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Warszawa / Warsaw to Budapest by train
How to take a rail journey from Warsaw / Warszawa to Budapest
When taking this wonderfully epic rail journey between the capital cities of Poland and Hungary, there is a choice between experiencing four countries in a single day on the daytime train, or travelling through the night.
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Routes
Option 1: travel during the day
Journey Summary
10hr 25min
Daily
Travel Information
Final Destination: Budapest-Nyugati
Note that this train now arrives at Nyugati station in Budapest and not at Keleti station.
(The alternative overnight train now also arrives at Budapest Nyugati).
The train also calls at: Katowice, Bratislava and Vác
1 x train per day
Tickets
Why no ticket information?
This is almost certainly the only journey by EC trains which can't be booked online.
It's not for sale on the website of the Polish national express train operator PKP and can't be booked on the MAV website of the Hungarian national rail operator either.
But this train definitely exits, it is usually scheduled to depart daily from Warszawa Centralna station at 08:55 - on some timetables it is named the 'Varsova'.
However, tickets can be discounted by around 20% if you can book in advance, but factor in any booking fees if you do use an agent.
Though this is a comparatively cheap journey, so those advance tickets won't be discounted by the equivalent of more than €10.
Rail pass users need to reserve before boarding..
Where to book
| Ticket Provider | Approximate Cost | |
|---|---|---|
| MAV | from €27.90 |
On this journey
Journey Features
Good to Know
This train commences its journey at Warszawa Wschodnia station, which is on the eastern side of the city centre.
It then calls at Warszawa Centralna, the main station in the city, which is why we've used it for the orange button that can be clicked above.
After departing from Warszawa Centralna it will then call at Warszawa Zachodnia.
So check the location of the starting point of your journey, to see which of these three stations will suit you best.
It's a long and not particularly beautiful journey, but you will get to see four different countries from the train; Poland, Czechia, Slovakia and Hungary.
The scenic highlight are the views over the River Danube between Slovakia and Vác, which can be from the right of the train (when facing the direction of travel).
But these views can only be seen between April and October, when the days are longer.
Option 2: travel through the night
Journey Summary
12hr 31min
Nightly
Travel Information
Final Destination: Budapest-Nyugati
Note that this train no longer arrives at Kelti station in Budapest.
The train also calls at: Krakow
The train is usual;y scheduled to depart Warszawa Centralna station shortly after 19:45 and arrives in Budapest at 08:20
If your rail pass itinerary includes Budapest and Warsaw/Warszawa, the overnight train is a comparatively good option.
1 x train per night
Tickets
Tickets for this journey are not sold online by the PKP (Polish railways) website when making bookings from outside Poland, so either use a specialist rail ticket agency or wait until you arrive in Warszawa.
Rail pass users need to reserve before boarding, this reservation can be arranged at Warszawa Centralna station.
Or use a specialist travel agent or the InterRail/Eurail reservation service.
Polish Railways (PKP provides this train and it conveys:
- Compartment Seats
- Couchettes; 4 berths AND 6 berths
- Standard and deluxe sleeping cars with 3 bed, 2 bed and 1 cabins
Click the train details for more info including the rail pass reservation fees.
On this journey
Journey Features
Good to Know
This train commences its journey at Warszawa Wschodnia station, which is on the eastern side of the city centre.
It then calls at Warszawa Centralna, the main station in the city,
After departing from Warszawa Centralna it will then call at Warszawa Zachodnia.
So check the location of the starting point of your journey, to see which of these three stations will suit you best.
On departure from Warszawa Centralna the coaches/sleeping cars heading for Budapest are joined to other coaches heading to Wien and Praha.
If you can see a train on the departure indicators at 19:30 heading to Wien or Praha, then this information will also be referring to this train.
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