Poland
Beautiful nature, historical monuments, respect for traditions and hospitality are those elements that make the country very attractive for foreign visitors.
Poland, one of the largest countries in Europe, with broad access to the Baltic Sea, is situated in the middle of the European continent.
Throughout its thousand-year history, Poland has experienced a continual shifting of frontiers caused by conquests, invasions, partitions, and occupations. Geographically squeezed between Germany and Russia, Poland was repeatedly invaded and fought upon. Its boundaries have shifted east and west as its power waxed and waned, from being the largest country in Europe in the 17th century, to being completely wiped off the map from the end of the 18th century until after WW I. Poland changed the course of history in 1989 by becoming the first Eastern European state to break free of communism. Since then, the economic, social and psychological changes have been tremendous.
Many towns and cities of Poland date back to its early days. They shelter a rich architectural and artistic heritage that has survived all the battles fought on Polish soil over the centuries.
Warsaw, the capital of Poland, is essentially a post-war city. Devastated during WW II, it was not long until the city rose once more, restoring its most important castles and palaces to their former glory. Very popular with tourists are the Old Town Square lined with burgher houses, Royal Castle, Barbican and the Gothic St John's Cathedral.
Cracow is historical capital of Poland. The Old Town complex together with the Wawel Hill are on UNESCO World Heritage List. The medieval urban layout of the Old Town has not changed for centuries. Every visitor to Cracow should see Europe's largest medieval market square, St Mary's Church with its Gothic pentaptych altarpiece carved in limewood, the Wawel with its royal castle and the Wawel cathedral with its outstanding Renaissance chapel, and the medieval university building of Collegium Maius with its unique collection of astronomical instruments.
Other great historic cities include Torun, Wroclaw and Poznan.
Poland is a strongly religious country and over 80% of the population are practising Roman Catholics. Churches are everywhere from the smallest village to the largest cities. Czestochowa is Poland's spiritual heartland and the country’s national shrine. It owes its fame to the miraculous icon of the Black Madonna, kept in the Monastery of Jasna Gora, which has been pulling in pilgrims from all corners of the country and beyond for centuries.
Apart the historic quarters of Cracow, Torun, Warsaw and Zamosc, there are many other world-class historical monuments and sites inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List, including the Wieliczka Salt Mine in uninterrupted operation for over 700 years, the world's largest medieval castle built in Malbork, the religious sanctuary and pilgrimage site of Kalwaria Zebrzydowska, the Nazi-built German concentration and extermination camp of Auschwitz Birkenau, the Churches of Peace in Jawor and Swidnica - the largest timber-framed religious buildings in Europe, the wooden churches in southern Malopolska, etc.
Poland also has a lot to offer outside its cities. Nature lovers will certainly enjoy the golden beaches of the Baltic coast in the north and the rocky peaks of the Tatra Mountains in the south. Water sports fans will love the Great Masurian Lakes and hikers will feel happy on the Bieszczady trails, amidst the wilderness of that green mountain range. They may encounter a bison, the Europe’s biggest animal, living in its natural habitat that occupies a part of the Bialowieza primeval forest; enjoy pleasures of photo-safari in the unique Biebrza River Marshes or the thrilling experience of rafting through the Dunajec Gorge. Keen hikers can venture a climb to the tops of shifting dunes in the Slowinski National Park.
Poland has hugely improved its tourist infrastructure and developed into a modern, vibrant and progressive state, at the same time maintaining its traditional culture relatively unchanged.
Throughout its thousand-year history, Poland has experienced a continual shifting of frontiers caused by conquests, invasions, partitions, and occupations. Geographically squeezed between Germany and Russia, Poland was repeatedly invaded and fought upon. Its boundaries have shifted east and west as its power waxed and waned, from being the largest country in Europe in the 17th century, to being completely wiped off the map from the end of the 18th century until after WW I. Poland changed the course of history in 1989 by becoming the first Eastern European state to break free of communism. Since then, the economic, social and psychological changes have been tremendous.
Many towns and cities of Poland date back to its early days. They shelter a rich architectural and artistic heritage that has survived all the battles fought on Polish soil over the centuries.
Warsaw, the capital of Poland, is essentially a post-war city. Devastated during WW II, it was not long until the city rose once more, restoring its most important castles and palaces to their former glory. Very popular with tourists are the Old Town Square lined with burgher houses, Royal Castle, Barbican and the Gothic St John's Cathedral.
Cracow is historical capital of Poland. The Old Town complex together with the Wawel Hill are on UNESCO World Heritage List. The medieval urban layout of the Old Town has not changed for centuries. Every visitor to Cracow should see Europe's largest medieval market square, St Mary's Church with its Gothic pentaptych altarpiece carved in limewood, the Wawel with its royal castle and the Wawel cathedral with its outstanding Renaissance chapel, and the medieval university building of Collegium Maius with its unique collection of astronomical instruments.
Other great historic cities include Torun, Wroclaw and Poznan.
Poland is a strongly religious country and over 80% of the population are practising Roman Catholics. Churches are everywhere from the smallest village to the largest cities. Czestochowa is Poland's spiritual heartland and the country’s national shrine. It owes its fame to the miraculous icon of the Black Madonna, kept in the Monastery of Jasna Gora, which has been pulling in pilgrims from all corners of the country and beyond for centuries.
Apart the historic quarters of Cracow, Torun, Warsaw and Zamosc, there are many other world-class historical monuments and sites inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List, including the Wieliczka Salt Mine in uninterrupted operation for over 700 years, the world's largest medieval castle built in Malbork, the religious sanctuary and pilgrimage site of Kalwaria Zebrzydowska, the Nazi-built German concentration and extermination camp of Auschwitz Birkenau, the Churches of Peace in Jawor and Swidnica - the largest timber-framed religious buildings in Europe, the wooden churches in southern Malopolska, etc.
Poland also has a lot to offer outside its cities. Nature lovers will certainly enjoy the golden beaches of the Baltic coast in the north and the rocky peaks of the Tatra Mountains in the south. Water sports fans will love the Great Masurian Lakes and hikers will feel happy on the Bieszczady trails, amidst the wilderness of that green mountain range. They may encounter a bison, the Europe’s biggest animal, living in its natural habitat that occupies a part of the Bialowieza primeval forest; enjoy pleasures of photo-safari in the unique Biebrza River Marshes or the thrilling experience of rafting through the Dunajec Gorge. Keen hikers can venture a climb to the tops of shifting dunes in the Slowinski National Park.
Poland has hugely improved its tourist infrastructure and developed into a modern, vibrant and progressive state, at the same time maintaining its traditional culture relatively unchanged.
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