PL - Poland

Poland (Rzeczpospolita Polska) is a state of central Europe bordering on the west with Germany, on the south with the Czech Republic and Slovakia, on the east with Ukraine and Belarus, on the north-east with Lithuania and the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad. To the north it overlooks the Baltic Sea.

To know
Geographical notes
The Polish territory consists largely of a vast plain extending from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Carpathians in the south.

The Baltic Sea coast lacks natural harbors, apart from those of Gdansk and Szczecin. The region in the north-east of the country, called the Land of the Masurian lakes, is sparsely populated and lacks resources for agriculture and industry. To the south and west of the Land of the Masurian lakes lies a vast flat region that runs to the Sudetenland (south-west) on the border with the Czech Republic and Slovakia and to the Carpathians on the border with the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Ukraine (southeast).

Territories and tourist destinations:
      Masovia – Metropolitan center of Poland with Warsaw and Łódź, the manufacturing city known as “Manchester of Poland”. It Includes:
Masovian Voivodeship – The region around Warsaw, a city razed to the ground at the end of the 2nd World War but rebuilt following faithfully the original design of its historic buildings.
Lodz Voivodeship –
      Lesser Poland – Offers spectacular mountain ranges, the oldest currently active salt mine, fantastic vistas, caves, historic monuments and cities. The magnificent medieval city of Krakow is the major metropolitan center. It Includes:
Lublin Voivodeship – Zamość calls itself “Northern Padua” due to the abundance of Italian Renaissance-style buildings built by the Paduan architect Bernardo Morando who built his ideal city here.
Lesser Poland Voivodeship – Its capital is Krakow, one of the most beautiful and best preserved cities in Poland of which it has been the capital for 500 years. Nearby is the Ojców National Park with caves and unique-looking rock formations. Wieliczka has one of the largest salt mines in the world. A chapel carved out of the salt has been created from the inside. At 60 km from Krakow is the Auschwitz-Birkenau Museum and Memorial, on the site of the extermination camp of the Jews. Zakopane in the Tatra mountains is a popular summer and winter holiday resort with countless sports possibilities, from skiing to mountaineering.
Subcarpathian Voivodeship – Bieszczady National Park extends over the mountains of the same name, part of the Carpathian chain and on the border with Slovakia and Ukraine. Although it can be counted among the most interesting in Poland, the park is not yet a destination for mass tourism also due to the lack of adequate infrastructure.
Santacroce Voivodeship –
      Silesia – A colorful mixture of different panoramas. One of the warmest regions of Poland with the popular and dynamic city of Wroclaw (historical capital of the region) and the largest metropolitan area of ​​Upper Silesia. Its cultural roots lie in the Polish, German and Czech people. It Includes:
Lower Silesian Voivodeship – Its capital is Wrocław, the fourth largest city in Poland and the primary industrial and cultural center of the region. It is built on the Odra river on 12 islands connected by 130 bridges that make it look like a small Venice. Among the natural attractions, the Góry Stołowe National Park, in the middle of the Sudeten Mountains on the Czech border and with unique landscapes between rocks and peaks with imaginative shapes.
Opole Voivodeship –
Silesian Voivodeship – Częstochowa draws crowds of pilgrims because of its Jasna Góra monastery where the image of the Black Madonna is kept
      Greater Poland – Variety of landscapes, profusion of wild life, bird watchers’ paradise and inland dunes. It Includes:
Lubusz Voivodeship –
Greater Poland Voivodeship – Its capital is Poznań, one of the oldest cities in the country with a cathedral that houses the tombs of the dynasties of the Duchy of Poland, the first Polish state embryo formed in the early Middle Ages.
      Pomerania – Offers the attractive Polish coast; sandy beaches with dunes and cliffs; lakes, rivers and forests. It Includes:
Kujawsko-Pomorskie Voivodeship – Toruń, the city where Nicolò Copernico was born and spent his childhood has beautiful red brick churches, Gothic-style houses, defense structures. The old town is well preserved and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Among the natural attractions the forest of Tuchola (Bory Tucholskie) made up mostly of pine trees and a paradise for bicycle enthusiasts.

Pomeranian Voivodeship – Its capital is Gdansk, the country’s main port. It preserves the ancient village with the crane with which the vessels were loaded, the large Gothic church of the Virgin Mary which can accommodate up to 25,000 people, the main square surrounded by characteristic buildings. For centuries it has been one of the main ports for the amber trade and even today the old city offers numerous opportunities to purchase jewelry of this type. Among the natural attractions of Pomerania we must mention the Słowiński national park, a coastal park established mainly to preserve the belt of moving dunes, unique in Europe and the Kashubia (Kaszuby), a magnificent region that has remained mostly wild and unspoiled, which extends to west of Masuria. It is the ideal place for family holidays with caravans and camper vans far from large tourist centers and crowds.
West Pomeranian Voivodeship –
      Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship – Lush green area studded with lakes. It offers unspoiled nature and the opportunity to camp in a beautiful countryside area. It includes the Land of the Masurian lakes, a region of extensive forests renowned for its natural beauty and for the possibilities of kayaking or sailing trips. Malbork, the first capital of Prussia and today a quiet town, preserves a monumental 13th century castle, erected by the Teutonic Knights and included in the UNESCO list of world heritage sites.
      Podlachian Voivodeship – The only primordial forest and picturesque bodies of water (e.g. Biebrza river) with protected species of birds that make this region a particularly interesting destination for tourists. Białowieża National Park is made up of forests where the European bison has been successfully reintroduced. On the border with Belarus lies the Biebrza National Park, a paradise for bird watchers.