Visiting Poland in 2025

Be a tourist in your own country, they say. In 2025, it became truer than ever. I'm Polish, with Portuguese tax residency and with a current base in Malaysia. So visiting Poland after many years apart felt like discovering a cool European destination.

Moreover, it was the very first time for my partner to come here. Together we:

• Admired the cityscape of Warsaw from the top of the Palace of Culture and Science.
• Rode the old-style horse carriage on cobblestone streets of Kraków.
• Paid respect to the victims of the Auschwitz-Birkenau Nazi concentration camp.
• Went shopping had and fresh pączki in Katowice.
• Posed for pics with adorable gnomes around Wrocław.

Family, friends, feasts

Coming to Poland also meant reunions. And there's no better way to gather than around delicious food. For every meal, we chose local delicacies. They connected me with childhood memories, while my partner explored the wide range of sour, salty and sweet tastes.

Through the stomach, to the heart — tasting Polish delicacies

Nostalgia meets wanderlust as I guide my partner—wide-eyed and hungry—through Poland’s bar mleczny ritual: steaming soups, delicous pierogi, tangy kompot. Each bite rekindles my own roots while weaving hers. Check how “through the stomach to the heart” becomes more than a saying.

Nerd on TourPiotrek Bodera

The reunions, accommpanied by delicious food, were truly heartwarming. We said hello to my grandma, aunties and extended family. In each city, we reconnected with my international friends. I'm thankful to maintain these long-term relationships despite my nomading lifestyle.

Hop on board

Since I was a kid, I loved trains. And in the past I did traverse Poland in all directions. Hence, it's a pity that the train experience is a mixed bag:

• The online ticketing is disabled every day around midnight.
• Carriages are clean and spacious but you need to ensure to book the one without compartments.
• You can't buy tickets more than 1 month in advance.
• The “WARS” restaurant carriage offers decent meals, including vegetarian options.
• Trains are often delayed without any reason.
• The arrival information are confusing, and people frequently board the wrong train.
• Booking in advance secures a low price and a convenient arrival into the city center.
• Wi-Fi rarely works and the staff have no clue how to address it.

Still, the train rides were the best connections between Warsaw, Katowice, and finally Vienna. I remain hopeful that one day Europe will have an efficient train system, as in Japan or China.

Poles love tech

Despite challenges there are plenty of great technical solutions in Poland that significantly ease traveling.

Jakdojade is my go-to app for public transportation. Works in every city, includes live updates, and allows buying and validating tickets in the app. Excellent alternative for e-hailing apps.

Uber paved the path for taxi apps in Poland. So it's great to see a fierce competition among the providers. In major metropolises, you can check the best transportation rates among Free Now, Bolt, and iTaxi.

Card payments are available practically everywhere. Even street vendors or vending machines allow purchase via Apple Pay, Google Pay or any other contactless cards. It's especially great when combined with Revolut or Wise for the lowest exchange fees.

Lastly, the 5G and 4G coverage is vast, even during train rides. While the Wi-Fi in trains didn't work, we could stay in touch using Orange, one of the major telecoms in Poland. And indeed if you plan your Euro trip, the Orange Flex is one of the best options. It has quick online setup, eSIM, and data coverage in the whole of the EU.

Farewell Poland

Quality time with family and friend made it a special trip. Delicious meals accompanied our meetups, and tech solutions made sightseeing convenient. Thank you for a memorable time everyone.

Next stop, Austria!