Back to Germany: From Prague to Frankfurt by Train

March 29, 2024September 28, 2024 Koen 0 Comments

This review shows you the different options to travel by rail between Prague and Frankfurt, and how the train journey actually is like.

Back to Germany by train

After a fun meet-up in Prague with my Czech friends, characterized by lots of beers and shots of borovička, it was time to return to Germany.

My journey to Prague was after all just a side trip, as I was actually heading to the Cyclades in Greece, and had to catch a flight from Frankfurt Airport to Athens.

So, a day after my fabulous trip from Hamburg to Prague by train, I was again back on the railway tracks for my trip to Frankfurt am Main, as the city is formally known.

hamburg berlin czech dining car berliner eurocity train prague — *The lovely dining car on the EuroCity train ‘Berliner’ which links Hamburg and Berlin with Prague. ©Paliparan*

svíčková czech dining car berliner eurocity train hamburg berlin prague — *Enjoying some delicious svíčková in the Czech dining car. ©Paliparan*

prague berlin hamburg eurocity train berliner — *The train between Hamburg, Berlin, and Prague traverses the stunning canyon of the River Elbe. ©Paliparan*

Trains between Prague and Frankfurt

If you want to travel by train from Prague to Frankfurt, or vice versa, you can choose between the direct night train or several daytime options, all of which involve at least one change of trains.

The total journey time for a train trip between Prague and Frankfurt is around 7 to 8 hours, depending on the exact departure and route you choose.

While the idea of a direct night train may sound appealing, it isn’t the best option in this particular case.

This specific night train is the Prague to Zurich sleeper train, which makes a stop in Frankfurt about halfway through its journey.

Although it’s a convenient choice if you need to travel between Prague and cities in Switzerland or southwestern Germany like Karlsruhe, Basel, or Zurich, the timing of this night train isn’t optimal for Frankfurt.

This Czech night train leaves Prague’s main station at 6.28pm and arrives in Frankfurt at the ungodly hour of 3.44am.

In the other direction, the times are only marginally better, as this night train departs Frankfurt Hbf at 00.52am and arrives in Prague at 9.42am.

Daytime trains are therefore the better option if you need to travel between Prague and Frankfurt – and there are three possible routes you can choose from.

private sleeper compartment czech night train — *A private sleeper compartment on a Czech night train. ©Paliparan*

Different daytime trains

Since there are no direct daytime trains between Prague and Frankfurt, you’ll need to change trains at least once, depending on the route you choose.

The first travel option involves a Czech EuroCity train from Prague towards Dresden, where you change to a German high-speed ICE train towards Frankfurt.

This would be my preferred choice, as it’s not only the most scenic route, but it also means that both of your trains will have a dining car available (on the other two routes, you will only have a dining car on your ICE train within Germany).

The second option involves taking the Prague-Munich express train as far as Regensburg, where you switch to an ICE train to Frankfurt.

The third option involves two connections, as you will first take a Czech express train from Prague to Cheb, where you change onto a regional train bound for Nuremberg, where you make the connection to an ICE train for Frankfurt.

Although it might seem like a less attractive option given that you have to change trains twice, it is usually the fastest and cheapest option.

However, it’s important to note that the price of a train ticket depends on demand, meaning that what might be the cheapest option for an early morning departure on a Saturday morning in a week from now could very well be the most expensive route if you check it for travel on Wednesday afternoon in three weeks.

Ultimately, I would recommend simply searching for trains on the day you want to travel and selecting the option with the cheapest price or the most suitable times for your needs.

All of the above options are available for booking on both the Czech Railways website and the German Railways website.

Although the Czech Railways usually have cheaper tickets available, it’s always worth comparing prices.

Do note the route via Cheb will only appear in online timetables and booking engines when you include Cheb as an intermediate stop.

You can do this by clicking on “more options” in the Czech Railways booking engine and then selecting “add intermediate station (via)” at the subsequent step, while on the German Railways website you simply click on “stopovers” and add Cheb there.

*There are three main rail routes between Prague and Frankfurt. ©OpenStreetMap/Paliparan*

Prague station

Having already travelled via Dresden on my way to Prague, I opted not to take this route for my journey to Frankfurt.

Instead, I would travel via Cheb and Nuremberg, which was by far the cheapest option when I searched for tickets.

For my 2nd class ticket from Prague to Frankfurt Airport I paid 495 CZK (€18).

My journey began in the wee hours of morning, as I already had to be at Prague’s main railway station (called Praha hlavní nádraží in Czech and often abbreviated as Praha hl.n on train timetables) around 6.30am.

While the main underground concourse of Prague’s central station may be rather unimpressive, the old station building is a stunning Art Nouveau gem.

You can access this old station hall by taking the escalator or lift up to platform 1 and entering the adjacent station building from there.

Also when you emerge from the modern underground passage and stand on one of the platforms, the station instantly becomes more impressive due to its beautiful train shed.

I headed to platform 2, where the ‘Západní expres’ (Western express) to Cheb was already waiting for boarding.

praha hlavni nadrazi — *The main entrance to Prague’s central railway station. ©Paliparan*

prague station — *The modern underground concourse of Prague’s central station, where you can find the ticket offices as well as some shops. ©Paliparan*

prague train station art nouveau — *The wonderful main hall of the old railway station building – which you should definitely visit if you are passing through Prague by train. ©Paliparan*

prague old station building art nouveau hl.n — *The gorgeous main hall of Prague’s old Art Nouveau station building. ©Paliparan*

prague art nouveau — *Prague’s old Art Nouveau station building. ©Paliparan*

Prague main railway station train frankfurt — *The train shed of Prague’s main railway station. ©Paliparan*

zapadni express train prague — *The first train of the day would be the ‘Západní expres’ from Praha hl.n. to Cheb. ©Paliparan*

Praha hl.n to Cheb by Czech InterCity train
Train IC 564 ‘Západní expres’
Departure: 6.43am – Arrival: 9.26am
Duration: 2h43m – Distance: 208 kilometres

railway route prague cheb train — *The route of the trains between Prague and Cheb. ©OpenStreetMap/Paliparan*

On the Západní express

The Západní express train from Prague to Cheb features comfortable seating in both 2nd and 1st class carriages.

The train typically consists of open-plan saloon cars but can sometimes also include compartment-style seating.

In second class, seating is two abreast at either side of the aisle, while in first class seats are in a 1+2 configuration.

Seat reservations on Czech InterCity trains like the Západní express are optional and never compulsory, but since they’re free when booking your ticket on the Czech Railways website, it’s a good idea to make them.

That said, I never found this train to be particularly crowded, and on this morning departure from Prague the carriages were mostly empty.

Shortly after leaving Prague’s main railway station, the train crosses the Vltava (Moldau) River and makes a stop at Prague Smíchov station, located on the river’s west bank.

The entire train journey from Prague to Cheb is quite pleasant, with the stretch between Beroun and Plzeň (Pilsen) being particularly enjoyable as the railway line runs through a river valley in this area.

As I only had a short night of sleep (and drank too much borovička the night before) I just slept throughout most of the journey this time.

prague cheb train — *Boarding the train from Prague to Cheb. ©Paliparan*

Západní express train second class carriage cheb prague frankfurt — *One of the second class carriages on the Západní express train to Cheb. ©Paliparan*

cheb railway station prague frankfurt — *Arriving in Cheb. ©Paliparan*

Cheb to Nürnberg Hbf by German Regional Express train
Train RE 33 (SP 5282)
Departure: 9.36am – Arrival: 11.22am
Duration: 1h46m – Distance: 155 kilometres

cheb nuremberg rail route — *The rail route between Cheb and Nuremberg. ©OpenStreetMap/Paliparan*

From Cheb to Nuremberg

Built in the 1960s, the railway station of Cheb oozes some fantastic retro vibes.

With just 10 minutes to change trains at Cheb, I however didn’t have much time to enjoy the surroundings.

Even though 10 minutes might seem like a short time to make this connection, I’ve never found it to be a particular problem as the Západní express is usually perfectly on time, and in case of a short delay, the railway staff might even hold your onward train to allow you to make the connection.

Usually, the train to Nuremberg is waiting on the opposite side of the platform where the train from Prague arrives, making this connection as easy as it gets.

The bright red Regional Express (RE) train of the German Railways (Deutsche Bahn) stands out among the blue-and-white trains of the Czech Railways.

This train is what the Germans call a “Neigezug” – a tilting train – as it slightly tilts in corners, allowing for higher speeds on twisty railway lines.

Officially, this type of train is known as a ‘Baureihe 612’ (series 612) or a RegioSwinger.

The Cheb to Nuremberg Regional Express train offers seating in both second and first class.

The seating layout is identical in both first and second class on this train, with both offering two-abreast seating, though first class has the advantage of being less crowded and featuring more plush seats.

There are no seat reservations on this train – so just pick any available seat you like.

Cheb to Nuremberg is a fairly pleasant railway line, traversing the hilly countryside of the Upper Franconia region of Bavaria.

That said, it wasn’t so spectacular that I felt compelled to stay awake for it, so once again, I slept through most of the journey, aided by the tilting movements of the train.

cheb railway station — *Retro vibes in the main hall of Cheb railway station. ©Paliparan*

cheb nuremberg train deutsche bahn regional express — *The Regional Express (RE) train from Cheb to Nuremberg. ©Paliparan*

second class regional express neigezug regioswinger nuremberg cheb — *Second class seats on the German regional train from Cheb to Nuremberg. ©Paliparan*

cheb nuremberg first class train — *First class seats on the train from Cheb to Nuremberg. ©Paliparan*

cheb nuremberg regional express train regioswinger prague frankfurt — *The Nuremberg-Cheb Regional Express train at Nürnberg Hbf (Nuremberg main station). ©Paliparan*

Nürnberg Hbf to Frankfurt Hbf by German ICE train
Train ICE 228
Departure: 11.30am – Arrival: 1.36pm
Duration: 2h06m – Distance: 226 kilometres

rail route nuremberg frankfurt am main — *The rail route from Nuremberg to Frankfurt am Main. ©OpenStreetMap/Paliparan*

Connecting in Nuremberg

At Nuremberg’s lovely railway station (known as Nürnberg Hbf, which stands for Hauptbahnhof, or main railway station, in German), I had only 8 minutes to change trains.

This is normally rather short, as Nuremberg’s station is large and German trains have the tendency to run late.

In case you do miss your connecting train, you can simply board the next available train to your destination, even if you have a non-flexible ticket.

If you have an important event to attend, or need to catch a connecting flight or must-make train, it is advisable to check if there is a later connection available that will still get you to your destination in due time when planning your journey.

Of course, if there were no subsequent departures that would have brought me to my destination in time, or if I had only 8 minutes to make the connection to the last train of the day, I would never have risked such a tight connection!

In my case, I actually missed my connection due to a slight delay of my train from Cheb to Nuremberg.

However, considering that there was another ICE departing to Frankfurt at 12pm, just half an hour later than my originally booked departure, it didn’t really matter much at all.

Nürnberg Hbf nuremberg railway station germany — *Nürnberg Hbf, the main railway station of Nuremberg. ©Paliparan*

ICE train to Frankfurt

My train from Nuremberg to Frankfurt was a German high-speed ICE train, which stands for InterCity Express.

Depending on the exact departure you choose, your ICE train from Nuremberg to Frankfurt may make stops at one or more of the biggest cities en route, such as Würzburg, Aschaffenburg, and Hanau.

Second class seats on ICE trains are arranged in a 2+2 configuration, while in first class, the seats are in a 1+2 configuration.

In addition to offering more shoulder room and a generally quieter environment, the first class seats are also more comfortable.

For a few euro, you can make a seat reservation on ICE trains, although this is completely optional.

In case you don’t make a seat reservation, you can just take any available seat.

The electronic display above each seat will indicate whether a seat is available or already reserved for a certain stretch of the journey.

Personally, I didn’t bother with a seat reservation, as I knew I would spend the entire duration of this journey in the dining car anyway.

nuremberg frankfurt ice train germany — *My InterCity Express (ICE) train to Frankfurt arrives at the station of Nuremberg. ©Paliparan*

second class seats ice train germany prague frankfurt — *Second class seats on the ICE train. ©Paliparan*

first class seats ice train germany prague frankfurt — *First class seats on the ICE train. ©Paliparan*

A meal in the dining car

ICE trains have a dining car where passengers can sit down for a drink, snack, or a full meal.

Although the service can be hit or miss – as German dining cars are known to occasionally run out of menu items or face issues like broken fridges and coffee machines – it remains a great place to relax on days when everything runs smoothly.

Today was such a day, as all the menu items were available, and the dining car attendants provided some cheerful service.

I enjoyed some lamb meatballs with potato, carrot, and pumpkin mash, which paired nicely with a German lager.

After the meal, I also treated myself to a brownie and a cup of coffee.

ice train dining car nuremberg frankfurt — *The dining car on my ICE train from Nuremberg to Frankfurt. ©Paliparan*

benediktiner hell beer — *Can’t go wrong with ordering a beer on a German train! ©Paliparan*

ice train dining car germany frankfurt prague — *Enjoying a tasty meal in the dining car on the ICE train. ©Paliparan*

kaffee kuchen dining car german railways deuthsche bahn — *Some “Kaffee und Kuchen” (coffee and cake) as dessert after my meal. ©Paliparan*

The journey to Frankfurt

As far as high-speed railway journeys go, the trip between Nuremberg and Frankfurt actually offers quite pleasant views.

This central part of Germany is quite hilly, and during your journey you will get the occasional glimpses of the River Main as it meanders through the valley.

Make sure to sit on the left-hand side when traveling from Nuremberg to Frankfurt in order to catch these views.

However, just before the train arrives in Frankfurt, the best views are on the right-hand side.

You’ll then be treated to some lovely views of the skyline of Frankfurt as your train approaches the main railway station of Germany’s financial hub.

Although the Frankfurt skyline pales in comparison to cities in the US or Asia, it’s still an impressive sight.

Frankfurt Hbf, the main railway station of the city, is certainly impressive, both for its size and its beautiful train shed.

As my final train did fortunately run on time, I only arrived 30 minutes later than originally planned in Frankfurt after a fun train trip from Prague.

nuremberg frankfurt scenery — *Scenery between Nuremberg and Frankfurt. ©Paliparan*

train view — *View from the train. ©Paliparan*

frankfurt hbf train prague — *Frankfurt Hbf comes into sight. ©Paliparan*

frankfurt railway station — *Rolling into Frankfurt’s main railway station. ©Paliparan*

On to the airport

However, I hadn’t arrived at my final destination just yet, as I still needed to travel from Frankfurt Hbf to Frankfurt Airport.

Although I would have had to change trains again at Frankfurt Hbf if I had caught my original train (which terminated at Frankfurt Hbf), this fortunately wasn’t necessary for this service.

As this Nuremberg-Frankfurt train didn’t terminate in Frankfurt but continued on towards Cologne and Dusseldorf, I could remain seated, as the next stop on its route to the Rhineland would be Frankfurt Airport.

Frankfurt Airport (called Frankfurt Flughafen in German) has two adjacent railway stations: The high-speed trains, such as my ICE, use the ‘Fernbahnhof’ (long-distance station, named ‘Frankfurt(M) Flughafen Fernbf’ in online timetables), while local and regional train services use the ‘Regionalbahnhof’ (Frankfurt(M) Flughafen Regionalbf).

From the railway station, it’s an easy 10-minute walk to the actual terminals of Frankfurt Airport.

After my enjoyable train trip from Prague to Frankfurt, I was soon to embark on an even more exciting journey as I would fly to Athens and catch a ferry out to the Cyclades!

frankfurt airport station ice train prague — *My ICE train has arrived at Frankfurt Airport. ©Paliparan*

frankfurt airport railway station — *The long-distance railway station at Frankfurt Airport. ©Paliparan*

frankfurt airport check-in terminal — *Check-in hall at one of the terminals of Frankfurt Airport. ©Paliparan*

Conclusion

Travelling by train between Prague and Frankfurt is not only extremely straightforward, but also makes for a highly comfortable and fun journey.

As there are no direct daytime trains between Prague and Frankfurt, you need to change trains at least once during your journey.

The route from Prague to Frankfurt via Dresden is arguably the most scenic and comfortable, while the route from Prague to Frankfurt via Cheb and Nuremberg is faster and often cheaper.

Whatever rail route you ultimately decide to take, you’re in for a fun trip through some scenic parts of Germany and the Czech Republic.

Although the total journey time of around 7 to 8 hours between Prague and Frankfurt might seem long, it passes quicker than you would expect as you enjoy the views from the window or enjoy a nice meal and a drink in the dining car.