Bydgoszcz

I will add to my reply later, but we did Bydgoszcz on a day trip from Torun. LOVED it. They have a lovely town square, beautiful views over the river. So much historical significance and an absolutely stunning cathedral. We did a walking tour and I'm not sure where it came from, maybe the TI?

I believe I talked about Bydgoszcz on my trip report. When I return to this post, I will do a search for it.

It may or may not interest you but Bydgoszcz is on my travel list due to Father Jerzy Popiełuszko celebrating his final Holy Mass as an invited guest at the city's Church of the Holy Polish Brothers Martyrs before his murder by operatives of the Polish government in 1984. Popiełuszko was a staunch opponent of Poland's communist regime and delivered sermons at his home church in Warsaw that interwove spiritual exhortation with criticism of the government. I found this short (125 page) biography a worthwhile read: https://www.amazon.com/Blessed-Jerzy-Popieluszko-Versus-Totalitarianism/dp/1621641686/

Thanks, Dave. Yes, Father Popiełuszko would be very interesting to my husband and me for both political and religious reasons. And thanks, too, for the info on the biography. We like to do some background before our trips, and I'll be sure to get this one. Looking at the other reviews, it seems well worth the effort to read it aloud to my husband before we go. I am glad, however, that it's not 300 pages!

I liked Bydgoszcz when I visited it on a day trip. I'm a slow traveler but am not sure what I would have done with close to 3 full days there, beyond relaxing. I'm not absolutely certain, but I think Bydgoszcz was the one town in Poland where I encountered a tourist office with no English speakers (though that was in 2018, so it could have changed). I mention that so you'll be aware of the possibility you may need to seek local information from the internet or your hotel.

This is my trip report for Poland. There is a part that pertains to Bydgoszcz. I mention that we did a walking tour that I obtained from the TI. I know the TI is located on the old town square area. However, I recall that we were using the walking tour materials almost from the train station. So I must have printed the tour from their website. Below is also a link to their excellent website. There are suggested attractions and itineraries.

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/poland-trip-report

https://visitbydgoszcz.pl/en/

If you are interested in the experience of Polish priests during WWII, visit Torun, if you can. At the Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary there was extensive material about their parish priest and his ministry and ultimate execution at Auschwitz. At the time we visited there was movement towards getting this priest beatified.

We could have used a bit more time in Bydogoszcz, but 2 days would have been plenty and could still include time relaxing on the old town square. I really loved this city. It has the charming, Polish old town center/square but also many elegant buildings similar to what you see in Paris and Budapest.

EDITED TO ADD: Marian Rejewski, was a Polish mathematician and cryptologist, born in Bydgoszcz and credited with a part in deciphering the German Enigma code. There are multiple statues of him in Bydgoszcz.

Thanks everyone. I've adjusted our schedule to give us 2 nights in Bydgoszcz and 2 in Torun (meaning about 1.5 touring days in each). Not ideal, but we'll make it work before heading off to Gdansk.