I ticked off my first visit to Poland with a city break in the lesser-known Gdańsk! Read all about this super fun and affordable trip and learn why it fast became one of my favourite cities in Europe.
Have you ever fallen in love with a city the very first time you visit? A place that you love so much after just one trip that you know you’re going to return there over and over again? That’s exactly how I feel about Gdańsk in Poland!
It took me a while, but in October 2022 I finally managed to visit Poland! A firm favourite for many budget travellers, Poland is a country I’d wanted to visit for a long time. However, I was always overwhelmed with choices regarding where to actually visit in Poland. I wanted to forgo the popular choices of Kraków or Warsaw for my first experience of the country. My partner and I actually settled on Gdańsk in a weird way.
Back when we used the travel subscription service, BeRightBack, Gdańsk was one our surprise locations. Though I’d never heard of the city before, I quickly fell in love as I began to do my research. Then the pandemic happened and the company went into administration, so we didn’t get to go in the end. However, it stayed on our ‘must-visit’ list for a long time. So when we saw cheap flights advertised, we booked on a whim.
We had THE best time. We found the city really budget-friendly and everyone we met was super friendly. The place itself is simply beautiful. We could have spent days just wandering around its streets without getting bored.
Alas, we packed a whole bunch during our three days there. Here’s what we got up to.
Day One: Yummy Food, Quirky Museums and Lots of Sightseeing around Gdańsk
We woke up pretty early on our first day in the city, in our wonderful apartment in the old town. For the first time ever, we decided to fly the night before, instead of early in the morning. Despite not getting into our apartment until 1am, I think flying at night has converted me!
We avoided a mad rush to the airport and instead could take our time. We also woke up feeling really fresh and ready for a full day of sightseeing – rather than half asleep.
Our first order of business was to find some breakfast and explore the area. We immediately took a slow stroll to the riverside area of Gdańsk, and grabbed breakfast. We ate outside whilst enjoying the view and just took in the beauty of the pretty buildings surrounding us or the occasional pirate ship (yes, I said pirate ship) sailing by.
Then we headed straight back to the hotel to ditch our big coats because it was surprisingly very warm for an October’s day! We then walked down the river and found the quirkiest and most oddball wax museum. It wasn’t great, but I think that’s what made it so fun! We revelled in taking photos with our favourite celebs (and trying to guess which ones others were supposed to be…) for about an hour. The museum was small but cheap to enter. If you like weird funny stuff, I’d recommend it if you have an hour to spare.
If you’re expecting Madame Tussauds…I’d give it a miss!
We then crossed the river and walked up along the harbour on the other side, again stopping to take lots of photos and spot things like the famous crane. I didn’t really understand the fascination of it though. Though some of it was under construction, it was still kind of pretty but didn’t really stand out for me.
Afterwards, we ducked into the National Maritime Museum, mainly because it included entry onto the old historic ship docked outside. This museum was interesting – as was the ship – but unless you’re a big fan of that type of thing, it isn’t anything special. The ship outside was the most interesting part and it was kind of fun walking around it but I could have taken or left this museum overall. Still, it killed a few hours.
Once we had changed for dinner, we went straight to a pasta place called Machina Eats&Beats, which was recommended to me by a friend. Oh my god. It was AMAZING. I still think about this restaurant on a daily basis and if it wasn’t for climate change, I would totally grab a cheap flight back to Poland every single weekend to eat here again.
It’s basically an Italian restaurant where you build your own pasta, just like subway but much, much better. You can also order recommended dishes and a whole bunch of really tasty appetizers (I’d recommend the focaccia and three dips). When it comes to your pasta, they bring you out a paper menu and you simply tick off what pasta and sauce you choose and as many toppings as you like! It was THE BEST. The first night, I decided to go for one of their recommended dishes (butternut squash pasta with sage and walnuts), whereas Shaun built his own. But he ordered so many toppings that it looked like so much pasta, so it was really funny. It was all really delicious though and the mojitos were spot on.
After dinner, we strolled along the harbour again to take a few more photos at night, and ducked into another bar that had been recommended to me: Pixel Cocktail Bar. This quirky cocktail bar featured menus with personas, and the general gist was that you picked a persona or quality trait that you signified best with (an artist, a skater etc) and each one has a different cocktail.
We found it a little hard to grasp the concept as the bartender made it sound like he would create a unique cocktail for each thing we picked – though that may have been the language barrier – when in reality it was just a fun and different way of presenting the menu. But the cocktails were tasty and cheap, and each cocktail came out with a little cup of popcorn, which made me very happy indeed.
After getting nice and tipsy, we headed back to the hotel. as we had an early start the next day.
Day Two: Gdańsk’s Ferris Wheel, More Sightseeing and a Ride on a Pirate Ship
Our second day consisted of lots more sightseeing. Honestly, there’s so much to see and do in Gdańsk! I don’t think you could ever run out of things to do or streets to explore.
Rather than crossing the river, we actually made our way to the opposite side of the city this time and found the famous love bridge and that super pretty building behind it. It was so pretty in person – I couldn’t stop taking photos! I wish we had architecture like that over here.
I later found out that the building itself is actually known as the Millers’ Guild House. We spent a lot of time taking photos of pretty buildings in Gdańsk without actually knowing what many of them are! I also wish I’d known that couples placed locks on this bridge – I would have loved to do that too.
We then took a slow stroll back towards the main part of the city and crossed the river once more, walking up to AmberSky – the big 50-meter Ferris wheel that overlooks the city. Here, we found a beautiful area with lots of cool places to sit and relax outside, particularly in the summer! There was also the famous city letters and some nice bars and a food truck.
We rode the Ferris wheel for some really stunning sights of the city, before grabbing a light lunch at one of the eateries. Well, Shaun had a burger. I just had a mojito! It was another lovely sunny day and we enjoyed the view overlooking the river and the footbridge that opens and closes regularly. It’s a fun thing to watch, as each side rises up to the sky! This also means that if you catch it at the wrong time, like we often did, you have to walk all the way back down the river to cross elsewhere.
After crossing the river and heading back to Gdańsk Old Town, we passed through the main square and carried on further into the city to grab lunch. I know it sounds like Shaun had just eaten, but because we spent so much time exploring all the random side streets and taking photos, it was actually a good few hours before we arrived at our destination.
I wanted to experience a traditional Polish milk bar, so we visited Bar Turystyczny! This low-key space was set out kind of like an old school cafeteria, where you grab your tray and pick and choose what you want from behind the counter. I couldn’t tell you what we had – but it was tasty and very affordable! I think I had schnitzel chicken with mushrooms and rice, and a mixture of carrots and peas. The portions were huge and we found it so hard to finish it all.
Other Traditional Polish Milk Bars in Gdańsk:
– Bar Mleczny Neptun
– Akademicki Bar Mleczny
– Bar Mleczny Stągiewna
We also took a quick wander down the famous Mariacka Street, which had tons of character. It’s basically this narrow street filled with independent shops and cafes, where lots of shops and artisan amber jewellery shops set up stalls out front for you to browse. Some even displayed their jewellery in old lamplights along the street, which I thought was gorgeous.
Read more: Travel Diary: 72 hours in Dublin
After getting changed back at the apartment, it was time to visit the riverside once again. This was because we were going on a pirate ship! I was so excited and had been ever since I discovered this was a thing in Gdańsk. Basically, there are two massive pirate ships you can board, that take you up and down the Motława River. It’s so much fun. We went on the Black Pearl, which has a restaurant on board and a small undercover bar area. Unfortunately for us, it started raining as soon as we boarded! So rather than getting good seats, we sat inside and enjoyed some Bailey’s hot chocolate.
Once the rain eased up, we went back outside to the main area of the ship, grabbed a blanket to keep warm and watched the world pass by. In all honesty, once we were past the main part of the river, there wasn’t much to see. The ship takes you as far as Westerplatte, where you can get off and explore or continue back. As it was dark, we stayed on the ship. Sightwise, we only really saw Gulf Shipyard and the Repair Yard (so lots of ships!), which wasn’t really exciting.
But being on the boat was so much fun! On the way back, everyone began to sing old sailing songs, which felt super authentic. It was really fun and wholesome. Despite the less-than-amazing views, this pirate ship was certainly a really fun experience and I’d definitely do it again.
Unfortunately, it was too dark to take any photos!
We left the boat feeling slightly tipsy and went in search of some dinner. We went to this cute-looking Mexican bar just around the corner from where we were staying but were super disappointed with the food. It was pricey, and tasteless and my meal was served with a fingernail in it! Even when I complained, they seemed very unapologetic and didn’t even seem sorry at all. I wish I could remember the name to warn you all.
After a disastrous dinner, we decided to carry on drinking and found our way to this really cool underground bar called Flisak ’76. This was also a recommendation and it was definitely an atmospheric experience. Not only was it really intimate and cosy inside, but all the cocktails were served based on a different fairytale theme. Each page of the menu was dedicated to a different fairytale/cocktail with beautiful pop-up illustrations, which were served in a fun theatrical way. For example, the Red Riding Hood cocktail was served in a wicker basket with a red chequered picnic blanket on top, whereas my boyfriend’s Aladdin drink was served in a genie lamp – with smoke coming out of it – and a tiny magic carpet beneath.
Each drink only costs around £5 too but with so much effort put into each, this probably would cost at least £15 in London! We spent so long here, working our way through the menu. We almost managed to try every single one but I think there were three or four we still have left to experience one day. I believe the menu/theme changes often though!
It was so cool and ideal for a really intimate/fun date night. The only thing I would say is that you should try and reserve a table or head down quite early – we tried to get a space the night before and they were completely full.
Day Three: Visiting the Biggest Castle in the World
On our last day, we originally planned to take it easy and just explore the city more. Instead, on the day of, we decided to take an adventure! My friend recommended Malbork Castle to us, but we read online that it can be a little tough to get to, especially on Sundays like our last day due to public transport. I’m glad we decided to go though because we actually had the best time.
We did have a little trouble getting the correct train. However, I think this was more my fault as I struggled to understand the destinations at the station. Once we found the right train though, the trip was totally smooth sailing. We enjoyed a relaxed half hour watching the views as we whizzed past.
I’ll be sharing more information in a blog post all about it soon, but I would 100% recommend taking a day trip here if you’re ever in Gdańsk – it is worth the less frequent trains and the effort!
We spent nearly all day here, with an audio guide as we went around. There was so much to see and I don’t think we saw even half of it. It was also quite busy when we went as there was a festival on. I would absolutely love to go back one day and take some of the other tours. Our tour just gave us a taster of all the best bits! It truly is a really beautiful castle.
It was a very long day though. Once back in Gdańsk, we headed straight back over to Machina Eats&Beats (again) for dinner and an early night.
I had the most amazing time in Gdańsk – I absolutely fell in love with it. We found it so budget-friendly too that we’ve discussed going back for short weekend trips at least once a year. The city is the type of place that you can spend hours just immersing yourself into without doing little else. It has a few small tourist attractions but we mostly enjoyed taking photos of the buildings and trying different restaurants.
I would love to explore more of Poland – but I think Gdańsk will always have my heart.
