booking Polish train
Replies: 15 - Last Post: Mar 29, 2012 4:53 PM Last Post By: WaterhazardJack
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I travelled quite extensively by train in Poland last year and always got my tickets the day before departure at the station. Even for the Intercity - faster, more comfortable and the only Polish train service that can be halfway expected to arrive on time - connection between Krakow and Warsaw this was no problem. Be warned, however, that most PKP employees appear to be septagunarian women with no mastery of the English language: they're without exception very keen to help, but to simplify procedures make sure you know to pronounce the name of your destination in Polish, alternatively write it down.W.
(PS! You're not saying exactly when you're travelling, which could be a crucial factor as between June 8th and July 1st Poland (and Ukraine) host Euro 2012, during which time public transport capacity will be tested to its limits and quite possibly beyond.)
Edited by: walkingmzungu
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#1 is right. In three visits to Poland I've only ever encountered one English-speaking PKP ticket seller.There's no advantage to booking tickets well in advance, train tickets are affordable even if you only book a day or two in advance, or even on the day of travel. You can purchase tickets onboard as well, though expect to pay a little more for this.
Make sure you check your tickets carefully before leaving the ticket window and that things like times, dates and destination are correct, they have been known to make the odd error when issuing your ticket.
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You don't need to buy tickets in advance, most Polish trains don't have seat reservation in 2nd class so you buy your ticket and look for some free spot. Only 1st class in TLK trains and all seats in InterCity trains require reservations. There are also domestic flights with Eurolot and OLT Express airlines. Sometimes cheaper than InterCity trains.4
Re reservations: even when they are compulsory, some locals take the view that a reservation is valid if and only if you get to your reserved seat first (preferrably before the train has pulled out of the station). Otherwise it's up for grabs. I love Poland and would go back anytime, but have a hard time deciding whether I think this habit is charmingly eccentric or simply downright rude.W.
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I've done Poland trains quite a bit - and never booked earlier than the night before.Even then, it wasn't necessary.
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Re reservations: even when they are compulsory, some locals take the view that a reservation is valid if and only if you get to your reserved seat firsthave a hard time deciding whether I think this habit is charmingly eccentric or simply downright rude
My view....
It's Eastern Europe - and traditional.
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Re reservations: even when they are compulsory, some locals take the view that a reservation is valid if and only if you get to your reserved seat first (preferrably before the train has pulled out of the station). Otherwise it's up for grabs. I love Poland and would go back anytime, but have a hard time deciding whether I think this habit is charmingly eccentric or simply downright rude.
Indeed it is customary in Poland to somehow take up your seat soon after getting on the train - which usually means leaving something on/close to the seat, like hanging your jacket, putting a newspaper on the seat etc - or just telling fellow passangers that this is your seat and you'll return later. If after say 15 mins after departure a seat has no signs of being taken by someone, it is assumed free.
I personally was several times in the situation you describe - getting on the train at an intermediate station with someone sitting on my reserved seat. There were never any problems with freeing up the place for me. You might have either had bad luck, or it might have been some language related issues.
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#7Of course it's customary to take your seat asap - in every country I've visited at least. My point was that sometimes someone - a young male on each occasion - would already sit there and refuse to move. There was quite obviously language-related problems - not all Poles speak good English; I only speak a few words of Polish - but numbers on tickets are rather hard to misinterpret.
Anyway: my remark wasn't intended as a criticism of Polish people - whom, on the whole, I found very generous, open and friendly - just an observation which might be useful to OP.
W.
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A quick aside...how long is the train ticket in Poland valid for?...I'm presuming it's valid for a day and you can break the journey, if desired?...
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Poland is not Eastern Europe but Central Europe. Not geografically, traditionally nor historically. It wasnt a part of Soviet Union:)
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A quick aside...how long is the train ticket in Poland valid for?...
I'm presuming it's valid for a day and you can break the journey, if desired?...
I'm presuming it's valid for a day and you can break the journey, if desired?...
Tickets for Przewozy Regionalne and Arriva trains are valid for 1 day (until midnight). Stopovers are permitted.
PKP Intercity tickets are valid for 24hrs from the hour indicated on the ticket (not from the hour you embark on your train). Stopovers are permitted. Unless you travel for a distance shorter than 100 km on PKP Intericty trains: then the ticket is valid 6 hours (or longer if getting from A to B within the 6 hours the ticket is valid is impossible) and stopovers are not permitted. Changing trains is not considered a stopover if you always take the first possible train going to your destination.
