Laura
Last Updated on December 11, 2024 by Laura
It’s almost that time of the year again! All the Christmas Markets lovers like me will be probably starting to plan their annual festive trip! I’m lucky enough to have visited almost every famous European location under its Christmas vest. Therefore, during the recent years I am expanding my trips also to lesser known spots. In this blog, you will discover how the festive season looks like in Central-Eastern Europe. I will take you around three of Poland best Christmas Markets!
Table of Contents
Why Poland should be on your Christmas Markets’ radar
When I told my parents and friends that my yearly chosen destination for Christmas Markets was Poland, they were, how to say, a little unimpressed. They didn’t understand fully my choice. Regrettably, Poland is still one of the most underrated countries in Europe. It’s quite uncommon to hear people (particularly in the UK or Italy) saying that they are spending their Christmas Holidays there. Unless you are my uncle, he is married to a Polish woman and he is literally there every single year and never stop talking about it LOL. However, Poland is beautiful, with an incredible historical background and, most importantly, cheap!
If you are looking for a Christmas destination that won’t break your wallet, ditch France and head to Poland! My choice of Poland was dictated only by the reason that I visited all the most famous Christmas destinations in Europe. Therefore, I wanted to visit somewhere new. However, considering how cheap is to travel to Poland compared to much more famous destinations like Austria or Germany, I think that more people should consider this aspect. I travelled with my husband and the kids and they had a great time. Yes, it’s quite cold in the winter. Nevertheless, the twins still remember the snow and the huge Christmas tree of Warsaw! Moreover, the warm, comforting feeling of a warm restaurant after hours in the snow, is something that made this holiday very special.
Polish Christmas Traditions
Before heading to Poland, it’s good to learn some of the most popular Polish Christmas traditions to get yourself acquainted to Polish culture. In fact, Christmas for Polish is very important. It’s one of the two most important events of the year in Poland. Not only Christmas has a deep religious significance for Polish, but it’s also a moment of reunion for families and celebrate all their traditions. Christmas in Polish is called Boże Narodzenie which literally means “God’s birth”. I found many similarities with the way we celebrate Christmas in Italy and this is very fascinating!
Mikolajki
The festive season in Poland starts on the 6th of December, St. Nicholas’ day. During ‘Mikolajki’, children receive small gifts that are placed under their pillows, in a stocking, or in a clean pair of shoes or boots. Naughty children receive a lump of coal or a twig, called “rózga”.
The Christmas Wigilia
Christmas Eve or “Wigilia” is the most important festive day in Poland and is celebrated on the 24th December. According to the Polish tradition, no food should be eaten until the first star appears in the sky. Families reunites and children search from the window the first sparkle in the sky symbol of the Star of Bethlehem. Once the first star appears, dinner can start but not before the traditional “sharing of the wafer” or opłatek. A tradition established since the 10th century and still observed at Christmas Eve. The eldest member of the family breaks a rectangular shaped wheat-flour wafer and shares this with the family.
Christmas Eve dinner in Poland is usually made of twelve dishes symbolising the Twelve Apostles. This is includes often mushroom soup, carp and dumplings. Christmas Eve celebrations finish with the traditional Pastreka. A midnight mass to commemorate the birth of Jesus.
Essential information for your Christmas trip to Poland
When is the best festive period to visit Poland?
In big cities like Warsaw and Krakow,Christmas Markets start during the mid/end of November until the end of December. Peak period is usually around Mid-December. In the countryside and smaller cities, Christmas Market might have different opening times. These may perhaps focus on December dates rather than earlier in the winter. I would recommend checking each city’s tourist page to understand in which dates the festive season start to avoid any disappointment.
Which part of Poland is better to visit for Christmas?
Poland is a big country. Therefore, unless you are planning to stay two weeks or more it won’t be easy (and cost effective) to squeeze all its Christmas destinations all at once. I know this because, it was naively my initial idea. In fact, in my “I want to see everything” crazy mind I would have jumped on a different train each single day and discover a new place on the opposite side of the country. The reality is that this plan would have probably turned in running like a desperate and spending £££ on trains for just a rushed few hours of mulled wine and cookies. So, for the sake of my husband’s happiness and my children ones, I gave up my crazy plans for a moderate and definitely more feasible trip.
Considering our little children, the cost of the trains (which is unexpectedly high, see below on this) and the length of the voyage, I decided to research places not too far from Warsaw and with some lovely markets. My suggestion for a nice and relaxed Christmas trip, is to focus on a specific area. Then add a few close day trips to complement. The main three areas where you can base your trip are Warsaw, Gdansk and, of course, Krakow. If you want to touch down in all of them, I’ll recommend to have a little more than a few days in Poland.
Is Poland expensive?
As general reply, no. Poland isn’t an expensive country in the strict sense of the term. Flight tickets for 4 costed us under £200 a/r. Food is quite cheap and taxi fares are ridiculously cheap compared to London prices. However, there is something which is surprisingly expensive in Poland. Trains. I was astonished to discover that a silly 2 hours one-way train from Warsaw to Krakow was more than 100£. This ruinined all my budget-travel plans!
Therefore, yes Poland is generally a cheaper country to visit compared to other European destinations. However, if you plan to travel extensively by train, you probably recover all the money you haven’t spent over something else!
Getting around Poland
You can get around Poland either by renting a car or by train. Renting a car is a nice solution that will give you more independence. Nevetheless, you have also to consider that distances in Poland are quite lengthy. Moreover, during winter weather is snowy and windy so the driving conditions are not at its best.
Despite not being really budget-friendly, we opted to get around by train this time. Indeed, the connections were faster than the car and we didn’t want to drive in the snow. We bought all our train tickets through the PKP Intercity app. However, I don’t really recommend it. It’s scarcely in English and not user-friendly. I now book trains mostly only through Trainline that is much more straightforward.
To get around in various cities I used a mix of Bolt and Uber. Taxis in Poland are ridiculously cheap and honestly much more convenient than public transport. Particularly in the winter when you can froze to death in the bus stop.
What to wear in Poland during winter
Winter in Poland is very rigid. You may find a sunny day, but it won’t be warm. The best thing to do is packing thermal clothes, waterproof shoes and a very warm coat/puffer jacket. Of course gloves and warm hats need to be on the list too!
Poland best Christmas Markets
Here below you can find 3 of Poland best Christmas market to add to your list. I visited them all on my last trip and they are all worth visiting!
Warsaw Christmas Markets
Warsaw not only hosts some of Poland best Christmas Markets, but it’s also one of the most beautifully decorated cities I visited in Poland. In fact, the whole city lits up for Christmas and you can find festive decorations practically everywhere. From the 20km of the Royal Route to the entire Old Town, Warsaw is a perfect Christmas city where to spend a winter weekend!
Where I can find the Christmas Markets in Warsaw
The biggest Christmas Market in Warsaw is the one that snakes around the defensive walls of the Old Town. Here you can find several stalls serving food like the Polish traditional Oscypek (a tasty smoked cheese) and many handcraft stalls selling Christmas souvenirs and gifts. A second, smaller market is the one that compliments the traditional Ice Rink in Old Town Square. This has only a few stalls selling food and deliciously scented Glühwein. I personally loved this one as it was a little cosier and if fitted perfectly within the background of the decorated Old Town Square.
If you are into skating, another Ice Rink is usually built also under the Palace of Culture and Science. Also here you can find a few festive stalls. Something that shouldn’t be missed in Warsaw during the festive period is the spectacular Royal Garden of Light. Against the background of Wilanów Palace, the King’s winter garden is illuminated by thousands of lights dancing at the sound of classical music. This is in addition to the city’s illumination culminating in the 30mt high Christmas tree in Castle Square.
Warsaw Christmas Markets dates for 2024
The Christmas Markets in Warsaw for this year will run from 25th November 2024 to 6th January 2025. Timings are Sunday – Thursday from 11:00 to 20:00 – Fridays and Saturdays from 11:00 to 21:30 – December 24, 2022 – selected stands open
Where to stay in Warsaw
When we booked our stay, I had some points to use before the end of the year, so I booked a family room at Ibis Styles Warsawa Centrum. I have to say I was quite impressed on how good was that Ibis! The room was very nicely decorated. We had also personalised toiletries for adults and children (never seen something like this at ibis!). There were also free coffee, tea and biscuits at the reception lounge every day and a play area where children can spend some time. At check-in, both children received also a small Christmas present. Breakfast was also included and there was an excellent restaurant that we used a couple of times at night. Location was ok considering that we were moving around by taxi. I believe this place was excellent for us and I would recommend it for a family stay.
If you are a couple or solo traveller, I would perhaps recommend something more central and sophisticated like Raffles Europejski Warsaw or the stunning Hotel Verte built within the historical settings of the 18th-century Szaniawaski Palace.
Toruń Christmas Market
Famous for being one of the oldest cities in Poland as well as the place where Nicolaus Copernicus was born, Toruń is the quintessentially Christmas city to visit during a festive trip! I admit it was my favourite of the three cities we visited on our trip because of its cosiness and nice festive vibes.
Toruńky Jarmark Bozonarodzeniowy
The traditional name of Toruń Christmas Market is “Toruńky Jarmark Bozonarodzeniowy“. This is the only festive market in town but it’s big enough to circle Rynek Staromiejski (the Old Town Square). I particularly loved it because differently than other markets I’ve seen in Poland and Europe it had an additional focus on children. Indeed, one think I noted all over the years it that as much as Christmas Markets are colourful, and nice they are mostly catered for adults fun. Small children (for which Christmas is hugely important) are often left a little behind or marginalised in separate “children corners”.
In Toruń Christmas Market, there were a lot of young children-friendly spaces, stalls with toys and even a merry-go-around. Twins loved it. They were particularly impressed by a huge Santa sled they jumped in and a tall talking bear they had a conversation for about 10 mins.
In addition to the children-friendly spots, the market had the usual traditional food, mulled wine and gifts stands.
Toruń Christmas Markets dates for 2024
Toruńky Jarmark Bozonarodzeniowy for this year will run from 22nd November 2024 to 22nd December 2024. It will be open everyday from 15:00 – 24:00.
Where to stay in Toruń
In terms of accommodations, Toruń is much cheaper than Warsaw and Krakow. If you have some days to spare, I would recommend to spend here 2 days as there are many things to do in this city! Differently from Warsaw, this city has more a family vibes and its hotels are mostly based within the historical old centre in houses that have hundreds of years of history. If you want a nice place to stay I recommend Hotel ETER, Hotel 1231 or the 17th-century reconverted Hotel Spichrz.
Lublin Christmas Festival
The city of Lublin surprised me a lot. It’s incredibly beautiful and its Christmas illuminations were the most beautiful we’ve seen in Poland. Lublin is located at the boarder with Ukraine. For this reason, many tourists unfortunately avoid it recently. In reality, the city is perfectly safe, easy and stunning to visit. It’s Christmas traditions are also interesting because differs from the rest of big cities in Poland.
In fact, the city’s focuses more on a Christmas Festival that promotes Christmas decorations workshops and handcraft rather than a very long Christmas Market. Read more below.
Lublin Festiwal Bozego Narodzenia
Starting between 3rd and 6th December each year, Lublin’s Christmas Festival focuses on four main different things: Christmas illuminations, handcraft workshops for its citizen and visitors, the Christmas Market and the Christmas concerts. Workshops are held for most of December around the Old Town. Here people can learn many different things from making Christmas decorations to prepare gingerbread biscuits etc.
Similarly to the Christmas Market in Hallstatt in Austria, also the one in Lublin has specific dates rather than running for the whole month. The stalls are located inside the Old Town near the main square. Unfortunately when we visited it was still closed but we loved the city anyway because the Christmas illumination were so beautiful that it felt all very festive!
Lublin’s Christmas Festival dates for 2024
Lublin Festiwal Bozego Narodzenia for this year will be from 6th December 2024 to January 2025 (exact date TBC). The Christmas Marked will be only from 15th to 17th December 2024.
On 15th December there will be also the traditional “Polish Christmas Eve” with the breaking of the Wafer in the Old Town.
Where to stay in Lublin
Lublin is worth to stay a couple of days if you have time. Particularly to try all its amazing restaurants! We haven’t personally stayed overnight for reason of time but if we return in the future some of my favourite places were Vanilla Hotel in the city centre and IBB Grand Hotel Lublin.
Plan your trip to Poland
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