Poland

Poland surprises many first-time visitors. Its history is heavy, and the scars of the twentieth century are still visible, but the country today feels confident, friendly and lively. City centres destroyed in the Second World War were rebuilt with great care, trains between the major cities are fast and comfortable, and eating out is excellent value by Western European standards.

Kraków is the cultural heart, with its vast medieval Market Square, Wawel Castle and the Kazimierz Jewish quarter. Many visitors also make the sombre visit to Auschwitz-Birkenau or the extraordinary Wieliczka salt mine. Warsaw, the capital, combines a painstakingly reconstructed Old Town with a modern skyline and strong museums. In the west, Wrocław has a beautiful riverside setting and hundreds of tiny bronze dwarf statues hidden around town, while Gdańsk on the Baltic is a former Hanseatic port of tall merchants' houses and amber shops. Toruń, birthplace of Copernicus and famous for gingerbread, and Zakopane in the Tatra mountains, with its wooden highland architecture, are good additions for a longer trip.

Polish cooking is generous and warming. Pierogi (dumplings with savoury or sweet fillings), żurek sour rye soup, bigos hunter's stew and obwarzanki bread rings from Kraków street carts are all worth seeking out. Vodka is a serious subject, but so is the growing craft beer scene.

Poland is one of our strongest winter destinations, with Christmas market walking tours in Kraków, Warsaw, Wrocław and Gdańsk. We also offer city breaks, a private walking tour, day tours, a multi-country rail tour through Germany, Poland, Hungary, Austria and Czechia, and an Eastern Europe self-drive itinerary. Trains between Warsaw, Kraków and Gdańsk are fast enough that a two- or three-city break by rail is simple to arrange, with private guides waiting at each stop.