Hello,
My husband and I will be in Prague in May and plan to go by train from Prague to Krakow. We know that there is a night train, but would rather travel during the day. In looking at train schedules it seems the train stops in Katowice. Does anyone know if we will have to change trains there? There is only 8 minutes between arrival/departure which seems too short if we need to change trains.

Should we arrange for tickets before we go? Is it less expensive to buy the train tickets in Prague?

Thanks for any advice about train travel. I have read the posts and found them very informative. Thanks to all who posted information.

Alice

Yes, you do have to change trains in Katowice, but I believe it was on the same platform. It you do have to change platforms, the station isn't that large.

I bought my ticket from a travel agent. I don't recall how much I paid and I may have paid something extra for the convenience of an English speaking agent near the hotel. I do remember it was relatively inexpensive for first class--which I would recommend since it's a long trip. It's really not that far, but it takes nearly 8 hours. The train poked along from time to time and seemed spend a lot of time at the Polish border.

You'll enjoy Krakow. It's worth the train ride. But, I was more than happy to take an hour non-stop flight to Vienna.

Thanks for replying, Jeff. What did you like the most about Krakow?

I especially liked the central square that seemed to be the visual and activity focus of the old town. It's a large, well proportioned pedestrian oriented space with an old market building near the middle and a church on one side. It's surrounded by shops and indoor/outdoor restaurants on 3 sides. There's a lot of activity with people of all ages just hanging out day and night. It's a great people place. Of course, there's a lot more to the city, but this is what comes to mind first.

Hi Jeff and AKR - any idea about the train travel time between Prague and Vienna and between Vienna and Budapest? Also would you recommend renting a car?