grumpyclown

Hi guys, so I have booked an air ticket to Prague in June as a starting point to explore few other cities. Have came up with a basic itinerary. The question is do I have time to include Krakow from Prague or should I stick with the below. Appreciate any advices. Thanks!

1-Jun Prague
2-Jun Prague
3-Jun Prague
4-Jun Prague
5-Jun Budapest
6-Jun Budapest
7-Jun Budapest
8-Jun Budapest
9-Jun depart to Romania,
10-Jun Romania
11-Jun Romania
12-Jun Romania
13-Jun Romania
14-Jun Romania
15-Jun depart to Vienna
16-Jun Vienna
17-Jun Vienna
18-Jun Flight back in noon

grumpyclown

just to add, i will be mostly taking night trains to get to the next location..

Michael

Romania is a country, so which city will you go to?

grumpyclown

Hi Michael, will be the Transylvania region with Brasov as the base.

Michael

I doubt that there is an easy train connection between Budapest and Brasov. And how do you plan to visit the sights around Brasov (Bran Castle, Prejmer fortified church, and on to Sighisoara)?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mksfca/...th/4185365821/

flat4

As you say you're willing to use night trains you can definitely do Krakow too (cut a day from Prague and Budapest each).

There is a relatively convenient night train from Budapest to Brasov (departure 7.10PM, arrival ~9AM).

grumpyclown

I got this off Romania tourism website so probably going by this route
Budapest (Hungary) to
Brasov - direct service via
Oradea – Cluj Napoca Train # (and name)
R 367
(Harghita) R 407
(Corona)

As for local transport, likely to just take the trains. Will think about how to add krakow in. Thanks!

Sam_CelRoman

There most definitely IS a direct train from Budapest to Brasov. It leaves out of Kelety station. You can find out more information on this train from Hungarian railways website (http://www.mav.hu/english/index.php)

There is also a second train that leaves Budapest and terminates in Cluj-Napoca.

If you need any more info, don't hesitate to contact me (click on my name). Enjoy your trip!

PalenQ

I echo the sentiment that cutting a day off Prague and Budapest, where IMO the average tourist will find is a bit too much, and adding in Krakow makes sense - but yes only if you are willing to take an overnight train between Krakow and Budapest as this journey would take all day otherwise.

And IMO Krakow is so so exceptional itself - unlike Warsaw not mainly destroyed in war and tackily rebuilt - and of course you also have the chance to visit Auschwitz if that intrigues you (some simply do not want to deal with it for personal reasons) and the famous Wieliczka Salt Mines, a UNESCO World Heritage site just a few miles from Krakow (I may suggest cutting two days off a Budapest that underwhelms some tourists at least).

And if doing all that by train then consider the European East Railpass IMO, valid in Austria, Poland, Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovakia - would take you to the Romanian border and trains from there are dirt cheap still. For loads of great info on trains in those countries check out these fab IMO sites - www.budgeteuropetravel.com; www.seat61.com; www.ricksteves.com.

grumpyclown

thanks all for the advices! Much appreciated. definately looking into adding Krakow to the trip. Am checking on the possibility of purchasing the European East Railpass vs point to point tickets. There is the hassle Romania isnt included plus the pass doesnt seem to cover sleeper cabin.

PalenQ

Pass covers only the train fare and not optional sleeping berths on overnight trains - makes sense to me - the pass is to get between cities and not to cover overnight accommodation expenses.

Trains in Romania are dirt cheap so would not perhaps want to use a day on that pass there anyway.

PalenQ

a value of the pass IME besides price is that pretty much you can hop on any train anytime - just show up - in those countries within having to wait in lines at ticket windows or scurry online sites and make often non-changeable reservations weeks in advance to get discounted fares.

Kwoo

Are you arriving in Prague on June 1 & if so, what time? Or do you arrive in Prague on May 31? If arriving June 1 late in the day, & if you cut off a day from Prague, that doesn't give you much time in Prague. I've been there twice & spent 4 days each time, & was never bored, & still haven't seen everything. With that said, i do recommend going to Krakow if you can fit it in. It is a beautiful city & well worth seeing. I haven't been to Budapest yet so don't know how long you need there. Do you need that much time in Romania?

grumpyclown

I will arrive in Prague on 1st June at around 2.30pm. So I guess after reaching/settling in, it should be at least 4pm. This much time allocated to Romania is simply cos the trip is planned with Romania being the ''centrepiece'' in mind. I was inspired to visit after reading the novel The Historian. I guess its like a wild card for the trip.

I am reading through Rick Steves to have a better idea on the time needed for each location.

grumpyclown

Hi guys,am back from the trip. In the end, a day was taken off from Prague and Romania and we managed to put in krakow. I find Prague a little overated and glad I took a day off to put into Vienna ( which I came to love) . All worked out well since we took night trains essentially saving us 4 days of traveling time.

annhig

hi grumpy,

welcome back and thanks for posting.

any chance of a longer TR from you? - this is a road less travelled and many of us are eager for tips to inform our own travels.

just where you stayed, what you liked/not, how the transport worked out would be appreciated. many of us love the "I slept until 9 and then had breakfast of...." style but that degree of detail is not strictly necessary.

PalenQ

grumpy - can you enlighten us on the overnight trains you took and how you found them - a Fodor's mantra is kind of no one can ever sleep on a night train, etc - something I have not found so in years and literally hundreds of night trains. What kind of compartments did you have, the cost - thanks!

Kwoo

Grumpyclown,
I, too, would love to read a report of your trip. I haven't been to Budapest, Romania or Vienna yet. I have been to Prague twice & love it & don't find it overrated, but everyone is different. I'm glad you decided to visit Krakow. I love that city, too!

grumpyclown

I would love to do a detailed report as soon as I have more time. I was back to work the next after touching down.

Meanwhile on the trains .We took 4 overnight trains (ranging from 8hrs to 14 hrs with Brasov to Vienna being the longest ride) and all of them were two person sleeper cabin. Pretty much slept through the nights. No problem with noise or the movement. Though it could be I am a person who fall asleep very easily on moving vehicles. And I am sure the rest wont be as complete if we were to choose the sitting arrangement. Sure we paid much more but we gained enough energy to continue sightseeing as soon as we reached the next destination. Money well spent.The only disturbance was on the ride from Budapest to Brasov and Brasov to Vienna, the passport control guys came up to stamp our passports when the train entered/left Romania. Guesthouse at Brasov told us this is arranged by Hungary as many countries in EU are still skeptical about Romania being in EU.

For the price, it was on average around $120 per pax per ride. We did check on the price for 4 and 6 bedders but the prices were only cheaper by around 25% which we didnt find worthwhile saving on.

We booked every ride on the day we reached the city or the day after and had no problems with the reservations. There was an international booth at every station with an English speaking ticketing agent. Only hitch was the sleeper cabin from Budapest to Brasov was fully booked for the earlier time slot (at 7pm) and we had to go for the one 4 hrs later.

On safety issues on the trains - I think there is a train conductor assigned for every class. For every ride, prior to the start, the conductor would always advise us to lock the cabin properly (which we did of course) FYI, they will take the tickets and return to you the next morning when you reach. They are normally in one of the cabin down the lanes so help is nearby should you need any.

I was undecided between giving one more night to Prague or Vienna but in the end, dice was through to Vienna as I love museums and Vienna has a few really good ones which I wanted to visit.

I probably had an unrealistic expectation of Prague going in (too many raving reviews!), while it didnt quite meet, it was still good. Love Charles Bridge in the early morning without crowds. (Before 8am) The Tyn Church and St. Vitus Cathedral are gorgeous. Our guesthouse was in Praha 2 so we got a chance to visit Vyšehrad castle which is kind of a residential park.

I spent the bulk of the trip in Budapest and Romania (Brasov and the surrounding) The Romanians shown exceptional kindness to us which we are really grateful for. It does not have the best of tourist infrastructure like the other European cities so you have to depend quite a bit on the help of the locals. Someone was always ready to lend a helping hand each time we needed one. The younger folks are skilled in the English language as well (though might be limited to the bigger towns)

More thoughts soon.

PalenQ

grumpyclown - thanks a whole lot for the overnight train info - doubles are indeed the way to go!