Attractions
Attractions in Poland
The sights worth building a day around.
Poland's attractions run from the medieval market squares of Krakow and Wroclaw to the Wieliczka Salt Mine, the memorial at Auschwitz-Birkenau and the Teutonic castle at Malbork. Each page below covers what the place is, how long to spend and how to get there, grouped by city.
All Attractions in Poland
Warsaw
Stare Miasto (Warsaw)
Warsaw's Old Town was rebuilt from rubble after World War II so faithfully that UNESCO added it to the World Heritage list. Its Market Square is lined with pastel merchant houses and centred on the bronze Mermaid statue, the city's symbol.
Wrocław
Ratusz (Old Town Hall)
A late-Gothic town hall built over roughly 250 years, famed for its richly carved south facade and astronomical clock from 1580. It houses the Museum of Burgher Art and the historic Piwnica Swidnicka beer cellar below.
Gdańsk
Fontanna Neptuna
The bronze Neptune Fountain, cast in the early 17th century, has stood in front of the Artus Court since 1633 and became the symbol of Gdansk. Local legend claims the god's trident scattered gold flakes into the water, inspiring the herbal liqueur Goldwasser.
Poznań
Ratusz i koziolki
At noon two mechanical billy goats emerge above the Ratusz clock and butt heads twelve times, drawing a crowd every single day. The Renaissance town hall, remodelled by Giovanni Battista di Quadro, also houses the city's history museum.
Sopot
ulica Bohaterow Monte Cassino
Known locally as Monciak, this pedestrian street is Sopot's lively spine, lined with cafes, restaurants and townhouses leading straight down to the pier. It buzzes with buskers and crowds through the summer season.
Toruń
Ratusz Staromiejski
One of the finest municipal Gothic buildings in Central Europe, the Old Town Hall dates from the late 14th century and now houses the District Museum. Its tall tower offers sweeping views over the red-roofed old town and the Vistula.
Warsaw
Muzeum Powstania Warszawskiego
The Warsaw Uprising Museum documents the 63-day insurrection of 1944 through survivor recordings, a replica Liberator bomber, and a beating-heart sound installation. It sits in a former tram power station in the Wola district.
Wrocław
Panorama Raclawicka
A monumental 360-degree painting measuring 15 by 114 metres depicting the 1794 Battle of Raclawice. Viewers stand on a central platform as the painted canvas blends seamlessly into a three-dimensional foreground.
Gdańsk
Bazylika Mariacka
One of the largest brick churches in the world, this vast Gothic basilica can hold up to 25,000 people. Climb its 405 steps to a viewing terrace for a sweeping panorama over the red rooftops of the old town.
Lublin
Kaplica Trojcy Swietej
Inside the castle, the Holy Trinity Chapel is covered floor to ceiling with rare Ruthenian-Byzantine frescoes from 1418, a unique blend of Eastern painting under a Western Gothic vault.
Poznań
Katedra
The Archcathedral Basilica of St Peter and St Paul is Poland's oldest cathedral, first raised in the 10th century. Its Golden Chapel holds the tombs of the first Polish rulers Mieszko I and Boleslaw Chrobry.
Sopot
Krzywy Domek
The Crooked House is a warped, fairytale-like building on Monciak whose facade appears to melt and bend, inspired by the illustrations of Jan Marcin Szancer. It has become one of the most photographed structures on the Polish coast.
Poland fits a lot into one country: medieval market squares, a salt mine carved into underground chapels, the memorial at Auschwitz-Birkenau, mountain trails and a long Baltic coast. Seventeen places hold UNESCO World Heritage status, and most of the headline attractions cluster around the cities you are likely to base yourself in, so a first trip rarely means long transfers.
Where the big attractions are
Krakow has the densest cluster: the Main Market Square, laid out in 1257 and among the largest medieval squares in Europe, the underground Wieliczka Salt Mine, and the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial within a day trip. Warsaw rebuilt its Old Town from wartime rubble, Gdansk lines the Motlawa with tall merchant houses, and Wroclaw and Torun keep intact Gothic centres. The mountains around Zakopane and the lakes of Masuria add the outdoor side.
How to choose
Group attractions by the city you are staying in rather than chasing them across the map. Krakow, Warsaw and Gdansk each reward two or three days and put more sights within an easy day trip. For the classic sights that define the country, see the best viewpoints and our city guides.
Before you go
The busiest sites use timed entry, so book Wieliczka and the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial ahead, especially in summer. Many state museums have one free day a week. Tickets are good value by European standards; our note on costs in Poland has the typical prices.
Attractions by city
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