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All Poland

The Atlas Obscura Guide To Poland

201 Cool, Hidden, and Unusual Things to Do in Poland

Updated March 24, 2025

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Cities

Top Cities
Warsaw
Krakow
Ruined buildings have been stabilized and are now walkable.
Gdańsk
Neon alley of Wroclaw.
Wrocław
The museum is really an interactive bakery.
Poznań
The church.
Karpacz
All Cities
  1. Bydgoszcz
  2. Gdańsk
  3. Gdynia
  4. Gliwice
  5. Karpacz
  6. Krakow
  7. Poznań
  8. Torun
  9. Walbrzych
  10. Warsaw
  11. Wrocław
Attractions
Food & Drink
Map
Leaderboards
Stories

Unusual Attractions in Poland

Kudowa-Zdrój, Poland

Kaplica Czaszek (Chapel of Skulls)

The walls and ceiling of this Polish church are decorated with thousands of skulls, with another 21,000 skeletons just below.
Rynek Underground Cemetery

Krakow, Poland

Rynek Underground

Beneath Kraków Old Town's main square lies a hologram-filled medieval market vampire graveyard wonderland.
Crooked Forest (krzywy las)

Gryfino, Poland

Crooked Forest

Countless stories attempt to explain Poland's mysterious J-shaped trees.
Wieliczka Salt Mine

Wieliczka, Poland

Wieliczka Salt Mine

An underground city of salt.

Krakow, Poland

The Bones of the Wawel Dragon

Real bones which are said to have belonged to a Polish dragon.
The Dragon’s Den

Krakow, Poland

Wawel Dragon's Den

This Polish cave has housed a dragon, a brothel, and an enduring legend.
Ruined buildings have been stabilized and are now walkable.

Gdańsk, Poland

Ruins at Westerplatte

The site of the first battle of World War II.
Camp 2

Oswiecim, Poland

Auschwitz Concentration Camp

The former Nazi Germany concentration camp stands as a museum to remember this dark chapter in European history.
See All 201 Things To Do in Poland

Cool Places to Eat & Drink in Poland

Wild Boar a la Tito.

Warsaw, Poland

Oberża Pod Czerwonym Wieprzem

Order “Proletariat’s Cutlet” at this communist-themed restaurant allegedly once visited by Lenin.
The museum is really an interactive bakery.

Poznań, Poland

St. Martin’s Croissant Museum

The traditional Polish croissant, folded 81 times into the shape of a horseshoe, is a legally protected cultural treat.
Professionally decorated gingerbread biscuits from Toruń at the Gingerbread museum.

Torun, Poland

Toruń Gingerbread Museum

Once a giant gingerbread factory, this space now hosts exhibits and workshops on the historic treat.
The end results of the museum’s workshop.

Krakow, Poland

The Living Obwarzanek Museum (Żywe Muzeum Obwarzanka)

Learn the fine art of making a centuries-old treat at this hands-on food museum.
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Unforgettable Experiences Nearby

Explore Poland

201
World War Ii 39
Military 30
Architecture 25
Statues 24
Museums 23
Monuments 22
Churches 19
Sacred Spaces 18
Nazis 16
History 15
Art 15
Abandoned 14

Poland Leaderboard

Places Added

  1. CoolCrab
    31
  2. AdamTKincaid
    21
  3. gypsyblue
    12
  4. KFlu
    8
  5. ahvenas
    5

Places Edited

  1. CoolCrab
    31
  2. Johan SWE
    23
  3. AdamTKincaid
    18
  4. Jaszmina Szendrey
    15
  5. Martin
    13

Places Visited

  1. Loethlin
    115
  2. SilentCartographer
    112
  3. gypsyblue
    105
  4. kosixx
    84
  5. 7oanna
    80

Recent Poland Activity

  • mamasuzz

    wants to go to St John’s Arch Cathedral

    about 8 hours ago
  • mamasuzz

    wants to go to The Blue Palace

    about 8 hours ago
  • mamasuzz

    wants to go to Gnojna Góra (Dung Hill Lookout Point)

    about 8 hours ago
  • mamasuzz

    wants to go to Bemisie

    about 8 hours ago
  • pitelinda

    has been to St. Mary's Basilica

    about 7 hours ago

Stories About Poland

Few folk figures have endured like Baba Yaga, who has been described as witch, mentor, villain, trickster, and now, perhaps, a feminist icon.

Who Is Baba Yaga?

Trickster, mentor, probable goddess—Slavic folklore's most famous villain is so much more than a witch.
by Kris Spisak
September 30, 2024
The Gruba Kaska water filtration station gets assistance from water-monitoring mussels.

These Hardworking Mussels Monitor Poland's Drinking Water

Polish cities trust their water quality to elite shellfish teams.
by Cara Giaimo
June 14, 2024
Looming over the people he visits, clacking his jaws and dancing wildly, Turoń may look terrifiying, but he just wants to deliver blessings.

Meet Turoń, Poland's Dancing Bull-Beast of Winter

The ancient tradition of Turoń bestowing blessings has faded but, like the creature itself, it may be resurrected.
by Emma Cieslik
December 15, 2023
This forged Paraguayan passport was one of thousands that helped spare Jewish lives during the Holocaust.

The Master Forgers Who Saved Thousands of Lives During World War II

From the Polish embassy in Switzerland came a campaign that spared many from Nazi extermination.
by Nina Strochlic
December 4, 2023
The true reasoning behind this undead-decapitating sickle burial is likely lost to time.

The Truth Behind Poland's 'Anti-Vampire' Graves

Can recent excavations answer questions about death and demonology in the 1600s?
by Sam O'Brien
August 14, 2023
In 2015, this effigy of the Pagan goddess Marzanna met a fiery end.

In Poland, Drowning the Pagan Goddess Marzanna Ushers in Spring

A straw effigy of the winter goddess is burned and then submerged in chilly waters.
by Sarah Laskow
May 3, 2023

To Save Birds From Invading Americans, One Man in Poland Built Floating Forts

Non-native American minks and raccoons ravaged the Lower Oder's birds before the predator-proof islands.
by Wojciech Mikołuszko
January 4, 2023
Deep in a forest in western Poland, is an abandoned Soviet bunker with an unusual ant situation.

The Saga of the Cannibal Ants in a Soviet Nuclear Bunker

And how scientists tried to free this formic Donner Party.
by Sabrina Imbler
November 20, 2019

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