Fly or take train Amsterdam to Prague

It is a long ways and flying would be quicker. The discount airlines make a lot of money off of excesses luggage fees so they are eager to enforce the limits. Four large suitcases and four carryons is a lot of luggage. Just check the fee schedule for checked luggage and be absolutely certain that the carryons are under the limit. It would make more sense to fly.

I assume you mean one regular suitcase, per person, plus one carryon, per person. The four suitcases are going to be expensive to check. I would look into the night train to Munich. For 4 of you, you could get a 4 person couchette for €79 per person. That takes care of a night's accommodation and transportation. From Munich you could take the ICE to Nürnberg and the Bahn Intercity bus to Prague, or catch one of the all rail connections using a €33 Bayern-Böhmen ticket to Pilsen and individual Czech rail tickets for about €6 each to Praque. Up date: I just put in Amsterdam to Nürnberg and I get the same €79 per person fare (couchette 4). Just put in Munich as a stopover. The stopover in Munich is from 7:16 to 7:55. If you don't put in Munich, they'll route you through Stuttgart with a change of trains in Stuttgart from 4:17 to 6:05.

There is a direct night train from Amsterdam to Prague via Berlin. Leaving Amsterdam at 19:01 arriving to Prague at 9:28. Advertised saving fare is 27 Euro but that would be obviously just for seat. Flying is much faster.

Not so - Schedule shows 119 runs to Dejvicka every 10 minutes until 22:34 then every 20 minutes, last one 23:34, later on weekends.

With 1 checked bag each, total 80kg, the surcharge is 11 E per person, so depending on when you are flying the flight is 50 to 62 euro (assuming ht sis not the high week in July). This should always be less than trains, and the time saving is enormous. It's very quick into town from Ruzyne Airport, just as it is quick to Schiphol.

A night train is a poor excuse for a hotel. Fly.

Thank you. I got it. Flying is the better option even with luggage. Yes, we usually travel one suitcase each (next size up from carryon) and one carryon. We will just try to pack light and avoid any shopping temptations.

I wonder if anyone has considered this? The EasyJet flight to Prague is scheduled to arrive at 21:25. The last bus to downtown (Praha hl.n.) leaves the airport 9 minutes before that.

Maybe you're right. I was looking at the Czech Rail website. Maybe they don't do Prague metro very well, because the only connections I found were either buses to bus stops in the outskirts, with no access to the Metro, or connections to Prague hl.n. with a half hour's walk. There's also a shuttle for about $30 for four. But, the point is, the flight leaves Amsterdam at 19:50, so you'll have to leave Centraal no later than, say, 1800, you'll get into Prague after 9 PM and have to make your way through a strange transit system late at night. If you get up at 8 AM, that's 14 hours until you are really up in Prague. The train/bus combination via Stuttgart takes less than 16 hours, so you're really not saving a lot of time by flying. I guess it really depends on the cost and whether you can sleep on the train. With advance purchase it's €79 per person for the family in a couchette 4 plus €19 per person for the bus (less if anyone is under 15). And to the airfare, be sure to add ground transportation in Amsterdam and Prague. I've spent 10 nights on trains and had no trouble sleeping.

Yes, was not happy about the flight times. I hope that the hotel in Amsterdam will hold our bags until we are ready to depart to the airport (we had this done in London - hopefully, they will be as accommodating). I also expect to take a taxi or shuttle service into Prague since the flight comes in so late. With the train, I was hoping for a straight run overnight train with no changes.

Maybe this is a better option (Ilja mentioned it earlier). There is a CNL train from Amsterdam to Prague through Berlin. It takes 14½ hours, from 19:01 to 9:28. A bunk in a couchette 4 is €69 if you book Amsterdam to Bad Schandau with a Sparpreis ticket. The train gets to Bad Schandau at 7:33. I'm not sure if it's the same train, but there is a 'D' Zug leaving Bad Schandau at 7:35, getting into Prague at 9:28 for a fare of €26. Total fare €95 per person. Leave Amsterdam at 19:01. Arrive in Prague at 9:28. Compare that with the cost of getting to Schilpol, airfare, splitting the shuttle into Prague and a night in a Prague hotel. Probably going to cost more than €95 per person.

While cost is probably a consideration, I doubt if it is the main consideration, or the family would not be making such a long journey in one leap. Neither an evening flight or a night train is ideal, and each has its pros and cons. I cannot sleep well on a night train, so I would still go with the flight. Others say they do not have a problem sleeping on trains, but they might if they had their kids along, even teens. I would not sleep well at all for fear that one of the kids would leave the cabin alone in the night to go to the bathroom. The next morning, the kids may be full of energy, but the parents will be dragging. Personally, I would drop Prague and choose a destination closer to Amsterdam or drop Amsterdam in favor of Prague and Berlin or Munich. But Soraya's family may have their hearts set on these two cities and may have booked open-jaw airline tickets, anyway.