Wien / Vienna to Praha / Prague / Prag by train

How to take a train journey from Wien/Vienna to Praha/Prague

When taking the train on the straightforward journey between the Austrian and Czech capital cities, travellers have a choice between taking a Railjet, operated by either the Austrian or Czech national railway companies, or a Regiojet train.
Regiojet is a private company that offers alternative services when taking trains from Vienna/Wien to Prague/Praha.

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Routes

Option 1: taking the Railjet trains

Tickets

Book early and save: Yes

Online bookings open: 6* months ahead of the travel date

*3 months ahead on cd.cz (which is the Czech Railways ticket booking service)

If you're not booking more than 3 months ahead, it can be worth comparing prices on OBB and cz.cd;  though the prices on cd.cz will be in Czeck korunas, so you'll need to use a currency converter.
On cd.cz look for the journeys 'without transfers' and have (RJ) displayed.

If you will be travelling this route with a 2nd class [rail pass](/train-ticket-guides/how-to-use-a-rail-pass-in-popular-countries/** during the day between June and October, then reservations are recommended, these can be busy trains.

Where to book
Ticket Provider Approximate Cost
OBB from €14.90

OBB Guide

OBB is the national rail operator and its booking service offers journeys by express trains within Austria, as well as international journeys which don't involve making a connection outside of Austria.

It pays off to book online, as the discounted 'Sparscheine' tickets are only ever made available on the website, and when making international journeys to and from Austria, these Sparscheine tickets tend to be cheaper.
OBB can offer particularly good value for money when travelling with children on international rail journeys, but something to watch out for when travelling between Austria and Germany on daytime trains, is that reservations are an optional extra; but if you book 1st class tickets with the Germany railways website DB, the reservations are complimentary.

OBB often takes a unique approach to its booking path, but a key thing to keep in mind is that the first price you will see for any journey is that of a Second Class seat.
The costs of upgrading to first class, a reservation, or a sleeping cabin etc, is then added to this price.

cd.cz from 524 czk

cd.cz Guide

CD is the national rail operator in Czechia and its very smart online booking service sells tickets for all express train services which it operates within Czechia, as well international journeys by EC, Railjet, SuperCity and overnight trains.
Some express trains, both within and to/from Czechia are operated by LeoExpress and Regiojet and these cannot be booked with CD.

CD also sells international tickets involving changes of train outside of Czechia for end-to-end journeys:

  • to Belgium
  • destinations in Germany not served by direct trains
  • to Paris
  • to Arhus, Copenhagen and Odense in Denmark
  • to destinations in Italy served by the overnight trains from Austria
  • to Luxembourg
  • to destinations in the The Netherlands, including Amsterdam, which are on the route of the direct trains from Berlin
  • to destinations in Romania, including Bucuresti served by the direct day and night trains from Budapest.

In addition to tickets, seat reservations, reservations for bicycles, plus reservations for couchettes and sleeping cabins, can also be booked online with CD, with no booking fees.

Trainline from €14.90

Trainline Guide

On this journey

Journey Features

Scenic - NoNot High Speed

Good to Know

On the Trainline website these trains are shown as 'OBB' which is the name of the national rail company in  Austria, but a mix of mainly Czech (CD) railjets and some Austrian (OBB) railjets are used on this route.

Comparing these two train services:

Final Destination of both services: Prag (the German spelling of Prague/Praha)

All trains on both services also call at: Breclav, Brno, Pardubice

Journey times:

the Railjets = 3hr 57min;
the Regiojet trains = 4hr 3min

Frequency:

the Railjets = 7 x trains per day, trains depart every other hour in odd hours
the Regiojet trains =  4 x trains per day on Mon -Sat; 3 x departures on Sundays

The on board experience:

The Railjet trains offer three levels of service and the Regiojet trains have four levels of service.

A key difference between the two services is catering
Railjets = a bar car offering hot and cold food to all passengers, plus an at seat service of a full menu in first and business class
Regiojets = a catering trolley with no hot food available and this service is not available in 'Low Cost' class.

Ticketing summary:

Tickets can usually be booked for the Railjet trains from 6 months ahead, but tickets for the Regiojet trains can only be booked around 3 months ahead.
The very cheapest tickets for the Raiijets are a similar price to those on the Regiojets, but when they are sold out, you can often save money by taking a Regiojet.
In contrast to the tickets for the Railjets, advance tickets on the Regiojets are not discounted.

The Trainline sells tickets for both services, BUT only sells the tickets for 'Low Cost' class on the Regiojet trains.

If you want to compare the complete costs of travelling in ANY class, you can look up the journeys by the Railjet trains on the OBB (Austrian national railways) OR on the CD (Czech national railways) websites on the ticket links above.
The journeys by Regiojet trains will then have to be looked up separately on its website. (Regiojet mainly sells long distance bus tickets.

Option 2: taking the Regiojet trains

Travel Information

Final Destination: Praha

All trains also call at: Breclav, Brno, Pardubice

Mon - Sat = 4 x trains per day
Sun = 3 x trains per day

Tickets

Book early and save: No, not on these Regiojet trains

Online bookings open: around three months ahead of the travel date

Tickets must be booked online.

Reservations are complimentary, seats will be assigned when making a booking

Rail passes are NOW valid on these trains.

Where to book
Ticket Provider Approximate Cost
Regiojet from €15

Regiojet Guide

cd.cz from 524 czk

cd.cz Guide

CD is the national rail operator in Czechia and its very smart online booking service sells tickets for all express train services which it operates within Czechia, as well international journeys by EC, Railjet, SuperCity and overnight trains.
Some express trains, both within and to/from Czechia are operated by LeoExpress and Regiojet and these cannot be booked with CD.

CD also sells international tickets involving changes of train outside of Czechia for end-to-end journeys:

  • to Belgium
  • destinations in Germany not served by direct trains
  • to Paris
  • to Arhus, Copenhagen and Odense in Denmark
  • to destinations in Italy served by the overnight trains from Austria
  • to Luxembourg
  • to destinations in the The Netherlands, including Amsterdam, which are on the route of the direct trains from Berlin
  • to destinations in Romania, including Bucuresti served by the direct day and night trains from Budapest.

In addition to tickets, seat reservations, reservations for bicycles, plus reservations for couchettes and sleeping cabins, can also be booked online with CD, with no booking fees.

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