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A trip to Poland isn’t complete without visiting the town of Gdansk. With picturesque streets, uncrowded pathways, and a lovely waterfront, Gdansk makes for a guaranteed relaxed holiday. We’re sharing twelve things to do in Gdansk, including the best food, where to stay, and what to expect on the streets!
Here Are The 12 Things To Do in Gdansk
1. Get Potato Noodles from Familia Bistro
You can find Familia Bistro on the main walking street between Ogarna and Dluga. With candles lighting the room, funny workers that speak English, and fantastic meals for under 5 USD, this is number one in the food category of things to do in Gdansk.
2. Walk Along the Waterfront
A walk along the waterfront will make you feel like you’re in Copenhagen or Amsterdam. With cute cafes and restaurants, boats, and picturesque buildings, you’ll be transported into a state of relaxation in no time!
3. Indulge in Wine Tasting at the Q Hotel
The Q Hotel Grand Cru Gdansk provides not only a great stay, but an amazing atmosphere for breakfast and wine tasting! The fully brick restaurant lined with more wine bottles than you can count is a great way to wrap up an evening in the city. You’ll find the Q Hotel just off the river, so why not end your river walk here?!
Book Your Stay at the Q Hotel Here & Get a Discount on your Booking / Yep, Discount Please!
4. Stroll Down Amber Street
Supposedly one of the top things to do in Gdansk, however, nearly void of tourists each time we walked down it, Amber Street is one not to miss. Now, this isn’t actually called Amber Street, but if you visit it you’ll find out why we call it that! This street is the walking street that connects the waterfront to Bazylika Mariacka (tip 5 below), so if you’re wanting to find it, walk to the backside of Bazylika Mariacka, and you’ll be on your way!
READ MORE // Visiting Warsaw, Poland
5. Visit One of Europe’s Largest Brick Churches
Bazylika Mariacka holds the title of one of Europe’s Largest Brick Churches. You can enter the church for free and even walk to the top of the towers on Saturday or Sunday from between 10-15:30. If we’re honest here, we found the outside of the church to be much nicer than the inside, and with us being in Gdansk during the week, we can’t vouch for walking up the towers, although we’ve heard the views are great from there. If you get the chance to go up the towers, let us know how it was!!
6. Get Lost in Streets Like These
You’ll find buildings like these all throughout the town of Gdansk. They make for postcard-perfect pictures if you ask us!
7. Satisfy Your Hunger at a Milk Bar
Okay, so we’ve shared that Poland is on our Cheap Travel Destinations list, and here’s some proof behind that. If you think the dinners for under 5 USD from tip 1 above were expensive, meals here are under 3 USD per person! Milk Bars (this one being Restauracja Gdanska) were introduced during the war so people could eat good meals at budget prices. The food is all served cafeteria style and is all extremely cheap. As a head up, most workers don’t speak a lick of English, so you’ll be pointing out the food you want, or trying to pronounce the crazy polish words on the menus – embrace this experience!
8. Wander the Streets Looking for Cute Windows
Don’t know about you, but cute windows and doors are always on our radar when we travel. Lucky for those traveling to Poland, Gdansk is full of them! Take a day to wander the streets and find cute windows like this!
9. Find the Pictish Stones Along the Water
While traveling through Scotland, we’ve found loads of Pictish Stones, so when we came across some in Gdansk we were so stoked. Marvel at the carvings in the Pictish Stones along the waterfront, and learn a bit of history of Poland! If you don’t know what Pictish Stones are, check out the trusty Wikipedia’s description here. 😉
10. Get Your Caffeine Fix at Café Factotum
Not gonna lie.. we were a bit creeped out when we walked into Café Factotum. The décor and menu pictures make you feel like you’re in a cartoon Halloween movie. With that said, we were so glad we stayed. The coffee was great and as odd as the atmosphere was, it was truly enjoyable!
11. Do Some Night Photography
Night photography is something that we have come to love. It’s a great excuse to get out and wander the town at night. And honestly, it gives you a whole new perspective on places to visit. Gdansk doesn’t really offer the crazy night shots of city life, but it offers something almost better : A calm and completely relaxed experience of lights twinkling throughout beautiful buildings. If you’re not into night photography, we recommend still going out and wandering the streets in the evening – you’ll gain a whole new perspective of Gdansk.
12. Join the “Tourist Crowd” at Fontanna Neptuna
After looking at that photo, do you see why we say “tourist crowd” in quotes? You’ll quickly learn that part of Gdansk’s charm is the minimal tourists you find there. Enjoy this beautiful city without massive amounts of people sightseeing with you.
{Traveler’s Tips…|1| Poland uses the Polish (Polski) Zloty for currency, not the Euro. Although most places accept card, you’ll want to have some Zloty on you! |2| Gdansk, is not pronounced as it looks. The proper way to pronounce Gdansk is actually “Dance-k”. |3| If you want more directions to the places mentioned in this post, download the free offline travel app maps.me.}
If you like it… Pin it with these pinnable pictures!
As always, if you’ve been to Gdansk and have any advice to add, shoot us an email! And if you end up using any ideas from this posts in your travels to Gdansk, let us know if they helped out or if you wished we included more info!
