Kraków Główny railway station

Railway station in Kraków, Poland

Kraków Główny

Station platforms in July 2021.

General information

Location

Kraków, Lesser Poland Voivodeship
Poland

Coordinates

50°03′56″N 19°56′50″E / 50.06556°N 19.94722°E / 50.06556; 19.94722

Owned by

PKP Polskie Linie Kolejowe

Platforms

History

Opened

1847

Location
Kraków GłównyLocation within Central Kraków

Kraków Główny, in English Kraków Main, is the largest and the most centrally located railway station in Kraków, Poland.

The railway station was situated in a historical building, constructed between 1844 and 1847 by Rosenbaum, which lies parallel to the tracks. The design was chosen to allow for future line expansion. The station was initially a terminus of the Kraków – Upper Silesia Railway (Kolej Krakowsko-Górnośląska, German: Oberschlesische-Krakauer Eisenbahn). Trains entered the trainshed via a brick archway at the northern end of the station which was almost doubled in size in 1871. In 2014, a new building was opened.

In 2023, it served 23.4 million passengers, making it the country's third busiest railway station behind Wrocław Główny and Poznań Główny stations.

History and early connections

The station opened on 13 October 1847, with the first train leaving for Mysłowice (the point where the Austrian, German and Russian Empires adjoined during era of the partitions of Poland).

The railway line was extended eastwards in 1856, when the first section to Dębica (then Dembitz in the Habsburg Empire) of the future Galician Railway of Archduke Charles Louis connecting Kraków with Lwów (then Lemberg) in Galicia. The increasing traffic resulted in the station's modernization and enlargement in several stages between 1869 and 1894. The next substantial expansion took place in the 1930s in the reborn Polish Republic. At that time the northern brick wall and trainshed were demolished, the latter replaced by individual platform roofs.

Underground expansion and revitalisation

A new urban shopping mall, Galeria Krakowska (Kraków Mall), opened in September 2006 with adjacent parking for 1,400 cars. The construction of the Galeria Krakowska and remodeling of the area in front of the main station building means that taxis are no longer able to drive up to the station or collect passengers directly from the main entrance; however, the free overhead parking and passenger pick-up right above the tracks is now closer to the platforms, accessible via a convenient elevator.

The station has undergone a multi-million złoty refurbishment to improve passengers' experience.

A new transport interchange has been developed. This includes a bus station to the east, and an express tram line under the station which opened in December 2008.

A new underground ticket hall opened in February 2014, with waiting rooms, travel centers and other amenities. This is located to the north of the earlier platform underpass, and connected to the platforms by escalators. It also provides two new direct exits/entrances to the station complex, one from the lower level of Galeria Krakowska and another from the Regional Bus Station located to the east of the railway station. The current platform underpass will also be refurbished. As part of this large investment all platforms and tracks have been replaced.

Train services

The station is served by the following service(s):

EuroCity services (EC) (EC 95 by DB) (IC by PKP) Berlin - Frankfurt (Oder) - Rzepin - Wrocław – Katowice – Kraków – Rzeszów – Przemyśl
Express Intercity Premium services (EIP) Warsaw - Kraków
Express Intercity Premium services (EIP) Gdynia/Kołobrzeg - Warsaw - Kraków (- Rzeszów)
Express Intercity services (EIC) Warsaw - Kraków - Zakopane
Intercity services (IC) Warsaw - Kraków - Zakopane
Intercity services (IC) Gdynia - Gdańsk - Bydgoszcz - Łódź - Czestochowa — Krakow — Zakopane
Intercity services (IC) Łódź Fabryczna — Tomaszów Mazowiecki/Częstochowa — Kraków Główny
Intercity services (IC) Poznań - Ostrów Wielkopolski - Kępno - Lubliniec - Częstochowa - Kraków
Intercity services (IC) Kołobrzeg - Piła - Poznań - Wrocław - Opole - Kraków
Intercity services (IC) Zielona Góra - Wrocław - Opele - Częstochowa - Kraków - Rzeszów - Przemyśl
Intercity services (IC) Ustka - Koszalin - Poznań - Wrocław - Katowice - Kraków - Rzeszów - Przemyśl
Intercity services (TLK) Poznań - Ostrów Wielkopolski - Kępno - Lubliniec - Częstochowa - Kraków'
Intercity services (TLK) Gdynia Główna — Zakopane
Intercity services (TLK) Kołobrzeg — Gdynia Główna — Warszawa Wschodnia — Kraków Główny
Regional services (PR) Katowice — Kraków
Regional services (PR) Katowice — Kraków — Dębica
Regional services (PR) Zakopane - Nowy Targ - Chabówka - Skawina - Kraków Główny
Regional service (PR) Bielsko-Biała Główna — Wadowice - Kraków Główny
Regional services (PR) Kraków - Bochnia - Tarnów - Dębica - Rzeszów
Regional services (PR) Kraków - Bochnia - Tarnów - Nowy Sącz - Piwniczna
Regional services (PR) Kraków - Bochnia - Tarnów - Nowy Sącz - Piwniczna - Krynica-Zdrój
Regional Service (KMŁ) SKA1 Kraków Lotnisko (Airport) - Kraków Gł. - Kopalnia - Wieliczka Rynek-Kopalnia
Regional Service (KMŁ) SKA2 Sędziszów - Miechów - Kraków Gł. - Skawina - Podbory Skawińskie - Przeciszów - Oświęcim (Auschwitz)
Regional Service (KMŁ) SKA3 Oświęcim (Auschwitz) - Trzebinia - Kraków Gł. - Tarnów
Regional Service (KŚ) S3 Katowice - Mysłowice - Trzebinia - Krzeszowice - Kraków Gł.

Preceding station	PKP Intercity		Following station
Katowicetowards Berlin Hbf		EuroCityEC 95 IC	Kraków Płaszówtowards Przemyśl Główny
Warszawa Zachodniatowards Warszawa Wschodnia		EIP	Terminus
Warszawa Zachodniatowards Gdynia Główna or Kołobrzeg			Kraków Płaszówtowards Rzeszów Główny
Warszawa Zachodniatowards Gdynia Główna or Kołobrzeg			Terminus
Warszawa Zachodniatowards Warszawa Wschodnia		EIC	Chabówkatowards Zakopane
Miechówtowards Warszawa Wschodnia		IC	Kalwaria Zebrzydowska Lanckoronatowards Zakopane
Miechówtowards Gdynia Główna			Kalwaria Zebrzydowska Lanckoronatowards Zakopane
Terminus			Krzeszowicetowards Poznań Główny
Terminus			Miechówtowards Łódź Fabryczna
Katowicetowards Kołobrzeg		ICVia Poznań Główny	Terminus
Miechówtowards Zielona Góra Główna		IC	Kraków Płaszówtowards Przemyśl Główny
Krzeszowicetowards Ustka		IC	Kraków Płaszówtowards Przemyśl Główny
Terminus		TLK	Krzeszowicetowards Poznań Główny
Koniecpoltowards Gdynia Główna		TLKvia Częstochowa	Kalwaria Zebrzydowska Lanckoronatowards Zakopane
Miechówtowards Gdynia Główna		TLKvia Tomaszów Mazowiecki	Kalwaria Zebrzydowska Lanckoronatowards Zakopane
Miechówtowards Kołobrzeg		TLKVia Warszawa Wschodnia	Terminus
Preceding station	Polregio		Following station
Kraków Łobzówtowards Katowice		PR	Terminus
Kraków Łobzówtowards Katowice			Kraków Zabłocietowards Dębica
Terminus			Kraków Zabłocietowards Zakopane
Terminus			Kraków Zabłocietowards Rzeszów Główny, Piwniczna or Krynica-Zdrój
Kraków Zabłocietowards Bielsko-Biała Główna			Terminus
Preceding station	KMŁ		Following station
Kraków Łobzówtowards Kraków Lotnisko (Airport)		SKA1	Kraków Zabłocietowards Wieliczka Rynek
Kraków Batowicetowards Sędziszów		SKA2	Kraków Zabłocietowards Przeciszów
Kraków Łobzówtowards Oświęcim (Auschwitz)		SKA3	Kraków Zabłocietowards Tarnów
Preceding station	KŚ		Following station
Kraków Łobzówtowards Katowice		S3	Terminus