Poland City Breaks: What to do in Warsaw

As European capital cities go, Warsaw is a huge city.

Poland’s capital is the eighth most populous city in the European Union and spreads out over a massive 516.9 square kilometre area within its city limits.

Unlike the cities Kath, Gloria and I had previously visited on our budget weekend breaks (namely Riga, Poznan, Cluj-Napoca and Vilnius), Warsaw cannot be described as ‘walkable,’ and if you want to explore further than just the area in which you’re staying, you’ll need to learn to successfully navigate the city’s public transportation system.

This is why I chose to publish a comprehensive guide to planning your trip to Warsaw, in order to help you to organise the logistics of your sight-seeing expeditions.

But, of course, you’ll also want to know what sort of sights and activities you should be adding to your agenda.  So if you’re wondering what to do in Warsaw while you’re there, read on!

But first, where should you stay in Warsaw?

This is a tricky one.  Usually on these sorts of trips with friends, we all prefer to stay close to the nightlife area of a city.  The theory is that we can use public transport to get around during the daytime, but when we’ve had a few drinks during the evening, it’s easier to be within stumbling distance of our temporary home in the city.

However, Warsaw doesn’t really have a single area in which its bars and restaurants are concentrated.  In fact, I’m not sure I could really pinpoint two or three specific areas.  And it is for this reason that we ended up bar-hopping by Uber on our second night in the city.  Which, incidentally is ridiculously cheap (if there’s at least three of you to split the costs between) and great fun, too.

But, back to the question about where to stay in Warsaw!

If I were to personally recommend an area to stay in the city, it would be the Old Town.  It’s an area that feels safe to wander through late at night, there is a good selection of cafes, restaurants and bars within walking distance of each other, and we didn’t find the accommodation prices to be any higher than other parts of the city.  It’s also a delightful place to wander around with no real purpose or destination.

We stayed in this amazing apartment in Warsaw for three nights and – aside from the rather ambiguous and somewhat unclear entry instructions – I honestly couldn’t fault it.   Admittedly, you’ll have a wider choice of options if you’re travelling as a couple (we needed a large double bed (or twin beds) and a sofa bed to accommodate the three of us), but I’d still recommend the place we stayed if it’s available (it gets booked up quite far in advance) and if you can get it for a decent price.

Alternatively, you can search other Old Town accommodation options here:

Booking.com

Good to know: One thing to bear in mind when searching for accommodation in Warsaw is that the Old Town is not considered to be the centre of the city, so if you want to stay in the Old Town, pay no attention to the recorded distance from the city centre; look instead for the distance from Castle Square.  Alternatively, you can use a filter to show only properties located in the Old Town.

Once you’ve booked your accommodation, you can then start planning an itinerary of what to do in Warsaw.

The majority of Warsaw’s notable sights are centred around the Śródmieście and Praga districts, located on both the east and west banks of the Vistula River.  Śródmieście is split into seven sub-districts and Praga is split into two.

What to Do in Warsaw | Old Town 

St. Anne’s Church

St. Anne’s Church is a smidgen outside of the official Old Town boundary (as shown in the map above) but it makes sense to visit it whilst you’re exploring the Old Town, so I’ve included it here.

Located adjacent to Castle Square and marking the start of The Royal Way, St. Anne’s Church is one of the most notable churches in Poland and also one of Warsaw’s oldest buildings.

St. Anne’s Church was one of few structures in the Old Town that escaped major damage in World War II.  As a result, the largely neoclassical facade, dating from 1788,  remains unchanged to this day.

Although its interior is incredible, most people skip this in favour of heading straight up the bell tower’s 148 steps to the viewing platform.  Here you’ll be rewarded with some of the best panoramic views of Warsaw’s Old Town and surrounds.

The Barbican

Built in 1540 on the site of an earlier gate, the semicircular defensive tower was once an impressive bastion surrounded by a deep moat.  But, advances in artillery soon made the Barbican obsolete, meaning that it was only ever used to defend the city on one occasion.

Nowadays it houses a small exhibition showcasing the history of the Old Town walls and is a popular spot for buskers and art and craft vendors to hang out.

The Royal Castle

Warsaw’s Royal Castle resembles a palace more than it does a castle.  It’s an imposing, pink-coloured palace that dominates Castle Square, and was once the official residence of the Polish monarchs.

It dates back to the 14th century, but was brought to the ground during World War II and reconstructed from little more than a pile of rubble between 1971 and 1984 – a feat that was funded largely by generous donations from exiled Poles.

Old Town Market Square

Warsaw’s Old Town Market Square dates back to the 13th century, when it was an important meeting point for trade and the favoured venue for staging events taking place in the city – including public executions.

Originally the colourful and ornate buildings around its perimeter were inhabited by the city’s leaders and other wealthy families, and each side of the square was known simply by the name of the one of the families who lived there.

Where to Eat and Drink in the Old Town

• • Karmnik.  A cosy bar in the Old Town, popular with locals, also serves food.  As it happened, this place was a few doors down from our apartment, so we indulged in some pierogi (Polish filled dumplings) here on our first evening in the city.
  • Same Crafty.  A tiny little craft beer bar, which always seemed to be open when others bars in the Old Town had closed.

What to Do in Warsaw | Nowe Miasto

Fort Legionów

Built between 1851 and 1853 with the purpose of guarding the citadel from the side of the New Town and defending the seasonal bridge over the Vistula River, Fort Legionów is one of an outer ring of six forts that make up Warsaw Citadel.

You’ll find Fort Ligionów in Park R. Traugutt.  It’s the only fort that also possess a complex underground system, with a number of different rooms open for the public to explore.  It was listed as a monument in 1965.

Church of Saint Kasimierz

Completed in 1962, this baroque-style church was built by architect Tylman van Gameren.

In World War II, during the Warsaw uprising, St. Kazimierz was used as a hospital for the insurgents, and as a result it was bombed heavily by the Germans.  It has since been rebuilt in the 1950s.

Multimedia Fountain Park

Although the park is a lovely place to relax and cool down in during the summer months, most people come here at night for the light show.

You’ll be able to enjoy an animated story about the history of Warsaw and its legends, which is accompanied by several-metre-high columns of water rising to the rhythm of music and lit by colourful floodlights.

Where to Eat and Drink in Nowe Miasto

• Feta Na Freta. A cosy little family-run restaurant just north of the Old Town overlooking an attractive square in which you’ll find the church of St. Kazimierz.

What to Do in Warsaw | Muranów

POLIN Museum of the History of Polish Jews

A whole millennium of history of Polish Jewish history is covered in this fantastic museum, opened on the 28 October 2014.

The Muranów district (in which the museum is found) was mainly occupied by the Jewish community in the interwar period,  and the area became the site of the Warsaw Ghetto during World War II.

Where to Eat and Drink in Muranów

• Vege Miasto.  Vegetarian restaurant that receives rave reviews.

What to Do in Warsaw | North Śródmieście 

Palace of Culture and Science

At 237 metres tall, the Palace of Science and Culture is Warsaw’s tallest building and can be seen from almost anywhere in the city.  Built by Russian workers upon the initiative of Joseph Stalin and opened in 1955, the palace is considered to be a symbol of socialist power over the Polish People’s Republic.

There are over 3300 rooms inside this immense building, the majority of which are offices or conference facilities.  However, the palace is also home to two museums, a multiplex cinema with eight screens, four theatres, a swimming pool, an auditorium with a capacity for 3000 people, and even an accredited university on the eleventh and twelfth floors.

Tomb of the Unknown Soldier

Dedicated to all the unknown soldiers who have given their lives for Poland, the Tomb of the Unknown soldier occupies the only remaining part of the destroyed 17th century Saxon Palace.  A pair of soldiers guard the eternal flame here and every hour, on the hour, you can watch the changing of the guard ceremony take place.

Photo by Dennis Jarvis via Flickr

The Narrowest House in the World

Designed by the architect Jakub Szczęsny, Keret House is believed to be the narrowest house in the world, measuring just 92 centimetres at its thinnest point and 152 centimetres at its widest.

It’s actually located just outside the Śródmieście neighbourhood, but as it’s walking distance from the sub-district of North Śródmieście I’m including it here.

Photos by Jakub Szczesny via Flickr and also here on Flickr

Good to know: You’ll find Keret House at Żelazna 74.  It’s only open open on certain days and you’ll need to buy a ticket (25 zł) to visit, which you can do here.

Where to Eat and Drink in North Śródmieście

• Panorama Sky Bar.  Occupies the 40th floor of the Palace of Science and Culture.  Come here for cocktails with a view.
• PiwPaw.  You must have at least one drink in here just to marvel at the walls, which are covered with thousands of bottle caps.  There are also over 100 different beers on tap!
• Thai Me Up!   As the name suggests, they serve Thai food – and it’s very good.

What to Do in Warsaw | South Śródmieście 

Museum of Life Under Communism (now known as Muzeum Czar PRL) 

When we visited Warsaw the Museum of Life Under Communism had recently moved, so we rocked up at its old location on the opposite side of the river and ended up wandering around in circles for ages, convinced that we’d missed a concealed entrance somewhere!  Don’t make the same mistake: the Museum of Life Under Communism is now called ‘Museum Czar PRL’ and can now be found at Piękna 28/34, around a kilometre south of the Palace of Culture and Science.

This tiny museum was founded by Rafał and Marta Patla, who also run tours of Warsaw in vintage “Nysa 522” vans.  In spite of its diminutive size, I found the museum really interesting and also a lot of fun.  It was designed to help younger generations get a sense of the kind of lives their elders lived within the People’s Republic of Poland, so there’s a mock-up living room that you can relax in and an old car that you can actually sit inside and pretend to drive.  In the canteen you can purchase a soda in an original 1960s glass bottle and there are plenty of antique guidebooks to compare and contrast with your own present-day Lonely Planet Poland guidebook.

Good to know: Opening hours are 10:00-16:00 hours Monday to Friday and 11:00-17:00 hours at the weekend.  Admission is 8zł.

Communist Clothing Store (Pan Tu Nye Stał) 

You probably won’t find this one in your standard guidebook to the city, but if you’re looking for a unique and quirky souvenir from Warsaw then look no further!   Here you’ll find a collection of funky clothes and accessories that resemble those available some 30 or so years ago.

My friend Gloria, whom I travelled with, is the queen of vintage clothing and amazing charity shop finds, so this was right up her street.

Address: ul. Koszykowa 34/50

Where to Eat and Drink in South Śródmieście

• Kraken Rum Bar.  Serves a huge array of rum cocktails, and fish dishes.
• Plan B.  Alternative pub-come-club with a studenty atmosphere.

What to Do in Warsaw | Powiśle

Mermaid of Warsaw

As you walk through the streets of Warsaw, you’ll notice that the city is full of mermaid statues, and that a creature resembling a mermaid appears of the city’s coat of arms.

Legend has it that the Warsaw Mermaid (“Syrenka”) originated from the Baltic Sea and swam up the Vistula River to a riverbank close to Warsaw’s Old Town.   Some local fishermen caught ‘the creature’ tangling their nets and releasing their fish, and were about to capture the mermaid, but as soon as they heard her sing, they fell in love.  They subsequently helped to free her after she was trapped and imprisoned by a rich merchant, and ever since then she has helped to guard the city and its residents, armed with a sword and a shield.

I can’t seem to find a definitive answer online regarding the location of the ‘official’ depiction of the iconic guardian.  Some seem to think it’s the version that you’ll find in the Old Town Market Square, as this one was the original statue, created in 1855 (although the one you see there now is a copy; the original has been moved to the Museum of Warsaw).  However others believe that you need to come to the Powiśle neighbourhood to see the the official Warsaw Mermaid.  The version here is larger and made of gunmetal.  She was unveiled in 1939 and holds a prominent position overlooking the Vistula River – where she likely first arrived on land in the city.

Where to Eat and Drink in Powiśle

• Warszawa Powisle.   A bar that occupies a soviet-era ticket office.
• Na Lato.  Late night food and cocktails.

What to Do in Warsaw | Ujazdów

Łazienki Park

Also known as the Royal Baths Park, Łazienki Park is the largest park in Warsaw, occupying 760,000 square metres of the city centre.  It’s part of the Royal Route that links the Royal Castle with Wilanów Palace to the south.

You’ll find the Art Nouveau Chopin Monument (1926) here, but the star attraction is the Palace on the Island – originally built in the 17th century (and remodelled in 1792) as a private bathhouse for Stanisław Herakliusz Lubomirski, owner of the adjacent Ujazdowski Castle.

The park is beautifully quiet during the week, but come here on a Sunday and you’ll be joining half of Warsaw!

What to Do in Warsaw | Praga Północ

Located on the eastern banks of the Vistula River, the Praga neighbourhood (incorporating Północ and Południe) was, until 1648, completely separate from the city of Warsaw.   Even once it had been granted city status, several failed attempts to build a permanent bridge across the river meant that Praga continued to exist as a separate entity well into the 18th century.   

Poniatowski Bridge was finally opened in 1914, and although Praga itself escaped relatively unscathed after WWII (you’ll find some of the oldest and best preserved buildings here), the bridge was severely damaged.  Money was subsequently spent on post-war development in the main part of the city, but poor little Praga was left to fall into disrepair.

Those who could afford to do so moved to the other side of the river, leaving the poorest of Warsaw’s residents living in Praga.  The city’s derelict streets became ruled by the criminal underworld, and even now there are parts of the neighbourhood that tourists are advised to stay away from after dark.

However, things are finally looking up for Praga, as the area is slowly undergoing a surge of regeneration.  Parts of it could even be described as ‘hipster.’ Yes it’s got a long way to go, but it’s already home to a selection of cultural events, design shops, quality restaurants, and some incredible examples of street art.  And, this is why a visit to Warsaw would be incomplete without a visit to its alternative neighbourhood; its creative hub and, in many ways, the most authentic part of the city.

St. Florian’s Cathedral

One of the first landmarks you’ll see when you cross the Poniatowski Bridge and arrive into Praga is St. Florian’s Cathedral, its 75-metre-tall towers dominating the horizon in this part of the city.

Built in 1897 in Neo-Gothic style, the cathedral was almost completely destroyed less than 50 years later when the Germans bombed it during WWII.  Most of what you see today dates back to the time of its reconstruction, between 1947 and 1970.

Photo by Dan via Flickr

Church of St. Mary Magdalene

Located just across the road from St. Florian’s Cathedral, the Church of St. Mary Magdalene is a five-domed Polish Orthodox church that dates back to 1869.

Originally built to serve the needs of a growing Russian community in the Praga Północ neighbourhood, it is one of two Orthodox churches in Warsaw to have survived any major damage or destruction over the years.  It’s got a very lavish, colourful interior where incense burns on a seemingly constant basis.

Polish Vodka Museum

Unfortunately we didn’t make it inside this museum, because we missed the last tour of the day by seconds (due to having trouble finding the place), but the foyer alone looked amazing, with floor to ceiling displays of vodka bottles in varying designs.

The museum is housed in a historic distillation and rectification plant where the Warsaw Vodka Factory “Koneser” used to operate from. The flagship brands of Polish vodkas – Luksusowa and Wyborowa – used to be made here.

Good to know: 70-minute tours run in either English or Polish for a cost of 40 zł (£7.93).  Tickets can be booked online here.

Street Art Walking Tour

One of the most enjoyable experiences I had in Warsaw was on a street art walking tour of Praga with Walkative.

Praga is home to some of the best examples of street art in the city, and this tour will introduce you to the large majority of significant pieces in the area.

Whilst it’s entirely possible I may have found a large number of these street art pieces independently, had I given myself a sufficient amount of time in which to wander around the neighbourhood, viewing them without the aid of a guide to help me understand the relevance of and meaning behind the artwork would not have given me the same depth of appreciation as I ended up coming away with at the end of this tour.

Good to know: The Warsaw Street Art tour runs every Saturday and Sunday at 10:30 hours from St. Florian’s Cathedral (nearest tram stop: Park Praski).

Where to Eat and Drink in Praga Północ

• Jadłoteka.  This place was recommended to us by our walking tour guide and it did not disappoint.  After walking into one of the milk bars near St. Florian’s Cathedral before our tour and being unable to get anything to eat due to the communication barriers (these are largely local joints; not much – if any – English is spoken), it was so nice to be able to walk into somewhere bright and airy and welcoming, and to be presented with a menu with English translations on it.  Their mushroom and cheese omelette was the best!
• Bar Zabkowski.  Milk Bar with English menu.  Milk Bars are incredibly cheap eateries, where you can sample a range of traditional Polish food for the cost of a Starbucks coffee.  Because they’re local joints that are not generally frequented much by tourists, you won’t often find any English spoken or understood and if there is a menu to speak of, it will only be in Polish.  So, finding one of these with an English menu is a huge bonus.
• Sklad Butelek.  Bar housed in a 1913 rubber factory – old furniture and candlelit corners.
• Cafe Melon.  Art/photography gallery and cafe.
• Skamiejka.  Russian and Polish food.
• W Oparach Absurdu.  Iconic bar-come-antiques emporium (pictured below).

What to Do in Warsaw | Praga Południe

Neon Museum

Housed in the Soho Factory complex in Praga-Południe, Warsaw’s Neon Museum is a private initiative by London-based photographer Ilona Karwińska and graphic designer David S. Hill.  It was created with the purpose of documenting and preserving Polish light advertisements created after World War II.

Although it’s only a small museum, there’s  over 200 neon signs here, along with iconic inscriptions and fascinating stories to accompany them.

Good to know: No cameras are allowed inside the museum, but mobile phone photography is permitted without flash.

Where to Eat and Drink in Praga Południe

• Warszawa Wschodnia by Mateusz Gessler.  Polish and French cuisine in a former post-war factory known as the Soho Factory (where you’ll also find the Neon Museum; see above).

And that’s my round-up of what to do in Warsaw in the central Śródmieście and Praga neighbourhoods.  Do you have any other sights and attractions, unusual finds, quality restaurants or quirky bars to add to my list?  Let me know in the comments below!