Prague to Munich (cheapest and most convenient way)
 

We are planning our next holiday and would like to visit Prague followed by Salzburg or Munich. Not yet decided whether it will by Munich of Salzburg.
We are 2 adults and 2 children below 12 years.
Need some clarity on the following :
Please advise which is the most convenient (least no. of changes) and cheapest way to travel from :
Prague to Munich and also Prague to Salzburg.
Can we use the lander ticket for the Munich / Salzburg part of the journey? Do we use the dbahn site (easy to use) or the czech site for booking tickets / checking train timings?
Any and all info in this regard would be much helpful.
Kind regards,
SKPKCP11

You could also check www.eurolines.com for Munich. We have used then and consider them reliable. If you do book with them, buy the tickets a day early.

Sorry - but most convenient and cheapest are usually mututally exclusive. And on bahn.de you can check schedules for all trains but buy tickets only for trains with your trip originating in Germany.

For tickets on other counries railroads you need to buy through each one. Unless you get a multi-country rail pass, which is rarely a good idea.

Also not sure about Prague to Munich and Prague to Salzburg. Are these alterant destinations - no reason to go back to prageu to get from Munich to Salzburg.

Thanks for the quick revert. Please confirm my understanding -
To check the train connections we use dbahn.de
BUT to book tickets from Prague to Munich we use which site? please advise.

We have not yet decided after Prague whether we wish to go to Munich or Salzburg. hence the above question.

Look forward to your inputs for our first visit to Prague.

Kind regards,
SKPKCP11

Prague to Vienna by bus - cheap, about 4-5 hours with a rest stop and comfortable enough - think Greyhound type intercity rather than the usual Europe Bus semi-luxury- we have done it. Vienna to Salzburg by bus. Haven't done that one, but if you are in Vienna perhaps you would not want to go to Salzburg.

When we took the train from Prague to Munich, it took seven hours. The train went to Regensburg and on to Munich. But that was some years ago. Not sure if there is a quicker route to Munich on the train. The bus to Munich from Prague takes just over five hours.

Munich-Prague ticket can be purchased with DBahn.de

there is i believe an overnight train linking Prague and Munich nightly - save on a hotel cost to boot. for lots of good info on trains in those countries check out www.seat61.com (good info on online discounts) and www.ricksteves.com and www.budgeteuropetravel.com. Night trains are more and more comfy all the time - book a private compartment for the best conditions (but not the cheapest).

I didn't see any night trail on dbahn.de, so I think they have discontinued it. And the direct train route is now served by a bus.

Thanks Fodorites for the quick revert.

We will be travelling from Prague. Understand dbahn.de does not allow purchase of tickets if the journey is originating in another country. We can use this site for checking the train connections.

I have checked www.cd.cz for the train connections from Prague to Munich. But it shows bus connections. I read that we could use the local Czech ticket for going to Plzen from Prague and from there use the Lander ticket for our travel in Germany. Understand we do not have to change trains in Plzen. Can someone give more clarity and further details on this.

Kind regards,
SKPKCP11

My son just did the bus trip from Munich to Prague a week ago. Of course you would do the reverse.

The trip was smooth and comfortable, the bus half full. So a seat to himself. Took 4.5 hours. No lugging of bags or train changes and in my opinion the best option for your family.

We bought the ticket on the d-bahn site at a discount, but suprisingly the regular fare was about the same costs as the Europe rail site. So if the Czech site is hard to purchase from, that could be an option.

By bus, cost is about $50 US dollars for two adults and two children. Twenty per aduly and five for children under 12. Site is easy to navigate. https://www.elines.cz/en/ Leave at 7am and be there at noon.

Sorry. I sould have said $40 per adult and $20 per child or $120 dollars.

Unlike others stated here, you *can* book through www.bahn.de

There is a train dep. Prague 9.07 e.g. but it takes 6 hours to get to Munich (no change, though).

And you can easily hop on a bus in Prague that goes directly to Munich, takes less than 5 hours and the fare is only 29 Euro.

All that is from the www.bahn.de website.

I read that we could use the local Czech ticket for going to Plzen from Prague and from there use the Lander ticket for our travel in Germany. Understand we do not have to change trains in Plzen. Can someone give more clarity and further details on this.

Lander Tickets are only good once you cross the Germany border into Bavaria and then you are restricted to regional trains - last I looked several transfers and takes hours and hours - even getting across border meant walking a bit - well do not remember exactly but did research that and basically not a viable option - the bus sounds great.

My suggestion would be to visit Cesky Krumlov after Prague, even for a night or two. From Cesky Krumlov, there are private shuttles to Salzburg, Linz, Vienna, and Munich. We used ckshuttle.cz, but there are several others.

There are also trains which travel to the German border at Nove Udoli / Haidmuehle where you can switch to a regional train and make your way to Germany. The regional train option from Cesky Krumlov is much much cheaper than private shuttles, albeit less convenient.

Thanks Fodorites for your clarity and great info. Will certainly look at all options.

Thanks Ingo for confirming that we can book Prague-Munich sector on bahn.de. Very user friendly site with great clarity.

Kind regards,
SKPKCP11