Although Łódź has an airport, an excellent train station, and is located at the heart of Poland’s road network, it suffers from its proximity to nearby Warsaw. Though direct routes are possible, you may find it easier to travel via the capital city. Read on for the details.
Landing at Łódź Airport
The Polish transport infrastructure is good and improving all the time. In addition to recent airport and railway upgrades, there are bold new plans for a key transport hub for Eastern Europe. If it goes ahead, this airport would include a 25-minute rail link to the centre of Łódź, making it much easier to visit.
For now, however, Łódź remains something of an outpost of the Polish capital, with a lot of transportation requiring a detour there first. Rather than just hopping on a plane or a train, you’ll need to make some decisions on the most convenient way to get there.
Read on for advice on what to expect when you arrive in Poland, via air, road, or rail, including the differences between travelling directly to Łódź or coming in via Warsaw.
If you are already in another Polish city, you may find it is a relatively simple journey to get to Łódź from there.
Łódź Holiday Essentials
- Where To Stay In Łódź: See our guide to the best areas and the best hotels to stay in Łódź.
- Things To Do In Łódź: Check this choice of Łódź activities that you can book online.
- Flights to Łódź: Find the cheapest flights to Łódź and flight times with 12go. Or travel via Warsaw.
- Łódź Packing List: Don’t forget to take any of the essentials with our comprehensive Packing List For Poland.
- Travel Insurance: World Nomads offers simple and flexible travel insurance. Claim online anywhere in the world.
Reaching Łódź By Air
Travelling via Łódź Władysław Reymont Airport is a delight. It’s only 6km from the city centre, with a speedy and cheap bus / tram connection to the centre. We have a dedicated Łódź Airport page and details of How to Get to Łódź City Centre from Łódź Airport. The airport only handles one or two flights a day, so the terminal is quiet and calm.
However, this is also the problem. At time of writing, there are roughly 15 Ryanair flights a week covering Alicante, Birmingham, Brussels Charleroi, Dublin, London Stansted, Malaga, and Milan Bergamo. So, your first question will be whether you have access to any of these airports. If not, you will be flying to Warsaw and catching the train to Łódź.
Similarly, I want to get into Łódź as fast as possible once the plane lands. So I’d rather travel 95 miles to London Stansted, instead of travelling to Warsaw from my local airport. So, even if you can get to one of the 7 airports flying to Łódź, you also need to ask yourself arriving in Warsaw is a better trade-off for you. Does it make more sense to get the extra travel out of the way in Poland or in the country of departure before you fly.
Remember, you’ll also have to do this on the way home. Coming back to your nearest airport is a very compelling argument.
We’ll look at Łódź Airport first before moving onto an exploration of Warsaw Airport and the details of reaching Łódź from there. Hopefully this will give you some clarity on the easiest way to reach Łódź for your specific case.
Exit from Arrivals
Travelling Via Łódź Władysław Reymont Airport
Once you’ve actually landed in Poland, everything about this option is both much faster and cheaper. You could be in the city centre in about an hour of your plane landing. The airport experience is calmer and quicker too.
As pointed out earlier, this airport is currently served exclusively by budget airline Ryanair from only 7 points of departure: Alicante, Birmingham, Brussels Charleroi, Dublin, London Stansted, Malaga, and Milan Bergamo. And, due to the exclusivity, tickets can be subject to quite aggressive surge pricing. Particularly if you leave it late to book. All the same, I’d expect to pay less than 50€ return from London Stansted.
Łódź Władysław Reymont Airport is 6km south-west of the city centre. It has a single runway and a new terminal building was opened in 2012, designed for up to 3m passengers. It’s safe to say those numbers never arrived, due to competition from Warsaw’s two airports, and now there is just a single carrier.
If one of the departure airports is convenient for you, use a comparison site like 12go to find flight availability and prices.
The airport is small, so facilities are limited. In addition to duty free, you’ll find a convenience store and small bistro on the landside, as well as an ATM. Free wifi is available.
You can reach Łódź itself via the 65A and 65B bus service that leaves every 20 minutes or so from directly outside the terminal. The fare into the centre is currently 4.40zł – roughly 1€. The journey to Piotrkowska Centrum takes about 30 minutes, though you’ll have to change onto a tram to complete the trip.
There is also a taxi rank outside the terminal building. You can expect to pay around 30zł (roughly 7€). The drive takes about 20 minutes.
See How to Get to Łódź City Centre from Łódź Airport for more information.
There are also a number of car rental companies based in the airport – see Reaching Warsaw By Car below for more information.
Łódź Airport To Łódź City Centre Map
Our Visit Łódź map includes Łódź Władysław Reymont Airport and the Piotrkowska Centrum tram stop, so you can gauge the distance between the two. Transportation is marked in green.
Click any pin on the map for more details about each place. Click on the icon in the top left corner for an index of every location, sorted by category. You can zoom in and scroll around, just as you would on any Google Map.
Travelling Via Warsaw Chopin Airport
To confuse matters even more, Warsaw actually has two airports: Chopin and Modlin. The latter is a small, budget airport, similar to Łódź. Arriving at Modlin will only add more time and trouble to your journey, so I advise you to only to use Warsaw Chopin.
Warsaw Chopin is an international airport, with Poland’s own LOT Airlines serving Beijing, Dehli, Tokyo, and North America, amongst other destinations. The flights are a mix of low-cost and flag carrier airlines, so it’s usually possible to pick up a cheap ticket provided you book early enough. However, flights tend to originate from major transport hubs only.
There are daily flights from a handful of other Polish cities, most noticeably Kraków. British Airways runs services from London-Heathrow, as does the Polish airline LOT, whilst Wizz Air flies from Birmingham, Leeds / Bradford, Liverpool, and London-Luton. However, Ryanair only has a very limited set of flights, none of which are from the UK, using Modlin Airport instead, and easyJet does not currently serve Warsaw at all.
As with any flight, prices to Warsaw and availability can vary enormously. Use a comparison site like 12go and start looking roughly three months ahead of your departure. You’ll often get a better deal if you can be flexible when you travel.
The airport itself is modern and well-equipped, with good transport links. See our full guide to Warsaw Chopin on our sister site WarsawVisit.com for full information.
Warsaw Chopin Airport
Getting To Łódź From Warsaw Airport
The coach is probably the simplest way to get from Warsaw Airport to Łódź. The route is non-stop, whereas you will have to travel into Warsaw itself and change, if you take the train.
There are roughly 9 daily Flixbus services from Warsaw Chopin to Łódź. The journey takes 1.5-2 hours and should cost less than €10. These depart from the coach station attached to the airport, which is very easy to find, and arrive at the main coach station in Łódź, which is right next to the main Fabryczna train station, in the centre of the city. The coaches usually leave from bays 10, 11, or 12.
If you do end up flying into Warsaw Modlin, there are 5 Flixbus services daily. These take around 3 hours and cost around 11€. These depart from the stop outside arrivals on ul. Gen. Wiktora Thommee 1A and also take you to Łódź Fabryczna. You will first detour into Warsaw itself, whereas the Warsaw Chopin routes are non-stop to Łódź.
If you cannot get a direct flight to either Łódź or Warsaw airport, there is likely to be a direct coach service from another Polish or big European airport. See the section below.
As noted, the trains are a bit more complicated and a number of routes are available. But the most straightforward is to catch the S2 from the train station beneath Warsaw Chopin, travel to Zachodnia, then change onto a regional train for Łódź Fabryczna in the centre of the city. The journey takes 2 hours and costs about 10€. You can work out the route with the Polish trains timetable and ticket service. Use WARSAW AIRPORT as the departure point and ŁÓDŹ FABRYCZNA for the arrival.
Warsaw Modlin doesn’t have its own train station, so you will be catching the coach if you arrive there.
As you can see, the coach is generally cheaper and faster, if you catch the express. The train is roughly comprable, but has that extra step, which is an additional disadvantage. Once you are onboard the coach, you can just relax.
How To Decide Whether To Travel Via Łódź Or Warsaw Airport
So, there are a number of variables at play when you consider flying in via Łódź Or Warsaw Airport.
First, do you live close to one of the airports that directly serves Łódź? If so, the decision has been made for you.
Second, would you prefer to have the longer journey to or from the airport at the start or finish of your trip? If you’d rather get home from the airport as quickly as possible when you return, then you should fly via Warsaw. If you want to be in Łódź as soon as you arrive in Poland, then fly to the airport there.
Third, do you want to spend time in Warsaw as well? You could fly into Chopin and spend a few days there, either side of your trip to Łódź.
Beyond this, you might compare times and prices between Poland and the country you’re travelling from. It’s going to take about 2 hours to get from Warsaw to Łódź and cost around 10€. If you can get to one of the airports serving Łódź faster and cheaper than that, you should do it. Otherwise, you should travel to your nearest airport and fly into Warsaw instead.
Warsaw Airport train and coach stations
Reaching Łódź By Coach
In terms of available services, catching a coach to Łódź might be the best option. Flixbus runs a service from most Polish cities and there are direct services from key European cities, including Berlin (6 hours, €21), Prague (8 hours, €27), Vienna (9.5 hours, €28), and more.
These vehicles are clean, modern, and safe, and you can generally just hop on board and make yourself comfortable. Coaches will have a toilet and will make fairly regular stops on longer journeys. Don’t assume that snacks and refreshments will be available on board, although it’s likely that you’ll also stop at services every few hours.
As noted above, the other great thing about such an extensive coach network is that you can travel into Łódź from a number of airports. In addition to Warsaw Chopin and Modlin, you can also get a direct service from Katowice (7 hours, 20€), Kraków (4.5 hours, 16€), and other Polish airports. Even big European airports like Berlin BER (5.5 hours, 20€) have a direct service to Łódź, which gives you a bigger choice of arrivals if the Łódź and Warsaw options don’t work for you.
Additionally, you can try Sindbad, which good for northern and eastern Europe. Tickets can also be bought from 12go.
Doorway to Łódź bus station from Fabryczna train station
The coach station is on Plac Bronisława Sałacińskiego 1, attached to the main Łódź Fabryczna train station. This means you’ll arrive in a central location with lots of local transport connections.
Inside the Łódź bus station
Many of the buses come to a stop on a subterranean floor beneath the street. You can get to the bus station from the main waiting area of Łódź Fabryczna train station.
Reaching Łódź By Train
Łódź has three main train stations: Widzew to the east of the city, Kaliska to the west, and Fabryczna in the centre. Whilst all of these are well-served by other Polish cities, you’ll have to travel via Warsaw if you want to travel in from another country, particularly the neighbouring countries Germany, Czechia, and Austria. See How To Get To Warsaw on our sister site Warsaw Visit.
Berlin to Warsaw takes just under 6 hours, with 4 daily departures. Prague to Warsaw takes 8 hours, with 2 daily departures. Vienna to Warsaw takes just under 8 hours, with 3 daily departures, and an overnight train is available.
Warszawa Centralna
Once you are in Warsaw, there are a number of onward routes available, but one of the simplest is to catch the train for Łódź Fabryczna from Warszawa Centralna. The journey takes around 1.5 hours and costs about 10€. You can work out the route with the Polish trains timetable and ticket service. Both stations are located right in the centre of town.
Łódź Fabryczna train station
Fabryczna is a wonderful station. Fairly central, it is huge, considering the amount of traffic it handles, and a great piece of architecture and design. The train lines are in the basement, with the large passenger area beneath the striking canopy and street above. There is a well-connected transport system of bus, tram, and taxi, and a number of stunning attractions nearby. See Getting Around In Łódź for more details. Most of all, it is a strangely calm and relaxing place. There are some nice waiting lounges, places to get coffees and snacks, but there’s also a fee for using the toilets.
A new train station is currently being built in downtown Łódź and the whole local network will soon be connected via an underground tunnel. This could significantly open up new possibilities for train travel within the city.
Three Łódź stations are also well-connected to a number of other Polish cities thanks to an excellent intercity network, although you may need to travel via Warsaw. The network is comfortable and reasonably fast. It’s also cheap, depending on the type of train you choose. You can work out routes and costs via the comprehensive network website and see Other Polish Cities You Can Visit From Łódź for suggestions.
Please note: the Polish rail network is run by a number of companies and you should be aware that tickets are not interchangeable. Assume that a ticket is only valid for the particular journey you bought it for. Other than that, the whole system is fairly easy to understand.
The fastest trains are operated by PKP InterCity and are marked on timetables as EIP (Express InterCity Premium). You need to buy these tickets in advance – up to 30 days ahead – as seat reservations are compulsory. But you can buy online from outside Poland. First and second class tickets are available. Snacks are available on board the trains.
The same firm also runs a budget intercity service, marked as TLK (Twoje Linie Kolejowe) on timetables. As with the EIP trains, these also need to be booked in advance. The service is second class only and you shouldn’t expect any snacks on board. Any routes marked with IC (InterCity) will be considerably slower but no cheaper, and can be ignored.
Regio also run some express services (marked REG on timetables), which might be worth considering, and there are more localised operators, such as Koleje Małopolskie, who run the service to the airport.
In practice, the choice is actually very simple. Just put the route you want into the online timetable and choose the price and journey time that suits you best.
Reaching Łódź By Car
Sat in the centre of Poland, Łódź is well-connected to a number of other cities, including Warsaw (137km, via DK2), Poznań (213km, via DK2), Wrocław (220km, via E67), Częstochowa (127km, via Autostrada A1), Katowice (203km, via Autostrada A1), and Gdańsk (338km, via Autostrada A1). Be prepared for toll charges on the motorways. More easterly cities are generally accessed via Warsaw.
See Other Polish Cities You Can Visit From Łódź for an overview.
The Polish capital is directly connected to all neighbouring capitals via a handful of major roads. Berlin can also be reached in roughly 5 hours via the DK2 and Prague in 5.5 hours via the E67.
Since the outbreak of war in Ukraine, eastern access to Poland has been severely limited, although Talinn, Riga, and Vilnius in the north are still easily accessible routes into the country.
There are a number of car rental companies operating in Poland. Quickly check availability and compare prices to hire a car using the search box below.
You’ll need a valid driving licence and registration, proof of ID (such as a passport), and a Green Card to confirm that you are fully insured. You are required by law to carry a warning triangle and fire extinguisher, and the car needs headlamp beam deflectors and a sticker to identify country of origin. The alcohol limit is so low that drinking should be completely avoided by drivers. Seatbelts are compulsory and there are heavy spot fine for all traffic violations. Finally, it is compulsory that all motor vehicles use dipped or headlights or daytime running lights, day and night, all year round.
Similar to Kraków, Łódź is heavily pedestrianised in places, although there are some ring roads around the centre. It’s probably best to check if you accommodation offers a parking space, then leave the vehicle there and make the most of the excellent public transport.
Start Planning Your Łódź Trip Now!
:: Find things to do and get to know Łódź with a professional guided tour via Get Your Guide. You’ll see the biggest highlights in a morning or afternoon, with lots of suggestions for where to go next.
:: Find available Łódź hotels on Booking.com – usually you can reserve a room with no upfront payment. Pay when you check out. Free cancellations too.
:: Find the cheapest flight to Łódź with 12go - one search will show you the prices and times from scores of airlines for your trip. A real timesaver.
:: World Nomads offers simple and flexible travel insurance. Buy at home or while traveling and claim online from anywhere in the world.
