Poland is not as popular with tourists as its neighbors, but in fact there are many opportunities for active, cultural, medical and even beach holidays. Holidays in Poland can be a great alternative for those who have already visited more popular countries.
Advantages and disadvantages
Advantages
- A variety of recreation, from sightseeing to medical
- The air is fresh and clean
- There are not many tourists, even in high season
- Prices are quite low
- The climate habitual for inhabitants of the European part of Russia
- The atmosphere is also similar to Russian, some tourists like it
- The hotels are quite good, the hotel infrastructure is developed
- Interesting sights in ancient cities
- A lot of people speak English, and some even Russian
- Pretty interesting and inexpensive shopping
Disadvantages
- A visa is required to enter the country
- The weather is familiar to us, but not too comfortable for rest, there are sudden temperature changes and rains
- Not everywhere is clean, and the atmosphere, close to Russian, does not suit everyone
- Beach holidays are not so good
- No world-class attractions
- For some, rest seems too boring, not enough entertainment
Climate
According to toppharmacyschools.org, the climate in the country is temperate, with a transition from continental to maritime. Winter is not frosty, summer is quite warm, while during the season the weather changes dramatically from dry to wet. The climate is especially unstable on the coast of the Baltic Sea, in the center of the country it is warmer and drier in summer than on the coast, and in the mountains summers are rather cool, and winters are very snowy.
How to get there
By plane
The easiest way to go on vacation to Poland is by plane – there are direct flights from Moscow, St. Petersburg, Yekaterinburg and other cities. Low-cost airlines fly from Europe to Poland. Most planes fly to Warsaw.
Every day a train departs from Moscow to the capital of Poland – the journey will take approximately 18 hours. There are also bus routes from Moscow and Kaliningrad, but the journey from Moscow will take about a day.
By bus or taxi
It is quite easy to get to Poland by car, inside there will be no problems with moving in a Russian car.
Transport
During your holiday in Poland, you will need to use local transport, both urban and intercity.
There are 10 airports in the country, and you can travel between cities by plane. However, the country is small, and it will be cheaper to use other transport.
Rail transport is popular – it connects almost all major cities. There are trains of different classes, from slow OS to night expresses NEx and daytime Ex. Tickets are sold at the box office, but not for the train, but for the route – you can take any daytime slow or fast. Almost all trains have smoking and dining cars.
Buses are more popular than trains. They travel between the bus stations of almost all cities, although sometimes you need to make transfers on long-distance routes.
Urban transport is mainly represented by buses. Warsaw, Poznań, Krakow, Gdańsk and Wroclaw have trams, and Warsaw also has a metro. For public transport, a single ticket is bought for a certain time or several days. There is a heavy fine for traveling without a ticket.
You can rent a car – you will need an international license and age over 18, but up to 21 you will have to pay more. Traffic rules are standard, but remember that there are quite a few toll roads in the country.
Money
The official currency is the Polish zloty, which is divided into one hundred groszy. You can only pay in national currency – only in some supermarkets marked TESCO it is possible to pay in euros. Many shops, hotels and restaurants accept bank cards, as well as travelers checks.
It is easiest to exchange euros and dollars, it is better to do it in special exchange offices – the exchange rate in banks is not profitable, and sometimes they do not change the currency at all. The exchange of money marked with a pen is often denied.
Cuisine and restaurants
The local cuisine is both Slavic and Western European, it combines many traditions, all dishes are very hearty and varied.
First, as with us, soup is served. Here are the most popular:
- Khlodnik – okroshka with beetroot kvass;
- Zhurek – soup on sour cream with smoked meats;
- Chervony borsch – beetroot soup with dumplings;
- Krupnik – barley soup with smoked meats;
- Rosul – chicken noodle soup;
- Zupa ogurkova – soup with pickles, or tomato – with tomatoes;
- Chernina is a soup with offal from goose blood, vegetables and dried fruits, very unusual in taste.
Then, like ours, they serve second courses. Bigos is considered the main national one – stewed cabbage with sausages, mushrooms, smoked meats and wine. Other ingredients are often added to bigos, and its composition may vary in different cafes. We also recommend trying:
- Ges – baked goose;
- Pozhibrodu – cabbage with smoked chicken breast;
- Shabovi – cutlet in breadcrumbs;
- Zrazh – meat stewed in sour cream.
Local fish dishes are also very good, especially Polish carp, with a separately served head, and Jewish carp, with jelly. Gourmets will love baked pike, herring in sour cream, hunting fish soup, fish meatballs and pikeperch roll.
French fries are usually served as a side dish – “frits”, or dumplings in the shape of hooves. They also love potato and pumpkin pancakes with sausage. Mushrooms are popular in any form.
If you like sweets, then try shortbread envelopes with kolachki jam, shortbread pie with mazurek jam, yeast pie with polish babka glaze, sernik cottage cheese pie and much more.
They drink juices, kvass, jelly. Of the alcohol, the most popular are tinctures, brandy, vodka and beer, mostly local. Remember that drinking alcohol on the street is prohibited.
Reviews
Reviews about holidays in Poland are very good – on review sites it has ratings of more than four stars. They praise the architecture, cuisine, infrastructure, the friendliness of the locals and other aspects of the holiday. There are even those who compare Polish cities with European capitals and believe that they are in no way inferior in terms of interesting pastime.
Of the negative points, dirt in cities, high prices in Krakow and other minor shortcomings are noted, but almost no one considers them significant. This applies to holidays both in cities and at beach and ski resorts, although tourists prefer to relax on excursions, with sightseeing.
Frequently asked Questions
Question:
How to choose a hotel?
Answer:
It is not easy to choose a hotel where to relax in Poland – there are a lot of options here. Interestingly, the star rating of hotels is often underestimated in order to pay less taxes. So 2 * establishments offer cozy rooms and breakfasts, 3 * often have saunas and pools, and at the same time they are quite inexpensive. There are also luxurious five-star hotels, especially in Warsaw and Krakow. By the way, hotels in Warsaw lower prices for weekends. Hotels near ski resorts have a very good level – mostly 3-5 star hotels there, ideal for families, and many boarding houses.
Question:
What to do in case of emergency?
Answer:
Poland is a very safe country, and tourists rarely have problems. If something does happen, you can call the police at 997, the fire department at 998, and the ambulance at 999. There is also a single emergency number 112. you can ask a question and contact in case of problems. You can also call the Russian Embassy in Warsaw at +48 (22) 621 34 53
Question:
What language is spoken in Poland?
Answer:
The main language is, of course, Polish. It is similar to Russian, but it will still not be possible to understand it without preparation. German and English are very popular – almost the entire population knows at least a little, so it will be easy for you to communicate if you know a few words in English. It is easy enough to come across a person who knows Russian, but you should not count on it.
Question:
When is the best time to go to Poland?
Answer:
Deciding where to relax in Poland is much easier than choosing when to travel. Most of the tourists here are in the summer, on the May and Christmas holidays, so during this period the prices go up a lot. At the same time, swimming in the Baltic Sea in the middle of summer is often impossible, as the water blooms and causes allergies. There are very few tourists in autumn, early spring and winter, but the weather is still good for sightseeing, and tours are much cheaper, so this is a great time to relax. Ski resorts are open from December to mid-March. Medical resorts are better to visit in the summer, in warm weather.
Question:
How are things with cellular communications?
Answer:
Cellular coverage is stable almost throughout the country, there are no problems with communication. Roaming of Russian operators is quite expensive, but some operators have great deals. If you wish, you can buy a Polish SIM card – an outgoing call to Russia will cost about half a euro, and incoming calls will be free. A cheaper option would be a tourist SIM card, which you can buy at the airport or in advance in Russia.
