Hi!
Planning a trip round several central/eastern europe countries this summer and having a problem finding a train that will get us from budapest to krakow (from here we will fly home).
Does anyone have any suggestions or routes that they have taken? We are on a tight schedule so dont want to spend hours on a train, would consider stopping in slovakia to break it up but again the rail links seem weird.
Lastly the only overnnight train to krakow from budapest gets u into krakow at 5.45 am would we be able to check in anywhere at this time if we took this option?
Sorry for all the qs! any help would be much appreciated! this is the last bit of our planning and are a bit stuck!
Thanks!

Hostels in Eastern Europe tend to be more easygoing about check-in times if they aren't too full. Last summer I arrived in Sarajevo at 4am and checked in at 5, then proceeded to go to sleep so technically got a free night.

Otherwise, walk round the city a bit and do some sightseeing while the place is still quiet, then go and check-in later.

I'll answer your last question first: You can call the hostel/hotel ahead of time and see if they'd let you check in at 5/6ish. Chances are probably not, but it doesn't hurt to see. You can also book ahead for the night before and then that would really just be a late check in. If neither of these options will work, they'll probably let you drop your luggage off so you can go hang out while waiting for your room.

Since you're traveling through different countries, you have to stop at the borders of each and switch trains, which will add a lot of time on your trip. That's really why there's no direct route even though it's really not that far! One option which may seems silly would be to fly from Budapest into Warsaw (via Wizzair.com) and then take the train down to Krakow. You'd really overshoot your destination, but it's less than a three hour train ride and only about an hour flight. They have almost daily flights and I'm sure you could sinc up the train ride to coincide nicely with the flight. Just a suggestion!

Good luck!

Im sure most hostels will at least let you drop your luggage off when you get there.

in fact ive booked the dodo hostel in krakow for my trip in the summer, and im pretty sure it said 24 hour check in when we booked as we are planning on arriving at a similar time as you.

Plus its gonna get pretty busy during the summer, so it might be nice to get to see a bit of the city in the early morning while its still quiet

We did the reverse - Krakow to Budapest - a few summers back. We booked on an overnight train, and while it was long and we did travel via Slovakia, we didn't have to change trains along the way. Just showed our passports sleepily at borders, and went back to sleep. We did have a sleeping compartment, which was probably more restful than coach. I think the trip was close to 12 hours, but I do remember spending a fair while stopped at the borders, so the actual travel time may vary a bit. Traveling overnight can help fit a long ride into your schedule - I don't think you'd gain anything by breaking the trip in Slovakia.

Check out Nathan's Villa Hostel in Krakow. We stayed there and they were extremely accommodating - it would be worth asking about their early/late check-in policies. I'm pretty sure there was someone at the desk 24 hours.

:tumbleweed:

Thats gr8 thatnks for ul ur tips!! :-)

Well if you were worried about time schedules you can fly on LOT airlines info for them can be found here they have flights for about £60 for a single. Seeing as most single rail tickets from Budapest to Krakow are the same price as a return £50 you might want to opt for a flight :cheers: