There’s more to summer than sitting in a beer garden – to enjoy Warsaw to the max, let the city come alive by ticking the following experiences off your seasonal bucket list.
There’s more to summer than sitting in a beer garden – to enjoy Warsaw to the max, let the city come alive by ticking the following experiences off your seasonal bucket list.
Running until September, those wishing to see the most Warsaw has to offer have a choice of transport options that will take them past the city’s key attractions. Of these, best-known is the No. 36 vintage-style tram that rattles each Saturday and Sunday from Pl. Narutowicza to Metro Marymont – in the process, you’ll pass many key historical sights such as the former Ghetto area.
Since 1959, it’s been a Warsaw rite of passage to gather on the lawns around the Chopin monument for free Sunday piano recitals in the rose-fringed gardens of Łazienki Park. Drawing some of the biggest piano talents in the world, performances take place each Sunday at noon and 4 p.m. and often attract thousands. It’s vital you add ‘piano in the park’ to any summer bucket list.
There’s few better feelings than bouncing over a gangplank before chugging over the river with the wind in your hair. These pleasures await all those who take advantage of the free water tram that connects either sides of the Wisła. Departure points include Saska beach, the sandy stretch in front of the National Stadium and the area around the fountain park.
Warsaw loves the sound of jazz, and where better to enjoy it than on the cobbles of the historic Rynek. Running from July 1st through until the end of August, check in for free weekly concerts held each Saturday evening. Showcasing the hottest talents in Poland – and abroad – its one of those times when the Old Town really bursts into life. For scheduled performances, see: jazznastarowce.pl
Warsaw’s fountain park has updated its program this year to follow a Disney theme. Capable of displaying 16 million colours and firing 30,000 litres of water per minute, the 2,850 sq/m fountain complex sees spectacular audio-visual shows take place every weekend at 9.30 p.m. Drawing a million visitors per year, get there early to stake your place on the grassy embankment that leads down from New Town.
Although commemorations of the 1944 Warsaw Uprising are centred around the minute’s silence held at 5 p.m. on August 1st (a quite chilling moment that sees the entire city pause as one), events last through summer and include a flotilla bobbing down the river, funruns, open-air concerts, reenactments, song recitals, screenings and suchlike. For a full schedule, navigate your mouse around: 1944.pl.
