Exploring Warsaw

Warsaw is officially known as the Capital City of Warsaw and is not only the capital but the largest city in Poland. It sits on the River Vistula in east-central Poland.

The historic Old Town is of interest and has impressive architecture and monuments. It has earned the status of being a UNESCO World Heritage site. There are alleys and passageways to explore with guildhalls, churches, and burgher houses.

Old Town Market Square used to be the epicenter of commercial life in the city. You can see Renaissance and Baroque merchant houses in different colors. There is a mermaid figure on the fountain in the center that holds a special meaning for Warsaw and in the summer you can sit at a restaurant table and watch the city going by.

The Royal Route will take you past all the historic landmarks starting at Castle Square and heading south for 15 kilometers arriving at Wilanow Palace. Along the way are churches, parks, palaces, institutions, and townhouses.

Wilanow Palace will give you a look into the majesty of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth before Poland was annexed by Prussia and Russia in the late 18th century. It was built in the Baroque style and has a parterre with two terraces with topiaries, broderie, and statues that symbolize love. Outside the castle are many different statues.

Among the highlights are the White Hall with mirrors, the King’s Library, the King’s Bedroom, and the North Gallery with statues and amazing ceiling frescoes.

Lazienski Palace and its lovely eponymous park is Warsaw’s largest park there are two orangeries, an amphitheater, a planetarium, promenades, water features, and monuments of national standing. One of the most prestigious monuments is in honor of composer Frederic Chopin which was designed in 1907 in the Art Nouveau style.

Warsaw Royal Castle is at the southern entrance to the Old Town and is a Mannerist and Baroque Castle with its last reconstruction in the 1980s. It is a museum where you can see the apartments of the 16^th century King Sigismund II Augustus and visit the House of Parliament. There is also a collection of artwork from the 16^th to the 18^th century.

Warsaw Royal Palace, Castle Square (Plac Zamkowy) with the Royal Castle and Sigismund’s Column at sunset.

Castle Square when Poland’s capital moved from Kraków to Warsaw in 1596 the square beside the castle became the cornerstone of the largest Empire in Renaissance Europe. The man responsible for the change is Sigismund III Vasa who is commemorated by a bronze statue atop an 8.5-meter column.

Copernicus Science Centre is the top science museum in Poland and opened in 2010. The center offers over 400 interactive exhibits across six zones. Among the highlights is the World in Motion which has an earthquake simulator and a moving model of a human skeleton on a bike. Webcams offer footage directly from a falcon’s nest at the Palace of Culture and Science and the gorilla enclosure at the Warsaw Zoo, There is also a planetarium with 3D sound.

Copernicus Monument is located in front of the Copernicus Science Centre and is to honor the Renaissance astronomer and mathematician. It depicts Copernicus with a compass and armillary sphere.

The Palace of Culture is the tallest building in Poland at 237 meters. There are four theaters on its 42 floors with multi-screen cinema, two museums, a Congress Halle seating 3000, government offices, academic institutions, and private companies. On the 30^th floor is an observation terrace for great views over Warsaw.

The National Museum is the biggest museum in the city and one of the largest in Poland. Among the highlights is the collection of antiquities with some 11,000 Egyptian, Greek, and Roman artifacts. You can enjoy a collection of Polish Medieval Art from the 14^th and 15^th centuries including artwork produced for churches and cathedrals, including devotional paintings, altarpieces, and sculptures. There is also a lot of art from the Early Modern Age and the 19^th century.

St Anne’s Church is one of the oldest landmarks in the city and was founded in 1454. In the 17^th century the church was rebuilt four times and now has a Neo-classical facade. Between the columns and pilasters are statues of the Four Evangelists. The church has a stand-alone bell tower from which you can get awesome views of Warsaw.

Tomb Of The Unknown Soldier is located in Pilsudski Square, the largest in the city, and a monument for unidentified soldiers who died fighting for the county.

The monument housing the tomb is a fragment (three arches) from the arcade that once belonged to the Saxon Palace, demolished after the Warsaw Uprising. Under the central arch is the tomb and eternal flame, watched by the Representative Honour Guard Battalion of the Polish Armed Forces.

At the stroke of every hour 365 days a year the guard is changed. The monument and square are the focus of ceremonies for the Polish Armed Forces Day every 15 August.

The Holy Cross Church is a Baroque monument that was built in the first half of the 18^th century. It was rebuilt after being blown up by the German army in 1945. Here Frederic Chopin’s heart was brought to the church in an urn by his sister and embedded in a pillar in one of the chapels.

Warsaw University Library Garden is near the Vistula River and once you walk up the exterior stairway you’ll find one of the largest roof gardens in Europe. The garden is open from March to November and has fountains, streams, arbors, and lawns. The views of the city are fantastic. There are many sculptures from the mid-18th century.

25 Best Things to Do in Warsaw (Poland)

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