From Berlin to Poland for a Day Trip: Best Itinerary Ideas

Berlin is an excellent place for a city break at any time of the year. It attracts with its vibrant atmosphere; it’s a great place for foodies and historic landmarks (like Checkpoint Charlie) lovers at the same time. It has a lot of interesting museums. There is also a lot to do around the city. You will not be bored in Berlin, for sure.

However, if you have more time during your stay, one idea for a day trip from Berlin is to visit Poland. And yes, it’s definitely not enough time to see a lot. But if you feel like you want to get a grasp of Poland, a one day trip is possible.

In this article, I will show you ideas for the best Berlin day trips to Poland. All are doable with the car and by public transport.

Quick links to organise your trip to Berlin and to Poland:

Accommodation: Booking.com

Check here for flights.

Rent a car for car rental.

Here for private transfers and guided tours.

And here to check bus schedules.

From Berlin to Poland: A Day Trip Tips

The German capital is not far from the Polish border. Note that both Germany and Poland are in the Schengen zone, so you can pass the border easily without spending time in queues. You will pass the Oder River, which is exactly at the border.

Nevertheless, this trip will take you a full day, even if you travel to places closest to the border.

In this post, I will show itinerary ideas for the best day trips to towns that you can reach easily by public transport.

If you have your own or a rental car and are a nature lover, there are more options for you. Have a look at National Park ‘Ujście Warty’ or Park in Łęknica-Park of Muscau (it’s exactly on the border).

One more important tip. Probably the first cities that come to your mind when wondering about visiting Poland are Warsaw and Kraków. Well, both cities, with Kraków’s Wawel Hill, Royal Castle in Warsaw, and close to Kraków Wieliczka Salt Mine, are among the most important Polish destinations. But it’s just not a good idea for a one-day trip. They are just too far away and they have too much to visit. It would take you over 5 hours to get to Warsaw by train. No point; keep it for a separate trip.

A Day Trip from Berlin to Poland Itinerary Ideas

From Berlin to Poznań

I couldn’t start differently than with Poznań, city in which I was living during my university studies. But it’s not the only reason. It’s also the most straightforward and easy to reach via train, and it’s just a great city.

Poznań, with over 500 000 inhabitants, is the fifth biggest city in Poland. It’s known for international fairs on different topics. Many tourist attractions are quite close to each other, within walking distance, which is pretty important during short trips. From train and bus stations, you can reach the centre and old town by walk or by train.

Just a small remark here. At the time when I’m writing this article (August 2023), Old Market Square in Poznań is undergoing a big renovation. It’s been on for some time already, so everyone hopes it finishes soon, but I don’t think there is a stable deadline. You can still walk on the square, but it’s not that comfortable and doesn’t look as good as normally.

What to see in Poznań

So yes, Old Market Square is one of the most important tourist attractions in Poznań. With colorful buildings, cafes, and restaurants. There are also historical sites like Renaissance Town Hall. Townhall has a clock with 2 mechanical billy goats, which are symbols of the city. It’s best if you can see them at 12:00, as this is the time they show up and butt each other’s heads.

Walk the vibrant cobblestone streets around the square as well. You can find there, for example, Museum of Crossaint! (Why? explanation below).

A short tram ride from the old town, you can reach Ostrów Tumski, an island on the river. It’s an important historic landmark, as it was one of the first centres of Poland. There is a small St. Mary’s church and cathedral, which was built between the 10th and 12th centuries.

From there, via a charming bridge, you can walk to Śródka, neighbourhood that has been recently revitalised and where you can find this quite famous in social media mural (below). From there, it’s easy to reach Malta Lake. It’s a man-made city lake and park, and the place known for big rowing events.

However, if you visit Poznań for only a day, it may be too much for you to see all these points.

Few more points to visit in Poznań

There is also one neighbourhood, close to the centre, and easy to reach with the tram also from the main station, or even by walk. It’s called Jeżyce, in past years it has become one of these cool neighbourhoods, with a lot of interesting restaurants, etc. On the way from Jeżyce to the old town, you can pass Fredry Street (with the theatre) or Świętego Marcina Street, where Poznań Imperial Castle is.

Not so far away, is also a shopping centre called Old Brewery (Stary Browar). It was created in 19^th-century brewery, and the architecture here is really nice. It looks better than a ‘typical’ shopping centre, and it’s also a place for cultural events.

Poznań has a few very nice parks, especially Park Sołacki and Park Cytadela. In Wilson Park, there is a palm house, which you can visit as well. It’s not far from the train station.

In short, places to see in Poznań:

• Castle
• Old Market Square with colourful houses, streets, City Hall
• Ostrow Tumski with Cathedral
• Malta Lake
• Jeżyce neighbourhood
• Stary Browar
• Palm, Park Sołacki and Cytadela

Of course, it’s just a short description; there is more.

Recommended cafes in Poznań and what to eat in Poznań

There are two cafés in Poznań which I would like to recommend to you. Both have been there for many years; I used to visit them even years ago when studying. The fist one is called Ptasie Radio and it has a really nice design and nice menu. It’s on Kosciuszki Street, close to the main Street Świętego Marcina, not so far from train and bus stations. The second one is on the street next to Old Market Square, called Cacao Republika. It’s the best place for coffee and hot chocolate, especially in the winter. It has many hot chocolate options and a nice design, too.

To summarise, cafes to rest during your visit to Poznań:

• Ptasie Radio
• Cacao Rapublica

Poznań has a lot of popular regional food. If you visit it in November (especially around November 11^th), you can try the famous rogal świętomarciński- type of croissant with white poppy (and that’s why the museum I wrote about earlier exists).

November 11^th is National Day in Poland, but it’s also the day with a lot of celebrations in Poznań during St. Martin’s Days. Usually, there is parade organised.

If you eat meat, when you are in Poznań you should eat duck. Most traditionally, it’s served with red cabbage and pampuchy-special yeast steamed dumplings. Plus pyzy, another type of dumplings, and potato dishes.

How to reach Poznań from Berlin

Reaching Poznań from Berlin is very easy by public transport. There are even 7 trains per day; express train time is 2 hours and 40 minutes. There are also many buses and shuttle services, which usually take you to both the city and the airport.

From Berlin to Szczecin

Another big city that is at a similar distance from Berlin is Szczecin. It’s less popular with tourists, but there are interesting places to visit.

First of all, Chrobry Embankment, from where you can see panorama, Łasztownia Island, Hay Market Square, and the National Museum, Dialogue Centre Upheavals, and the Pomeranian Duke’s Castle. Take a look (or visit inside) at the award-winning building of the Philharmonic and the newly built Martime Science Centre. There is also St. James Cathedral, which tower you can climb on, Błonia city park with the green city hall building, and Szmaragdowe Lake (in Szczecin Zdrój).

Important to mention, as it’s sometimes mixed, even by Polish people. Szczecin doesn’t lie directly on the Baltic Sea coast. But it is connected to the Baltic Sea via River Oder and Szczecin Lagoon. So the city has ‘a seaside city’ character.

Close to Szczecin there is one more touristic attraction. It’s called Crooked Forest (Krzywy Las) with bent trees. It’s next to Gryfino, a short journey of around 40 minutes from Szczecin. You can get there by regional trains as well. The station is called Dolna Odra.

To summarise, most important places to see in Szczecin:

• Wały Chrobrego
• Pomeranian Duke’s Castle
• Philharmonic building
• Cathedral

For more information about Szczecin you can reach here.

How to reach Szczecin from Berlin

There are many trains; train ride takes from 2 and half hours to 3 hours, most of them with 1 change. It will be convenient and with big choice, if you look at buses and shuttle services.

Visiting Baltic Sea

Szczecin is not exactly at the seaside, but it’s close. Towns that are at the Baltic Sea and could be reached from Berlin are Świnoujście and Międzyzdroje (it’s around 30 minutes distance between them). They are both healthy resorts, touristic towns. They have beautiful, sandy, and wide beach. Świnoujście has a port from where you can take a ferry to Sweden and Denmark. In Świnoujście you should see the promenade, Fort Gerhard (Underground City), and Stawa Mlyny- beacon in the shape of a windmill. What’s more, Świnoujście lays on 44 islands and islets, with 3 main ones that are inhabited. One of them is Wolin Island, on which also the town Międzyzdroje lies.

Rivers divide Wolin Island from the land on the east and west. From the south it’s surrounded by Szczecin Lagoon and from the north by the Baltic Sea.

On the Wolin Island, close to Międzyzdroje, there is Wolin National Park with cliffs, forests, and special fauna. If you are nature lovers, it will be the perfect place for you.

How to reach  Świnoujście and Międzyzdroje from Berlin

It takes a long time with public transportion. The most convenient and best way to travel will be by car, it takes around 2,5 hours.

From the capital of Germany to Zielona Góra

There is one more city close to the German border at a suitable distance worth mentioning. It’s less popular (even among Polish tourists!) but it’s a surprisingly charming city. It’s worth a visit, especially around September, when it’s the time of Wine Days celebrations. Because Zielona Góra region is one of a few wine regions in Poland, sometimes even named ‘Polish wine capital’. And in September, there is Wine Festival and Days of Zielona Góra organised.

In the city, you can see Old Market Square, with long walking promenade. The promenade is full of lanes, colourful houses, restaurants, and cafes and a route of 60 small Bacchus figures. Here you can find a map with figures marked. There is also a bigger statue of Bacchus, as he is one of the symbols of the city (as he is Roman god of wine). Another place to visit in Zielona Góra’s centre is Palm House and Wine Restaurant. There are also a few museums and parks: Zatonie Park and Botanical Garden and Kepler Science Centre with Planetarium.

To summarise, places to see in Zielona Góra:

• Old Market square with pedestrian area
• Palm House and Wine Park
• Bacchus Route
• Zatonie Park

How to reach Zielona Góra from Berlin

There are 2 direct trains daily. You can also change trains or take a bus. The easiest is to arrive by car. The travel time is a bit over 2 hours.

How to reach Poland from Berlin

All of the mentioned cities: Poznań, Szczecin, and Zielona Góra, have international airports. Obviously, due to the small distance, there are no direct connections to Berlin.

So just to summarise: You can reach the mentioned places by car, by your or rental, or by public transport. If you are looking at train, look especially at Poznań, although other cities are also reachable by train.

Here you can compare options and rent a car, and here you can see schedules and buy your public transport tickets.

Organised one-day trips from Berlin to Poland

There are companies that organise a day trip from Berlin to Poland, although they usually focus on Szczecin. You can book trips on this website, and here.

What else, you can also rent private transfers to Poland, with English-speaking drivers. Here for booking and more details.

As you see, I don’t propose you visit the city of Wrocław. It’s absolutely worth visiting this beautiful city, but it’s too far for a one day trip. It will take you at least 4 hours one way to reach Wrocław from Berlin.

If you want to visit Poland only for a day, focus on these 4 itinerary ideas for a perfect day trip. See you in Poland!

For more European destinations check other articles, here!