Poland Travel Tips and Insider Guides
Click a city or region to browse our insider travel tips and guides about Poland.Read Our Insider's Guide To Poland
Poland is an oft-neglected destination for travelers to Europe and this bodes well for those of you who do make the trip. Poland has had its ups and downs since leaving the cold grip of the Soviet Union in 1990, but the economy is stable and the tourism infrastructure is more than adequate for the casual traveler and yet rustic enough to provide for those magic moments far... [Read the full story]
Our Insider's Articles about Poland
After a long day of seeing the sights in Krakow, there’s nothing better than drinking a culturally-relevant libation. This Polish... [Read the full story]
The Black Madonna has been a figure of mystery for centuries. Some say she’s simply a statue of the Virgin Mary carved from... [Read the full story]
Szczecin, Poland’s seventh largest city (population 406,000) and the capital of West Pomeranian Province, is a charming maritime... [Read the full story]
Why would anyone do it, is perhaps the first question. The idea of visiting a concentration camp does not sound like a pleasant... [Read the full story]
About Poland
Poland is an ancient country with some of the most important historical museums in Europe, but its main attractions are its cities, which each have unique personalities. Southern Poland is home to Zakopane, a village at the base of the Carpathian Mountains, where villagers still wear traditional dress. The city of Krakow escaped the WWII bombings that destroyed the rest of the country, and today it is a romantic medieval city. Then there’s Gdansk in the north, located on the Baltic Sea, home to a bustling marina with Gothic and Art Nouveau architecture. Here are tips to help guide you on your trip to Poland.
Poland borders many countries. Belarus, the Czech Republic, Germany, Lithuania, Russia, Slovakia, and Ukraine are all one border-control checkpoint away. Eastern and Western Europe seem to meet in Poland. Poland got caught in the middle during WWII, and many of its museums focus on the time period. The Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and State Museum documents the Nazi concentration camps, and the Warsaw Rising museum tells the story of the city’s uprising against Nazi occupation. There’s also a 3D showing of what Warsaw, Poland’s capital, looked like after WWII.
Other important but less somber places to visit are the Wieliczka Salt Mine, the Great Masurian Lakes region, the medieval castles along the Baltic Coast, the Tartar Mountains (the highest peaks in the Carpathian Mountain range), and the city of Wroclaw. Wroclaw is located in southern Poland, and it is built on twelve islands linked by over 100 bridges.
The official currency is the Zloty. Poland is part of the European Union, but it has yet to adopt the Euro. The official language is Polish. Though English is becoming more common, it is primarily spoken by youth and businesses in tourism industry. The best way to get around Poland is by bus or train. Renting a car is recommended only to the most adventurous.
