Poland Travel Guide - Getting There

Poland’s national airline is LOT Polish Airlines (LO) (website: www.lot.com).

From London to Warsaw is 2 hours 25 minutes; from New York is 8 hours 35 minutes.

Warsaw Fryderyka Chopina Airport (WAW) (website: www.polish-airports.com) is 10km (6 miles) southwest of the city. To/from the airport: Buses and taxis are available (journey time - 20 to 40 minutes by bus; 20 to 30 minutes by taxi). Facilities: Post office, banks, bureaux de change, bars, restaurants, left luggage, tourist information services, car hire and duty-free shops.

Kraków (KRK) (Balice John Paul II) (website: www.lotnisko-balice.pl) is 14km (9 miles) west of the city centre. To/from the airport: Buses, trains and taxis are available (journey time - 15 minutes by train; 35 minutes by bus; 20 minutes by taxi). Facilities: Bar, restaurant, bureau de change, car hire and duty-free shops.

Wroclaw (WRO) (Strachowice/Copernicus) (website: www.airport.wroclaw.pl) is 8km (5 miles) from the city centre. To/from the airport: Buses and taxis are available (journey time - 30 minutes by bus; 20 minutes by taxi). Facilities: Duty-free shops, bar, restaurant, car hire.

Katowice (KTW) (website: www.gtl.com.pl) is 34km (21 miles) from the city. To/from the airport: Buses and taxis are available (journey time - 40 minutes by shuttle bus or taxi to city centre; 2 hours 10 minutes by road to Cracow). Facilities: Bank, bureaux de change, duty-free shops, restaurants and car hire.

Gdansk (GDN) (Lech Walesa Airport) (website: www.airport.gdansk.pl) is  10 km (6 miles) southwest of Gdansk. To/from the airport: Buses and taxis are available (journey time - 25 to 40 minutes by road to Gdansk city centre). Facilities: Bureau de change, duty-free shops, post office, tourist information, restaurant and car hire.

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Main ports: The Port of Gdansk (website: www.portgdansk.pl) is not only a major Baltic Sea port to enter Poland, but is also where Lech Walesa started the Solidarity movement with the ship workers. The Port of Gdynia (website: www.port.gdynia.pl), just north of the Port of Gdansk, also welcomes ships, containers and cruiseliners.  

Polferries (tel: (091) 322 6140; website: www.polferries.com) operates between Poland and Sweden, Denmark and Finland. Tickets can also be purchased from travel agents or at the ferry terminal (tel: (058) 343 6978).

Polskie Koleje Państwowe (Polish State Railways) (tel: (022) 9436, in Poland only or (022) 511 6003; website: www.pkp.pl) operates EuroCity trains between Poland and a number of major European cities. All services from Western Europe to Poland pass through the Czech Republic, Germany or the Slovak Republic. The main routes link Warsaw with Berlin and Cologne, Budapest, Prague and Vienna. There is a car-sleeper service from the Hook of Holland to Poznan/Warsaw. There are also rail services to Moscow, Kiev and St Petersburg.

InterRail: offers unlimited first- or second-class travel in up to 30 European countries for European residents of over six months with two pass options. The Global Pass allows travel for 22 days, one month, five days in 10 days or 10 days in 22 days across all countries. The One-Country Pass offers travel for three, four, six or eight days in one month in any of the countries except Bosnia-Herzegovina and Montenegro. Travel is not allowed in the passenger's country of residence. Travellers under 26 years receive a reduction. Children's tickets are reduced by about 50%. Supplements are required for some high-speed services, seat reservations and couchettes. Discounts are offered on Eurostar and some ferry routes. Available from Rail Europe (website: www.raileurope.co.uk/inter-rail).

Eurail: for those travelling from outside Europe and North Africa the Eurail pass (website: www.eurail.com) offers similar discounts.

Poland is best reached from the Czech Republic and Germany. The E30 connects Warsaw to Berlin.

The main coach service connecting dozens of European cities to Poland is Eurolines (tel: 0870 580 8080, in the UK; website: www.eurolines.com). Eurolines offers travel passes lasting 15 or 30 days.