Rail route connecting Budapest, Vienna and Prague offers tickets from just £8

A rail route linking Budapest to Vienna is selling tickets for just €9 (£8).

Czech train operator RegioJet  launched two new routes this summer connecting the historic cities of Vienna and Prague to Budapest, meaning travellers can take a tour of all three popular city-break destinations for little more than £30.

The journey between Budapest and Vienna takes just two hours and 45 minutes, while the Prague to Budapest service takes seven hours and costs €16 (£14).

An older service connecting Prague to Vienna is also available, with tickets starting at €12 (£10).

This route was suspended in March as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, but has recently reopened.

While a plane journey between Prague and Budapest takes just over an hour, fans of flygskam, or slow travel, will undoubtedly appreciate the leisurely nature of this service.

And travellers concerned about their carbon emissions can also rest easier in their seat, a benefit that RegioJet owner Radim Jančura hopes will appeal to many.

Speaking to Euro News, he said: “Especially [for the] young generation, they would like to be more ecological. So it means they will prefer to travel by train, if the travelling time is four to six hours.”

RegioJet trains offer wifi services in all carriages, built-in touchscreens and food service and are popular with students for their low prices.

The economical tickets are not currently available for American travellers, however, but European residents can purchase these with immediate effect.

While airlines across the globe struggle to stay afloat, many rail operators are keen to attract air-averse customers to travel by train.

A report by UBS bank published earlier this year argued that the coronavirus pandemic could result in a major shift of passengers from air to rail, supercharging growth across the rail network over the next 10 years.

As consumers and governments became more aware of the climate emergency, UBS’ calculations reveal that travellers are also more tolerant of longer rail journeys.

“We therefore expect an acceleration in the shift from planes to high-speed rail in both Europe and China,” it concluded.