8-Nights Portrait Of Poland from $1,619

Cosmos

OFFER ID 1516058

A rich cultural heritage, fascinating history, and beautiful landscapes make Poland an interesting place to discover. On this Poland tour, you’ll spend two nights in Warsaw and Gdansk, three nights in Kraków, and one night in Poznan. Along the way, learn about Poland’s history and visit some of its historic cities with their charming old towns, and some UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Enjoy sightseeing with a Local Guide-an expert in the city’s history, sights, culture, and secrets-in Warsaw, Gdansk, Torun, Poznan, and Kraków. Torun is the birthplace of renaissance astronomer Copernicus. In the Middle Ages, it was a prominent trade hub as a member of the Hanseatic League. Dating back to the 7th century, Kraków is known as Poland’s most beautiful city and cultural capital. Here, the sightseeing tour features the Market Square, one of Europe’s loveliest squares, along with Wawel Hill. Gdansk is a beautiful port city on the Baltic Sea, which played an important role in recent history by facilitating the events that brought to the fall of the Berlin wall. You’ll visit the monastery of Jasna Góra in Czestochowa, an important pilgrimage spot. Its Black Madonna, a painting of the Virgin Mary, is a symbol of the country and venerated as the "Queen of Poland." You'll also visit what is left of the Auschwitz concentration camp, a chilling reminder of the Holocaust. Take a breath of fresh air on the included excursion to Zakopane, a mountain resort in the Tatras, a favorite holiday spot for locals and visitors. You’ll have a chance to do a little hiking or to relax, taking in the spectacular views. You’ll arrive home from this value-minded tour through Poland with a new appreciation of Poland’s history, culture, nature, and wonderful cities-an enriching adventure!

8 nights from $1,619 per person

Itinerary

Portrait Of Poland

Day 1 ARRIVE IN WARSAW, POLAND Check into your hotel. Explore the Polish capital with the help of the CosmosGO app. In the early evening, meet your Tour Director and travel companions.

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Day 2 WARSAW–GDANSK Today’s included sightseeing tour with a Local Guide is an excellent introduction to Warsaw. Magnificently reconstructed after WWII, Warsaw is a rich tapestry of nearly every European architectural style, from Gothic to Neoclassical, with wide, modern avenues in striking contrast to the narrow lanes of the old section. Continuing to Gdansk on the Baltic Sea, discover one of the most important Hanseatic cities in the 14th and 15th centuries. Today’s Distance: 261 mi/ 420 km (B,D)

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Day 3 GDANSK Among the most important shipping ports in Northern Europe, Gdansk (formerly known by its German name, Danzig) is the birthplace of “Solidarity,” the Polish trade union that revolutionized Polish modern politics. This morning, your Local Guide takes you on an enlightening city tour revealing the city’s past and present. Enjoy free time to explore on your own, or time travel to the Middle Ages on the optional excursion to learn about the Teutonic Knights, a military order of the Middle Ages combining knighthood and monastery, as you discover Malbork Castle, a majestic fortress estimated to have been built with anywhere from seven to thirty million bricks. (B,D)

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Day 4 GDANSK–TORUN–POZNAN The first stop today is medieval Torun on the Vistula River, birthplace of renaissance astronomer Copernicus and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Your Local Guide will introduce you to the many captivating highlights, including the starówka (Old Town) with the ruins of a 13th-century Teutonic Knights’ castle, as well as many samples of Gothic architecture. Head west to Poznan, one of the country’s oldest cities and a part of Polish history for the past 1,000 years. This afternoon, discover the main attractions on your included city sightseeing tour with a Local Guide.
Today’s Distance: 2305 mi/ 370 km (B,D)

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Day 5 POZNAN–JASNA GÓRA–KRAKÓW The guided tour of Jasna Góra in Czestochowa unveils the story of the Monastery that withstood the repeated onslaughts of overwhelming Swedish forces during the religious wars of the 17th century. Since then, its Black Madonna has been venerated as the “Queen of Poland” and has become the country’s national symbol. Continue to Kraków.
Today’s Distance: 304 mi/ 490 km (B,D)

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Day 6 KRAKÓW Dating back to the 7th century, Kraków is revered by many as Poland’s most beautiful city. It was the country’s capital for over 500 years. On your included guided tour, see the Market Square, the Jewish Quarter, Wawel Hill, and visit the Cathedral. Spend free time exploring on your own or go deeper with an optional underground excursion to the Wieliczka salt mines. Descend to the first level of the mine and enjoy a sensory experience of beauty, color, and sound, and taste of salt on your lips. (B)

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Day 7 KRAKÓW. EXCURSION TO ZAKOPANE Get a breath of fresh mountain air today on the included excursion to Zakopane. Located in a picturesque valley at the base of the Tatra Mountain range, Zakopane has developed into a beautiful, pristine resort. Typical of this area are the highland wooden houses, cafes, restaurants, and the local shops on Krupowki Street. Enjoy a little hiking or browse around the small market for authentic souvenirs. Return to Krakow.
Today’s Distance: 137 mi/ 220 km (B,D)

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Day 8 KRAKÓW–AUSCHWITZ–WARSAW Encounter sobering history this morning on your visit to the Auschwitz concentration camp, a chilling reminder of the Holocaust. In the afternoon, continue to Warsaw. Today’s Distance: 249 mi/ 400 km (B)

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Day 9 WARSAW Your vacation ends with breakfast this morning. (B)

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Featured Destinations

Krakow

Gdansk (Gdynia)

Historic Gdansk represents one of the richest, most lavish complexes of architectonic relics in Poland. The entrances to historic quarters are huge stone gateways guarding the main thoroughfare; the well-proportioned tower of town hall makes a powerful impact. The main square is filled with fine mansions. St. Mary’s Church is the world's largest brick church, with a capacity of 25,000. Dominating the waterside is seven-story Great Mill. Gdynia is the modern port for Gdansk. Near Gdansk is Sopot, one of the most fashionable seaside resorts in northern Europe during the 19th century and the country’s most popular health spa with its beach and flair for entertainment. Sopot is known as an important music center, featuring an annual Opera and International Song Festival. Gdansk Historical Museum has lavish decorations and fascinating exhibits. Maritime Museum features a model of every ship produced in local shipyards since 1945 and is housed in the massive 15th-century Gdansk Crane. National Art Museum, one of Gdansk’s highlights, boasts a collection of Gothic art and sculpture.

Excursions

Gdansk - Window to Freedom - Half Day Tour

Gdansk & Malbork Castle - Full Day Tour

A Pulsating Harbour - Gdansk/Gdynia/Sopot - Full Day Tour

A Pulsating Harbour - Tri-City Complex: Gdanks/Gdynia/Sopot

Gdansk, as fascinating and special city as one could hope to find anywhere, was once known as Danzig - name etched deep in European history. It is a major harbour, first German, then Hanseatic, Polish, Prussian, Free City and finally Polish. Desired by many, the city was often fought over. Indeed, it was the nearby Westerplatte that the first shots of history’s greatest war were fired in 1939. Later in the late 1970s the city’s Lenin Shipyard saw the birth of the Solidarity Trade Union, which made Lech Walesa a household name and began the process of transformation across the entire region. Gdansk has not forgotten its history. The lovingly restored buildings of the Old Town and waterfront provide picturesque and interesting surroundings, in which one may take a stroll, dine or shop for the city’s famous amber jewelry. In turn, the impressive Monument to Murdered Shipyard Workers gives the visitor a pause for thought about all that has happened since the 1970s.But further surprises await, for Gdansk is just the largest component of the Tri-City of Gdansk, Gdynia and Sopot. North-south development along the coast left beautiful and unspoiled woods and forests on hills just inland, and allows the visitor to travel smoothly from place to place by road or by local railway. Required stops for all include Gdynia, the lively naval, fishing and commercial port with its historical ships, beaches and the Oceanographic Museum; Sopot, an elegant beach resort of villas and hotels famous for its musical and cultural festivals; and Gdansk-Oliwa, a suburb boasting beautiful parks and a cathedral, whose world-famous organ Poland-largest entertains and entrances all who hear it. Lively, attractive, cultured, historical: the Gdansk area is as varied and eternally fascinating as the sea, which brought its fame and fortune.

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You will be picked up at the port by your guide and driver.

Gdansk & Stutthof - Full Day Tour

Gdansk & Stutthof

Full Day Tour

We start the tour from the Upland Gate - a fragment of the city's fortifications and one of its main gates. Just behind it, we pass by a baked-brick construction consisting of the Prison Tower and the Torture House - relics of the Gothic defence walls from the 15th century. The Golden Gate, situated next to the Prison Tower, opens onto the Long Market - a magnificent street, with Patrician mansions decorated with late Renaissance and Baroque facades - a real feast for the eyes!!! It is here that the richest burghers of Gdansk used to live. Next, we can see the Main Town Hall, with a life-sized figure of king Sigismund Augustus on the top. Beyond the Main Town Hall, we admire the Artus Court - a building used for Hanseatic League meetings, the most beautiful court in all the Hanseatic cities. Just behind it rises the tower of St. Mary's Basilica, a part of the most precious and largest red-brick Gothic church. On our way back we pass by Mariacka Street, with its gabled terraced houses and elegant boutiques, leading to the Long Wharf on the Motlawa River. At the river's edge stands the characteristic Gdansk Crane, where the tour ends.

Afterwards, drive to see the former Nazi Concentration Stutthof Camp established at the beginning of September 1939 is the oldest camp of mass-extermination in Poland. The first prisoners of camp thought for "desirable Polish elements" were representatives of Polish associations in Free City of Danzig. Within the 5 years of camp existance 110.000 mens, women and children were kept and almost 65.000 prisoners died as result of murdering in gas chambers, beating, hanging, torturing and making medical tests by Nazi mad scientists. Stutthof was freed at the beginning of May 1944 by troops of the Soviet Army.

Nowadays there is the National Museum of Stutthof established in 1962 including post-camp buildings, prisoners' barracks, gas chambers, crematory, gallows. There is also permament exhibition dedicated to prisoners of Stutthof inside post-camp buildings.

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You will be picked up at your port by our guide and driver.

Gdansk: Gdansk & Sopot – 5 hours

Poznan

Set on the banks of the Warta River 165 mi/270 km west of Warsaw, 1,000-year-old Poznan, Poland, blends Gothic and baroque in much of its architecture.

Highlights of this industrialized city include the 10th-century Cathedral of St. Peter and St. Paul, Gorka's Palace (that houses the Archaeological Museum), the Greenhouse (10 pavilions that contain more than 17,000 plants), Raczynski Library, the Opera House and the Museum of Musical Instruments (it houses Chopin's pianos). In Old Town Square, a crowd gathers on the hour to watch the clock on the old town hall that dates from 1550.

Poznan has all the requisite charm Americans typically look for when traveling in Europe. Its vibrant Old Town bustles with outdoor bars, restaurants and shops, and the Royal Imperial Route walking trail wends past historical and cultural attractions.

In warm weather, the Old Market Square comes alive with shops and outdoor entertainment, and during the winter holidays, it becomes the site of a picturesque Christmas market, with everything from local crafts to regional food and drink.

There is a modern side to Poznan, too, evidenced by the dramatic, multicolored Freedom Fountain sculpture in Plac Wolnosci that turns colors at night, and the Stary Browar (or Old Brewery) shopping center, a combination art and retail space. Familiar franchises such as Starbucks and Zara may not appeal to visitors, but the center's artful renovation bespeaks the attitude of a city eager to preserve its heritage while moving aggressively into the next century.

One of the Poznan's most notable geographical features is Malta Lake, host to international rowing regattas as well as a place to rent boats or visit a water park. For families, there is an outdoor amusement park, minigolf and even an artificial ski slope, for visitors who can't wait for winter.

In addition, Poznan, located about halfway between Warsaw and Berlin, is accessible from either city in about three hours by train, and flights from Berlin to Warsaw offer additional flexibility for travelers who want to start in one city and depart from another.

Finally, like many parts of Poland, Poznan is a bargain. The country has not yet adopted the euro, and while some aspects of the tourism infrastructure are more advanced than others, it is not hard to find hotels and restaurants that are up to, but priced below, Western European standards.

Poznan is also home to the Poznan International Fair, which is a large exhibition and trade center that hosts numerous events during the year. For a schedule of these events, see http://www.mtp.pl.

Warsaw

Vacation Details

Valid Date Ranges

05/10/2025 - 05/18/2025

from $1,769 per person *

05/24/2025 - 06/01/2025

from $1,769 per person *

05/31/2025 - 06/08/2025

from $1,799 per person

06/21/2025 - 06/29/2025

from $1,699 per person *

07/05/2025 - 07/13/2025

from $1,769 per person

07/26/2025 - 08/03/2025

from $1,619 per person *

08/02/2025 - 08/10/2025

from $1,699 per person

08/16/2025 - 08/24/2025

from $1,669 per person *

08/30/2025 - 09/07/2025

from $1,799 per person

09/06/2025 - 09/14/2025

from $1,699 per person *

* This departure has been designated a guaranteed departure by the operator, meaning that the minimum number of guests has been met, although still subject to weather and other conditions.

Prices Start At

from $1,619 per person

Length

8 Nights

Air City

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Vacation Rating

Moderate
Moderate facilities have modest enhancements to amenities and décor. These hotels or resorts are dependable, comfortable and some may offer standard features, such as select business services, Continental breakfast or coffee service and may have a swimming pool or small fitness center on-site. Guestrooms are comfortable, moderately spacious, in-room telephones, televisions and limited amenities. Moderate establishments provide suitable accommodations and service for budget-minded travelers.

Remarks

All fares are quoted in US Dollars.

OFFER ID

1516058

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Los Gatos Travel

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