Prague–Copenhagen train anchors Czech Railways’ 2026 plan

The Prague–Copenhagen train sits at the center of Czech Railways’ 2026 plan, as the company widens international links, adds domestic capacity, and leans on discounts to keep demand moving upward.

This is reported by the railway transport news portal Railway Supply.

International routes framed around the Prague–Copenhagen train

Czech Railways (ČD) sets out a timetable that, frankly, looks dense even by Central European standards. The 2025/2026 schedule lists 8,723 passenger trains a day, and “blue trains” cover about 327,000 kilometers daily.

Don’t miss…Southwest Metro train testing hits 100 km/h in Sydney

Executives say this volume only makes sense because people increasingly treat rail as their default option for regional trips. And in real terms, ČD now tries to turn that demand into a more stable, long-term network rather than seasonal peaks.

The company returns the Prague–Copenhagen train in May 2026, after a 10-year gap that followed an EU high-speed network plan which largely bypassed Prague. For many travelers, that decision became a symbol of how the city slipped off key maps.

Now ČD uses the revived link as proof that it can still plug Czechia into Scandinavian flows. Officials frame it as both a commercial move and, to be fair, a political signal that Prague belongs in the northbound conversation.

The international roster does not stop there. From December, ComfortJet trains run through to Villach in southern Austria, close to the Slovenian and Italian borders; at the same time, Prague–Berlin and Prague–Vienna services gain more trips, with selected trains extending to Hamburg.

Night services expand in parallel. The new EuroNight Carpatia connects Bohumín and Przemyśl and carries through-coaches from Munich, Vienna, Prague, and Budapest, while the Baltic Express adds a Czech dining car on the busy corridor to Poland’s Tricity region.

Domestic upgrades aligned with the Prague–Copenhagen train

ČD pairs its international push with a noticeable domestic upgrade. On the crucial Prague–Brno corridor, the operator plans 14 ComfortJet and 16 Railjet services every day, so regular commuters see more seats and fewer crowded trains.

Regional lines also change shape from mid-December. New RegioFox units appear on routes such as Hradec Králové–Letohrad and Prague–Mělník/Mladá Boleslav, and they replace older stock that, as many riders quietly note, really struggled with comfort and reliability.

Long-distance domestic travel gains two new InterCity Southern Express services and a later Vltava departure on the Prague–České Budějovice line. For people who work late or travel for weekend plans, those extra evening options matter more than any single flagship route.

Discounts sit alongside the capacity boost. From January through March, ČD offers a 25% online reduction for groups of two to five passengers on domestic tickets, because small groups still watch budgets closely even as they return to rail.

The numbers behind this strategy look solid so far. In 2024, ČD carried a record 168.8 million passengers, about 4.4 million more than in 2023; transport performance reached 8.28 billion passenger-kilometers, and cross-border travel grew 12% year-on-year.

For now, managers argue that these figures justify both the bigger train sets and the broader map. And while no one assumes endless growth, the combination of higher capacity, targeted discounts, and deeper international reach suggests a network that plans ahead rather than reacts.

News on railway transport, industry, and railway technologies from Railway Supply that you might have missed:

Find the latest news of the railway industry in Eastern Europe, the former Soviet Union and the rest of the world on our page on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, read Railway Supply magazine online.

Place your ads on webportal and in Railway Supply magazine. Detailed information is in Railway Supply media kit