The comfortable IC Buses of German Railways and Flixbus provide the fastest and cheapest transportation from Nuremberg (Nürnberg) in Germany to Prague (Praha / Prag) in the Czech Republic.
NOTE: All IC Bus routes of Deutsche Bahn (German Railways) were canceled at the end of 2020 with Flixbus often offering the best alternatives. Otherwise, regular trains also cover the routes but railway journeys are often slower and with multiple transfers.
Direct buses from Nuremberg to Prague can be as fast as 3h30 while train rides require a transfer and take nearer to five hours. Deutsche Bahn’s comfortable IC Buses connect these two historic cities around 8 times per day. Further long-distance bus services between Nuremberg and Prague are offered by amongst others Flixbus, RegioJet, and Eurolines. Trains and car sharing such as BlaBlaCar offer further travel options. Trainline and Omio include all competing bus and train services.
Cheap IC Buses from Nuremberg to Prague
The fastest, most comfortable and often cheapest way to travel between Nuremberg (Nürnberg) in Germany and Prague (Prag / Praha) in the Czech Republic is on the luxury double-decker long-distance intercity IC buses operated by Deutsche Bahn.
The IC buses connect Nuremberg and Prague seven times daily in 3h30 minutes.
IC Bus & Train Timetables:
(Useful shortcuts: N in German Railways timetables defaults to Nuremberg, M to Munich, F to Frankfurt, etc.)
The above timetables include IC buses and trains but not long-distance buses of other companies such as Flixbus that is the largest intercity bus service in Germany. Trainline and Omio include all competing bus services and trains.
The IC buses depart from directly in front of the main train stations: in Nürnberg from the Bahnhofsvorplatz Haupteingang and in Prague from Autobusova St Wilsonva. These stops are also directly at the U-Bahn train stations at the respective central stations.
The IC buses of German Railways are air-conditioned with an electric outlet for every two seats. Free wifi works in both Germany and the Czech Republic. Luggage is transported for free. Buses have a drinks vending machine and toilet. All buses on the Nuremberg to Prague route have special spaces for wheelchairs.
Currently two buses per day continue / start from Mannheim and stopping en route in Heidelberg with a further bus running via Würzburg and Frankfurt.
Buying Tickets for the IC Buses
The IC buses are operated by German Railways and can be booked directly at German Railways or through any outlet selling Deutsche Bahn tickets. All standard German Railways long-distance discounts may be applied such as the BahnCard savings and own children up to 14 years traveling for free with parents and grandparents (they MUST be specified at the time of booking). The Bayern Ticket is NOT valid on IC buses.
Seat reservations for traveling on IC Buses are obligatory and included in the price when the purchase of the ticket and the seat reservation occur in the same transaction. Rail passes are valid on the bus but need a separate seat reservation.
Currently, the price for one-way tickets on the IC bus from Nuremberg to Prague ranges from €15 to €56, with the lower price fairly easy to find even when booking just a couple of days in advance.
Other Buses from Nuremberg to Prague
The IC buses are the most comfortable public transportation from Nuremberg to Prague and usually the cheapest too. However, there are a few other options.
Flixbus, Eurolines, and RegionJet also have direct buses between Prague and Nuremberg. Flixbus often have very low special prices but avoid journeys requiring connections and transfers.
All these buses arrive and depart in Prague usually at the bus station at UAN Florenc, one metro stop to the northeast of the main train station, but Fkixbus alone uses up to 11 different stops in Prague. In Nuremberg, the buses leave from Nürnberg ZOB a short walk to the northeast of the Hauptbahnhof.
Travel by Train or Shared Car from Nürnberg to Praha
Rail travel is still an option for travel from Nuremberg to Prague, as is car sharing.
BlaBlaCar offers easy car-sharing travel options where private drivers sell a seat in a car for travel between specific cities at a specific time. Before booking, it is possible to see which car is being used. These trips are usually advertised only a few days in advance of travel.
Train travel between Nuremberg and Prague has always been surprisingly complicated. The efficiency of the IC bus probably will not help any improvement in rail travel between these two historic cities.
Rail travel from Nuremberg to Prague requires a transfer in Schwandorf. From Nuremberg to Schwandorf, travel is on the Deutsche Bahn Regional-Express (RE) trains and from here to Prague on the Alex Bahn (ALX) – a private train but all German Railways tickets are valid. As these trains are regional trains, all regional passes such as the Bayern Ticket are valid for the part of travel in Germany. The Alex often has special deals but the train is usually a better option from Munich than from Nuremberg. Total travel is just less than five hours.
See Also
- Travel from Munich to Prague
- Day Trips and Tours in Prague
- Day Trips and Tours in Nuremberg
- Other IC Bus Routes
- Deutsche Bahn Timetables
