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Buy tickets from Berlin to Prague at int.bahn.deBuy direct from Deutsche Bahn, no booking fee, and print your own ticket or show it on your phone or laptop. |
Berlin - Prague by train from 18.90
Comfortable air-conditioned EuroCity trains with restaurant car & free WiFi link Berlin and Prague every two hours, 388 km (241 miles) in 4 hours, centre to centre with great scenery along the Elbe & Vlatava rivers. Train is the way to go, an experience in itself - Watch the video!
Trains from Berlin to
other destinations
Trains from Prague to
other destinations
Train times southbound 2024
Train times northbound 2024
Timetable notes
EC = EuroCity train Berliner, air-conditioned 1st & 2nd class with restaurant car, CD (Czech Railways) train.
ECH = EuroCity Hungaria, air-conditioned 1st & 2nd class with restaurant car, MAV (Hungarian Railways) train.
Railjet = Czech railjet train Vindobona, to/from Vienna. Air-conditioned 2nd class, 1st class & business class with restaurant car.
Treat these times as a guide, always check times for your own date of travel at int.bahn.de.
Berlin to Prague is 388 km or 241 miles by train.
How much does it cost?
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Advance-purchase fares start at 18.90 in 2nd class or 27.90 in 1st class.
Sparpreis (savings) fares are advance-purchase fares with dynamic prices & limited availability at each price level. They are only good for the specific departure you book, limited refunds, no changes to travel plans. A round trip is two one-ways. If you're happy to book ahead and commit to a specific train, this is what you want. Book early & avoid popular days for the cheapest prices.
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The fully-flexible fare is around 80-95 in 2nd class or 140-160 in 1st class.
The Flexpreis is what you pay if you want to stay flexible or buy a ticket at the station on the day. Flexpreis tickets are good for any Berlin-Prague train that day, unlimited availability, can't sell out. The price varies by date.
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Children: Children under 6 go free, no ticket required. Children under 15 also go free when accompanied by a parent or grandparent on a Sparpreis fare and added to the booking at int.bahn.de. This offer is not available if you book at www.cd.cz.
How to buy tickets
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Buy tickets at the German Railways website int.bahn.de.
Booking opens up to 6 months ahead, but dates after the mid-December timetable change usually open mid-October. More about when booking opens. I recommend registering when prompted, as you can then log in at any time to check or re-print your tickets.
You print your own ticket or can show it on your laptop or phone.
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Seat reservations
Seat reservations are optional but recommended for a small extra charge, 5.20 in 2nd class, 6.50 in 1st class, see travel tips.
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Stopover in Dresden?
You can include a stopover at Dresden at no extra cost. Before running the enquiry at int.bahn.de, simply click Stopovers, enter Dresden and a length of stay of up to 48 hours. There are left luggage lockers available at Dresden if you need them.
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Only one passenger name is needed
If you buy one ticket covering several people, only one name is necessary to verify that the print-your-own ticket is yours.
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Or buy from Czech Railways
You can also buy tickets in either direction at the Czech Railways website www.cd.cz, see advice on using it.
It's worth checking www.cd.cz as fares are often cheaper than on int.bahn.de for exactly the same train. Seat reservation is only 3 in both classes instead of 5.20/ 6.50, and on this route www.cd.cz lets you choose your seat from a seat map (although it doesn't know which way round the car will be, so doesn't know which seats face forward or which side will be next to all that Elbe river scenery).
You print your own ticket or you can show it on your phone, tablet or laptop.
What are the trains like?
The EuroCity trains between Berlin & Prague are run jointly by the German, Czech, Hungarian & Austrian national railways. Most Berlin-Prague trains use modern CD (Czech Railways) EuroCity cars branded Berliner, as shown below.
There are two exceptions: The 09:16 from Berlin & 14:28 from Prague is the EuroCity Hungaria to/from Budapest, this uses smart air-conditioned Hungarian coaches & Hungarian restaurant car see the photos here. The 06:15 from Berlin & 17:31 from Prague is the Czech railjet Vindobona to/from Vienna, see the photos here.
The usual formation for the Czech trains is: 2 x 2nd class open plan car, 3 x 2nd class cars with 6-seat compartments, restaurant car, 1st class open-plan car. However, extra cars are added at peak times and formations vary. The 1st class car is normally at the front in the Berlin>Prague direction, at the back Prague>Berlin.
Coming in late summer 2024, new ComfortJet carriages. From late summer 2024, CD's brand-new ComfortJet carriages will start operating some services on the Berlin-Prague route. Similar to the InterJet carriages shown here, they will ultimately be 9 cars push-pull trains with restaurant car and a welcome extra 2 cars compared to most of today's trains, but in the early stages they will consist of 7 cars plus an older restaurant car.
The first class car of the EuroCity train EC174 Robert Schumann boarding in Berlin. Click the images below for larger photos.
1st class seats. Seats are usually in an air-conditioned open-plan saloon, arranged 2+1 across car width, some face to face, some face to back, some tables for 4, some tables for 2. Power sockets at all seats & free WiFi. Larger photo.
The restaurant car. All Berlin-Prague trains have a restaurant car serving inexpensive snacks, drinks and complete meals, located between the 1st class car and the rest of the train. Euros, Koruna & credit cards are accepted. Having lunch or dinner as the train snakes through the beautiful Elbe river valley is a real treat! There are no table reservations, just go along and sit down. There's a separate counter if you want to take snacks or drinks back to your seat. A refreshment trolley may also make its way along the train with tea, coffee, beer, wine and snacks. Larger photo.
2nd class seats are mostly in classic 6-seat compartment cars like this, air-conditioned, power sockets & free WiFi.
There are one or two open-plan saloon cars, which I personally prefer. Air-conditioned, power sockets, free WiFi.
Route map
Green = scenic section Map extract by kind permission of the European Rail Timetable people. I recommend buying this map for your European travels with shipping worldwide at www.europeanrailtimetable.eu. |
Travel tips
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1st or 2nd class?
2nd class is absolutely fine, there's no need to go 1st class unless you don't mind the extra cost. But see what prices you get at int.bahn.de because 1st class sometimes doesn't cost much more. 1st class simply means more leg and elbow room and usually a quieter environment. 1st class also gets you solo seats and tables-for-two on one side of the aisle, as seats are arranged 2+1 across the car width rather than 2+2 as in 2nd class.
The once-per-day railjet train (marked Railjet in the timetables above) also has business class, a premium 1st class for which you pay 15 on top of any 1st class fare or railpass. See the photos here.
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Power sockets, WiFi & toilets
There are power sockets at all seats in both classes on all train types. Each car has at least one toilet, usually two. There's good mobile data reception along most of the route.
The cars owned by CD (Czech Railways) have free WiFi with unlimited data whilst in the Czech Republic, Slovakia or Hungary, but data may be limited whilst the train is in Germany. The railjet & Hungaria also have free WiFi in all classes.
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Luggage
You can pretty much take any luggage you like, nobody cares how much it weighs or what size it is. You take it with you onto the train and put it on the luggage rack, there's plenty of luggage space in both classes. The racks above your seat take anything up to backpack-size, the racks at the end of each open-plan saloon car will take large suitcases. In compartment cars, large items just go on the floor. More about luggage on European trains.
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A seat reservation is recommended
A seat reservation is optional on Berlin-Prague trains. If you choose not to reserve you sit in any empty unreserved seat - a small paper label or electronic display above each seat shows whether it is reserved or not.
However, I strongly recommend reserving a seat as these trains get very busy. You can add a seat reservation when you book, int.bahn.de charges 5.20 per seat in 2nd class, 6.50 in 1st class.
It's not possible to specify a seat facing direction of travel on these trains as the reservation system knows the carriage layout but cannot predict which way round the carriage will be marshalled in the train. But you can request a window or aisle seat, a seat in an open-plan saloon or a 6-seat compartment, or a seat with a table (tisch in German), which means face-to-face seats at a fixed wooden table. All seats in fact have small drop-down tables.
If you already have a ticket (or Eurail or Interrail pass) you can make a reservation-only booking for only 3 at www.cd.cz, see the instructions here.
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Seat selection from a seat map
On Berlin-Prague trains you can select your seats from a seat map when using Czech Railways www.cd.cz, but not using German Railways at int.bahn.de. And it's cheaper to make reservations at www.cd.cz, 3 rather than 5.20!
At www.cd.cz, you can either buy your ticket & reservation together, or you can make a seat reservation on its own to go with any existing ticket or pass, select a train and look for the Reservations only box at the top of the search results. Then watch out for the Select seats from the seating map link.
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Which side for the best scenery?
The best scenery is on the left hand side going south from Berlin to Prague, right hand side going north from Prague to Berlin, as that's the side the rivers Elbe & Vlatava are on. You cannot specify which side you sit if you make a seat reservation for the reason explained above, but you can always switch sides to any free unreserved seat.
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Saloon or compartment?
If you choose to reserve, the site asks if you prefer an open-plan saloon or a seat in a traditional 6-seater-compartment. On the Berlin-Prague EuroCity trains there's usually only one 1st class car with open-plan seating - there are usually no 1st class compartments. In 2nd class there may be both classic cars with a side-corridor and 6-seat compartments and perhaps one car with open-plan saloon seating. Some people prefer classic 6-seat compartments, especially if they are a family or a group of friends, I personally prefer open-plan seating as it feels more spacious, less confined and you get a better view through multiple windows. It's your call! On your ticket it will say Abteil for compartment, or Grossraumwagen for open-plan car.
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Seat maps: Click here for train seat maps. Check the train formation first!
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Prague Hlavni or Prague Holesovice?
Normally, all trains use Prague Hlavni, which is the main station in the centre, walking distance from Prague's old town and most hotels. They also call at Prague's secondary station, Prague Holesovice, further from the centre. It's easy enough to transfer by local train, metro or taxi between Prague Holesovice and the city centre, but Prague Hlavni is better located.
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First class lounges
In Berlin, 1st class passengers with a Flexpreis fare (but not a 1st class railpass or advance-purchase Sparpreis or Super Sparpreis fare) can use the DB lounge at Berlin Hbf, with complimentary tea, coffee, juice, wine & beer, see here for details.
In Prague, there is a more basic Czech Railways CD lounge at Prague Hlavni, but so underwhelming I suggest waiting in the excellent Fantova Kavαrna (Cafe Fanta) upstairs in the historic station building instead - located in what was once the historic station's main entrance hall.
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Boarding your train
As with virtually all European trains, there's no check-in. Just stroll into the station, find your train and get on, any time before it leaves. The doors may be closed a minute before departure. At Berlin Hbf, trains to Prague use the north-south platforms 1-8 down the escalators below ground level, as opposed to the east-west lines above ground level. See Berlin Hbf station guide. See Prague Hlavni station guide.
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Bicycles
Bicycles can be taken on Berlin-Prague trains, bike spaces must be booked in advance, you can add a bike to your booking at int.bahn.de.
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Restaurant car
The restaurant car is open to everyone, and having a sit-down waiter-served meal on a crisp white tablecloth served on proper china as the scenery glides by is a real treat. There are no table reservations, just go along and sit down. You can use the counter at the other end of the car if you want to buy snacks or drinks to take back to your seat. On most departures it's a Czech restaurant car run by catering subsidiary JLV, you can see current menus by route at www.jidelnivozy.cz if you use Google translate and hunt around a bit. Euros and Koruna are accepted in the restaurant car, as are major credit cards - but take cash if you can, as the credit card machine relies on mobile phone reception. You may find that at designated times happy hour applies and the prices are lower!
Useful links
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Map of Berlin showing station - Map of Prague showing station.
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Left luggage lockers in Berlin & Prague - General advice & tips for European train travel.
Berlin to Prague by train, in pictures
Berlin's impressive Hauptbahnhof, opened in 2006. It's just 17 minutes walk past the Reichstag to the Brandenburg Gate. See Berlin Hbf station guide.
Boarding the lunchtime EuroCity train to Prague. At Berlin Hbf, the north-south platforms are below ground level, reached by massive escalators or lifts.
Dinner in the diner, or in this case, lunch.
The historic Dresden Hauptbahnhof was built in 1898. The station has a unique layout, a terminus in the centre at ground level, flanked by through tracks on either side raised up on viaducts.
South of Dresden the train starts running along the pretty river Elbe, or Labe in Czech. One of Europe's major rivers, the Elbe eventually flows into the North Sea at Cuxhaven near Hamburg. Watch for river boats, even the occasional paddle steamer.
Last stop in Germany is the pretty spa town of Bad Schandau, pictured above on the far bank of the Elbe. Soon afterwards the train crosses into the Czech Republic. Spot checks are possible, but usually there are no border formalities to speak of.
First stop in the Czech Republic is Decin, where the imposing Decin Castle (pictured above) overlooks the river and railway. Once home to the Bohemian kings, the castle was used by the Soviet army from 1968 until 1991.
More picturesque scenery along the river Elbe. The river views are all on the left hand side going south from Berlin to Prague, or on the right hand side going north from Prague to Berlin.
Above left, the 14th century Strekov Castle towers over the 1935 Strekov Dam, just south of Usti Nad Labem. The train leaves the Elbe and starts running along the river Vlatava. Above right, the train finally crosses the broad Vlatava as it approaches Prague. Passengers with sharp eyes can spot Prague's old town cathedral towers in the far distance on the right of the train.
Arrival at Prague Hlavni (main station), right in Prague city centre.
The station is just 15 minutes walk from the old town square, and 20 minutes from the famous Charles Bridge.
Video: Berlin to Prague by train