Ostrava is a city in the borderland of Moravia and Silesia in the Czech Republic. With a population of nearly 300,000, it is the third largest city in the Czech Republic and the centre of the second largest urban agglomeration after Prague.
Ostrava had been a predominantly industrial city since the 18th century, when the discovery of extensive coal deposits in the area led to an industrial boom . Ostrava quickly grew from a small provincial town of around one thousand inhabitants to one of the largest cities in the region. As a major steel manufacturing centre, Ostrava suffered heavy destruction during the Second World War, and holds the sad distinction of being one of the most polluted cities of the European Union. Many parts have been redeveloped in recent years though, and several formerly industrial areas have become cultural centres and tourist attractions.
. . . Ostrava . . .
- Prague:
- 3½h, Czech Railway’s IC/EC every two hours (494Kč regular fare sold at train station before – but usually there is some discount offer, 229Kč companions in a group of 2 or more people, 150-300Kč if bought online or in advance at trainstation).
- 3h, Czech Railway’s SC Pendolino every one or two hours (prices as above plus 100–200Kč compulsory reservation fee, around 300Kč altogether if bought online)
- 3½h, new operator RegioJet several times a day. Tickets are generally sold online and start at 230Kč.
- Brno: 2½h, hourly fast trains
- Olomouc: 1h, IC/EC trains and SC Pendolino (compulsory reservation) every two hours. Beware of some fast trains (rychlík) from Olomouc to Ostrava, they go longer way through Jeseníky mountains for more than 3 hours.
- Warszawa: 4½h, three ECs a day
Moreover there are direct connections from Vienna, Bratislava, Žilina, Krakow, Budapest and Moscow. All of them are best bought online.
There are two main stations, 1 Ostrava hl.n. 
. . . Ostrava . . .
This article is issued from web site Wikivoyage. The original article may be a bit shortened or modified. Some links may have been modified. The text is licensed under “Creative Commons – Attribution – Sharealike” [1] and some of the text can also be licensed under the terms of the “GNU Free Documentation License” [2]. Additional terms may apply for the media files. By using this site, you agree to our Legal pages . Web links: [1] [2]