The cafe/bars on the Eiffel Ter side of Budapest-Nyugati.

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

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

MAV Guide

MAV is the national railway operator in Hungary and its newly relaunched website is still at the 'beta' stage, but it can be used to make bookings.
The MAV website also sells tickets for the direct international trains from Hungary and it's booking path for overnight trains is particularly easy to follow.

On this journey

Journey Features

Day

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.

Between Warszawa and Katowice Between Warszawa and Katowice
The Slovakian countryside The Slovakian countryside
Between Slovakia and Vac Between Slovakia and Vac
Travelling by the Danube after the train has crossed into Hungary Travelling by the Danube after the train has crossed into Hungary

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

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

Night

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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