Berlin to Warsaw or Krakow from €27.90...

Comfortable EuroCity trains branded Berlin-Warszawa Express link Berlin Hbf & Warsaw Centralna, 570 km (356 miles) in around 5h30, with air-conditioned 1st & 2nd class seats & a restaurant car.  There's a daily EuroCity train from Berlin to Krakow called the Wawel and another EuroCity train from Berlin to Gdynia & Gdansk called the Gedania.  See travel tips...

  Timetable

  How much does it cost?

  How to buy tickets

  Route map

  What are the trains like?

  Food & drink on board

  Travel tips

Timetable eastbound 2023

Timetable westbound 2023

EC = Air-conditioned EuroCity train Berlin-Warszawa Express, 1st & 2nd class & restaurant car, see the photos below.

ECG = Air-conditioned EuroCity train Gedania, 1st & 2nd class & restaurant car, see the photos below.

ECW = Air-conditioned EuroCity train Wawel, 1st & 2nd class, restaurant car, see the photos below & see this video.

ECY = Air-conditioned EuroCity train, 1st & 2nd class, see the photos below, no restaurant, combined with Berlin-Vienna & Berlin-Budapest sleeper train.

Check times for your date of travel at www.bahn.de as they can vary, and occasionally trains can be diverted to use Berlin Gesundbrunnen instead of Berlin Hbf.

Berlin to Warsaw is 570 km (356 miles).  Berlin to Krakow is 603 km (375 miles).

Only direct trains are shown here, other departures are available between Berlin & Gdansk, Gdynia, Wroclaw & Krakow with a change of train, see www.bahn.de.

These trains also call at Berlin Ostbahnhof.  Trains to/from Warsaw also serve Warsaw Zachodnia & Warsaw Wschodnia.

How much does it cost?

• Advance-purchase fares start from €27.90 in 2nd class or €39.90 in 1st class.

  These are Sparpreis (savings) fares from Berlin to Warsaw, Krakow, Gdansk or Gdynia with variable prices & limited availability at each price level.  They are only good for the specific train you book, limited or no 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.

• The fully-flexible fare from Berlin to Warsaw or Krakow is around €67 in 2nd class or €104 in 1st class.

  The Flexpreis fare is what you pay if you want to stay flexible or buy a ticket at the station on the day.  Flexpreis tickets have unlimited availability, can't sell out.  They are good for any train that day, although a reservation is compulsory on these Berlin-Poland trains.

• 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 www.bahn.de.

How to buy tickets

• Buy tickets for EuroCity trains at the German Railways website www.bahn.de.  To book on a mobile device, use this link.

  Booking usually opens 60 days ahead.  More about when booking opens.  On this route, all tickets include a free reserved seat.

  You print your own ticket or can show it on your laptop or phone.

• You can also buy tickets from Polish Railways (PKP Intercity) at www.intercity.pl, but it's a little more fiddly and they don't offer free tickets for children under 15.

Route map

What are the EuroCity trains like?

1st class:  The Berlin-Krakow EuroCity train Wawel at Berlin.  Yellow stripe = 1st class.

There's usually just one 1st class car on each train.  On most Berlin-Warsaw trains it's a classic compartment car with a side corridor & comfortable carpeted 6-seater compartments (above left).  The best seats are obviously the two at the window.  On the Wawel from Berlin to Krakow it's an open-plan saloon (above right).  Click the images for larger photos.

2nd class:  The Berlin-Krakow EuroCity train Wawel at Berlin.  Green stripe = 2nd class.

Some 2nd class cars are open-plan saloon seating like this.  Click the images for larger photos.

Other 2nd class cars have compartments like this with side corridor & 6-seat compartments.  Click images for larger photos.

Food & drink

All these Berlin-Poland EuroCity trains have a Polish restaurant car, except the morning Wroclaw-Berlin & evening Berlin-Wroclaw trains.  The restaurant is staffed by Wars, the Polish train caterers.  Treat yourself to a meal and linger in the restaurant for an hour or two over a beer and a meal.  A tasty sausage soup, main course of schnitzel, potato & salad served on proper china, a beer and coffee for only around €10.  Euros & zlotys are both accepted, you must pay in cash whilst in Germany but when the train is in Poland they will normally accept credit cards too.  Of course, you're also free to bring your own picnic and beer or wine along and eat at your seat.

Tip:  Go to wars.pl/mwars and download the MWars app for Android or iPhone.  You can then use your phone to order food & drink from the restaurant car menu served at your seat (you tell them your car & seat number in the app).  Let me know how it goes!

The restaurant car on a Berlin-Warsaw express train. Red stripe = catering car.

The restaurant car on the Berlin-Krakow Wawel.  You don't need to reserve a table, just go along and sit down.  A steward will take your order...  Larger photo.

Zurek soup - an excellent tasty starter.		Kotlet schabowy, served on proper china...

Travel tips

• 1st or 2nd class?

  2nd class is absolutely fine for most travellers, there's no need to go 1st class unless you don't mind the extra cost.  The only difference is in the seating comfort.  But see what prices you get at www.bahn.de because sometimes 1st class doesn't cost much more than 2nd.  1st class simply means more leg and elbow room and usually a quieter environment.

• Do you need to book in advance?

  Reservation is compulsory on these Berlin-Poland trains and a reserved seat will automatically be included with your booking.  However, there are normally plenty of places available even on the day, the issue isn't availability, it's price:  In advance, fares start at €27.90, on the day you will pay the full-flex fare, over €60.  Cheaper to book ahead!

• Seating plan

  In 2nd class you can choose between a seat in an open-plan saloon or in a classic 6-seat compartment.  Some people prefer the 6-seat compartments, especially if they are a family or group of friends.  Most people including myself prefer open-plan seating as it feels more spacious, feels less confined and you get a better view through multiple windows.  It's your choice!

  In 1st class you may not get a choice as there's normally only one 1st class car.  On most trains it's a classic 6-seat compartment car, on the Berlin-Krakow Wawel it's an open-plan saloon car.

• 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 Poland use the east-west platforms above ground level, as opposed to the north-south platforms below ground.

  At stations, a poster on the platform shows where each car will stop along the platform.  This saves you running up and down like a headless chicken trying to find your car.  It also helps to know that on these Polish trains a yellow stripe above the windows means first class, a red stripe means catering car, a green stripe means 2nd class, as you can see in the photos above.

• Border controls

  Germany & Poland are both in Schengen, so there are normally no border controls, just occasional spot checks carried out on board the train as it crosses the border.  The border is at Frankfurt Oder just east of Berlin, where the river Oder separates the two countries.

• First class lounge

  If you have a 1st class Flexpreis ticket for these Berlin-Poland trains (but not advance-purchase Sparpreis or Supersparpreis or a railpass) you can use the excellent DB Lounge at Berlin Hbf located up one level from the main station entrance, on the left.  This has complimentary food, tea, coffee, beer & wine plus free WiFi.  There is now no first class lounge in Warsaw.

• Luggage

  You take your luggage with you onto the train and simply stick it on any suitable luggage rack.  Anything up to and including backpack-size will easily fit on the overhead racks above your seat.  The 2nd class open-plan car has a large luggage area at one end of the seating saloon - so perhaps choose the open plan car if you have vast suitcases.  More information about luggage on European trains.

• WiFi & power sockets

  WiFi is often available on the Berlin-Warsaw EuroCity trains, although not all cars are fitted.  Similarly, some cars will have power sockets, but not all are fitted.  There's reasonable mobile data coverage along the route.

• Food & drink - see the food & drink section above, and try downloading the MWars app!

• Bicycles can be taken on the Berlin-Warsaw, Berlin-Gydnia & Berlin-Krakow trains, but bike spaces need to be booked in advance.  You can do this at www.bahn.de.

• As well booking with German Railways www.bahn.de, you can also book these train at Polish Railways, www.intercity.pl.

Useful information

• Map of Berlin showing station - Map of Warsaw showing station.

• Berlin Hbf station information - Warsaw Centralna station information

• Left luggage lockers & offices in Berlin, Warsaw, Krakow.

• See general advice for European train travel.

Soon after leaving Frankfurt (Oder) an hour east of Berlin, the train crosses the River Oder into Poland.  This photo is taken looking south with the Oder forming the border.  That's Germany on the right, Poland on the left.  Courtesy of Marieke Krijnen.

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