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Getting From London to Krakow
Hi all, I'm after a bit of advice. I need to fly to Krakow on Thursday for a meeting returning Friday evening. The only direct flight I can see is with Easyjet but I would like to leave that as a last resort. I know I can fly with BA into Warsaw and then take a train to Krakow (i looked at internal flights with LOT but the timings don't work). Has anyone taken this flight & train connection or can provide any advice on the best route to take?
shows the last time I was in Krakow.... BA used to do LGW direct..... ;-)
I would say take the train from Warsaw. I seem to recall they speak good English in Warsaw anyway, so you shouldn't have any difficulty negotiating fares and what-not with staff at the station.
I travel this route for many years and the easiest way is to fly LOT via WAW. Journey time shouldn't exceed 5 hours. I would not recomment using train as you would need to get from the airport to the train station which can take up to an hour depending on traffic. Trains are slow and filthy anyway. There is no Fly&Rail.
WAW-KRK is a very (30 min) short flight.
You can fly out of LHR on BA to TXL and take airberlin flight to KRK but the downside of that is that there is no connection back.
I worked in Krakow last year and took to train from Krakow to Warsaw to catch a BA flight to IAH. On the return journey I flew from Warsaw to Krakow with LOT.
The train is a pretty good service so I would go for that but make sure you get the express service, i think it's called the InterCity service. This is pretty quick - 3 hrs or so. The other train services can take much longer!
You can look at times etc on this website and there is an option to display in English is you can't speak Polish.
Travel from WAW has become easier now that a rail link has been built from the airport.
As to flights, the only evening return from KRK on Friday is KRK-FRA-LHR on LH. Several choices to choose from for your Thursday inbound with LHR-MUC-KRK on LH probably the best.
You could save some money on the airfare, more than enough to pay for a hotel, if you were to return on Saturday rather than Friday.
More difficult, but possible, would be to fly to KTW. But there is only bus service from there to Krakow - not rail - about a 75 minute trip.
I did LHR-VIE-KRK with OS outbound and Krakow-train-WAW-LHR back : the train route is a nice adventure but takes ages (the best part of all day) so for a quick Thu/Fri business trip I would recommend flying. Or staying on for the weekend in Krakow.
Last edited by Oxon Flyer; Sep 25, 12 at 4:29 am..
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I've tried all the above, and more or less came to the conclusion that Lufthansa via Munich was the best way, with a case for Austrian Airlines via Vienna due to the swift connections (and they are particularly generous on Miles and More stakes).
The second best is via TXL - purely because the connection process are tidy (though you have a short walk to the AB terminal building) and a reasonable length, you have the BA lounge in TXL, and the AB sector is very well priced. If you're looking for TPs and Avios out of AB make sure you get a fare bucket which actually provides them. (In the good old days I did it via Malév).
The train? Well I've done that, but getting from Warsaw Airport to the station is a bit of a drag, but obviously at the Kraków end you are right in the city centre at their newly refurbished station (well it was supposed to be finished for some football tournament or other but they are still finishing it off....). It's not something I'm aiming to repeat.
Either rail or air I suggest Andel's Hotel, it's right next to the station (KRK has a rail air link) and is easy walk to the old town, the Galleria and Kraków's many splendours. Now the stag tours are over with it is a very pleasant place indeed. For restaurants I'd recommend "Under the Angels", especially in winter.
BA did fly there very recently from LHR - when that LOT plane bellyflopped at WAW and the BA flight got a last minute diversion there. The story goes that the former but retired BA station manager got his old uniform out and went back to the airport to help out, but I don't know if that's true.
I would advise against the train option -- depending on what time you arrive in Warsaw, the traffic from the airport to the train station can be heinous (45 mins+)
However, the train itself is easy, and you can purchase your ticket at the station at a kiosk (which can display in English)
Granted in no traffic you can do it in ~15 minutes.
I would recommend doing either RyanAir (easiest) or Lufthansa/AirBerlin if the LOT times don't work for you.
I used to have to go to KRK regularly until last year - I often took MAN-LHR-KRK but it got too much, too much wasted time on an unnecessary connection. I then started to fly easyJet direct from LPL or, when there was absolutely no other alternative, Ryanair.
I wouldn't countenance flying to WAW and then taking the train to Krakow just to avoid a LCC.
There is no shame in flying U2 or FR ... just a little frustration perhaps.
Although I hate to say it, I do think the option via MUC will be the best option. Lufthansa are boring and stingy on benefits but barring strikes their service is reliable. Your short stay doesn't really justify risky connections and MUC within T2 is usually quick and reliable. I make a habit of avoiding polish rail and can only recommend others do the same.
Of course EZY direct is probably the most efficient use of your time if still available unless you really don't want to fly them. We won't mention Scumair.
