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Walking Warsaw

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Polska
Warsaw
Walking Warsaw

All about Warsaw! From statistics and insider tips to city tours! Join us here on Facebook or on our Free Tours, public walking tours or private city tours!

Visit our dedicated webpage www.walkingwarsaw.com

02/06/2026

🌴🌿 Major Changes Coming to Warsaw’s Rondo de Gaulle’a!

The famous palm tree is staying – but its surroundings are set for a major transformation. Warsaw’s road authority has announced a tender to green the roundabout. What is currently dominated by concrete will soon become a “sea of grasses and perennials.” Around 7,000 plants, including feather grasses and purple-top vervain, will form the centerpiece of the area. Small hills and a more natural landscape design are intended to give the site a completely new look.

The city no longer wants to wait for the long-delayed modernization of the railway line running beneath Aleje Jerozolimskie. Although the comprehensive reconstruction of the so-called “Cross-City Railway Line” is currently scheduled for 2031–2035, Warsaw is already moving ahead with visible improvements in the city center.

In the long term, Rondo de Gaulle’a itself is expected to disappear and be replaced by a regular intersection. However, the iconic palm tree created by artist Joanna Rajkowska will remain – even if its final location within the future streetscape has yet to be determined.

What do you think about these plans? Is more greenery in the heart of Warsaw the right direction, or should Rondo de Gaulle’a remain as we know it today?

🌿🌴
Image: Adrian Grycuk via wikimedia

15/12/2025

I found the perfect explanation a few years ago for why Poland has been able to develop so rapidly in recent years, namely:

— Progress through backwardness —

In 1990, Poland was the poorest country in Europe, far behind Ukraine, Belarus, or Romania. At the time, the WHO wrote off half of the country’s debt because it did not expect to ever recover anything close to that amount. Telephones, cars, capital, bank cards… nonexistent.

But progress could happen so quickly precisely because Poland was not tied to anything. Everything was uncharted territory and therefore largely unregulated. What was introduced in terms of technological progress was a completely new implementation, which is far easier than updating an already existing system. In many areas, Poland has leapt ahead 50 to 60 years within just 10–15 years. This also means that we did not have to pay for the invention and development of these technologies.

In the end, the most important factor is the attitude and willingness of the population to embrace new technologies with open arms. This mindset, combined with Poland’s opening to global trade—and, conversely, the opening of global trade to Poland—has made Poland a competitive country and a strong partner within the EU.

In this respect, Poland serves as a role model for Ukraine, Belarus, or Georgia. These countries know that only through close integration with the EU can they become wealthy and prosperous. If they fail to build this connection and instead fall under Russia’s sphere of influence, the future there looks rather bleak.

I am one of many symbols of this rapid rise. My parents had to move to the West to survive. Just one generation later, their children are able to return. Rarely has the world seen success stories like this.

Photo: Rafał Ganowski – Warsaw By Drone / The Świętokrzyska Bridge with a view toward the city center

14/12/2025

Is it possible that Germans are not really welcome in Warsaw? Some visitors from Germany do ask themselves this question — because they don’t receive menus in German, because hardly anyone speaks German, or because they interpret this from the city’s history.

But there is actually a very simple reason for this. Warsaw is essentially the only major city in Poland that has had almost nothing to do with the German cultural sphere.

The only periods when Germans were present here were as occupying powers: briefly from 1795 to 1806 after the Third Partition of Poland, then again from 1915 to 1918, and finally from 1939 to 1945.

For the rest of its history, Warsaw was the capital of Masovia and relatively independent until 1525, later part of the Kingdom of Poland under Polish influence (1525–1795), and after the Congress of Vienna until 1915 part of the Russian Empire under Russian administration. German culture never had a lasting or significant influence in this region.

That is why Germans today are simply one group among many — alongside large communities of Ukrainians, Belarusians, Vietnamese, and Indians. The most important foreign language in Warsaw is English, and it is generally assumed that Germans understand English well.

This strong historical connection to the East has shaped Warsaw into a European metropolis with a European mindset, while at the same time making it a major destination for people from countries such as Georgia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and of course Ukraine — for many of whom Warsaw is the first “Western” European city they experience.

Perhaps this is also why Warsaw opened its first Christmas market with almost a hundred years’ delay.

So it is worth looking behind the scenes: among the many foreign communities living here, Germans tend to blend in, and culturally their footprint in Warsaw is relatively weak — especially when compared to cities like Gdańsk, Kraków, or Wrocław (Breslau).

13/12/2025

Yesterday I visited the highest observation point in the European Union – and I have to say: impressive.

Address: Chmielna 69 – Varso Tower, located in the tallest building in the EU.

From up there, you can clearly see that Warsaw, with its 517 square kilometres and 2.3 million inhabitants, ranks among the ten largest cities in Europe. You can also see how much modern architecture has emerged in between the communist-era building sins. For 45 years of this human-rights-violating system, the Palace of Culture and Science was essentially the only structure that truly stood out. Just 15 years of capitalism have already surpassed that level of construction activity by far (briefly setting aside the negative side effects).

The only truly coherent urban area is the small Old Town in the north; the rest of the city is shaped by chaos and fragmentation. There is not much left to “save” in the classical sense – but precisely because of this, the city can be transformed into one of the most modern cities in Europe, and Warsaw is well on its way.

In the photo: the view from 230 metres above ground, looking towards the Palace of Culture and Science.

11/12/2025

📈 Record year for Warsaw! Over 12 million visitors in 2024 🇵🇱✨

Warsaw is experiencing a tourism boom like never before. The new Raport o stanie miasta shows impressive figures – and confirms that the capital is among the most dynamic city destinations in Europe.

12.2 million tourists visited Warsaw in 2024 – an increase of 27 percent compared to 2023. This means tourism has fully surpassed the pre-pandemic level (2019: approx. 10 million).

🌍 Where do the visitors come from?

Most international guests arrived from:
• Ukraine – 900,000 (+111%)
• USA – 377,000
• Germany – 277,000
• United Kingdom – 247,000
• Lithuania – 221,000
• Italy – 170,000
• Belarus – 140,000

From all countries except Ukraine, numbers increased by 46 percent.

Interesting: From Lithuania — a country of just 2.8 million inhabitants — almost as many people came as from Germany with its 84 million inhabitants.
Maybe they know something we don’t? After all, the largest ethnic groups in Warsaw are, not without reason, Ukrainians, Belarusians and Georgians.

German tourists are actually declining. Before the pandemic, their numbers were consistently close to 400,000, making them the second-largest tourist group in Warsaw after the British at that time.

🚆 How do they travel?

Polish visitors:
• 50% by train
• 33% by car

Foreign visitors:
• 50% by plane
• 25% by train

For 60 percent of Polish guests, it was already their fifth or later visit.
For 63 percent of foreign guests, it was their first trip to Warsaw.

Tourism’s share of the city’s GDP: 7.3 percent
People employed in tourism: 92,000 (5 percent of the workforce).

For comparison: In Kraków, tourism generates nearly one-quarter of all revenue.

❤️ Conclusion:
Warsaw is booming – culturally, economically and in tourism. More visitors than ever before and high satisfaction levels show that the capital is one of the most exciting travel destinations in Central Europe, even though it isn’t considered one of the most beautiful.

In the end, it’s the city’s fascinating history that makes a visit here an unforgettable experience.

06/12/2025

In several of my posts I wrote about average wages in Poland and in various Polish cities. These figures are always given as gross income, so it would be interesting to look at how much is actually left over at the end of the day.

So today, a quick look at taxes and contributions as percentages. The percentage shows how much a single household on an average salary in 2024 has to pay in taxes and social security. In Poland, as mentioned in my last post, it is 34.75%. In Germany, it is 47.93%.

This means that you don’t need to earn as much in Poland to end up with a similar net income. Here, only around 20% of households pay full market rent. And finally, Poles spend only about 70% of what Germans spend on food.

And please note: these are averages, not subjective impressions.

It’s a big topic, but in a nutshell it can be summarised like this: €1,000 in Poland is worth more than €1,000 in Germany. Because more of it actually stays in your pocket. This is also why we can almost fill up our cars for the same nominal price as in Germany, even though fuel here costs nearly three times as much in terms of purchasing power.

More insights on Monday in my weekly show “Warschau Aktuell”. Perhaps this could even become a longer film at some point.

05/12/2025

📢 Warsaw heading for a record budget – will ticket prices go up?

The Warsaw City Council is working on the 2026 budget, which is expected to reach around 32 billion PLN, the highest amount ever. Public transport remains the second-largest expense, projected to consume over 6 billion PLN.

The Public Transport Authority (ZTM) is requesting an additional 100 million PLN, mainly to improve bus connections in outer districts. At the same time, ticket revenues cover only 28% of costs, reigniting the debate over potential price increases after 13 years of price stability.

City officials stress, however, that no ticket price increases are planned for 2026.

Background: In other cities such as Kraków, Łódź and Poznań, ticket prices have already risen significantly. Warsaw still maintains the lowest fares in Poland, but growing deficits make the model increasingly difficult to sustain.

Some examples of Warsaw ticket prices (note: Warsaw has one ticket system for all public transport and only one fare zone – the city area):

* Regular monthly ticket: ~€25 per month
* Tourist weekend ticket from Friday 18:00 to Monday 08:00 for up to 5 people: €8
* Weekend ticket for one person: €5.5
* 3-day ticket: €8.4
* 75-minute ticket: €1

Concession tickets are roughly half the price.
Pensioners pay only 50 PLN per month for a monthly ticket.
Anyone over 70 can use all public transport for free.

In a country without a meaningful social welfare system, people expect compensation in other areas. Public transport, energy prices, and also culture (theatre, philharmonic) are exceptionally cheap in Poland, even considering lower wages.

04/12/2025

First Impression

03/12/2025

I recently read an article about the “depopulation of the provinces in favor of major cities” by Piotr Szukalski from the University of Łódź. The demographer simply compared the number of people born between 1990 and 1994 in a given county in 2004 (when they were children) with the number of people from the same cohorts twenty years later (today, when they are buying homes and starting families). Interestingly, Szukalski teaches in a city that may have experienced the greatest population decline in Poland since 1990.

Back to the report: what does the map show? We see growth in several large metropolitan areas and a significant population decline in the Polish “heartland,” particularly in the east of the country. In Podlaskie, for example, every fourth young person has left their home county—except in the Białystok and Suwałki agglomerations. The best-performing region in this regard is Małopolska, which is the only voivodeship without a single county affected by such a high level of depopulation.

The problem with measuring all of this is that Poland has no strict obligation to register a change of residence when people move. As a result, everyone is officially registered somewhere—often not where they actually live. This is why Warsaw officially has 1.9 million inhabitants, but unofficially between 2.2 and 2.4 million.

Cities in Poland are now absolute population magnets because they are experiencing their best moment in a thousand years. Polish cities have never been better off than they are now. Warsaw, for instance, can now compete with Europe’s major cities—something that would have been unthinkable 35 years ago.

It remains to be seen what the future will bring. But one thing is clear: much larger cities, and much bigger problems in the provinces.

02/12/2025

How much do people earn in Poland’s cities?
Here is a ranking that, for once, is not led by Warsaw (even though life here is generally the best and most beautiful 😌).

Top 3 cities:

Kraków: 12,706 PLN / €2,998

Warsaw: 11,600 PLN / €2,737

Gdańsk: 11,152 PLN / €2,631

The gap to the 18th place is enormous – 5,500 PLN. That’s a massive difference.

There is one important thing you should know: Poland’s statistical offices – in this case, the Main Statistical Office (GUS) – calculate average earnings only based on employees working in companies that employ at least nine people.
This means that self-employed individuals are not included, even though they make up nearly 20% of all businesses in Poland.

Also, as in almost every country in the world, the average wage means very little for most people, because only a minority actually earn it. These statistics are not designed to illustrate how poorly most people are paid, but rather to show the overall direction of economic development.

In Poland, average wages have increased by 180% over the last 25 years, and in Warsaw by 270%.

How much do you keep after taxes?
Income up to 120,000 PLN is taxed at 12%.
Social security contributions amount to 22%, so in total it’s 34% on that segment of income.
Income above 120,000 PLN is taxed at 32%.

My first salary in 2012 was 1,772 PLN (€418).
When I became self-employed in 2017, my last payout was 6,200 PLN (€1,463).
Today, starting salaries in Warsaw are much higher. The pace of change is honestly dramatic.

Adres

Warsaw

Godziny Otwarcia

Poniedziałek	08:00 - 18:00
Wtorek	08:00 - 18:00
Środa	08:00 - 18:00
Czwartek	08:00 - 18:00
Piątek	08:00 - 18:00
Sobota	08:00 - 18:00
Niedziela	08:00 - 18:00

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