Train, Krakow

4 more images

My first departure from Krakow was not to fly home but to travel to Lviv for the post-Euromeeting there. Most of us travelled by train, and it was quite an adventure – an adventure that some of us enjoyed more than others! I have to say that I fell into the first group. I have always loved travelling by train. There is a definite romance to it, and however scruffy the train and slow the journey, something in me responds to that – maybe my inner Michael Palin coming out!

Whatever the reason, I really enjoyed this journey, but I don’t want to ignore the drawbacks. The main one of these is time – you need a lot of it! We left Krakow at about 1.20 pm (should have been 1.01 pm) and didn’t arrive in Lviv until midnight. As the Ukraine is one hour ahead of Poland that’s a journey time of nine and a half hours. The return trip was similar, leaving Lviv at about 7.20 am and arriving in Krakow at 3.30 pm = just over 9 hours. These are quite elderly trains and consequently move slowly, but the main causes of the long journey times are the border formalities (especially clearing Ukrainian immigration) and the need to change the whole undercarriage (the bogey) to accommodate the different gauges used in Poland and the Ukraine. This is a major operation. A few carriages at a time are shunted into a siding where huge jacks raise them to a height which allows the engineers to get underneath, detach and slide out one set of wheels, and slide in and make secure the others. You can stay on the train throughout (indeed the doors are locked I think) and watch from the windows, which is entertaining for a while, but unless you’re a real train enthusiast you may find the novelty has worn off long before the operation is complete.

All of the above also means lots of interruptions to your journey, which are welcome mini-events when travelling by day but (I gather from those who travelled overnight) a major irritation if trying to sleep. Talking of sleep, travel by day and night is in compartments which can be converted from seating to bunks, so having a lie down is possible at any time. We travelled in a second class compartment, which meant three people sharing, and managed to arrange things so we shared only with VTers. However the corridor was a great meeting place for everyone from the carriage, and on the outward journey we had fun chatting (as far as language limitations would allow) to some of our neighbours – a mining engineer returning from a conference to his home near Kiev, and a young Russian guy who had just said goodbye to his new Polish wife as they had to wait several months for her to get permission to come to live in Russia with him.

We also found the carriage attendants to be friendly and helpful. They will brew up a coffee or tea (the first cup is free), sell small snacks such as chocolate bars or peanuts (and dish out free, and tasty, croissants as “souvenirs”) and help you on and off the train with your bags. A bottle of water was also provided for each passenger, but you may want to supplement the on-board catering with your own supplies – a bottle of wine will help the journey go faster for sure!

Finally, there are toilets at each end of the corridor, but some less salubrious than others, although the smelliest one ws cleaned by the attendant part way through the journey. Smoking isn’t allowed in the carriage but is possible in the spaces between.

I understand from Matt that it isn’t possible to book tickets in advance from outside the country – and from his accounts it’s also pretty difficult to book them from within!

1 more image

When I left Krakow I travelled to the airport on the special airport train. This leaves from the main station (Kraków Glówny) every half hour (on the hour and at half past) and takes just 16 minutes to reach its destination. However when you get off the train you have either to walk about 200 metres to the international terminal or to cross the platform and board a free shuttle bus to take you there or to the domestic one (the bus goes first to the domestic terminal even though the international one is nearer). So the whole trip from city to centre to airport will probably take you about 25 minutes.

The fare is 7 PLN and you can buy your ticket from a machine on the platform (always Platform One, it seems). The machine has instructions in several languages, including English, gives change and is easy to use. Keep your ticket as an inspector will check it while on board. My only criticism of this excellent and efficient service is the high climb up to the train from the platform at Krakow which was a challenge for me with my suitcase. But at the airport the platform is almost level with the carriage floor, presumably having been designed just for these trains, so at least I only had to do it once!

Getting to and from Krakow Airport is easy with the BALICE EXPRESS.
Balice to Krakow Glowny.
Krakow Glowny to Balice.

At the Balice Train Stop, I bought a ticket on the train at the ticket machine and paid 7 zl each. Fortunately I had a 20 zl note and the machine made change. Some folks on the train only had 50 zl notes, so they had to buy from the conductor. The conductor charges 8 zl if you buy it from him.
On our return journey to the Airport, I bought tickets at the ticket counter and paid 8 zl each.
The journey takes about 20 minutes and there is plenty of room for your luggage.
For Krakow train information, check the website below.

3 more images

Updated 2010.

You can get a train to/from the airport from Krakow's main train station (about 10 minutes walk from Rynek Glowny, the main square).

A free bus will collect you from outside Arrivals and take you to the station (about 5 minutes) or you can walk (takes about 5 minutes).

Since my first visit the train has been updated, and is now new and rather snazzy (although having half the carriage up several steps is not helpful for those with luggage!).

A one-way ticket costs 7 zloty from the machine or 8 zloty from the guard. Journey takes about 15 minutes) and you don't have to pay extra for your luggage. Trains go about twice an hour, from 04.00 to around 2300.

There's a ticket machine inside the Terminal, at Arrivals. It will only take coins or 10 zloty notes (gives change) so you may need to buy something first to get change. There is also a ticket machine inside the train itself and, for the return journey, on the platform from which the airport train departs.

From central train station, take train to airport. Then there is a free bus waiting and it takes you to the terminal. Otherwise, its a 15-20 minute walk. Bus is free , so best just just to take the bus that takes you to terminal. You basically go to same place for bus or train. train tracks are easily visible on top and bus is underground where you catch bus.

There is a direct train between Krakow and Lviv, but it takes a long time and arrives in the middle of the night.

The option I took was a train from Krakow to Przemysl (about 40zloty) . Outside the station in Przemysl there are minibuses which go to Medyka (the border) for a couple of zloty. After crossing by foot there is another minibus on the other side that goes all the way to Lviv train station.

Since I was already close to Prague (or not too far), I decided to hop on a train and visit that gorgeous city. There are both night and day trains from Krakow to Prague and you can choose to either travel directly from one city to the other or switch trains in the middle of the way: this latter option is cheaper of course.

I rode the direct train during the daytime because, even though I read in VT forums that this was not the cheapest option, it was faster and also safer as per the locals' advice. I booked my ticket only 2 days before my trip (during the summer) at a local travel agency, got my seat assigned by the window as I requested and everything ran smoothly. The train wasn't crowded so I guess I would have found vacant seats even if I had waited till that very day to buy the ticket, but I didn't want to take the risk. My local VT friend told me that the tickets can also be purchased directly at the train station, but the agency was closer and she said that the price was the same regardless of where I bought it....

I first considered traveling on the night train but there were no "couchettes" (sleepers) available for the day I was travelling, so I guess you DO need to book these far in advance because they're on high demand. This along with my concerns in regards to safety made me choose the day trip and I guess it was a good decision.

For further details please refer to my tip on my Prague page.

Krakow is a provincial city, so it doesn't have many international routes. It does, however, have a regular express train to Warsaw, which takes just under three hours. You can also be in the mountains of Zakopane in about the same amount of time. There are a couple of international express trains, one going to Budapest via Kosice in Slovakia, the other going to Prague.

Unlike Katowice and Warsaw, the station at Krakow is very nice, and has a fantastic shopping centre attached to it. The front entrance has been revamped, but the back way looks a bit dodgy and gives a negative impression of the city if you leave by that route.

Trains are standard Eastern European fare. The express train to Warsaw was clean and punctual, but I was surprised to find that smoking was allowed in the cabins. Travel is quite cheap, with a ticket to Prague (7-8 hours) costing only about 25-30 euros.