Warsaw

Arriving by Plane.

Warsaw Frederick Chopin Airport is the largest in Poland. It is located half an hour from the city centre by bus in the Okecie district. Scheduled flights arrive here from all over the europe. Economy flights usually arrive at Warsaw Etudia Terminal, which is about five minutes walk from the main terminal (from the main terminal walk past the domestic terminal and keep walking. It is not particularly well signposted). Etudia is an appalling travesty of a building with almost nothing in the way of facilities either before or after security, so you might want to hang around the main terminal for a while if you are early for check-in.

Warsaw is a pretty cheap destination for budget flights, but if you are having trouble finding a cheap flight, bear in mind that train travel is not expensive in Poland, and it is possible to travel here from several other cheap airports. See the main Poland section for more details.

Arriving By Train.

Warsaw is the heart of the Polish rail network, and almost all international trains run through here, including the Berlin-Warsaw express (3/day, 6 hours, 35 euros) and Brussels to Moscow service. Trains also run to Kaliningrad, Lithuania, Budapest, Prague and Vienna. For details of these international trains see the main Poland section. Most Intercity trains within Poland also run either to, from or through Warsaw, with only a few long-distance regional trains avoiding the place completely.

Most trains stop at at least three different stations called Warszawa (Warsaw) as they head through the city. You almost certainly want to get on or off at Warszawa Centralna. This hideous Soviet-era monstrosity hardly offers a warm welcome to the city, with its warren of subways full of dodgy-looking shops and kebab stands, and its cold oversized concrete concourse, but look on the bright side - it's central (right by the Palace of Culture), and buses and trams head out to the whole city from the bus station and street directly beside it. If you are familiar with Polish railways you may be suprised by the use of centralna (central) rather than glowny (main). The reason for this is that there is a pre-war station called glowny a couple of blocks to the north, although this is now a museum rather than a station so there is no room for confusion.

Arriving By Coach.

Eurolines run coaches to Warsaw from as far away as Edinburgh, and as close as Munich.