Gdańsk

Background

Gdańsk lies on Poland's northern Baltic coast, near where the Motława River meets the sea. The city joined the Hanseatic League in 1358, and goods such as grain (especially wheat) and timber came down the Vistula to be shipped on across Europe. The Long Market was the city's commercial heart; the Green Gate at its eastern end was built as the formal residence for visiting Polish monarchs, though no Polish king ever stayed there. Neptune's Fountain stands in front of Artus Court. A more modest fountain already stood on the Long Market in 1549; in 1606 the city council resolved to build a new one, designed by Abraham van den Blocke, with the figure of Neptune made by the Flemish artist Peter Husen and created and cast between 1612 and 1615. The fountain was completed in 1633. Neptune symbolises the city's maritime power in its Hanseatic golden age. On 1 September 1939, a German warship opened fire on a Polish military depot at Westerplatte, and the Second World War began. By the end of the war about 90 percent of the city centre lay in ruins, and the old town was rebuilt over the following decades; Neptune's Fountain was damaged, taken down and stored during the war, then restored and set flowing again afterwards. In August 1980, the Solidarity movement was born in the strikes at the Gdańsk Shipyard, then called the Lenin Shipyard.

Local customs

• Walk the Long Street from the Golden Gate to the Green Gate, taking a close look at Neptune's Fountain and the façade of Artus Court
• browse the amber workshops and shops along the street and see how amber is worked
• climb the Main Town Hall tower for a view over the old town
• stroll along the Motława in the evening.

Travel tips

• Tickets and opening hours for the Town Hall tower and museums follow official information
• the old town has many cobbled streets, so wear flat shoes
• summer is busy, so book accommodation and boat trips in advance. Trains from Warsaw take about three hours to Gdańsk Główny station, from where you can take a tram or walk into the old town
• the old town itself is easily explored on foot, and buses and trains link the airport with the city centre.
• Open all year: in spring and summer the harbour and the Long Street are at their liveliest, good for boat trips and dining outdoors
• autumn is quieter
• during the winter Christmas market, the old town's lights are worth seeing.