MAY 1st - Party time in Poland? What are the traditions?

what exactly goes down May 1st weekend in Poland? I have heard it is quite the party

fill me in!

Lots of drink and barbecues...... be extra careful on the roads though, drink driving and accidents are especially common....especially if you're in a maluch :)

Most poeple I know wil head out of the city and go to the mountains for the weekend, beware too that shops will be closed on the public holidays so get you beer and meat before those days :)

What about May 3rd? Same thing? Any big celebrations in Warsaw?
Thanks!

May 1st and May 3rd are two officially free days in a short period of time, so in connection with a normal weekend they create a "long weekend". The beginning of May is also time when there is already warm and there is often nice weather, so people tend to relax on fresh air. It's just the case.

Another similiar period is in June and it's connected with a church holiday called in Poland Boże Ciało (God's Body - I am not sure if in English the name is the same), which is always on Thursday (specific number of days after the Easter) and it's here also a public holiday.

well the weather is certainly amazing on the north coast - Raining in Gdansk.. perfect beach weather! :)

This sounds like America's 'Memorial Day' celebrations which is the last week end of May to start off summer.
Camping, cooking out over an open fire, drinking adult beverages......just getting outside from being in all winter to relieve melancholy.

One of the nicer traditions isn't over that weekend as much as during all of May in some villages, where residents (generally female) gather to perform a May devotion to the Virgin Mary. This happens throughout May. There's a strong parallel with the tradition of "well-dressing" in Derbyshire, UK, something also worth checking out if you haven't heard of it before.

It's nabożeństwa majowe and they take place all over Poland.
As for May 1-3, it's mostly an occassion to go away, have a barbecue etc. If you're lucky, like this year, taking three days off will give you nine days' holiday - May 1st and 3rd are public holidays.

Yes. I always like to see this happening. A nice tradition.