Must See

Beaches

The Pomeranian coast has some excellent beach resorts, such as Leba, which has a beach of fabulous white sand, or the large and fashionable Kolobrzeg. The beach at Leba connects to the Slowinski National Park, which is famous for its giant 'wandering sand dunes' which can shift several metres each year.

Further east, the Hel Peninsula also has some good beaches.

Czestochowa

This city in the south of Poland is situated in 100 km (60 miles) north of Krakow. It is known for the famous Paulist monastery of Jasna Góra that is the home of the Black Madonna painting (also known as the miraculous painting of Our Lady), which, according to legend, was painted by St. Luke the Evangelist. Every year, millions of pilgrims from all over the world come to see it.

There is also a Lusatian culture excavation site and museum in the city and ruins of a medieval castle in Olsztyn, approximately 15 kilometres from the city centre.

Gdansk

Once known as Danzig, the city of Gdansk has been under constant change. The Order of the Teutonic Knights captured it from the Poles in the fourteenth century, and then lost it to the Prussians. Later occupied by the Germans, it is now recovered and is home to the largest Gothic church in Poland: St Mary's Basilica. Nearby, travellers may see the the Teutonic castles at Gniew and Malbork, the forested Hel Peninsula, and Europe's longest pier (500 m/1,640 ft) in Sopot.

Krakow

Largely untouched in World War II, Poland's second largest city has kept its medieval charm. Set in the wooded foothills of the Tatra Mountains, on the southern banks of the River Vistula, Krakow (also known as Cracow) is one of UNESCO's 12 most important historical sites. The largest Market Square in Europe is home to a reconstructed Cloth Hall that houses art and sculpture galleries.

Krakow is considered by many to be the cultural capital of Poland, and was the EU's European Capital of Culture in 2000. It has 28 museums and public art galleries, some of the best in the country, among them the main branch of Poland's National Museum and Czartoryski Museum, featuring works by Leonardo, Raphael, and Rembrandt.

Planty Park is the best known park in the city, established in 1822-1830 along the site of the old medieval city walls. It consists of a chain of 30 smaller gardens designed in varied styles, and adorned with monuments. The park has a surface of 21 square hectares (52 acres) and a length of 4 kilometres (2.5 miles), forming a popular scenic walkway.

Overlooking the city is the 16th-century Wawel Castle, with the world's largest collection of tapestries and, beside it, the gothic cathedral of Sts. Stanislaw and Vaclav.

Lublin

Lublin is the biggest city in eastern Poland. The first permanent settlements on the Lublin site were established in the early Middle Ages and the first fortification on the site may have been built as early as the 8th century. The city's Cracow Gate, built in the late 14th century and remodelled in 1782 is the primary entrance into the Old Town. It is considered to be an architectural symbol of Lublin and also houses a historical museum.

Mazurian Lake District

Masuria is an area in the northeast of the country famous for its lakes and forests. The region is known in Polish as Kraina Tysiaca Jezior, meaning "land of a thousand lakes". This continuous stretch of lakes is popular among tourists and is also a favourite angling destination. A lake-trail can take visitors through several lakes and canals.

National Parks

Poland has a number of national parks and nature reserves, including:

• Bialowieza National Park - home to part of the Bialowieza Primaeval Forest (the other part is in Belarus). The forest is the last major refuge of the European bison as well as being home to many other rare forest-dwelling species. Nature trails, cycling and exploring with a ranger are on offer.
• Bieszczady National Park - located in the south-east corner of the country in the Carpathian mountain range. The park is home to the brown bear, lynx, wolf and wildcat and contains the surviving fragments of the Great Bieszczady Forest.
• Kampinos National Park, near Warsaw, a large forested area home to moose, lynx, beaver and cranes. There is a 200 km cycling trail and visitors may also rent a horse and ride on some of the 360 km of horse trails.

Oswiecim-Birkenau (Auschwitz-Birkenau)

50 km west of Krakow is the site of Oswiecim-Birkenau (known in German as Auschwitz-Birkenau), the Nazi concentration camp where at least 1.1 million people were killed in the Holocaust. Today it is a sobering memorial honouring the victims, giving visitors a perspective on a grave and sensitive historical time.

The Tatra Mountains

The Tatra mountains form a natural border between Slovakia and Poland, just 2 hours from Krakow. Known as the Polish Alps, they contain some of Europe's most beautiful and dramatic scenery. Zakopane, dubbed the Winter Capital of Poland, is a centre for mountaineering and skiing, where a fairytale atmosphere pervades with its 'gingerbread' wooden cottages; some inhabitants still wear traditional Goralskie dress.

The glacial lake, Morskie Oko (Eye of the Sea) is one of the most popular destinations in the Tatras, often receiving over 50,000 visitors during the holiday season. It may be reached by foot in about 2 hours from the nearest road, or visitors can opt to take the journey by horse-drawn cart, a large number of which are operated by the local Górale inhabitants.

Warsaw

The capital of the country was largely destroyed in World War II, but following detailed reconstruction, the Old Town is again a World Heritage site rebuilt according to original plans and paintings from the 17th and 18th centuries. The systematic destruction under Nazi control can be seen in films kept at the Historical Museum of Warsaw. Also worth a visit is the interactive Warsaw Uprising Museum, which features films, slides, testimonials and artefacts from the Warsaw revolt of 1944. Exhibits range from love letters to weapons used by the insurgents, to present a full picture of the people involved.

The National Museum is home to a wealth of delightful 15th-century Flemish and Dutch paintings and several galleries of Polish art from the 16th century onwards, including some of the best work by the country’s leading early 20th-century artists such as Witkiewicz, Makowski and Szczepkowski.

Lazienki Palace (also called Palace on the Water) is set in a beautiful park with an open-air Greek theatre and a monument to Frederic Chopin, the Polish composer. A museum dedicated to the composer may also be found in the city, featuring letters, exercise books, his gold watch and the last piano he ever played.

The Palace of Culture and Science, a gift from Josef Stalin as a symbol of 'Polish-Soviet friendship', affords spectacular views over the whole city from its 30th floor observation deck.

Wieliczka

Just outside the city of Krakow is the town of Wieliczka, under which is the Wieliczka Salt Mine - one of the world's oldest operating salt mines. Thought to have been used since prehistoric times, it has been in continuous operation since the 13th century, and still produces table salt. The mine features a 3.5-km tourist route (less than 1% of the length of the mine's passages) set 64 to 135 m (209 to 443ft) underground. The route passes through beautifully carved chambers, bas-reliefs, chandeliers and a chapel sculpted in the salt. Also featured are statues of mythic and historic figures, an underground lake, and exhibits on the history of salt mining.

Wroclaw

Wroclaw (Breslau) is the capital of Lower Silesia in southwestern Poland, situated on the Oder River. The city is home to 100 bridges, many of which connect 12 of the cities islands or cross canals. Important sights include the Ethnographic Museum in the Royal Palace; the 15th-century Town Hall, now the Historical Museum; and the gothic Cathedral of St. John the Baptist on Ostrow Tumski (Cathedral Island), the oldest part of Wroclaw.

Zelazowa Wola

This village, 53 km (32 miles) west of Warsaw, was the birthplace of pianist and composer Fryderyk Chopin. A museum devoted to his life is located in the preserved former manor of the Chopin family, surrounded by a park. In summer, recitals of Chopin's music are performed by pianists from all over the world.