Krakow to Budapest Overnight Train
Krakow worked out just as I planned. I wanted to escape the heat of Odessa so I took train to Krakow. When I arrived in Krakow Glowny railway station, the temperature was about 25 degrees Celsius. Then a storm came through and the temperature dropped to about 15 degrees and I had to put on a sweater for the first time since May.
Photo courtesy of Amazing Travel Photos
The weather was perfect in Krakow for the three days I spent there. Krakow is a beautiful old city with a huge old town square. You can find traditional Polish food like pirogies and smalec. Krakow is like a miniature version of Prague.
The contrast between Poland and Ukraine, where I just came from, is striking. Poland has advanced quite far since 1990 and seems to be up to western European standards. Ukraine has much further to go. One thing that is holding them back is the amount of corruption and the oligarchy. All the wealth is concentrated in a very few hands–the rest of the people are barely scraping by.
Photo courtesy of Amazing Travel Photos
I had a great time visiting Krakow. Unfortunately, I could not stay longer in Krakow because I had to move on. My next stop is Budapest. I went to Krakow Glowny, which is the main train station, to enquire about international train schedules. First I headed to the Information window. The agent spoke very little English, but I managed to get him to print a couple of train schedules. It turns out there is just one overnight train that leaves at 22.11 in the evening and arrives in Budapest at 8.32 the next morning.
To purchase the ticket, make sure you go to the window that says Mezinarodny which means international. The ticket agent there spoke very good English. They had a special price of around 150 Zloty for the ticket, which I think worked out to about 37.50 Euros.
Catching the Night Train
I arrived at the station about one hour before the train would depart. I changed my Zloty into Euros so I wouldn’t be stuck with Polish money in Budapest. I checked the big board and my train would be on Track 3.
Usually the train is ready for boarding about 1/2 hour ahead of time. But the time for the train came and went and still no train. There were a lot of English-speaking backpackers waiting in the platform for this train. Some cars go to Prague, some to Vienna and some to Budapest. The way these trains work is different cars have different destinations. They take the trains apart and put them together along the route.
Finally the train pulled into the station at about 22.40. We found our car to Budapest and boarded the train with our bags. I ended up sharing a 6-bed cushette with five Irish girls. They were pretty funny. I had a bottom bunk and it was amusing watching these girls them climb up into the upper bunks like circus acrobats!
The map shows a direct driving route to Budapest through Slovakia. But our train actually went through Ostrava in the Czech Republic and then through Bratislava and Novy Zamky, Slovakia before entering Hungary. There used to be passport control at all the borders, but no more. Today, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary are all part of the Schengen Region which means there is no passport control. (I have heard that occasionally there might be passport checks.)
We arrived in Budapest about 9.30 the next morning, about one hour late. If you have not already booked a room in Budapest, you can always go to the tourist information office located just to the right of the main station exit. They always seem to have something available. I find it convenient not to always have to book everything in advance.