Vienna to Prague
Trains from Vienna to Prague (2018 timetable):
| Train Number |
Rj1030 | RJ 70 | RJ 72 | Rj1032 | RJ 74 | RJ 76 | Rj1034 | RJ 78 | RJ 370 | Rj1036 | RJ 372 | EN 406* |
| Train Name |
RegioJet | Gustav Mahler |
Bedřich Smetana |
RegioJet | Franz Schubert |
Antonín Dvořák |
RegioJet | Johann Strauss |
Joseph Haydn |
RegioJet | W.A.Mozart |
Chopin |
|
Wien Hbf. (Vienna Central Station) |
6:30 |
7:10 | 9:10 | 10:30 | 11:10 | 13:10 | 14:30 | 15:10 | 17:10 | 18:30 | 19:10 | 22:10 |
| Brno | 8:05 | 8:36 | 10:36 | 12:07 | 12:36 | 14:36 | 16:07 | 16:36 | 18:36 | 20:07 | 20:36 | 00:54 |
|
Praha hl.n. (Prague Main Station) |
10:42 | 11:07 | 13:07 | 14:42 | 15:07 | 17:07 | 18:42 | 19:07 | 21:07 | 22:39 | 23:14 | 6:04 |
* EuroNight (EN) Chopin train is actually a Vienna to Warsaw train which is along with carriages the traveling to Poland has a group of through carriages Vienna-Prague, these carriages get reattached from 'Chopin' train to 'Metropol' (Budapest-Prague) at the Czech station Breclav
Trains Tickets from Vienna to Prague? When traveling between the capitals of Austria & Czech Republic potential passengers can purchase different types of train tickets, choosing the right type of rail ticket can save you a lot of money:
- easy & cheap option is discounted ticket called Sparschiene (one-way fare in 2nd class seat start from only 19 euro). Sparschiene tickets are offered for all the daytime RailJet (RJ) trains. However, you should keep in mind that the number of such discounted tickets is limited per each train departure, it means that there is certain quota of such cheap Spar tickets per each train on the route, once this cheap tickets quota is sold out next price level (e.g. 24 euro instead of 19) kicks in. Thus, earlier you buy the better chances you have to catch cheapest spar tickets. Sparschiene tickets Vienna-Prague can be purchased not later than 3 days before the actual journey (we have step by step guide on how to purchase train tickets via Austrian Railways website), obvioulsy unless quota of such ticket not sold out yet. Sparschiene tickets are issued for the specific train & date (exchange or refund is not allowed)
- since December 2017 Czech private train company RegioJet connected Vienna and Prague by rails, and unlike the state run Czech and Austrian railways, RegioJet has more like low-cost model when it comes to ticket prices. It means that potential passengers traveling between Austria and Czech Republic can enjoy very cheap tickets (starting from only 15 euro on Vienna to Prague route or just 7 euro on Vienna to Brno route), which can be purchased even on the day of the journey
- standard fare international one-way ticket Vienna to Prague (SCIC-NRT tariff) cost 66 euro, but it doesn't really make sense to purchase such ticket (see below), since it is way too expensive for this region of Europe and only for a four hour journey.
- besides the above mentioned options you can also consider couple totally legal ticket tricks, which might be of help to those who plan to travel between Vienna & Prague:
- Austrian Railways (OeBB) offer discounted Sparschiene tickets not only for the trips from Vienna to Prague, but also for shorter journeys from Austria to Czech Republic (e.g. Vienna to Břeclav & Vienna to Brno). So when 19 euro tickets from Vienna to Prague are already sold out there are still might be a chance that discounted tickets for somewhat shorter cross-border trips like Vienna to Brno (start from only 9 euro) are still available due to a separate quota of such discounted tickets. What you can do here is simply purchase 9 euro ticket Vienna-Brno from the Austrian Railways, while next just buy Czech domestic ticket Brno-Prague (you can do it even for the same train with which you'll arrive from Vienna) from Czechs, prices start from only 189 CZK (app. 7 euro). As you can see yourself, such combination is even cheaper than straight forward 19 euro spar ticket to Prague;
- in case you need to travel right away, meaning you have no chance to hunt for any spar tickets in advance, then simple 'break' of your ticket via border station can make your journey from Vienna to Prague about twice cheaper compared to the journey where you rely on the international ticket for the entire route. How the ticket 'break' works? Very simply! First you purchase international ticket from Vienna to the first Czech station (Břeclav) across the border (standard full fare price here is 16,90-20,40 euro, depending on the train category), while then buy separate Czech domestic ticket from Břeclav to Prague (maximum will cost you 437 CZK (app. 16 euro). If you purchase second ticket online via Czech Railways website & for the same train with which you'll be arriving from Vienna, then you won't even need to leave the train in Břeclav, but just show your second ticket and that's it.
- similar to the above trick is the ticket option with use of Austrian offer, but go the other way via Cesky Budejovice (or even beatiful Cesky Krumlov). Vienna-Ceska Budejovice tickets start from only 9 euro (Vienna-Cesky Krumlov - from 14 euro). While Czech domestic ticket from Cesky Krumlov to Prague start from 189 CZK, Ceske Budejovice to Prague - from 165 CZK.
- in case you travel not alone, but with friends or family it might make sense to consider purchase of the so-called Einfach-Raus-Ticket. Einfach-Raus Ticket is basically a daily group pass for 2-5 passengers traveling together on the entire Austrian rail network, it is valid for all the regional trains on weekdays (Monday till Friday) from 9 am till 3 am (next day), while on Saturdays, Sundays & holidays validity is the entire day. Einfach-Raus Ticket for 2 persons cost 34 euro, 3 persons - 38 euro, 4 person - 42 euro & 5 persons - 46 euro. The idea behind buying such pass is that you can use it on the expensive Austrian part of your trip, while for the Czech leg you can purchase much cheaper Czech domestic ticket/daily pass. To give an example, 4 passengers traveling from Vienna to Prague: Einfach-Raus Ticket to cover Vienna-Gmünd NÖ/Ceske Velenice (Austria/Czech border) will be 42 euro, while Czech domestic leg to Prague will cost 721 CZK (app. 28 euro) for all 4, thus it means each person pays about 17,5 euro (=70/4) for the whole trip. Much better than 66 euro with the international ticket for the entire route, right?
Alternatives? Perhaps you aren't in the mood to travel from Vienna to Prague using direct train, then you have a few other options to consider: a) you can always travel by bus (major bus companies operating on Vienna to Prague route are EuroLines, RegioJet/Student Agency & FlixBus); b) travel with stopover in some interesting place (e.g. already mentioned earlier Brno or Cesky Krumlov or even Slovak Bratislava); c) in case you in a hurry, then it's possible to fly from Vienna to Prague - Austrian Airlines offer direct flights between the capitals at least 3 times per day