Is Prague,Vienna & Budapest insanity?
 

Would it be crazy to do all three of these cities? The initial plan was just Prague and Budapest, but since were in the area we thought we'd throw in Vienna too. We're thinking 3 nights in each city and taking the train which looks to be about a 4 hour train ride between each of the cities. Would flying be better?b It's about 1 hour flight, but need to add time for check in, etc. Is it customary for 2 hour check in as it is in the states? I haven't done any research as to what we want to see and do yet and would love to hear your advise from your expierences.

Thanks

Personally, I think it is perfect. Take the train.

I would take the train, as you would be able to see some of the countryside, and train stations are usually in the center of town, whereas getting from the airport takes time. Sounds like a nice trip.

On your way from Prague to Budapest you can also stop in Bratislava, it's a very cute small town.

for our last trip we did Prague--Vienna ---Budapest. Travelled by train. We liked all 3 places, my personal favourite will be Prague followed by Vienna. Take the train

It's a perfect plan to do those 3 cities together.
My favorites were Prague and Budapest.
The train is a nice ride.

friendlys wrote "Bratislava, it's a very cute small town."

I don't think the people of Slovakia would like their capital city, with a population of about half a million, being described as a small town.

We did this and really enjoyed it. Take the train. You can buy tickets ahead of time at a travel agent and then get to your train 10-15 min ahead (vs 1 hour for airports). And the train stations are usually pretty convenient, as opposed to airports which are located out of town.

We actually liked Budapest best, Prague a very close second.
Enjoy!

We did Prague, Budapest & Vienna some years ago -- that was a two week holiday, a little longer than yours. We started in Prague, flew to Budapest, then took the train to Vienna, and finally the train back to Prague (we had two 2-night stays in Prague). It was easy. We flew to Budapest because that train journey seemed very long.

The train will be perfect. We flew into Budapest, then trained to Vienna (from which we did a day trip to Salzburg), then trained to Prague.

I did it a number of years ago with Archers Direct, with other stops on the way. A good trip, still available I see:

http://www.archersdirect.co.uk/conte...060/13/0/1/1/7

Don't miss the art gallery and parliament tour in Budapest.

Thank you all for the reconfirmation & advice. I'll be needing to hit the books and internet very soon.
Should we purchase the train ticket prior to our trip or at each city? In Italy our hotel purchased them on our behalf from Venice to Rome and we purchased Rome to Florence the day before. It worked out as the travel agency was around the corner.

I think that's a great plan.
Last May-June I did Budapest-Bratislave-Krakow-Prague-Vienna.
It was a busy 2 and a half weeks, but an excellent trip. I definitely reccomend the train. Great way to see the country. We took two night trains and on the bratislava-krakow two of my friends in the cabin next door forgot to put the chain on the door after very angry customs officers knocked at 2am, and woke up in the morning to find her purse gone. Thankfully we found the purse stashed in the bathroom and they onyl took money and a visa card which they unsuccessfully used. So the rumors about the night trains are true, but if you are safe and remember to put locks on you'll be fine (doesn't hurt to bring your own dudley lock).

We had no problems purchasing the tickets at the station, though when you arrive to a city you may want to purchase tickets for the next leg of your trip. A couple days in advance should be fine. Also if you find you can see a city in 2 days, why not doa day trip. If wine is your fancy Eger outside of Budapest is a great trip, and there are many nice towns and castles around Prague. And in Budapest a trip to the Baths is a must, and in Vienna be sure to go to the National Opera one night. 2 hours before every show they put standing row tickets on sale for less than 10 bucks! You get a better view than others who bought $200 tickets months in advance.

Not insanity - but kind of rushed. I would want at least 4 nights in each city - andat least 5 in Prague. But if this is all the time you have - go fot it.

The train Prague to Budapest is not a great idea - since it takes essentially the whole day. I would either fly - or rearrange the order of the cities.

We did it exactly that way by train and it was great. I might add 1 more night in Budapest to do more cheap massages and thermal baths---WOW!

Not crazy at all. This combination is often done in your timescale. My wife and i did it a few years back. Use the train...not much in it timewise but you'll see much more. In Vienna try to get to the Kunst area (Hundertwassen) I think. Utterly unique. I probably have loads of info somewhere. You can e'mail me if you want to know more.

This is a common combination of places to visit. Best done by flying into Prague, train to Vienna, than train to Budapest. Flying home from Budapest. Doing the reverse works just as well. 9 nights is alttle rushed for this trip as you will lose (2) 1/2 days traveling between cities with this itinerary and your first day will probably be a short day (Depending on where you are coming from). This gives roughly 2 1/2 days per city which is about 1/2 day to a day short for each city IMHO.

We are doing three nights in each city with airfare (from JFK), hotels, breakfast, and trains for 999.00 through Austrian Air. It is called their "Imperial City" tour and you can see it on the airline's website.

I did that exact trip last October. To minimize time lost for traveling - I would suggest taking the night train from Prague to Budapest. Pay the extra $10 to $20 for the sleeper car - you get a private room with a bed and sink. The train ride is about 8 hours, but I slept through most of it... I had to wake up whenever we crossed a border - check passports. What's funny is that when they saw the American passport - they would remark "Ah American" and hand it back immediately.

We are going to Prague the end of April. A little confused as to either go to Vienna or Budapest and do we do Prague 1st or last. We have 9-10 days. Any help would be appreciated.

HI Sue -

Never been to Prague, but have been to Vienna. VIenna is a beautiful city - lots of museums, 19th century architecture as well as Art Nouveau ("Secessionist"). We loved it. It is closer to travel to from Prague than Budapest is - I believe just 4 hours by train. (If that is a consideration.) We will be going to Budapest at the end of March and could give you our impressions when we get back (Vienna vs. Budapest), but that would probably be too late for you to make your decision. If money is a question, we've heard that Budapest is cheaper than Vienna.
I wouldn't fly between Vienna and Prague or Vienna and Budapest - faster by train in that you don't have to go through the whole airport stuff - getting there 2 hours early, security checks, etc.

We're doing the exact trip in May. We're flying into Budapest, taking the train to Vienna the taking the train to Prague and flying home from there. We will stay 3 nights in each. If you want to look at train times the best site recommended to me was www.bahn.de

I lived in Prague for 5 months and visited the other cities. Prague is the most spectacular and is far more humane in scale than Vienna, which is so Hapsbergesque. Prague has so much to see, I would base myself there and visit Cesky Krumlov and Karlovy Vary, the spa town. Vienna is an easy hike by train from there also. I liked Prague best in the winter, as it was gothic, misty and uncrowded. It gets extremely crowded in the season, but also has more going on. I've been all over, and I find it to be the most beautiful city I've ever seen. Stay in one of the smaller hotels in Old Town. You will have a wonderful time walking around in the pedestrian-only streets, seeing and visiting musical and theater venues of all kinds, many of which are free.

we did it, Prague--Cesky Krumlov--vienna--budapest..good trip. Take the train

We just returned from Prague, Vienna, and Budapest. Trains are 4 hrs from Prague to Vienna and 2 hrs 50 mins Vienna to Prague. Loved all the cities, but we ranked Vienna the lowest.

Hello!
Could anyone tell me aprox. how much would it cost the train from Prague to Vienna? I´ve been trying to fnd the info on different web sites and got confused!!
Thanks

Yes, please, anyone who has an idea of th approximate train cost, please let us know. I am considering doing this trip by car --Vienna, Budapest, Krakow, Wroclaw, Prague and return to Vienna -- because we will have 5 people traveling and think it will be more cost effective than the train. I am very familiar with driving in former Soviet countries, so that is not an issue for me, but I think it would be less stressful and more enjoyable to take the train if its not too cost prohibitive in comparison with the car, especially if we can take night trains and avoid the cost of a night or 2 in hotels (which would probably only work Krakow to Prague?) BTW, I priced a 5-seat mini-van for the time period we want to go, and including tax and insurance, unlimited mileage (but not including gas) it was about $1000. How does that compare to the train for 5 on the same basic route?

http://www.raileurope.com/us/rail/fa...ules/index.htm

Plug in the travel info and the ticket prices are given in US dollars. Not sure if prices are representative of all train fares.

Thanks mikka89! Still looks like the car is cheaper, since the supersaver Austria/Czech pass is $198 per person and we haven't even added on the price of Hungary, Slovakia and Poland.

have you taken your trip yet? i am also going to vienna-budapest-prague, in that order. taking train vienna to budapest and flying from budapest to prague. any other pointers i should know about?

Hi all... can´t find the Budapest-Prague train cost yet !!! Does anyone have an estimate? And what about the plane? I´ve found o/w tickets for over $150... is there any Easy Jet type of airline that flies that itinerary at a cheaper cost?

Regarding hotels... what area in Budapest should I be looking into? And in Prague???
Thanks!

I would definitely recommend all 3 cities and would definitely fly! Why spend 4 hrs on a train when you can spend 1 hour on a plane. I think our most expensive airfare was $60.

tamiandtoto wrote: "Why spend 4 hrs on a train when you can spend 1 hour on a plane."

One reason might be that the three-hour difference is eaten up by airports.

My suggestion is to hire a driver. Especially if there are more than 2 people. We did it last year and didn't have to deal with schlepping from hotels to train stations and it turned out to be guided tours. Do a search for drivers and you will find Mike's chauffeur and Bela. They are both highly recommended and noted in guide books. Price wise there is not a big difference when all is said and done.

I have tried contacting Mike the chauffeur in Prague through his website - twice - and have not gotten a reply in the last week. Would appreciate knowing the best way to get in touch with him. Thanks!

I would keep contacting him. This is the email I have for him [email protected]
Just make sure you request an English speaking driver. He is very busy and we had an excellent experience with him. We hired him to take us from Budapest to Prague. Then we hired him to take us to Cesky Krumlov for the day and then on to Vienna the same day. What a pleasure! I'll check back in the next few days if you have any questions.

I can only reiterate what other travellers have said and recommend the train. Its a majestic experience and the opportunity to see three classic european cities. The train is by far the most effective and romantic way to travel in central europe.

http://www.travel--guide.org/Budapest

Is there a reason why everyone is saying "take the train"? I hope to do it all of these by car, just as I've done many other European itineraries by car in the past. Are there problems with a car to or in these cities that I may not have foreseen?

I think it's because these cities are so well-connected by train. And many of us like to avoid the hassles of a car--parking, driving unfamiliar roads, etc.--and sit back on the train and relax. If you prefer car rental, then stick with it. I usually rent cars only when I want to explore a specific area of the countryside that is inaccessible by train.

Did you eventually end up driving through Prague, Budapest from Vienna? How was it. I may be taking the same route with my friend's parents in november and would like to know if this was a good idea after all???