Prague to Copenhagen by Train
The Direct Daytime ComfortJet

The journey begins at Praha hlavní nádraží, Prague's main station, a grand Art Nouveau building right in the centre of the city and the hub of the Czech network. It is easy to reach on the metro line C and on foot from the old town, and it has the usual ticket office, shops, left luggage and services. The direct ComfortJet to Copenhagen is a limited daily departure, so the thing to get right is the time; check the boards and your ticket, because on a full-day journey a missed departure is a long wait.

Boarding is relaxed, as it is across the region: there is no airport-style check-in, so arrive 10 to 15 minutes ahead, check the boards for your platform and coach, and step aboard. For most of the year a seat reservation is optional, so with a valid ticket or a rail pass you can take a seat, though on such a long, popular train it is worth reserving. The train pulls out north, and within the hour it is following the Elbe down toward the German border.

The first highlight comes early. North of Prague the line follows the Elbe through Ústí nad Labem and into the Elbe sandstone country, crossing the German-Czech border near Bad Schandau in the heart of what is known as Saxon Switzerland, a gorge of wooded crags and river bends that is the scenic best of the German leg. Beyond it the train reaches Dresden, the Baroque capital of Saxony, rebuilt around the Frauenkirche above the river, and a stop on the way rather than a change.

From Dresden the ComfortJet runs north across the plain to Berlin, calling at Berlin Hauptbahnhof, the vast glass hub in the centre of the German capital and the natural break point of the whole journey. It then turns north-west on the fast, level Berlin to Hamburg line, one of the busiest in Germany, to Hamburg Hauptbahnhof, the great port city on the Elbe. Both Berlin and Hamburg are full stops on the route, which makes the corridor useful for shorter city-to-city hops as well as the full run north.

The run down the Elbe through Saxon Switzerland, from Bohemia into Saxony, is the scenic highlight of the German half: a river gorge of sandstone crags best seen by day.

North of Hamburg the train crosses into Denmark the overland way, up through Schleswig-Holstein and across the German-Danish land border near Padborg. There is no ferry: through trains stopped using the old Puttgarden to Rødby train ferry in 2019, so the route now runs the long way round up the Jutland peninsula. Both countries are in the Schengen area, so the border is normally open, though occasional identity checks are possible, so keep your travel documents to hand.

In Denmark the line runs up Jutland and crosses onto the island of Funen to Odense, Hans Christian Andersen's city and the main Danish stop on the way. From there it crosses the Great Belt Fixed Link, the long rail bridge and tunnel over the strait between Funen and Zealand, which is the distinctive moment of the Danish leg, before running in across Zealand to Copenhagen. It is a steady, quietly scenic finish, water and low green country rather than mountains.

The train arrives at København H, Copenhagen Central, the main station right in the heart of the Danish capital beside the Tivoli Gardens and a short walk or one metro stop from the old town. It is a handsome, busy station with the full range of services, and it is the hub of the Danish network and the gateway on into Sweden. After a full day on the train, it is an easy arrival: you step out into the centre of the city.

Copenhagen rewards arriving centrally. A short walk brings you to the pedestrian Strøget, the colourful Nyhavn waterfront and the harbour, with the metro, harbour buses and the city's famous cycling for getting further afield. The station is also where the Scandinavian network opens up: onward trains cross the Øresund to Malmö and run on to Stockholm, so Prague to Copenhagen makes a natural first leg of a longer journey north.

The direct train is run with ČD's ComfortJet, the Czech railway's modern long-distance trainset, on a service operated jointly with DB in Germany and DSB in Denmark; staff change with the country, while the dining crew stays with the train. It is a comfortable, conventional long-distance train rather than a very high-speed one, with first and second class, air conditioning and a restaurant car serving hot and cold food along the way. On a journey of around eleven hours, the comfort of the train is a real part of the appeal.

The ComfortJet is well equipped for a long day: there is Wi-Fi and an onboard entertainment portal, power and USB sockets at the seats, step-free access with wheelchair spaces and accessible toilets, spaces for bicycles, and dedicated family areas for travelling with children. Because it is a new service run across three networks, small details and timings can still be adjusted, so it is best to check the current schedule and onboard information for your date rather than trusting a fixed pattern.

Reservations follow a seasonal pattern worth understanding. For most of the year a seat reservation is optional but strongly recommended, because these trains are popular and a full day standing is no fun. On the cross-border legs into Denmark a reservation becomes compulsory during the peak summer window, roughly from late June to the middle of August. Because this is a new service and the exact dates can change, check the current reservation requirement when you book. Interrail passes are accepted; outside the compulsory window a reservation is optional, but on such a long international journey it is well worth reserving ahead, and passholder seats come from a limited quota. For the wider picture, see the rail passes and seat reservations guides linked below.

On tickets, the simplest approach is to book the whole run on one international ticket rather than splitting it by country. Deutsche Bahn (bahn.com) is generally the most reliable channel for the full Prague to Copenhagen itinerary and for passholder seat-only reservations, and ČD and DSB sell it too; comparison sites such as Omio and Trainline are a convenient way to see fares and book in one place. Booking opens a few months ahead, and the cheapest advance fares are limited and sell out, so book early for the best price. Luggage is easy: there is no airline-style check-in, so you carry your bags aboard and use the racks.

On borders, the Czech Republic, Germany and Denmark are all in the Schengen area and the European Union, so ordinary internal border controls are generally absent and the train is not routinely checked. Temporary internal checks are possible, so carry the valid travel documents your nationality or status requires and keep them reachable. Denmark uses the Danish krone rather than the euro, so it is worth having a card that works there or a little local cash for the Copenhagen end. On accessibility, both main stations are large and staffed with step-free access, and boarding assistance is best booked in advance with the railway.