Gdansk: perfect weekend trip

Introducing my discovery this year! Sometime in the summer, I came across photos of this city somewhere on social media and liked it so much that I even added it to my wish list. When I stumbled upon tickets a few months later with nice departure/arrival times and a good price, there was no waiting around. Probably a sign or something :)

The centre of Gdansk totally blew me away! The beautiful, sensitive combination of the historic centre and modern buildings, the vibrant life on the banks of the Motlawa River and the huge number of cafes and restaurants. I was a bit surprised to find that many of the restaurants have long queues for a free table, something we are not used to in Pilsen. In general, however, lovers of good coffee and various sweets will definitely find something to their liking here. At the beginning of November, for example, there were St. Martin's rolls, huge and very rich in real life and unfortunately also very good, yum :) I will also mention the indisputable advantage of local services across the board, including transport and various entrances, namely PAYMENT BY CARD - we didn't need a single Polish zloty for the whole stay and paid cashless everywhere without any problems.

Flights and transport to the center

It didn't make any sense to drive to the north of Poland for one weekend, but an hour flight from Prague... hmmm... that's another story. That Prague-Gdansk route is currently flown by Ryanair several times a week and even year round. I bought the tickets quite "late" for my circumstances = a month in advance and for four of us (2 adults, 1 child, 1 infant under 2 years) I got the total price of €194. Ironically, Jony has the most expensive ticket at the moment because of the fixed fees (€ 50). But overall, I think if you wait for a special offer, it can be brought down a bit. 

When you arrive at the local airport with the exaggeratedly long name Port Lotniczy Gdańsk im. Lech Wałęsa Airport (GDN), you have several options for getting there. Quite obviously, it depends on exactly where you're heading. You may have heard of the term Trojmiasto, which, in addition to Gdańsk, also includes neighbouring Gdynia and Sopot. All three cities are perfectly easy to get to from this airport, either by bus or by train... you can even choose to go to Gdansk, it has both. The stops are very well signposted at the airport, so you don't have to worry about getting lost.

If you take the bus, you have a choice of three lines: 110, 122 and 210 - the last one terminates right at the main station, from where you can reach the city centre in just a few minutes on foot. We used the latter. You can buy a ticket with a card directly at the bus stop for 4,80 PLN (children under 4 don't pay), but beware that you have to mark the bus. The length of the ride depends a lot on the time of day. At rush hour we were weaving through the city for almost an hour, on the other hand when it was rushing it could be done in about 40 minutes. The train is slightly faster BUT to get to the main train station (downtown) you have to change trains, which we really didn't want to do.

Accommodation

We spent a total of three nights in Gdansk, all in one place, namely Hotel Scandic located right in the centre. I would say its location was perfect, as it is right next to the main train station and bus stop, and you can walk to the Old Town comfortably in about 10 minutes. 

During November, I kind of suspected that we would spend more time than usual at the hotel (winter + early darkness), so the choice fell on a junior suite with a living room and a bedroom, in which the night cost us €116 including a delicious breakfast. As a bonus, we also had a free cot for Jonny, a play area in the hotel restaurant or the possibility to use the sauna, which was really useful for thawing out in the evening. Overall, a complete satisfaction, but if you fancy something different, check below. I think you can definitely get cheaper accommodation in Gdansk, but our dates coincided with a public holiday, which gave the Poles a long weekend, and of course prices went up.

• cheaper: Hotel Admiral or Hotel Artus - both excellently rated, prices for a double bed about €48
• medium: Qubus Hotel or Hotel Grano - beautiful modern accommodations starting at about €76/night
• luxury: PURO Gdansk or Radisson Red - you can't get any more central, prices are not astronomical

What not to miss in Gdansk

Gdansk has a very nice historical centre, which I think you don't need any directions for and you can sort of walk around intuitively. However, I'll mention a few points in case your eyes or nose happen to pull you elsewhere. You'll be sure to walk through the local pedestrian zone along Dluga Street, where you'll check out the old colorful shacks with ornate gables, and you'll want to see two of Gdansk's must sees - the City Hall with its tower + the 17th century Neptune Fountain. The town hall currently houses one of the many, many museums, and you can even enjoy the view from its tall tower. All info on opening times and admission fees can be found on the official website here.

A little further on is the unmissable Basilica of the Assumption (St. Mary´s church), which is the second largest brick cathedral in the world thanks to its enormous size (the first is in Bologna). Here I would highlight my personal "TOP Gdansk" - Mariacka Street. Historic stone houses with staircases, where you can find small shops offering mainly jewelry and other handicrafts with amber. I felt a bit like I was somewhere in Scotland, a really nice sight for me.

In general, Gdańsk is full of amber, it is such an amber capital. They even have an Amber Museum (Muzeum Bursztyn), which is housed in a very nice old mill building.

Another part of Gdansk you can't miss is the Motlawa riverfront. Of course, this is a very touristy affair, with both banks lined with restaurants and hotels, but I still loved it. It's nice to look at. Plus, there are water trams + other boats that leave from here to take you around. The most common destination is the nearby Westerplatte peninsula, where the first battles of WW2 took place. In the season, cruise ships leave from here to Sopot or Hell. On the waterfront you will also see the symbol of the city, the Old Zouraw, a historic crane used for loading and unloading ships. It is now part of the National Maritime Museum and you can take a look inside as part of the tour.

And speaking of the maritime museum - it has several branches, the main exhibition can be found across the river on the island of Olowianka. You can also buy a ticket for the Soldek boat = the unmissable giant moored outside the entrance. All info on the various branches, opening times and admission fees can be found here. And while you're at Olowianka, run over and check out the Gdansk sign too, those possibly interested can take a ride on the Amber Sky Ferris wheel.

Sopot

If you have more time, I recommend you to go to this next spa town. The advantage is very easy accessibility, with the train taking only about 20 minutes (depending on the type of train) and the price I paid for the four of us was 17,09 zlotys one way. 

Sopot boasts the longest wooden pier in Europe. It measures more than 511 metres long and from April to September it even charges an entrance fee (10 zlotys for an adult). Right around the pier there are very nice sandy beaches, supposedly the nicest in the whole Trojmiasto, so if the weather is nice, it will be great. But we were knocking down a terrible cold... until Nina saw the carousel, then she ran to warm up unusually fast.) Plus the other downside was the huge overcrowding due to the Polish national holiday.

On the way to the pier and the sea you will pass the local "attraction" Krzywy domek, but don't have too high expectations. It's just a very slightly twisted mall, where you can get something warm in Costa Coffee on the bottom floor.

Tips where to go with children

Although in Gdansk one could spend hours in the museums (e.g. in the European Solidarity Centre), somehow it was clear to me that the four-year-old would not fully appreciate it, and of course Jony doesn't care about everything, he goes with the crowd... with us. So where should you take the kids in Gdansk? Where is there any chance that they'll have a good time and you won't die all your brain cells in the meantime?

1. Zoo - Gdansk zoo is the biggest zoo in Poland, which I didn't know. You can find it in the outskirts of Oliwa, which can be reached from the centre of Gdansk by train + 2,5 km on foot or by bus 169 (in summer also 622). There's probably no point in listing the details, you can read everything in English here.

2. search for Hewelions - a local specialty are the lion mascots Hewelions = small bronze statuettes representing different professions. They are scattered all over Gdansk (one even at the airport), so it's a classic motivational walking game or find your Hewelion :)

3. Hevelianum - I would compare it to Techmania in Pilsen, or showing the world and science in an entertaining way. There are several expositions on offer, and the Journey Around the World was recommended to us due to the age of the children. For me, it was very nicely done, interactive, and the kids could touch a lot of things. The entrance fee cost us 20 zloty adults, 15 zloty for Nina, Jony free. More info on the website here. Plus I'd just like to point out that you can't go inside with a stroller, you have to leave it parked in a special room, so make sure you take that into plan.

Hevelianum is also advantageous because of its location, as it is situated in the area of a former fortress, so you can still see interesting expositions outside in the individual bastions. These will take you to the top of Góra Gradowa, from which you'll get a great (if it's not foggy of course) view of the city and the harbour.

4. National Maritime Museum - I already mentioned it in connection with the Old Zurau and Olowianka Island, but the Maritime Museum has another specialty dedicated to children => an interactive room where you can try out many different activities and activities related to ships or submarines. For example, building a dock, loading a boat, putting on a life jacket, controlling a boat by remote control, trying out a water vortex and much more. Entry is in one hour time slots and the adult entry fee is 23 zlotys, we didn't charge for children. Just beware, this exhibit is not located on Olowianka, but right next to the Old Zuraw, the building is called Maritime Culture Centre.

5. Karuzela Gdaňska - and the carousel is not only in Sopot... on the Motlawa embankment you can hit it too, and "unfortunately" it is so illuminated that you can see it from the opposite bank. It's really hard to avoid :) Its other disadvantage is the fact that children under 8 must be accompanied by an adult. So even if your kid could ride all by themselves and you could just wave interestedly from afar, no. In short, you pay 2x 15 zlotys and you get a ride too, well... you have to make money :)

6. Świętopełk Parc - finally, I'll add this park, where children can have fun on the playground (swing, slide, trampoline). It is located right in the historic centre, and I haven't seen any others in this area, so maybe you will find it useful. It's quiet and there are plenty of cafes around the little square.

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