elisgriffiths

Earlier this summer, I went travelling in southern Poland, visiting Wroclaw, Krakow and Oswiecim. I fell in love with this fabulous country and its amazingly friendly people. The cities are so colourful, and the prices so affordable.

Here are my two blog posts giving my trip reports, the first one for Wroclaw:

http://passionforplaces.blogspot.co....nbow-city.html

And the second one for Krakow and the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial:

http://passionforplaces.blogspot.co....ow-poland.html

Thanks for reading!
Elis

Leely2

Nice reports! I too was surprised by how much I enjoyed Poland. The other surprise for me was how much I loved Polish food. Can't wait to return, perhaps making a visit to Wroclaw next time. Did you find enough to keep yourself busy there?

Thanks for sharing, Elis.

elisgriffiths

I wish I had given more time to explore Krakow as there was so much to see there! Wroclaw can be seen in a day or two, but I would definitely reccomend a visit - the main square (rynek glowny) is probably the most impressive square I've seen. Where abouts did you go in Poland Leely2?

Leely2

I only visited Warsaw and Krakow. Flew into Warsaw (from San Francisco), and just had a couple nights there. Then took the train to Krakow for six nights there, which gave us enough time to hang out and relax as well as sightsee.

I had a burger stuffed with Polish cheese and topped with beetroot and bacon in Warsaw. Sounded so weird but it was heavenly.

elisgriffiths

Warsaw looks a fascinating city!! And wow that burger sounds incredible! not sure about the beetroot on top though haha!

Andrew

I also loved Poland - Gdansk, Torun, Wroclaw, and Krakow. (Looks like Elis had better weather than I had in the latter two - heavy rain part of the time! But not every day.) I enjoyed them all in their own way. Torun is small but charming at the center. Gdansk and Wroclaw were both flattened by bombing at the end of World War II, so what we see now is what was rebuilt after the war. Of these, only Krakow was mostly spared bombing and is more "authentic" than the others. (And more "Polish" than Wroclaw, I suppose; Wroclaw was part of Germany for hundreds of years til the end of World War II, when the former Breslau was "given" to Poland.)

Although I am not a "museum person," I did see a museum in Wroclaw: the one that houses the amazing Racławice Panorama, a famous panoramic 360 degree painting depicting a Polish battle victory in its war against Russia (but it lost the war). I highly recommend seeing this in Wroclaw. Otherwise, I didn't find nearly as much to see as a tourist as one would find in Krakow, but it's a delightful city to wander around and is far less touristy than Krakow.

marieann

I have been to both and both places are really nice Wroclaw is a smaller version of Krakow but there is not as much to do or see there, yes, it is beautiful and I am glad I went there first because Krakow is also very nice

annhig

we have only been to Krakow, but would love to see more of Poland.

bmk for future reference.

pariswat

Dzien Kuye for your report !

Pivo !

Maryyanna

Wow! It's very nice to see when foreigners like your city! I live in Wroclaw and I love this city - one of the most beautiful market place I have ever seen and in my opinion, the niciest people in Poland!
Have a nice day!

WillTravel

I loved Wroclaw, and had no problem finding enough to do for 2 days (could easily have spent more). I think Poland in general is underrated. I really loved it.

tomarkot

Eli, really enjoyed your blogs. We, too, loved Krakow, as well as Warsaw. We returned from our trip in mid-Sept., and are chapter by chapter posting our TR of Central Europe. We've recently posted Warsaw.

Although we had a wonderful trip, we find that there is limited interest on Fodor's in this area. It's nice to discover others who also enjoy it. Thanks for sharing your experiences.

Adelaidean

Great write up and photos. My father was born in a little town near Breslau (now Wroclaw) and I didn't realise how beautiful a city it is. His memories naturally not so positive, Nazism and evacuation during the war (a 6 week walk in winter).
I think I might add this area to my bucket list

Tinak1

The most beautiful city in Poland is definitely Wroclaw. I look back it with pleasure thanks to Wratislavia Tour company. The guide excellent, we went on all tours by a nice and comfortable coach.

peter_pan

I agree with you Tinak1. They are great. Thanks to them my trip was amazing.

annhig

two of them are at it now - a sort of marketing double act.

yellow button pressed.

Pegontheroad

I haven't visited Wroclaw, but I did visit Gdansk, Torun, and Warsaw this summer and loved them. I also visited Krakow several years ago. I really enjoyed them and plan to return to Warsaw next summer because there was a lot I didn't see.

I am very interested in WWII and Cold War history and found these cities fascinating.