Wasn't aware of that castle yet, thanks for the suggestion. Not too far and since the Teutonic Knights were a personal favorite of mine in Age of Empires 2, this building is definitely of interest.

I saw those in Piotr i Paweł - will add them to the shopping list :-P

Did you consider renting a car in Kraków? That would be the best way to experience "Trail of the Eagles' Nests". Basically every 5-10 km you can stop and visit yet another castle. I made such a trip a few years ago with my friends from Germany and they were delighted.

If car is not an option you can still take a bus but then most probably you will manage to see one or two of them. My personal favorite is (website also in English!) and [url=http://www.pieskowaskala.pl/galeria_zdjec.htm]Pieskowa Skała (sadly no English version so I linked photo gallery). Please keep in mind that Zamek Bobolice while certainly looks impressive is actually a modern reconstruction of ruins so while it's definitely nice to be there there is no real medieval atmosphere there.

You can expect a lot of great views of Kraków-Częstochowa Upland. From nearly every castle's viewpoint you can see other nearby castle/castles which is pretty amazing too!


Stay tuned for more suggestion! I'll try not to repeat what others have already said but allow me to emphasize that Wieliczka (Salt Mine) is an amazing place to visit!

Mmm...pierogies. My grandmother used to make them for us by hand for special occasions. Both my dad's parents came here from Poland, so lots of kielbasa, pierogies, Pączki for Fat Tuesday. Forget the Polish name of it, but remember as a kid I was a little afraid of the blood duck soup.

I'll throw my name in the hat to try another Polish game. As with most really enjoyed the Witcher games.

It's called 'czarnina' or 'czernina'. I don't recommend it to anyone, it's disgusting ;)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Czarnina

Thanks again for the many suggestions, I wish I could rent a car but I have no driving license and since I draw/paint instead of taking photos, I can't join organized group tours as I move at a much slower rate. The Trail of the Eagle's Nest is exactly my kinda thing though, especially Ogrodzieniec Castle. I saw a photo of that castle years ago but I forgot this was in Poland, it's a perfect castle really. Too bad that Bobolice is 'only' a reconstruction, it does look very pretty, one of the prettiest castles I've seen pictures of.
I'm starting to wonder if I should just scrap this trip altogether and save up for a longer trip, 3 weeks minimum...I don't think anything shorter is efficient or can do justice to all the great stuff that can be seen, even if one sticks to main attractions only. I'm a bit obsessive compulsive when it comes to castles. Visiting castles is like collecting Pokemon to me so I wish to catch them all...

On the other hand, there is a free dinner and old friends awaiting this June so it's not easy to decide. Either way, my Poland travel folder / bookmarks is steadily growing and I will get around to draw and paint these things one way or another, only a matter of time!

Good then. Glad my childhood gut instincts were correct!

Must see:

1) Near Krakow: Wieliczka Salt Mine
2) In Warsaw: Warsaw Uprising Museum

I wish I could help you out, but I've never even been to Canada. lol~

I'm also not in for Gorky 17, although it does look intriguing. I just don't know when I'd be able to play it.

+1 to you, and happy travels!

Poland is definitively a great destination for anything related to "medievality". I think I have a tourist map somewhere dedicated to castles only - the kind with little images all over the place, not something you'd use to drive somewhere - and the thing is packed.

It's also not an expensive country to visit, especially if you're on any kind of swiss or german payroll, or even benefits, so I'd suggest putting as strong lid on your urges to enjoy this visit for what it can be, and think of it a a recon for something more?

Heck just the fact you'll get the drive to Malbork would be enough for me to jump on this, that place is not exactly easy to reach unless you get on a tour or have a car rental - I'm sure there are buses but for that you'd better speak some polish or know someone. It's not the kind of castle around which a city grew, like the one in Krakow which you can just walk to from the center. In fact the same applies to many other castles.

Bottom line - the logisitics of visiting the cities vs visiting castles are not really the same. What are you thinking in terms of logistics now that you actually have more options than you can fit in your time?

I would advise you to make this trip and then perhaps in future - another (longer!) one. You see, I usually work abroad so I spend my vacations in Poland and I'm using this time on intense sightseeing. I think I've visited every single place that was mentioned in this thread + many, many more and yet I still have a feeling that I haven't seen even 5% of what this country has to offer. A short trip is better than none and if you spend your time on planning and dreaming you won't go anywhere ;) So really, use this opportunity (as Brasas said - car trip to Malbork is already a huge advantage!) and then return to Poland in future!

Let's go back to the castles! Two more nice castles close to Kraków (not part of Eagles' Nests) and close to each other Zamek Lipowiec () and [url=http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/db/Teczyn2.JPG]Zamek Tenczyn (map). The latter is however abandoned and is becoming ruined even as we write here. There is an organization that try to save it and I may mention that I'm a humble supporter of its cause ;)

There are nice castles close to Warsaw too! My recommendations: Zamek Liw () and [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GS2t3QryLLU&]Zamek Czersk (map). They even reconstructed several siege engines there and even though the castle is fairly ruined (as you can see on the video) it's a nice place to visit.

BTW I'm assuming that there is no need for me to talk about the most famous places located in Kraków and Warsaw because I think every tourist guide describe them. I'm trying to focus on surroundings which may not be that well known.

Let me add little, but charming castle in Kórnik, just few kms away from Poznań:

http://www.kornik.pl/Welcome_to_Kornik/Kornik_Castle/

And a little bit further, Gołuchów Castle:

http://david-polanddavid.blogspot.com/2008/09/gouchow-castle.html

I love those illustrative tourist maps with pictures and abstracted dimensions, somehow I find them more useful than regular maps, plus they remind me of the maps they use in medieval movies. I traveled all over Egypt with a map that just had pictures, though Egypt is a special case, you only need to follow the big river, can't really go wrong much..

I'm freelance so neither on a payroll nor reaping any kind of benefits. At the moment, I'd make more money if I was on social security.

I'll have to skip any place that is not easily accessible via public transportation, even if it's a super interesting destination.
You are right about Malbork, the simple fact that I already have a ride to go there should be reason enough to go to Poland. I think Malbork is the Himeji of Poland, no way around it!


I agree 100%. When I'm in high operational mode, I don't daydream or plan much, I just do it and talk about it later once I'm back home. My usual modus operandi used to be to just buy a flight ticket (one way or round trip) and once that step is taken, I worry about details later, if at all. When I'm in low operational mode, I need to push myself to do groceries even, and the grocery store isn't in Poland but 5 minutes from my house...
My browser is gonna crash from all the great suggestions you guys are making, thanks so much!

Update: One code for Gorky 17 went to zeffyr, and I got a second code if anyone has an avid interest in this game and has some secret tips for sights around Krakow and Warsaw that can be accessed by public transportation.
So if you've already posted some tips in this thread, let me know if you want the game and if you haven't yet posted anyhting, you can still do that but let me know if you want the game or not.

And many thanks to those who don't want the free code but shared tips nevertheless. Ghorpm ftw!

Deep bows and at your service! :)