Home | Browse Things | Search Things | Browse People

Login/Register | New Review

Review of: Poland as a Holiday Destination

4/5 (minimum 1)

by tom on 13 Apr 2007

Poland is not the first place you'd think of as a tourist destination. Needing to find somewhere nice to travel for some walking and relaxation on a tight budget, and encouraged by the growing UK-Poland links resulting from Poland's accession to the EU, we decided to give it a try in Summer 2006. Having heard good things from a friend and with advice from a Polish colleague, we headed for the south, so this review only covers general impressions of the travelling experience in Poland, based on that area.

I'd heard people wax lyrical about Krakow, but was a little disappointed when we arrived. Sure it was pretty, but felt a little bit dead. We stayed in university halls in a fairly central but otherwise non-descript part of town, which I think added to this feeling. I wasn't in the mood for sightseeing, but there was plenty to do if I had been; day trips to the Salt Mines and Auschwitz-Birkenau seem to be the main "attractions". After a few days we moved on, but did return to Krakow at the end of the holiday. This time we stayed near Kazimierz, which has a much more exciting atmosphere compared to the old town. I still wasn't hugely in the mood for sightseeing, but Kazimierz has such an interesting history that you can't help but be engaged. It totally transformed my experience of the city, to the point that I left with a strong desire to come back.

The middle part of our trip was spent in the Pieniny National Park, which straddles the border with Slovakia. We'd been warned off going to the Tatras in summer due to the crowds, so went to the Pieniny instead, which is much lower but still stunning. There are loads of well marked walking trails, with beautiful views along the way. You can buy maps showing these trails from tourist offices, and even the average walking time of each section of a route is given which helps a lot in planning. There's not necessarily much to do if you're not into walking or other outdoor activities (which seem to be massively popular with Polish people coming to this area), but if you are then you could easily spend a week or two just doing this.

We didn't have a problem finding accommodation, although it did look a little bit tricky at first due to the time of year. In the end we split our time between a (relatively expensive) hotel and a (very good value) private room, which was organised for us by the local tourist office.

Depending on how you see it, language was or wasn't a problem. This is not an area that sees many western Europeans on holiday; in a week in the Pieniny we saw one Brit and three Germans, so it's not somewhere that is used to tourists who don't speak Polish. Having said that, between a bit of an effort from us to speak Polish (which seemed very much appreciated), a bit of German (useful mainly with older people), and English (useful mainly with younger people, who often work on hotel receptions or in other public-facing roles and generally speak amazing English), plus the ubiquitous sign language we got on fine. The few crunch points came at places like bus stations, where communication could be hard due to the more pressurised environment (but hey, that's all part of the experience, right?).

Enjoying our own company was pretty important though, as the Pieniny is a family kinda area so not full of wild nights out and chances to meet other travellers. We did feel very welcomed by people, who went out of their way to help us out, but without better Polish skills we were limited in how much we could get to know them.

My main reservation about Poland as a holiday destination is that it doesn't yet seem adapted to providing for tourists who may have a different timescale or perspective on the day. Maybe this is a good thing, and I should adapt, but it seemed like a missed opportunity to attract more visitors from abroad. Even on holiday the Poles we saw seemed to like to get up and out in the morning; slobbing around in bed seemed kind of alien. Similarly in the evening (outside of Krakow) most things shut down after about 9pm (so don't wait too long to go out for dinner - aim for 6pm and you'll be fine). As a Brit with a fondness for the pub, this seemed really odd, and was surprisingly hard to adjust to.

I had expected the food to be really bland, but in fact it was excellent. Liking hearty meals of meat and potatoes helps, and if you do you'll be in heaven. Far from being bland the food was full of flavour and the meat really tender. Go with an open mind, and don't expect to find what you eat at home on restaurant menus, and you'll come home well fed. Similarly the beer (lager-style only it seems) was excellent but it's strong so watch out.

In general Poland is still good value, but I'm sure it's not as cheap as it once was, and I'm also sure this will change fast. In fact in some places you can already easily spend as much as in any western European capital. So go for the experience, not for the money. Plans some walks, check out the fantastic scenery, feel the history, eat and drink early, and be ready to get to know the people as much as you can, and you'll have a great time.

Review Permalink: http://revyu.com/reviews/b32b090f86fe4a43197baf2417ac58503d209a2a