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5 days in Poland

I am toying around with a short trip to match up with a great airfare I found. The airfare is into London, so I will only have 5 days. If you were going to spend 5 days in Poland how would you do it?

I like cities and just wandering around. Also really enjoy nice museums. Not into adventure sports :)

I was leaning towards the entire time in Warsaw, but....

All suggestions gratefully received.

Posted by
7049 posts

Pick two cities max since 5 days is a very short time, and Poland is a large country. Since you'd likely be flying into Warsaw, spend some time there (at least the first day, if not two) and then take the train either north or south. I would pick either Gdansk (northern city along the Baltic) or Krakow via high speed train. You can easily wonder around in either one and take quick side trips (the 5 days will fly by). Getting around won't be difficult, and Poland is not expensive by Western standards. If you want something off-the-beaten path, then PM me for suggestions (I'm from Warsaw).

Posted by
152 posts

DON'T MISS Gdansk!!!!! It is unbelievably beautiful and has the Lech Walesa shipyard. Krakow is also a fantastic destination as the Castle is there and it's a college town, so lots going on. But don't miss Gdansk. You won't need 5 days for it but it's well worth the effort for a day or two. I loved Poland. The "milk bars" are so much fun to eat at. Warsaw's are always crowded. So much fun to point and see what ya get! Enjoy.

Posted by
5687 posts

I would put Krakow at the top of my list, though I didn't visit Warsaw on my trip to Poland. I visited Gdansk, Torun, Wroclaw, and Krakow. All were great, but Krakow as the most important: a well-preserved city with very little damage from World War II (Warsaw was flattened and re-built after the war) and obviously near Auschwitz, almost a must-see.

Gdansk would be my second choice: a lot of history there too and a nice town to boot.

Posted by
15560 posts

This past September I went to Poland, Gdansk, Krakow and Warsaw. Gdansk was, hands-down, my favorite. Krakow was very interesting, Warsaw was my least favorite. It's about 5.5 hours by train between them, so flying might be a better option.

However, it would depend on the time of year. If you are thinking about February, brrrrrrr. Maybe not even April.

Posted by
2599 posts

I visited Poland on a whim in 2015 and fell hard for it; beautiful country, lovely people and wonderful food. With 5 days I'd suggest 2 in Krakow and 3 in Warsaw, with one of the days being a long day trip by train to Gdansk. As others say, don't miss Gdansk. The architecture is quite unique and its setting against the Baltic is stunning. I took the 6:30 am train from Warsaw and arrived by 9:30 and walked easily to the old town--lots to explore there, then took a boat ride out to see the Westerplatte, had a nice lunch, more exploring of the town and then walked to the Solidarity museum, another don't miss. It was a 10 minute walk from the train station and I caught the 5:30 back to Warsaw.

Warsaw had the Museum of the History of Polish Jews and also an ethnographic museum and a particularly interesting National Gallery--I love the Art Nouveau/Secession era art and in Poland it was called Mloda Polska, wonderful works from artists I'd never heard of. There's the Royal Castle and the old town itself is fun to explore.

Krakow was my favorite, though--I spent 4 days there and never tired of wandering the little lanes of the old town, and the main square had a continual food, crafts and music fair going on, plus Cloth Hall is right there and there's a good art gallery on the top floor, also the Kazimierz district, a great ethnographic museum (I love ethnographic museums and folk art!) and of course I also made a 3/4 guided day trip to Auschwitz.

Posted by
14482 posts

Hi,

With only 5 days I suggest picking only one city and staying there, maybe on the last day take a nearby day trip...just maybe. Pick Krakow, Warsaw, or Gdansk, depending on the level of historical and cultural interest. I could stay in any of these three plus a day trip or two easily for 10 nights, re tracking down the sights. geographically, culturally, and historically.

Posted by
1 posts

Krakow is the best city in Poland. Of course, it depends on what you are looking for. If you want to experience a culture, history and architecture, Krakow is the right place. I have been in Warsaw. Warsaw is already different than Krakow in many ways, it is a typical capital city. Still nice though but, Krakow has got everything :)
Have a great time..
Becky