getting in by train
Bielsko-Biała is an important railway junction in the southern Poland. The city has direct train connections to a number of large cities in Poland including Warsaw, Poznań, Łódź, Wrocław, and even places as far as Gdańsk and Szczecin.
Regional connections are naturally the most common and trains travel frequently to Katowice, Żywiec, Czechowice-Dziedzice or Pszczyna. Further destinations are served once or twice a day.
Unfortuantely, there is no good connection to Kraków; here traveling by bus seems to be a better option.
Types of trains
Pendolino train is the fastest train in Poland. It runs directly from Bielsko-Biała to Gdańsk/Gdynia via Katowice and Warsaw. The journey takes 3 hours and 20 minutes to Warsaw and 6 hours and 20 minutes to Gdańsk.
Fast (Express Intercity) and semi-fast (Intercity) trains across Poland. Number of Intercity trains connect Bielsko-Biała directly with other large cities.
Regio offers inter-regional passenger transportation, while Silesian Railways run trains within the borders of the Silesian Voivodship. They are the slowest trains that operate regionally, stops at minor train stations and require no reservation.
Train tickets and schedules
Train schedule is available on the official website – rozklad-pkp.pl
Katowice is the main transit hub in the region. With that in mind, you can plan connections to most of the places in Poland. Pszczyna is the second significant railway hub for Bielsko-Biała’s passengers.
Tickets for the Intercity and Pendolino trains are sold 30 days in advance and purchasing them earlier can save you a significant amount of money. For a long haul journey you can expect even up to 60% discount.
Regional trains usually have a fixed price policy and since they don’t offer seat reservations, they can be purchased even just before your departure. These tickets are not expensive, but the quality of travel is not awfully high.
Where to buy a ticket?
– Ticket offices at railway stations
– Online – via the eIC system – for national trains, and via the e-KŚ system– for local trains
– Ticket machines at railway stations
– Ticket inspector – it’s possible to buy the ticket from the ticket inspector; however, don’t wait for the ticket inspector to come to your seat but search for him/her promptly after getting on board (!); additional fee of 10 PLN per ticket must be paid. You cannot buy the ticket from the ticket inspector on the fast Pendolino trains.
Bielsko-Biała Central Station (Bielsko-Biała Główna or PKP)
When you arrive at the Central Station in Bielsko-Biała, stop and take a time to look around. It is one of the most beautiful train stations in the Silesia Province. The station was built in 1890, 35 years after the first train arrived in Bielsko-Biała (1855). The main hall is decorated with antique stylized paintings made by artists from Vienna. The whole building was renovated in 2001.
From the Railway Station, you can get to your destination by bus or taxi. Because of its central location, you can also reach most of the attractions on foot.
