I am planning a fall 2017 or spring 2018 trip to Warsaw, Krakow and Berlin.
I usually like to stay 3-4 nights in each city I visit. Does anyone have advice on how long for each of these cities?
Also, my schedule is rather flexible, so thoughts on best months to travel?
This will be my first time visiting Poland. I much prefer train travel within Europe.
I am having some difficulty planning the trains.
I plan to fly open jaw from the NYC.
Help with this is very much appreciated!
Those were my first three stops a few years ago. I flew into Berlin, but I like your route better. I would say divide nights evenly in each city but throw an extra night or two at Berlin. I took trains between cities.
If you can visit Majdanek near Warsaw or Auschwitz-Birkenau near Kraków, that could also take an extra day. Sachsenhausen is not far from Berlin.
There are many threads on Poland on this Forum already. Give this a read...hopefully it's helpful. By the way, LOT Airlines flies direct from NYC to Warsaw, but last time I went I actually flew Finn Air through Helsinki.
https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/poland/poland-in-september-2017
I am from Poland (Warsaw) but would definitely give Berlin the most time. Berlin is much bigger and has more things/sites to see compared to Warsaw. I could easily spend two weeks in Berlin (as a minimum, I would probably give at least 5 full days there, if not more). Warsaw, Krakow, and Berlin are of totally different scales: Berlin is biggest (needs most time), Warsaw (intermediate, at least 3-4 full days) and Krakow (very compact, at least 2 full days). You also have to factor in any side trips using these cities as your base. Warsaw is a very good base for train trips to other cities. As another example, while the city center of Krakow may not take a long time to see, adding Auschwitz and Wieliczka Salt Mines will increase the number of days because there is only so much you can fit in a single day. So when you're fleshing out the schedule, consider how you're going to spend your time, what you want to see, and any relevant side trips.
I wouldn't consider Majdanek near Warsaw. It will take over two - three hours to get there.
To see both Auschwitz and Auschwitz-Birkeanu while in Kraków is much better idea.
How many days in total you have to devide between these three cities?
I think you should decide what it is you want to see in each city, this will help you decide how long to stay in each place. Personally, I would divide the time up equally between all three, as suggested above, but I know I could fill all the time even in relatively "small" Krakow. I'm assuming you've never been to these cities so 3-4 nights in each will really allow you to get a feel for them. I've not been to Warsaw yet but can tell you that I love Berlin and Krakow. Have a wonderful trip!
Thank you for all the advice!
There is a train that goes between Berlin and Warsaw. We did it 2 years ago. We travel in Europe a lot and take trains a lot, and I had a hard time with that one as well. If you need details, let me know and I can go back in my information and look to see how I booked it.
Majdanek is near Lublin, not Warsaw.
AND, in the fall another option opens for you; Lviv. From Krakow Ryanair flies to Lviv for under $50 direct in about an hour. To be so close and be so convenient, and to miss seeing a place still opening to the world would be a shame.
I did these same cities about 5 years ago. I started in Krakow (actually flew into London, spent a few days there and then got an inexpensive flight on Easyjet to Krakow). I spent 4 nights in Krakow which I thought was about right, particularly if you plan to go to Auschwitz as a day trip. I then took the train to Warsaw and spent two nights there. Three nights would have been better; Warsaw was a big surprise for me. I took the train to Berlin (about 5 hours) and was there for a week. I could have easily spent more time in Berlin as I really just enjoyed the city.
Poznan or Posen, which ever you call it , was given back to Prussia at the Congress of Vienna by the Great Powers. The Great Powers called the shots in European diplomacy.
It warms up rather late in those cities. Check historical day-by-day (actually hour-by-hour) temperature graphs on wunderground.com.vom. Go bavk several years and choose "Monthly". Everyone is different. Personally, I hate cold, wet weather, so I'd be making that trip as near summer as possible if not actually in the summer.
The website of Polish State Railways could be helpful http://rozklad-pkp.pl/en
Hi,
Assuming you have not done your trip already, I would suggest reserving 4 nights for each city. Berlin in the second half of May is nice, I was there once (in 2014) towards the end of April and it was still a bit cold, especially at night, not bad, still doable. Berlin to Krakow can be done at night by the DB bus.
