Best place to get polish currency and Bielsko-Biala?

Hi there. I am making my first trip to Poland in January. I am Canadian guy living in Yorkshire. I was wondering where the best place to buy Polish currency is in England. Also, I am going to Krakow, but am also interested in Bielsko; and was wondering if anyone had visited or could give me an idea about the place. Thanks

According to the board its best to use your debit card in an ATM, the best one is Nationwides as they don't charge an overseas use fee...plus the rate is better in Poland...usually!

But do check with your bank.

I would exchange the currency in the destination place. In Polish the places are called "Kantory" (private exchange office) - you can usually get up to 2% better rate than in the national Polish banks.

Check this out. Too much to write.krakow-info.

Thanks for the info, I will look to exchange my money in Poland. cheers John

Hi Johnny,

I can tell u much about this nice place. I grew up near of Bielsko-Biała, and I've had a strong rlation with this town. I wouldn't say that Bielsko is typical westernized and very modern, but it is still on the best way of course. I don't want to make a negative advertising or sth like this. Don't get mi wrong.

Let's go to the point.

Bielsko have over 200,000 population, so this is rather not "big city" (By the way, I don' t know why people call every urban place in Poland "city". Isn't it a mistake? ).

It lie near Czech Republic border, and this location make Bielsko privileged. It is very great to live in the place which is almost the centre of Europe. U can take the car or get the train and go to e.g. Munich, Prague, Vienna, Milan, Budapest, Warsaw or to many other different cities in central Europe. No civil airfield is the only one handicap, U must go to local airports Krakow, Katowice or Ostrava (nearest but foreign civil airport) I think it could be a good means of transport. But anyway we have a very good road connection between Bielsko and thise cities. And it will be even better soon.

There are a 4 good standard hotels: Prezydent, Magura, Vienna Park Hotel, Papuga-Park Hotel. U can choose different ways of lodging, e.g. cheap boarding houses or hostels which are more popular.

U can travel by taxi, but it is rather expensive for the longer time. U can also rent a car, but I can't help u to find necessary addresses. There is of course public transport with modern buses which is the cheapest way of moving.

Bielsko is often called 2nd winter capital of Poland. It is because this is a good sortie point for mountain walks in summer and skiing, snowboard etc. If u like paraglidering sports, or gliding Bielsko offer that things too.

I think I gave You helpful information about Bielsko, most of them U can check in www.

Any ads & comments?

Marks & Spencers generally has the best currency rates, at the moment the ForEx rate isnt good because a lot of Polish are going home for xmas it should be about 5.8 to 6 to the pound usually but at the moment its about 5.4 - 5.6 wait till last minute or do as Frank says join the Nationwide they dont charge abroad...it'll probably pick up after xmas.

Bielsko-Biala is a fantastic town in Poland. I just got back from a two-week trip where I stayed in Bielsko-Biala with my wife's sister who lives there.

The town is far from modern in terms of architecture. It has a large amount of older buildings, churches, etc. The Centrum (the center of the city) is very nice and sports many shops, restaurants, etc.

It is a relatively easy town to get from place to place. Whether by cab or bus, my wife and I had no problems getting to the downtown, to the Auchen (the mall), etc.

What is probably best about Bielsko-Biala is the scenery with all the mountains. Bielsko-Biala is in a valley of the Beskide Mountain range. There are mountains all around and on clear days the skyline is breathtaking. If you do make it there you should try to make the trip up Szczyndzielnia, which is the top of a mountain. You take cable cars up to the top and you can hike around and such. Good stuff and recommended.

If you have any other questions about Bielsko-Biala, let me know. I have been there twice and loved every minute of it. I can't wait to go back next Christmas.

Indeed, you're right there.

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Hi, I'm off to Szczryk next week and was wondering, is it best to convert your British pounds before you go or once you get there? Thanks, Jaygirl.

You'll like the city. Really nice. When you get there check out Restauracja Nowy Swiat . Realy nice restaurant. My cousin recently moved there.

As far as conversion. You always get better rates when in the countires you are visisting.
I use my atm card and have never had a problem.

People asking about exchange rates a little example from when I was over in Poland in October, rate offered by the bank was around 3.7 but the highest in the UK I could find for buying was about 3.8. Once over in Poland, Lublin, the exchange rate from kantor was about 4.33 from memory.

So a lot better in Poland in my experience, was back over in December and did not even think about getting money in the UK.

Ok, thanks for the help folks. Really excited about my trip. I was in Zakopane last year and loved it. That's why we're going back to Poland again. Hopefully we'll get to Austwich and maybe to the surrounding countries. By the way, I noticed that someone was talking about car hire. Ryanair do it cheaper than everywhere else I've tried.

Actually, just ignore that last comment about car hire. I got a quote from Ryanair for £66, went back to book it and it had jumped up to £290 - sneaky. I'm still looking if anyone has any suggestions.