A place worth visiting! Elbląg, Poland

I took a week off to rest in July and I discovered a wonderful place to visit for those who love history, nature, and canals in Poland.

Elbląg is a beautiful city located in the northeast of Poland near the Vistula Lagoon and the Baltic Sea. It is close to Kaliningrad in Russia. The nearest airport is in Gdańsk, 60 km from Elbląg.

It is one of the oldest cities in Poland. In 2017 Elbląg celebrated its 780th anniversary.

The Elbląg Canal is the only active waterway in the world that helps ships to overcome a 100-meter difference in water levels. It is listed on the UNESCO world heritage list.

The highest point of the Old Town is the Saint Nicholas Cathedral tower (97 meters). In good weather, you can see the Vistula Lagoon and the Malbork Castle.

The history of this area is very rich, but also turbulent. In IX century Wulfstan of Hedeby mentions a settlement called Truso. Archeological studies in 1982 locate this settlement in the place of today’s Janów Pomorski at Drużno Lake around 7 km from Elbląg.

Elbląg was established in 1237 by Teutonic Knights on an island of the Elbląg River, and it was an informal capital of the Teutonic State up to 1309. At first, the town was populated mostly by German settlers. The Town changed several times from one state to another with several intervals of war times. Nowadays Elbląg is whiting the frontiers of the Republic of Poland.

If you would like to know the history of Elbląg and Truso in detail you can visit the Museum of Archaeology and History in Elbląg.

It is highly recommended to visit the city during the summer between July and August as the days are longer and there are more outdoor activities to do.

The city is friendly towards tourists and you can expect to find people able to speak English, German and Russian apart from Polish, at least in the Old Town area, information points, museums and tourist attractions.

It is a good idea to learn some basic phrases in the Polish language as the inhabitants of the town will certainly give you a smile if you exchange a few phrases with them in their language.

Of course, if you need help from professional translators you can find them in the Old Town area, Stary Rynek street, number 4/2 or ask for advice in any of the tourist information offices around the Old Town.

At Jensen Localization, we like to share travelling experiences. Reminding us to embrace new cultures and widen our linguistic knowledge.