Czech rail operator Leo Express will next month launch a new train route from Poland to Germany via the Czech Republic that will be one of the longest rail services in Europe, spanning more than 1,300 km (800 miles).
The daily service, due to begin on June 25, will run between the eastern Polish city of Przemysl, near the Ukrainian border, and Frankfurt in Germany, stopping along the way at major cities including Krakow, Prague, Leipzig and Dresden. The journey will take around 18 hours.
“Leo Express is breaking down the symbolic rail barrier between eastern and western Europe and connecting key European centres with the gateway to Ukraine via a direct route that has been lacking until now,” said Leo Express CEO Peter Kohler when first announcing the plans in December 2025.
Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Poland has become the primary hub for people travelling in and out of the war-torn country. Przemysl, just over 10 km from the Ukrainian border, is a key stop-off point.
Kohler also says that the route will be “one of the longest direct rail connections in Europe”.
Among currently operating longer routes are the Optima Express, which runs for 1,600 km between Villach in Austria and Edirne in Turkey, and a 1,720 km journey from Malmo in Sweden to Innsbruck in Austria. Unlike the new Przemysl-Frankfurt route, however, those other services do not run daily.
Under the published timetable, trains will depart Przemysl will at 1.31 p.m. and arrive the following day at Frankfurt Airport at 7.53 a.m. Services in the opposite direction are scheduled to leave Frankfurt at 8.27 a.m. and reach Przemysl at 2.23 a.m. the next day.
Leo Express said timetables could be adjusted periodically due to track maintenance, particularly on German sections of the route. Passengers will have access to Wi-Fi, power sockets, air conditioning and on-board catering, the company says.
Rail travel in Poland has grown rapidly in recent years, with passenger numbers reaching record levels. To meet rising demand, Polish long-distance public rail operator PKP Intercity has been expanding its timetable and adding new destinations, including international routes.
Last year, the operator launched its first direct train service from Poland to Croatia. It also offers connections to six other European countries: Germany, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Lithuania and Austria.
In March, one of PKP’s Pendolino high-speed trains began running in the Czech Republic for the first time in preparation for a planned route between Prague and Warsaw.
Foreign operators have also sought to capitalise on the boom in rail travel in Poland. As well as Leo Express, another private Czech operator, RegioJet, last year entered the Polish domestic market, offering routes between major cities.
However, in April, just months after launching its services, RegioJet unexpectedly announced that it was quitting the Polish domestic market, claiming “predatory” practices by state-owned rival PKP.
In March, PKP Intercity submitted a request to Poland’s Office of Rail Transport (UTK), a regulator, for an official review into whether the launch of Leo Express’ new Przemysl-Frankfurt route could undermine the “economic equilibrium” of services operated under public service contracts in Poland.
PKP Intercity’s CEO Janusz Malinowski said the move was prompted by the allocation of train paths to other carriers “just four minutes before the departure of our trains”. (Notes from Poland)