Gliwice

Gliwice is a city of 177,000 people (2020) in the Silesian Voivodeship in southern Poland. Gliwice is one of the oldest and most beautiful cities in Upper Silesia. The rich history makes the city an interesting place to visit with many historical sights.

Understand

It is the westernmost city of the Upper Silesian Metropolis around Katowice. For centuries the city has been situated on the borderlands between Prussia and Poland, giving the city an interesting and complex background. Gliwice is an important cultural and economic centre, especially for the automotive and mining sectors.

The Second World War was triggered by the fictitious attack on the Gliwice Radio Station on August 31, 1939.

Tourism Information Centre, Dolnych Wałów 3, 50.294027°, 18.668251°, +48 322 313 855.

Get in

By plane

Katowice International Airport (IATA: KTW), 50.474167°, 19.08°. The most convenient way to get to Gliwice by plane is by flying to the airport of the regional capital Katowice. The airport is the fourth biggest in Poland.

By train

Gliwice Railway Station 📍 is located in the northwestern edge of the city centre. There are connections from many Polish cities, especially from the regional capital Katowice. The train ride from Katowice takes a little less than half an hour. Tickets cost 6 zł with Koleje Śląskie trains and 11 zł with TLK trains. Tickets from Kraków cost around 34 zł, but are cheaper when bought in advance.

By bus

LeoExpress offers a few daily connections from Kraków and Ostrava. Fares from Kraków are usually 20 zł for a one way ticket. The construction of a new bus station is planned to be finished in 2023.

Get around

See

Gliwice Radio Station, Tarnogórska 129, 50.313333°, 18.688889°. The 118-metre-high radio tower it is the world's tallest wooden tower and main city landmark. It played a role in worldwide history as a place where the staged "Polish attack" on German radio station happened and gave reason for a Nazi counterattack and the beginning of World War II. The connected museum is very small where in one room a film is shown about the Gliwice Provocation and in the other room some installations can be seen that were set up in the radio station in the 1930s. All information about the installations and machinery is in Polish.
Piast's Castle, Pod Murami 2, 50.292748°, 18.665658°, +48 32 231 44 94. Dating back to the mid-14th century. In the castle is a branch of the Gliwice Museum.
Palm House, Aleksandra Fredry 6, 50.300889°, 18.670475°, +48 322 313 239. There are over 5,600 plants growing in the Palm House of Gliwice, and the oldest specimens are over 150 years old. It is a popular place among locals and tourists alike. Regular 15 zł, reduced 9 zł 2022-07-11
Town Hall, 50.294042°, 18.665822°. 2022-07-11
Villa Caro (Willa Caro), Dolnych Wałów 8a, 50.295392°, 18.667335°, +48 32 231 08 54, info@muzeum.gliwice.pl. Closed on Mondays. 19th-century residence. In the villa is a branch of the Gliwice Museum. Regular 8 zł, reduced 4 zł 2022-07-11
City walls, 50.29421°, 18.66770°. These walls once used to protect the town of Gliwice from unwanted guests. Most parts of the walls got demolished in the 18th century. The remaining parts are one of the best examples of defensive walls in Silesia. 2022-07-11
Upper Silesian Jews House of Remembrance, ul. Księcia Józefa Poniatowskiego 14, 50.303236°, 18.693397°. This branch of the Municipal Museum tells the history of the Jewish people living in the Upper Silesian area. The building was erected as a funeral home next to the new Jewish cemetery, established in 1902–1903. 2022-07-12
Artistic Foundry Museum (Muzeum Odlewnictwa Artystycznego), ul. Bojkowska 37, 50.277222°, 18.683056°, +48 323 354 403. A branch of the Municipal Museum. The museum exhibits a collection of artistic bronze and cast iron castings. The museum is located in the buildings of the former engine room of the non-existent mine "Gliwice", in the Nowe Gliwice district. 2022-07-12

Do

Football: Piast Gliwice play soccer in Ekstraklasa, Poland's top tier. Their home ground is Piotra Wieczorka Municipal Stadium, capacity 9900, 2 km northeast of town centre.
Arena Gliwice, Akademicka 50, 50.285722°, 18.686028°. One of the biggest venues in the Katowice metropolis. 2022-07-11

Buy

Eat

Dobra Kasza Nasza, Rynek 3, 50.293738°, 18.665431°, +48 531 629 685, gliwice@dobrakaszanasza.pl. Daily 12:00-22:00. A place to try Polish and other Eastern European food. 2018-02-25

Drink

Nowa Prowincja, ul. Dolnych Wałów 8, 50.294407°, 18.668355°. Daily 11:00-23:00. A stylish place for a coffee or a drink. 2022-07-12

Sleep

Hotel Royal Gliwice, ul. Jana Matejki 10, 50.293356°, 18.668036°, +48 324 000 000. Check-in: 14:00, check-out: 12:00. 320 zł 2022-07-12

Go next

Discover other cities in the Silesian Metropolis like Bytom, Tarnowskie Góry or Ruda Śląska.
Head west towards Opole or Wrocław.

Gliwice - city with powiat rights of Poland in Upper Silesia