Day 1. A Weekend in Warsaw

On By Little Miss TravellerIn Europe, Warsaw March 2018

We arrived in Warsaw the previous evening on a Ryanair flight from Leeds-Bradford Airport.  Our flight departed promptly at 16.10 arriving into Modlin, Warsaw’s second airport.  Transferring into the city centre was very easy with tickets costing 19zl (£3.95) per person, available from a machine in the baggage hall.  A regular shuttle bus service then takes passengers on the 10 minute journey to the nearby station from where we were able to connect to a train into the centre of Warsaw, taking a further 35 minutes.  After a quick snack near the station, we walked across the city to the Ibis Hotel Warsaw Centrum our accommodation for the next four nights.

Palace of Culture and Science, Warsaw
Palace of Culture and Science, Warsaw

After a good night’s sleep and a tasty buffet breakfast, we consulted our map and walked into the city centre.  Our first stop was at the tourist information office in the Palace of Culture and Science.  This landmark building the tallest in Poland, standing 237m tall, is an example of socialist-realist architecture.  It can be seen from all over the city and houses four theatres, a cinema and two museums.  The building was erected as a gift from the Soviet people in 1955 as a symbol of Soviet domination at that time.

Dollhouse Museum, Warsaw
Inside the Dollhouse Museum, Warsaw

At the tourist information office we obtained the 72 hour Warsaw Pass which costs 189zl (£39) and 219zl (£45) including public transport.  We selected the public transport option which includes admission to 15 museums and attractions across the city with discounts at several others.  As we were planning on visiting many of the city’s cultural highlights, we considered this to be a worthwhile purchase.

Dollhouse Museum, Warsaw
Hospital Room in Dollhouse Museum, Warsaw

Checking our map, we decided to start with a visit to the Dollhouse Museum located in the inner palace courtyard between the tourist information and the Congress Hall.  Entrance to the museum is 20zl with a 20% discount for Warsaw Pass holders.

Dollhouse Museum, Warsaw
School Room in Dollhouse Museum

I adore visiting toy and childhood museums on my travels and did not want to miss an opportunity to visit Warsaw’s Dollhouse Museum.  The small museum contains more than 100 dolls houses, shops and room layouts containing charming interiors with intricate attention to detail.  The impressive collection of handmade pieces features a model hospital, school room, general store and church.

One section focuses on toy manufacturing in Eastern Europe in the 1960’s and 1970’s.  Numerous glass cabinets along a staircase contain a personal collection of dolls in national costumes of their countries.  Some of these dolls were similar to ones I collected myself as a child, and it’s such a pity that I no longer have them.  If you also have a nostalgic interest in old childhood toys and dolls, I believe that you would find this museum an enchanting experience.

Old Town Square, Warsaw
Old Town Square, Warsaw

As we were leaving the Dollhouse Museum we noticed the Hop-on Hop-off bus nearby and as travel on it is included in the Warsaw Pass we decided to use it to take us to the old town.

From the end of the 13th century the old town market place was the heart of the old town and a regular meeting place for merchants.  During the Second World War much of the district was badly damaged and destroyed but was later meticulously reconstructed using as many of the original bricks as possible.

Museum of Warsaw
Museum of Warsaw

Wandering along the narrow cobbled streets we admired the medieval style architecture leading to the old town’s main square which is lined with shops, cafes and restaurants.  The old town is a UNESCO World Heritage Site listed as an outstanding example of near-total reconstruction of buildings covering the 13-20th centuries.

Located in eleven historic tenement houses is the Museum of Warsaw, which is included in the Warsaw Pass.  The museum was only partially open as it is undergoing restoration and expansion which is due to be completed in June 2018.

Museum of Warsaw
Courtyard, Museum of Warsaw

We viewed the underground cellars containing archaeological treasures and a gallery about the history of the old town with a scale model of how it used to be.  Interestingly, there used to be a town hall in the middle of the square but it was decided not to include this in the reconstruction project.  Other sections included silverware, portraits and a room filled with old postcards.  We followed signs to the top floor viewing area but unfortunately this was closed during our visit.

It was a bitterly cold, grey day so we decided to find a cafe for some lunch and return to the market place at a later time when the sun might hopefully be shining.

Museum of Warsaw
Lunch at the Zapiecek restaurant, Warsaw

Just around the corner from the main square we came across the Zapiecek restaurant which was warm and cosy and where we enjoyed bowls of steaming sour rye soup served on a wooden platter with rye bread, sausage and a hard boiled egg.  We accompanied this with pots of earl grey tea, our lunch bill amounting to 49zl (£10).

Continuing, we made use of our public transport pass by taking the metro towards the Copernicus Science Centre.  The Warsaw metro first opened in 1995 with an additional line opening in 2015.  Navigating the metro is very easy with on-board announcements in both Polish and English.

Copernicus Science Centre, Warsaw
Interior of the Copernicus Science Centre, Warsaw

The Science Centre which is the largest in Poland is located on the embankment of the Vistula River.  Standard adult admission costs 27zl (free with the Warsaw Pass).  The centre is set out on two floors and we had lots of fun experimenting with many of the 400 interactive exhibits on display.  The majority of the visitors were school children but age doesn’t matter for the inquisitive and there was much to inspire us.  A temporary exhibition on air featured a wind tunnel and demonstrated how planes fly.

Copernicus Science Centre, Warsaw
Wind exhibit in the Copernicus Science Centre

After spending more than two hours there, we were feeling a little tired so we returned to our hotel for a rest before eating dinner in the city centre.

Palace of Culture and Science at night, Warsaw
The Palace of Culture and Science at night, Warsaw

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85 thoughts on “Day 1. A Weekend in Warsaw”

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  6. Aleksa

    Hope you had a nice time!
    Walk along the Vistula River (day and night), the Warsaw Uprising Museum, and the Łazienki Królewskie Park are the spots I would recommend if you have a chance to be in Warsaw again.
    And late spring, early summer, and early autumn are the best seasons to get the most out of the city in my opinion.

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  9. Hi there, I have just read more of your interesting travels in Poland. My husband’s family came from Poland, although we have never visited (wish we had!) It all sounded fascinating. Tragically, the few relatives who remained in the Lodz area in 1939, being Jewish, were murdered, including three of the children. The remainder of the family scattered to the US and SA (where they did very well) and ‘our lot’ came to the UK. We have a copy of the ‘family tree’ which makes for sobering reading… I have had several books published and the present one – while fictitious – called “The Highs and Lows of Leticia Dombrowski” is half finished….I am still doing research, so it’s a shame you didn’t visit Lodz…..Here’s to continued good health and more happy/safe travelling. Cheers! x (My memoir “My Gentle War” is available from Amazon).

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  15. Glad you enjoyed Warsaw and saw some of Old Town. It has a special place in my heart because I lived there when we adopted our kids. It’s amazing how they rebuilt so many buildings! Cheers.

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  16. I appreciate your info of costs and suggestions. I was in Warsaw 20 years ago with my Polish father-in-law who had ‘escaped’ the communism years before. He still thought you had to slip money to guards to get preferential placement in the queue to get up the tallest building. Hilarious embarrassing but it worked! I doubt if that would happen now.

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  21. I’m so happy to read about your adventures in Poland! It is not a place I’d ever considered visiting before, but my son recently married a Polish woman and moved to Warsaw, so I’m looking forward to doing some exploring there sometime in the future. Your posts make it look very interesting. Thanks.

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    1. Poland is such an interesting country with some beautiful architecture. There are so many nice things to see and do in Warsaw that I’m sure you would enjoy a visit Judy. Thank you for your comments, it’s good to hear from you.

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  26. Hi, All most interesting. I too find dolls houses fascinating, and my husband’s family emigrated from Poland to the UK in the 1920s/30s.

    I’m particularly hooked on Poland at present as the female protagonist’s grand-parents (in my fictional book in progress) came from Lodz in Poland. They were murdered by the Nazis in World War 11, but my heroine, Leticia, lived in the UK, and the story revolves around her. She’s clever, artistic, feisty,and strong and has a pronounced sense of fun and adventure (it has many twists and turns with a surprise ending!

    Here’s to your continued, safe and exciting travels!

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      1. The twins are staying home with their grandma 😊 we’re not ready for the twin travel hassle yet! Time really flies, I’m totally unprepared for Krakow but actually I like the idea of going there with no plans! I’ve enjoyed your Poland posts! 💕

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  28. mr sock monkey

    monkey & Man wonder if mayne you cross paths with son of Man who in Warsaw a few day ago before flying to Hamburg. maybe you see & hear him play piano in Chopin airport.

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  42. Was this your first visit to Warsaw, Marion? I’ll be there in a few weeks time but only in transit to family so I won’t have time to see much. As usual your post is informative and helpful. I’m not confident of the travel aspect. I spent half a day in Warsaw a few years ago and found it quite confusing, but once I got to the old town I loved it. 🙂 🙂

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