budapest-prague-vienna travel options

Train would be the cheapest and easiest.

For train schedules go here: http://www.bahn.com/i/view/GBR/en/index.shtml For train info go here: seat61.com For budget airlines go here: whichbudget.com

Have you booked your flights yet? I ask because it makes significantly more sense to go Budapest - Vienna - Prague. If it's already set in stone, then the Budapest - Prague route would likely be most comfortable if you flew. The other options are train (there is an overnight train that takes about 8 hours and arrives in Prague at 4:00 am) or bus (likely the least expensive option of all, but it's about a 7 1/2 hour trip on a bus and for some people that is not appealing, no matter the cost). Check www.orangeways.com for more information about this bus route. The Prague - Vienna leg will take just shy of 5 hours via direct train, about the same for the bus. Check www.studentagencybus.com for more information about this bus route. I wouldn't fly on this leg because the train would take about as long as flying when you consider getting to the aiport, waiting for your flight, etc. The least appealing option (to me) is driving, as for one thing you pay through the nose when you pick up a car in one country and drop it off in another. The other downside is that you wouldn't want a car in Prague, and if you dropped it off in Prague and got another one to travel to Vienna then you would have the pleasure of paying through the nose twice for two separate inter-country rentals. Lastly, this trio of cities is a very popular trip, and, in addition to all the posts on the subject on this forum, you will also find a wealth of information (particularly regarding transportation) on the TripAdvisor.com's forums. Hope this helps, and happy planning!

Since you asked about driving, and not knowing where the flights are to/from: Driving time from Prague to Budapest via Vienna is less than six hours --about five not going through Vienna. If you decide to drive, you can scoot the car back in essentially a half day to avoid the second-country drop-off fee. If you're going to spend the time only in these cities, the car doesn't make much sense since it won't be very usuable. Additionally urban parking fees tend to run over twenty-five bucks per day.

My wife and I just completed (got in last night) a Vienna-Salzburg-Ljubljana-Zagreb-Budapest-Prague trip and loved it. Flew into Vienna, out of Prague and used rail in between. Highly recommend. Would be glad to pass along lessons learned if you have questions.