How many days in advance can you buy an Intercity ticket? | PolishTrains

You can buy international PKP Intercity tickets – for routes to Niemcy, Austria, Czechy, Węgry, Słowacja and Litwa – on PolishTrains up to 60 days before the journey. The carrier itself may offer different advance-purchase periods on its website, but PolishTrains has a 30-day window for domestic routes. Sales of PKP Intercity tickets for domestic services open up to 30 days before departure – this is the sales window on PolishTrains. * PKP Intercity ticket refunds: the rules depend on the fare – promotional tickets, such as Super Promo, may be non-refundable; you can find details and a fee calculator on the PolishTrains help page

• Domestic sales window: domestic PKP Intercity tickets are available on PolishTrains up to 30 days before departure

• International sales window: international PKP Intercity tickets are available on PolishTrains up to 60 days before the journey

• Dynamic prices: buying earlier gives you a greater choice of seats and may mean a lower price

• Ticket exchange: exchange conditions depend on the fare; you can find the procedure on the PolishTrains help page ### At a glance

• Domestic PKP Intercity tickets go on sale up to 30 days before departure
• Tickets to Germany, Austria, Hungary, and Slovakia are available up to 180 days ahead
• Czech Republic connections have a pre-sale window of up to 90 days
• Ukraine routes have a shorter window, with tickets available up to 20 days in advance
• Promotional fares may be non-refundable, while flexible fares allow changes for a fee
• EIC and EIP trains require a compulsory seat reservation, even on the day of travel

Sales of PKP Intercity tickets for domestic services open up to 30 days before departure – this is the sales window on PolishTrains. The carrier itself may offer different advance-purchase periods on its website, but PolishTrains has a 30-day window for domestic routes. You can buy international PKP Intercity tickets – for routes to Niemcy, Austria, Czechy, Węgry, Słowacja and Litwa – on PolishTrains up to 60 days before the journey. How far in advance can I buy an Intercity ticket? This can be done well in advance: up to 30 days before the scheduled departure of the train. This allows passengers to plan their journey with a great deal of peace of mind and avoid unpleasant surprises.

For international trains, slightly different rules apply. Tickets to Germany, Austria, Hungary, Slovakia and Lithuania can already be purchased up to 180 days in advance. At the end of October, the pre-sale period for tickets to the Czech Republic is also being extended to 90 days (the target is to start pre-sale up to six months in advance as well). For connections to the Ukraine, tickets can be purchased up to 20 days in advance.

What is worth remembering?

• On PKP Intercity, you can find a list of connections with suspended ticket sales in a given period (e.g. within the next two weeks). The inability to purchase a ticket may result, for example, from a change in the list or from an unconfirmed timetable on a foreign section.
• Stations and departure and arrival times are subject to change. When buying a ticket in advance, it is advisable to check all up-to-date information before travelling.

You can buy advance tickets both at the box office and online, such as on the PolishTrains website.

Planning your journey, both abroad and in Poland, in advance gives you the chance not only to save money but also to choose the most comfortable seats. You already know, as a PKP Intercity passenger aware of your rights, how much earlier you can buy your ticket. But why is it worth it? On PolishTrains, you can also buy tickets for routes in other European countries: Paryż – Londyn (Eurostar), Mediolan – Rzym (Italo), Barcelona – Madryt (Renfe), Wiedeń – Salzburg and Rotterdam – Amsterdam. A train journey from Polski to Rzym usually requires a change in Italy, and you can buy a ticket for the Mediolan – Rzym section on PolishTrains as part of the Italo offer.

You can buy domestic PKP Intercity tickets on PolishTrains up to 30 days before departure, and international tickets up to 60 days before the journey. You can buy a PKP Intercity ticket by entering the route, date and number of passengers in the PolishTrains search engine – available services and prices will be shown straight away. If a ticket is unavailable, check again in a few days or contact PolishTrains Customer Service. Stations and departure times may change after you buy your ticket. It is worth checking the platform number only just before departure in the PolishTrains search engine, as the platform assignment may change. Before travelling, check the current information in the search engine. Refunds and exchanges depend on the fare, so check the conditions and fee calculator on the PolishTrains help page before buying. Buying Intercity tickets in advance is the easiest way to travel cheaper and with more peace of mind.

You can find the procedure for exchanging a ticket bought on PolishTrains on the exchanges page. PKP Intercity uses a so-called dynamic sales system, in which the ticket price depends on the number of available seats - the earlier you buy, the greater the chance of getting a ticket at a lower price. You can check the current refund and exchange rules on the PolishTrains refunds and exchanges page. The cheapest tickets can be up to 30-40% cheaper than those bought just before departure!

Buying your ticket in advance is also a matter of convenience and seat security. During busy periods, especially before long weekends, holidays or bank holidays, Intercity trains can be full to the last seat. PolishTrains Customer Service operates 7 days a week, 7:00-23:00, in Polish, English, Ukrainian and Russian. By booking your ticket in advance, you can choose a seat in the train (e.g. by a window, in a quiet zone or with an electrical socket) and avoid the stress of having to search for an empty seat on the day of travel.

You can buy domestic PKP Intercity tickets on PolishTrains up to 30 days before departure, and international tickets up to 60 days before the journey. You can buy a PKP Intercity ticket by entering the route, date and number of passengers in the PolishTrains search engine – available services and prices will be shown straight away. * PKP Intercity ticket refunds: the rules depend on the fare – promotional tickets, such as Super Promo, may be non-refundable; you can find the details and fee calculator on the PolishTrains help page

• Domestic sales window: domestic PKP Intercity tickets are available on PolishTrains up to 30 days before departure

• International sales window: international PKP Intercity tickets are available on PolishTrains up to 60 days before travel

• Dynamic pricing: booking earlier gives you a greater choice of seats and may mean a lower price

• *Ticket exchange: exchange conditions depend on the fare; you can find the procedure on the PolishTrains help page How many days in advance you can buy an Intercity ticket - you already know that. You can find the procedure for exchanging a ticket bought on PolishTrains on the exchanges page. Refunds and exchanges depend on the fare, so check the conditions and fee calculator on the PolishTrains help page before buying. If the fare allows it, you can refund a PKP Intercity ticket bought on PolishTrains up to 20 minutes before departure, and exchange it up to 30 minutes before departure. You can check the current refund and exchange rules on the PolishTrains refunds and exchanges page. But what about when life's plans change from moment to moment? In such a situation, PKP Intercity allows you to return your ticket.

• For all domestic and international journeys, tickets can be returned up to 5 minutes before the scheduled train departure.
• In the case of domestic journeys - a fee of 15% of the ticket value will be deducted from the price of the ticket returned up to 5 minutes before departure.
• For international journeys, a charge of 50% of the ticket value will be deducted from the price of the ticket refunded up to 5 minutes before departure; for international journeys, a charge of 10% of the ticket value will be deducted from the price of the ticket refunded up to 24 hours before departure.

Please note: for international tickets purchased under a promotion (e.g. You can find details and a fee calculator on the PolishTrains help page. Super Promo), it is not possible to return the ticket!

You can only do this if you have bought your ticket in a so-called flexible offer.

Marcin Lis, member of the PolishTrains team. A travel enthusiast who regularly travels by train across Poland and Europe. Analyst and marketer studying travellers’ needs and behaviour since 2017.