Gdansk, Poland City Break

I've said before that one of my favorite things about living in the UK is the close proximity to the rest of Europe.  After just a few hours on a plane, you can be in the most incredible city.  Like most of our weekend City Breaks, this one started with Google Flights. We filtered by flight duration (3 hours max), non-stop, and price (£150 max).  For 2 hours and less than £100, a trip to Gdansk, Poland was the obvious choice. 

The Baltic coastal city of Gdansk has an incredible history and if you're a modern history buff, you'll want to visit.  This is where the first shot of World War II was fired with the German invasion of Poland in 1939 (a little more of that in my next post). 

You're familiar with the  Berlin Wall and the fall of the Iron Curtain?  Well, Gdansk is where the Solidarity Movement started in the 1980's that led to the end of the Cold War.

Like many European cities, the city center of Gdansk was largely destroyed during the war.  So you might expect to see the the Brutalist architecture of the Soviet era.  But instead, you'll find picturesque Hanseatic architecture similar to Talin or Copenhagen. 

The city leaders decided to rebuild in the original style.  It's hard to believe most of this was built in the 50's or 60's.  You don't see the characteristic sag of actual medieval structures, but it's been carefully reconstructed.

Some of the city structures may be relatively new, but the blueprint dates back to the origins of the city.  Since the earliest of times, this has been an important maritime city and it's now a major shipping and industrial hub. 

We loved Gdansk and had a terrific weekend.  Matt was particularly happy to see how inexpensive it is compared to other European cities. The economy of the area is developing quickly and they welcome more and more tourists each year. 

We spent our time strolling down the pedestrian Long Street and along the canals.  You can see we lucked out with gorgeous weather.  There's nothing better than dining al fresco and people watching in such a beautiful setting.  

You also can't leave without purchasing some "Baltic Gold". After passing shop after shop selling beautiful amber jewelry, I bought a sweet pair of earrings.  Gdansk is known as the capital of the Baltic amber trade.  It's been collected here for over 6,000 years. 

Be sure to find this fountain.  It's called the Four Corners Fountain  (Fontanna Czterech Kwartalow) and has a large lazy lion in each corner.  I loved it and wanted to lounge with them all day in the sun.

If you're looking for a European City Break, we can highly recommend Gdansk, Poland.  We're working on a list of our Top 10 and this one is definitely going on the list.  

Tell me about your favorite City Breaks.  

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