Szczecin, Poland

The people here are always talking about quick getaways from Berlin. With so many to choose from, we chose Szczecin, Poland by the luck of the draw. How often can you say you’ll go explore a different country and come back the same day?

I can see why Szczecin (pronounced Stettin, I believe) is an easy and common destination. You can’t really beat a 29€ train ticket (now 33€ as of 1/2020) that includes an unlimited number of journeys in 24 hours for up to five people.

Szczecin is a fairly small city and not a popular tourist destination so I honestly wasn’t expecting much. People from Berlin are known to travel here for cheaper groceries, dental work and haircuts. The train ride was just shy of three hours, so I took advantage of that time to research what to do. In all honesty, my only real goal was to satisfy my love for Polish food. I would have been perfectly happy if that was the only thing on the itinerary.

A few friends highly suggested an underground War Tour that is right off the main train station, but we really wanted to just walk around and enjoy the sunshine in this quaint city. Our first stop after getting off the train was, of course, pierogis for lunch. It’s almost a sin to not have them when you’re in Poland. I probably spent the most time researching restaurants (I did say I LOVE Polish food, right?) because all the different stuffings sounded so good. I finally settled for Pierogarnia Kaszubska since it was in the circular route I had mapped out for the day.

After lunch we headed toward the river and took in some sites at Solidarity Square along the way. The big open space included several historic landmarks like the Philharmonic Hall, Angel of Freedom, Church of Saints Peter and Paul and The Royal Gate that all wrapped around in a square shape.

Based on the traveling we do to bigger cities, I expected our stops would be lengthier, but that wasn’t the case. After we visited the iconic Waly Chrobrego (Rampart of Brave), we sat and enjoyed some ice cream and scenic views of the harbor since we had couple hours to kill before our late afternoon train-ride back.

Our most anticipated stop was saved for last – Stare Miastro – or Old Town. We got a little lost finding this particular street but thankfully we were able to spot some cool street art and castle-like buildings along the way. When we arrived to Stare Miastro, I was quickly in awe seeing the colorful architecture. The small city square is great for photographs and outdoor socializing with restaurants and bars all around.

Our stop for an early dinner was another common recommendation, the popular Wyszak Family Brewery right on the square. The building doesn’t look like much from the outside, however, the stairs leading underground opened up to an all brick, dark and cozy atmosphere which was a nice surprise. We discovered that their beers won several awards so we definitely partook in the tasting – the food was great too.

Our trip to Szczecin was short and sweet, but it was just right to experience everything we wanted to see. I’m all for discovering new cities and exploring anywhere new. This one was possibly even more fun because without my Berlin Facebook groups and recommendation of friends, it’s a place I probably would never even have heard of.