Trip to Budapest/Lviv/Warsaw/Vilnius

The only Budapest-Lviv train run I see on the Deutsche Bahn website that has sleeping accommodations takes 18-1/2 hours. I can't imagine doing that. There are two changes (the first at 6:25 AM), and there are ten stops between 10 PM and 6 AM. If you don't sleep well on a train that is constantly stopping and re-starting, you may be miserable the first day or two you are in Lviv.

I think you're cutting both Budapest and Warsaw quite short--especially Budapest, given that it's your first stop. You may well be totally brain-dead after the overnight transatlantic flight. I've learned not to expect to accomplish anything at all on my arrival day.

Per Polrail, more like 14 hours.

Train #D40147
Depart: Budapest-Keleti pu 19:40
Arrive: Lvov 10:10
sleeper. I believe that the wheel gauge is changed on the cars without moving passengers at the border. I will check it out. I had heard there was a direct Ryan Air flight at one time but it no longer exists.

I know it seems like alot but a few years back we did Munich, Prague, Krakow, Wroclaw, and Berlin in pretty much the same 2 week window and had a great time including bike tours (some at night) and some private tours, museums, historic sites, concerts, etc. We are not shoppers, beach loungers, and do not linger 4 hours over dinner or at bars though we do respect those who do. We want to get a taste of each place as we will probably never get back to this area again.

Deutsche Bahn says the train has a sleeper only up to Zahony (1:10 AM). Does Polrail say the sleeper is attached to the train all the way to Lviv?

Based on your success with the previous 2-week itinerary, this one could work for you. I tend to wallow in museums. I try to adjust for that in my posts, but I don't always succeed.

It only lists one train. Several locals in Budapest on another well known travel forum say it is one train also.

Our only other trip to Europe was much slower pace- London, Paris, and Rome in 12 days.

Hi,

If your depart is at 19:10 and the arrival time in Lvov is 10:10, I definitely would do this option, very doable, sleeper or no sleeper, which is moot since I never opt for that anyway. . Of course, it would be better if the arrival were one hour earlier.

Keep in mind that not everyone is jetlagged upon arrival.

"...never get back to this area again." All the more incentive and reason to undertake this trip to Lvov.

The city used to be called Lemberg, a province capital, in the province of Galicia where the population was Polish, Jewish, Germans, and Ukrainians prior to 1914. With WW1 starting the province of Galicia became an immediate theater of war (Kriegsschauplatz) as the city of Lemberg was the strategic objective of the Russian armies (yes, there were more than one) invading the province.

Last month we stayed at the Ibis Lviv Center hotel, vul. Shukhevicha 3. We were very pleased with this hotel - bright, clean room, big washroom with 2 sinks and huge shower stall, quiet at night, very comfy bed and pillows, good A/C (it was very hot while we were there), good WiFi, breakfast included. Good location, 10 minutes to Ploscha Rynok (Market Square), Prospekt Svobody, lots of restaurants and cafes, tram stop right outside the door.

Staff at the front desk were most helpful and they speak good English. My husband wanted to visit his father's village and the hotel arranged a driver to take him there. My husband didn't need a translator or guide, but if you are looking for a driver/guide/translator, if you PM me I can give contact info for someone, we know people who have used his services and he comes highly recommended.

If the village you want to visit is Shumsk (Шумськ) in Ternopil Oblast, although Google maps says it is about 3 hrs from Lviv, you can probably count on it taking longer to get there. It took my husband and the driver almost 2 hours to get to the village 60 km from Lviv because the roads were so bad.

I loved Lviv and would return in an instant. If you like cities like Prague, Vienna and Budapest, you will like Lviv. I was last there in 1995 and could not believe how much it has changed. Back then you could have rolled a bowling ball through the Ploscha Rynok and not hit anyone. Now it is full of cafes, restaurants, shops - and be prepared - lots and lots of tourists - I couldn't believe how many people were there! We speak Ukrainian, but I noticed that in the shops and restaurants the staff spoke English, some very well, others enough to at least get by. Also, the street signs have been changed to bilingual Ukrainian / English (at least in the central part of town).

Thank you for your response, we are looking forward to seeing Lviv. We have a guide lined up that other "Shumskers" have used who is familiar with the town but thanks for your offer. We had been looking at Hotel 39 but Ibis Styles Lviv Center looks great- thanksfor the suggestion.