WARSAW
Poland was one of those destinations that wasn’t in our plans to visit, but we wanted to spend a few days in a place where there was snow and Christmas markets, since we went in early December 2018.
It wasn’t in our plans because we know it’s not Europe’s most friendly country for LGBT people, but people who do business with us deserve our full support. We love Poland and Poles. We only have good things to say and we will be back. We are very curious to visit in the spring or summer.
Warsaw was our first stop via a direct TAP flight. As soon as we arrived we called an Uber and went straight to our fantastic apartment we had booked through Airbnb, right in front of the incredible Palace of Culture and Science.
The location was the best, we could walk everywhere and it was very close to a LGBT bar and disco.
Many people don’t explore Warsaw well. We were there for 7 days and we could have stayed longer.
Warsaw is a historic city, where the historic center or old city has been completely rebuilt, it has many parks, despite the cold it has a lot of energy, a lot of beautiful people in the streets, bars,cafes and restaurants full of people, has skyscrapers and an incredible historic center.
We can say that it was from the cities where we saw the most beautiful shops, cafes and bars in terms of decoration and as we went at Christmas time, there was even more magic.
– Old Town (historic center) – This is where the main attractions are located. It’s an area full of charm, very well maintained and restored with narrow streets, the giant square at the entrance of the old town next to the majestic Royal Castle is impossible not to pass there many hours looking at all the details.
– The Wishing Bell – As the name implies, is a bell that is found in a very small square and tells the legend that you sould touch it with the hand, ask for a wish and go around the bell. To find the location, the best is to Google ‘Wishing Bell’ and you’ll find it.
– St John’s the Baptist Archcathedral
– City Walls of Warsaw or Warsaw Barbican – Delimits the historic center and is next to the Royal Castle and the river Vistula. It’s here almost in the middle that you’ll find the Little Insurgent Monument.
– Palace of Culture and Science – You can climb the 30 floors and have incredible views of the city.
– Market square in the old town of warsaw.
– Krakowskie Przedmiescie is a neighborhood next to the old town that deserves your visit and walking through its streets.
– Nowy Swiat street- Be sure to walk down this street. It’s one of the main streets in the city and part of the royal route that connects the Royal Palace and the old city to the south of the city.
– Lazienki Park – Is the largest park in the city of Warsaw and occupies a giant area of the city center. It has a large lake, a large green area, a superb amphitheater and the Lazienki Palace right by the lake. If you like squirrels, prepare yourself that you will find many here. It was our first contact with them!
If you want to get a little away from the city center, you can visit the district of Praga, which is on the other side of the river Vistula.
With Uber we easily reached this area and you can start with the Neon Museum wich is located in a creative hub called the Soho Factory. Here you’ll find the largest collection in the world from the cold war era in neon. This is one of the places indicated for those looking for something outside the tourist routes.
– Wedel Factory is a chocolate factory that is also in the district of Praga and you can visit how they make their famous chocolates and if you want you have a factory store where you can also buy the chocolates.
In the area of the Palace of Culture and Science you can visit:
– Zlote Tarasy Shopping – If you are a lover of architecture and shopping this is the ideal place.
– Hala Koszyki – Is an old market that follows the trends of the world with many restaurants and trendies stores, with beautiful and modern people and very lively. You deserve at least one meal here. The space is open every day until 1am.
– Hala Mirowska – Is another very old, more typical market, where you can see all kinds of vegetables and fruits and here you get a very cheap meal.
One of the main reasons for visiting Warsaw, as we have indicated, was the Christmas markets, there are several scattered around the city and some open in early December.
But if you want to see the fantastic Christmas lighting that’s all over the city and also see all the markets in operation we recommend that you go at a time that catches at least the second weekend in December.
Don’t do like most that when visiting Poland, ignore this fantastic city. Visit Warsaw with long time and you’ll love it.
