I will be flying to Budapest on October 5th and out of Prague on October 14. I am thinking of visiting Krakow and have been looking at train info. Has anyone done either leg of this proposed trip? What would be the recommendation? Should I order tickets here or get them in europe? i have been to Prague before so am thinking of cutting my time there short to go to Krakow. There seems to be more trains from Prague to Krakow...what is the difference between couchette and seat, 1st and 2nd, day trip vs overnight...recommedations??? Thanks

A good site for a general discussion of different accommodations available on European trains is at www.seat.61.com. Don;t be put off by the fact that the site is geared toward travel to and from the UK...it contains an absolute wealth of train info as well as interior car pictures for some services.

You can check rail schedules from both Budapest and Krakow by using the English version of the GermanRail site. I'll give you the address in my subsequent post.

I've personally taken the train from Prague to Krakow - daytime - had to change trains.
We then took the overnight w/sleeper from Krakow to Budpest...so you could do the reverse too.
I'd take the day time train from Budapest to Krakow - much more scenic and then day or night train to Prague (night trains w/sleeper is your hotel - gives you the day there).
Note: no more than 2 nights in Krakow needed. You can have your hotel's concierge get the tkts (or via Rail Europe - recommened if purchasing the sleeper)..

The address is
http://reiseauskunft.bahn.de/bin/query.exe/en

I suggest you use this to check the schedules from both cities.

If you are using a sleeping car (couchette or berth) you can usually only reserve those spaces 60 days OR LESS in advance of the actual travel date. The reservations will cost you less if you make them once you get to Europe as opposed to using an agency such as RailEurope or RailSaver, etc.

2nd Class couchette compartments usually contain 6 bunks and you can lie flat on those vs. sitting up in a seat.

1st Class will cost more than 2nd; 2nd usually fills up faster. Day trip will cost less than an overnight since you are only paying for a seat rather than a place to sleep..unless you went overnight in a seat vs. a couchette or berth.

Have you considered flying? You can check www.whichbudget.com to see if there are any discount airlines flying between these cities.

2nd class okay - but for a sleeper - get the private or double - no couchette unless you're 22 years old and don't care...
if you don't want to buy ahead of time - Rail Europe marks up around 15pct...have your hotel concierge request in Budapest.