travel between Slovakia and Poland?

As you're learning, connections in this part of Europe are not as good as further west. Decades of governments that did NOT want people crossing borders easily, along with less money for upgrades, mean fewer high speed trains, and fewer train routes, period. And, as you say, the High Tatras get in the way of connecting Poland and Slovenia easily. How much time do you have for this trip? You're covering a large area, even if the transit links were better. Some of these places need 2-3 full days even at a blitz pace (Budapest and Prague, certainly; I'd want at least 4 days for each, myself). And as I said, the transit isn't good. For instance, how are you going to get from Budapest to Bled? A quick look at http://reiseauskunft.bahn.de/bin/query.exe/en, the easiest place to check train schedules, shows times between 8:40 and 11:09. The trip you proposed has a lot of moving around; unless you have about 3 weeks, I'd cut it down (not because your places aren't worthwhile, but so you will have an enjoyable trip instead of just finishing a checklist).

The High Tatras are gorgeous. You could take a bus from Krakow to Zakopane, a small resort town in southern Poland at the foot of the Tatras. (You could also take the train, but it's actually slower, and the bus route is much more scenic.) From Zakopane, you can take a bus through the Tatras -absolutely breath-taking - into Slovakia to Poprad which is a transit hub of sorts. There's not much in Poprad to see, except for its amazing view back up at the mountains, but you can catch a train to Budapest from there. Actually, you might want to stop in one of the villages in the mountains over Poprad such as Stary Smokevic. Many of these little villages have a small rail system that connects them to each other and to Poprad. However, it doesn't always run the way it should. Once when taking the little train from Poprad back up to Stary Smokevic, the train went one stop to the first village, then for some reason, it stopped, all the passengers got off and then got on a bus for the rest of the trip to Stary Smokevic. And it seemed to be scheduled that way because the locals didn't seem at all surprised. It may be a seasonal thing. Anyway, good luck and have a great trip!

Thank you Harold and Penny! Harold, I guess I had not really thought about the challenges/slow routes between the cities. We will be there for a couple of weeks (most likely two), so maybe I should cut it down a bit. With that being said, which cities and countries should be a priority? If I am covering less area, that will give me more time in the chosen area... so are there any cities that I should add? We have rented cars in the past, which was great because we were able to travel at our own pace and not have to worry about train the inflexibility at times of rail travel, although because we are covering more countries, I had thought we would just do rail and bus travel on this trip. Do you think that we should consider renting a car? Penny, thank you for suggestions on the High Tatras! It helps having a few names on that particular part of the trip. We usually have stayed in hostels in Western Europe. Are they equally as good and popular in Eastern Europe or should we stick with hotels? Thanks! Jessica

I don't know your budget, number of days or time of year but there are a couple of options for getting across Slovakia that I think might be more comfortable and interesting than the sleeper. From Krakow take an Orangways bus to Budapest. I understand they are pretty nice, faster and more efficient than the train. You can also fly but unfortunately I don't think Ryanair still has their direct flight so you will have to change in Vienna or Warsaw. Finally, my favorite; make reservations at the Kempinski High Tatras hotel. It is a an amazing place on a lake in the High Tatras. They will pick you up in Krakow and transfer you to the hotel $$$. Spend a few days and do day trips around Slovakia; it is a wonderful country of castles, towns and villages. Finally have the hotel transfer you to Kosice where you can catch a pretty short train ride to Budapest (they will even transfer you to Budapest in a car but $$$$, although they will turn it into a tour if you want and you can see some more country side on the way). Send me a PM and I will give you some info on what we have seen in Slovakia. By the way we will be back in Slovakia fishing week after next. James SATX

I guess I should have mentioned that I am going in September and for two weeks.

So we decided that the options were: 1. Orangeways Bus 2. Flight from Krakow to Budapest via Vienna or maybe Warsaw. 3. Day train 4. Night train
5. Go for broke and have the Hotel Grand Kempinski High Tatras pick you up in Krakow give you a tour on the way to the hotel, spend a night or two and then have the hotel drop you off in Kosice after another driving tour; spend the night in Kosice and then catch the train to Budapest. I vote for this but $$$ http://www.sacr.sk/en/slovak-tourist-board/novinky/bbc-travel-invites-to-the-cultural-capital-kosice/ http://www.orangeways.com/en http://www.kempinski.com/en/strba-strbske-pleso/grand-hotel-high-tatras/welcome/ http://polrail.com/

Jessica, Your itinerary is just about the same as the RS Eastern Europe tour itinerary.
Being that you are having such trouble with the transportation maybe taking the tour would help you out. We are starting that tour in about 4 weeks and I'm looking forward to it. Have a great trip!

I was thinking the same thing as Mimi. Remember that when you take a tour, someone else who knows the logistics is getting you from place to place, so you can cover much more ground in the same amount of time. Particularly in this region, with only two weeks, a tour is the only way you're going to see even half the places on your list. From your list, I've only been to Prague and Budapest, and loved them both. I can't emphasize enough how different they are from each other, and different again from Vienna. I know these three are spoken of as triplets, and have both geographic proximity and shared history. But they really are apples, oranges, and bananas. So, I can't say what else you should or shouldn't see from your list, if you're doing it on your own.

Thanks for all of the advice and suggestions! I did consider taking a tour, but we usually are love just rambling about... and we are more into the scenery and culture of a place than we are touristy attractions... so we generally just like to rent a car and drive. Thanks again!

Go to http://budapestflat.shutterfly.com/ Ignore the apartment stuff and go straight to the country code links across the top. Slovakia and the high Tatras are under MORE/SK. Hungary is HU, Budapest is Bp. Might give you some ideas. Have fun, its great country.