBB almost certainly won't have discounted fares for this route, so you may just want to make the sleeper reservation with them on the phone (so you're sure you have it), and buy the ticket at the station in Warsaw.
baliktad
Aug 9, 12, 2:28 am
Thank you for your invaluable knowledge and expertise KQ321!
On your advice, I contacted ÖBB by phone. After several minutes on hold listening to German monologues, I was connected to a human. He spoke near-perfect English and was very helpful. I booked the sleeper from Vienna to Krakow (ticket + reservation for single sleeper: EUR190) without too much trouble. Was also able to book the reservation only for the Warsaw - Prague sleeper (reservation only for single sleeper: EUR70). The representative basically echoed your comments: that he could sell me a ticket for the Warsaw - Prague route but it would probably be better to buy the ticket in person in Poland.
One other tip I learned in this process: Call your bank before attempting to book rail tickets by phone. These foreign card-not-present transactions are basically the highest risk category and I had to use 3 different cards to complete 2 purchases.
I'm getting a lot better at deciphering European rail travel, but the part I'm still mystified about is how I can determine the actual operator of any given train service. I've been researching routes on bahn.de, which lists the product name (like Schnellzug D406), but I had no idea that ÖBB was the carrier and I could have contacted them directly by phone. How can I determine the operator and contact information for a given route, especially ones that have generic names like Eurocity?
Thanks again for all your help. I'm much more comfortable now knowing I have secured reservations for the important segments.
KQ321
Aug 9, 12, 12:26 pm
On your advice, I contacted ÖBB by phone. After several minutes on hold listening to German monologues, I was connected to a human. He spoke near-perfect English and was very helpful. I booked the sleeper from Vienna to Krakow (ticket + reservation for single sleeper: EUR190) without too much trouble.
I'm pleased you were able to book the two sleepers OK. EUR190 is more than I would have predicted - but I guess I normally travel in 4-berth couchettes or 2-berth sleepers; while single-berth sleepers are substantially more expensive - and require a 1st class ticket...
Was also able to book the reservation only for the Warsaw - Prague sleeper (reservation only for single sleeper: EUR70). The representative basically echoed your comments: that he could sell me a ticket for the Warsaw - Prague route but it would probably be better to buy the ticket in person in Poland.
Yes - that should work out much cheaper. ÖBB would only be able to sell you an 'international rate' fare, while in Poland you'll pay the local rate, which should be cheaper.
I'm getting a lot better at deciphering European rail travel, but the part I'm still mystified about is how I can determine the actual operator of any given train service. I've been researching routes on bahn.de, which lists the product name (like Schnellzug D406), but I had no idea that ÖBB was the carrier and I could have contacted them directly by phone. How can I determine the operator and contact information for a given route, especially ones that have generic names like Eurocity?
Short answer: visit www.seat61.com/Europe-train-tickets.htm (http://www.seat61.com/Europe-train-tickets.htm)
Detailed answer: Very broadly speaking, domestic trains in Europe are generally operated by the national rail company, and international trains are operated by the national rail company of one of the countries the train passes through. However, with the rail sector being opened up for more competition, there are increasing numbers of private operators, consortia, etc.
In some cases, different carriages in the same train may be operated by different companies. (For example, on your train from Warsaw to Prague, the sleeper and couchette are operated by Polish Railways, but the seats carriage is operated by Czech Railways). You can use www.vagonweb.cz (http://www.vagonweb.cz) to check the carriage composition of trains, but it only covers some, not all, European countries.
To book tickets, you're generally best of going to the website of the national operator from the country where your journey starts - although in some cases, the operator from the country were the journey ends (or passes through) will also be able to sell tickets. bahn.de (http://bahn.de) is great for checking timetables, but will only sell tickets for journeys that start in (or sometimes which end in or pass through) Germany.
So, in your case, ÖBB (http://www.oebb.at) for the Vienna-Krakow train. For Warsaw-Prague it should be PKP Intercity (https://bilet.intercity.pl/irez/), but they can't (yet) sell this online, and nor can Czech Railways. So, a reasonable solution is to make the sleeper reservation through any suitable international agent (eg: ÖBB, Deutsche Bahn, etc), and buy the ticket locally.