Malbork Castle

I would. I was there last week and there were reasonably long queues to get tickets, I'd imagine they'd be longer in July. Bear in mind that tickets are timed entry so there are only a set number of tickets allocated per time slot.

Should I buy my train tickets in advance or just show up that morning?

I just showed up at the station however the train was full so I had to stand. The journey only took 30 minutes from Gdansk Glowny so it wasn't too onerous. It was then a brisk 15 minute walk to the castle.

I bought tickets to the castle but all I got was a receipt of payment and not any tickets. I have emailed the castle ticket office for help. Did anyone else have this problem?

I emailed them and after several days they emailed me back with the pdf for the tickets

I'm glad it worked out for you. Enjoy your visit!

I must have been lucky on all counts last week when I went. I booked my train ticket just before I left my hotel for the train station, booked my Malbork ticket on the train, and booked my return train ticket while walking back to the station. However, I went there early, arriving about ten minutes after they opened. I was very glad I did, because by the time I left there were ticket lines and a bunch of groups of kids on field trips waiting to go in. This is evidently field trip season in Poland - the groups are everywhere.

I hope you enjoyed your Malbork Castle visit as much as I did! For future readers of this thread, I visited on a Friday in early August.

Train tickets - there was a very long line at Gdansk Glowny to buy tickets.

Malbork tickets - there was an even longer and very slow moving line to buy tickets at the castle. I bought mine online while standing in line, got one of the last 2 tickets for that half hour timed entry, quickly got my (required) audio guide and went right in.

We were there July 2023, we did not prebook anything, went on a weekday morning, quiet town. Hum, did we get lucky?
We hired a driver from Krakow to Auschwitz , he was saying that the American tourist had not fully returned (in summer of 2023) yet due to the war. So I guess 2024 is different.

...he was saying that the American tourist had not fully returned (in summer of 2023) yet due to the war. So I guess 2024 is different.

When I was in Gdansk in April, when I heard English - which was rarely - it would typically be with a British accent. I heard a lot of German, Spanish and what I will categorize as "Scandinavian" - which may also encompass Dutch. Tourism can flourish there without the presence of Americans.

A waiter in Krakow did tell me that he didn't miss Russian tourists.

I assume that when we went in July 2003, (rather dated here), this was normal and high season. Not wanting to bother with advance tickets and all that, we just showed up ca 11 am after taking the train from Gdansk and bought the tickets...no problems, can't remember if we paid with the cc or used cash.

However getting on a guided tour was not possible, regardless if it was in German, French, or in English. None was available. So, the Mrs and I just explored the castle on own, an absolutely lovely and distinct learning experience, had an enjoyable lunch in the castle restaurant.