Main sights

• Warszawa

  

  For centuries one of the great Jewish centres of Poland. In 1939 there were an estimated 380,000 Jews living in and around the city. Most of Jewish Warsaw was destroyed after the Ghetto Uprising, and just a few traces of their presence remain. Most of the monuments and memorials are located within the wartime ghetto area and they include Nozyk Synagogue - open for worship, Ghetto Heroes Monuments, the Jewish Cemetery, the Jewish Historical and Ghetto Wall, and the Jewish Theatre - one of only two full-time theatre companies performing in Yiddish.

• Mikołajki

  

  One of the most attractive Mazurian resorts, Mikolajki is a small town, and a major destination for sailing and water sport lovers. It offers boat trips on the lakes, water sports of all sorts, a yacht marina and also bicycles for hire for those who wish to visit the nature reserve around Lake Lukajno.

• Gdańsk

  

  Gdansk, the biggest and most important of the three-cities which constitute theTri-city metropolis is also one of the oldest in Poland - it already celebrated its millennium. Its tempestuous history covers the periods from when Teutonic Knights reigned, followed by incorporation into Prussia, finally becoming an Independent City after World War I. It is where World War II broke out and where the “winds of change“ started blowing in one of the Gdansk shipyards and the Solidarity movement was born. Gdansk, Sopost and Gdynia together create a centre of splendid cultural and scientific achievements, as well as haveing the delightful atmosphere of sea ports and seaside resorts, comparable to Copenhagen, Lubeck or The Hague. However each one of the three is different: Gdansk means history, culture and science; Sopot is more of a sea resort and Gdynia, the youngest is an example of urbanization concepts of the early 20th century. Gdansk, at the heart of the Three-city region, makes an ideal destination for a city break, and a good base for discovering the northern part of Poland as well as Russian Kaliningrad.

• Brzeg

  A small town between Wroclaw and Opole which, used to be the seat of Piast dynasty until the 14th century. Today it houses the Museum of the family. The Palace is predominantly Renaissance but with elements of Gothic. Most impressive are the Renaissance interiors which became prototypes for other palaces in Europe. Other points of interests are the Jesuit Church of the Holy Cross, Piast College, and the Church of St. Nicholas.

• Bydgoszcz

  This is another old Polish city which gained its importance in the 18th c. when the waterway system between the Wisla and Odra rivers was created. The most interesting historical monuments are within the Market Square and by the waterfront and include the Parish Church, granaries and Convent Church of the Poor Clares.

• Malbork Castle

  

  UNESCO-listed Malbork Castle is without doubt Poland’s finest fortress. Built by German Teutonic Knights from 1276 onwards, it was enlarged down the years and is a classic medieval example of its kind, with walls up to 4,5m thick. The majority of the castle’s rooms are open to visitors.

• Gniezno

  The first capital of Poland and also the old seat of the Polish Archbishops. The most important monument in the town is the Cathedral with the shrine of Saint Adalbert and the bronze doors a fine example of Romanesque decorative arts.

• Poznań

  

  Is known world-wide as Poland’s international trade fair city, but it has even greater claim to fame as the cradle of the Polish state, established back in the 9th c. It was home to the first two Polish kings and the country’s first cathedral was built there in 968. Among special points of interest are Market Square, the Museum of Musical Instruments, the National Museum and the oldest zoological garden in Poland.

• Rogalin Palace

  Another residence, which today houses a museum with an art gallery of Polish paintings, furniture exhibition and museum of coaches. The palace itself is a good example of the Neoclassical style, surrounded by a French garden and English-style park with remarkable oak trees.

• Wrocław

  
  Wrocław is one of the most beautiful and oldest cities in Poland, initially established on one of the islands formed by the multiple channels of the river Odra near its junction with the Ślęza, the Oława, and the Widawa. As a city of 12 islands and 112 bridges, it is known as the ‘Polish Venice’. After the first settlements appeared in the 7th century on what would later be known as Cathedral Island (Ostrów Tumski), Wrocław developed rapidly as an important province in the early Piast monarchy. The increasing importance of the city at the turn of the eleventh century was confirmed by the establishment there of one of three new bishoprics established at the Gniezno Congress in the year 1000.
  
  The thirteenth century was particularly important in the history of Wrocław. The city’s commercial centre of gravity moved to the left bank of the river Odra, where a town was established by Henry I the Bearded (1202–1238). The fortified town on Cathedral Island, which was the ducal seat and the bishop’s see, continued to play a major role politically and culturally until the end of the 13th century, but increasingly it was becoming church land. By 1429 the entire island had come to be owned by the clergy, becoming terra sancta. Until the early 19th century, a criminal who crossed the Tumski Bridge could be pursued no further, while the dukes and all lay officials had to take off their headgear to cross the bridge.
  
  The 13th century was also a period of rapid development in architecture, especially in church construction, and the introduction of a new building material: bricks. The construction of St John the Baptist’s Cathedral, one of the most precious monuments of church architecture in Wrocław, was started at that time. On 2 March 1242 Wrocław received a foundation charter based on the German law, which marked the completion of a process whereby the settlements around the ducal castle turned into a town of the Western European type – a centre of commerce and crafts. Wrocław secured a number of trading privileges. The number of guilds grew (more than 20), as did the number of craftsmen (about 1700). An important role in the economic development of the city was played by the Odra, on whose bank there was a port used for shipping goods down the river. The first ship carrying grain arrived there in 1557. Between 1526 and 1741 Wrocław was under Habsburg rule and continued to develop despite religious wars in neighbouring Germany and wars between Poland and Moscow. In 1530 the Emperor Charles V affirmed the city’s privileges and granted it a new coat of arms, restored in June 1990. During that time Wrocław became a strong manufacturing centre: its establishments included weaving mills that produced fabrics shot through with silver and gold and a so-called Dutch wool spinning mill.
  
  In 1742 king Frederick the Great of Prussia elevated Wrocław to the status of a capital and residential city of Prussia, next to Königsberg and Berlin. Wrocław’s revenues in 1803 were 3.5 times as large as Berlin’s and 4 times as large as those of Königsberg. Significant developments were seen in higher learning. In 1702 the Jesuits obtained an imperial foundation letter and Universitas Leopoldina was opened, even though the construction of the university did not begin until 1728. In 1811 the Jesuit academy was combined with the University of Frankfurt an der Oder (known as Viadrina), which was transferred to Wrocław. The resulting establishment was a five-faculty university, Universitas Litterarum Wratislaviensis, which would become the Polish Uniwersytet Wrocławski (Wrocław University) in 1945. Its students and professors included numerous outstanding scholars, including a number of Nobel prize winner, such as Paul Erlich (Nobel prize in medicine), Max Born (physics), and Theodor Mommsen (literature).
  
  In the 19th century Wrocław became an important commercial and cultural hub. In 1816 it was made the official capital of the province of Silesia. Railways were built with a growing number of connections available from Wrocław. Around the turn of the 20th century the city grew in importance as an industrial and commercial centre, becoming a large market not only for local products.
  
  After World War II, a major reconstruction effort began in Wrocław, where wartime damage was estimated at 68%. Not only houses were rebuilt but the restoration of the damaged historical monuments also started, their historical forms known from old drawings and paintings being carefully recreated. Literary life started to develop anew. A Club of Polish Literature and Language Lovers was founded, and more and more periodicals were published. Wrocław is one of the largest centres of higher learning, research, and culture in Poland. A number of cultural events are hosted in Wrocław annually, including the Wratislavia Cantans International Festival, Jazz on the Odra, the Singing Actors Festival, and many more. The attractiveness of Wrocław has been growing year by year, with increasing numbers of visiting tourists, business people, and artists.

• Jasna Góra Monastery in Częstochowa

  

  Jasna Gora, a place of pilgrimage for thousands every year, is the most important Marian shrine in Poland. The focal point is the Chapel of the Blessed Virgin with its miraculous icon - the Black Madonna, but the museum with its Treasury and the Arsenal are also well worth a visit.

• Pułtusk

  Today a small, rather provincial town, Pultusk was once a leading grain-trading centre and the seat of the powerful bishops of Plock. The highlights are the market square with its Gothic brick tower, the monumental Collegiate Church and the Regional Museum. The bishops’ castle was turned into a luxurious hotel but its gardens, which lead down to the water’s edge, are perfect for a relaxing stroll. The gardens also offer sailing and aquatic activities.

• Auschwitz-Birkenau - Museum of Martyrdom

  

  Witness here one of the most memorable lessons of modern European history.  The visit includes a film showing the camp’s liberation and you’ll see the flower strewn Death Wall, the national memorials, the rail line, ramp and remains of the hundreds of barracks, a moving testimony to the number of lost lives through Nazi activities across occupied Europe.

• Wieliczka - Salt Mine

  

  This unique phenomenon was once described as being ”as remarkable as the Pyramids and more useful”! Today it is a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage monument and one of the most renowned attractions in the Krakow area. The guided tour commences 65m underground and leads through rooms, passages and great chambers to a depth of 135m. Highlights include the stunning colours of the underground lake and the beautiful Kinga’s Chapel, a remarkable underground ”cathedral” where every feature is carved from the solid salt! There’s even an underground post office made of salt too!