Home / Warsaw /Chopin Airport / SKM or KM train vs Train to Warszawa Zachodnia on the 20-minute ticket

WAW → Warsaw · head to head

SKM or KM trainorTrain to Warszawa Zachodnia on the 20-minute ticket?

The short answer

These do not go to the same place, so price is not the comparison. The SKM or KM train reaches Śródmieście: Warszawa Centralna and Warszawa Śródmieście stations, and the Centrum junction on Marszałkowska; the Train to Warszawa Zachodnia on the 20-minute ticket does not. The ticket dies at 20 minutes and the first central station after Zachodnia is 21 to 23 minutes away. SKM's FAQ says it does not reach Centralna; the airport says buy at least 75 minutes. It is the right ticket only for Zachodnia.

The Train to Warszawa Zachodnia on the 20-minute ticket is quicker: 14 min against 22 min. The SKM or KM train varies between 21 and 23 minutes.

SKM or KM train: 04:56–23:56. Train to Warszawa Zachodnia on the 20-minute ticket: 04:56–23:56.

Priced against each other

Whole-party totals · adult fares
What each costs for the whole party, in PLN. The cheaper of the two is marked on every row.
TravelersSKM or KM trainTrain to Warszawa Zachodnia on the 20-minute ticketDifference
1PLN 4.40PLN 3.40PLN 1
2PLN 8.80PLN 6.80PLN 2
3PLN 13.20PLN 10.20PLN 3
4PLN 17.60PLN 13.60PLN 4
5PLN 22PLN 17PLN 5
6PLN 26.40PLN 20.40PLN 6
7PLN 30.80PLN 23.80PLN 7
8PLN 35.20PLN 27.20PLN 8

Side by side

Where each one leaves you
regional · Szybka Kolej Miejska and Koleje Mazowieckie, on the ZTM ticketSKM or KM train
From
Warszawa Lotnisko Chopina station, underground and a short walk from the terminal; platform 1, track 1 for the S2 and track 2 for the S3 and RL
To
Warszawa Śródmieście on the S2 (22 min) or Warszawa Centralna on the S3 (21 min) and the RL (23 min), all via Warszawa Zachodnia (14 to 16 min)
Luggage
Free, and unlimited by the tariff: "Przewóz zwierząt i bagażu jest bezpłatny." A commuter train, full at rush hour.
Runs
04:56–23:56
Journey
21–23 min

Buy the 75-MINUTE ticket, not the 20-MINUTE one. The cheaper ticket expires before Śródmieście and Centralna — SKM says so in its own FAQ and the airport says "buy a ticket of at least 75 minutes". It reaches Warszawa Zachodnia and nothing further.

A ticket from the machine on the train is validated the moment it is printed. If the train is still standing at the airport, wait until it moves.

S2 goes to Śródmieście, S3 and RL to Centralna. They leave from the same platform, and the S3 and RL share a track; check the screen.

On the RL, a Koleje Mazowieckie train, validate the ZTM ticket in the validator on board, or board by the first door and show it to the train manager. Outside the airport section the RL does not take 20-, 75- or 90-minute ZTM tickets at all.

Nobody on the train sells tickets, the on-board machines take cards only, and SKM tickets are not sold at railway station ticket offices. Cash buyers use the machines at the station entrance.

Before 06:11 only the S2 runs, every 30 minutes from 04:56, plus the 05:41 RL.

SKM or KM train: price for every party size →

Check the fare with WTP
regional · Szybka Kolej Miejska and Koleje Mazowieckie, on the ZTM ticketTrain to Warszawa Zachodnia on the 20-minute ticket
From
Warszawa Lotnisko Chopina station, platform 1
To
Warszawa Zachodnia only: the long-distance and coach station west of the center
Luggage
Free and unlimited by the tariff.
Runs
04:56–23:56
Journey
14–16 min

Validate it as you board, not at the station entrance, and not from the on-board machine while the train is standing at the airport — the machine validates at purchase.

If you stay on past Zachodnia you are traveling without a valid ticket by the time the train reaches Śródmieście or Centralna.

It saves PLN 1 a head against the 75-minute ticket. For anywhere but Zachodnia, that is the whole of what it does.

Train to Warszawa Zachodnia on the 20-minute ticket: price for every party size →

Check the fare with WTP

This compares two of 5 options. See all of them ranked for your party size →

The other comparisons at Chopin Airport