peanuts1822 1 | 5
14 Aug 2014 / #1
I am traveling to Poland for the first time and am wondering -- is is better to rent a car or travel by train? I speak/read no Polish.
Foreigner traveling in Poland - is it better to rent a car or travel by train?
Car, you'll get everywhere faster.
Train, safer but far slower.
You don't need to speak Polish to rent a car, you can do it all online and the reps in the airports will speak English.
Train tickets can be bought online too and you won't really need to speak to anyone on the train.
Personally, I'd take the train. It's a nice way to see the country and you don't have to worry about not being able to have a few beers the night before you need to drive somewhere. Poland's alcohol level is 0.02 and the Police love testing motorists in the mornings.
Poland's roads aren't the safest.....but the highways are fine.
If you drive download the smartphone app called Yanosik....it's a GPS that shows the positions of speed camera/police patrols/accidents etc. The app is free.
Train, safer but far slower.
You don't need to speak Polish to rent a car, you can do it all online and the reps in the airports will speak English.
Train tickets can be bought online too and you won't really need to speak to anyone on the train.
Personally, I'd take the train. It's a nice way to see the country and you don't have to worry about not being able to have a few beers the night before you need to drive somewhere. Poland's alcohol level is 0.02 and the Police love testing motorists in the mornings.
Poland's roads aren't the safest.....but the highways are fine.
If you drive download the smartphone app called Yanosik....it's a GPS that shows the positions of speed camera/police patrols/accidents etc. The app is free.
Harry
14 Aug 2014 / #3
is is better to rent a car or travel by train?
Depends where you are going. If you are going where the trains go, it's almost always better to take the train, especially if it's only you or you plus one. But for some more remote places trains are no longer an option.
is better to rent a car or travel by train?
You'll see a lot more if you get a car. Trains between major cities are fine, but you'll still spend hours on platforms, carrying bags and keeping an eye out for undesirables. With a car you can please yourself. As Smurf said, take the traffic police seriously. Keep to the limits and you'll be fine.
OP peanuts1822 1 | 5
14 Aug 2014 / #5
Thanks for the great advice!
I'm going to Wroclaw and Zamek Ksiaz. I'm sure I will want to see other places as well. But, those are the 2 big ones on my list.
I'm going to Wroclaw and Zamek Ksiaz. I'm sure I will want to see other places as well. But, those are the 2 big ones on my list.
Personally, I'd take the train
Yes, but she wants to visit Zamek Książ near Wałbrzych. Getting there by train/public transport could be a challenge for somebody who doesn't speak Polish.
There are some great smart phone apps for travel between cities that I used the last time I was in Poland.
Zamek Książ
Yea, but she said that almost 2 hours after my post!
Derren Brown I am not (^_^)
Yea, it might be difficult to get to there.....where are you flying to/staying?
Maybe Wroclaw (being the closest big city) has some day tours to the place?
take a car (LPG fueled if possible, really cheap) and a very good GPS/app in English. Buy one of those portable rechargers as GPS functions eat a lot of battery and car lighter power ain't enough sometimes.
I'd avoid trains in any non major city. The average worker doesn't speak a word of English on minor towns, that includes guards and salesmen at the train stations. Add that the signage design can be REALLY bad.
More times than you expect, either because in a rush, late train or whatever, you'll probably be depending on understanding a practically rotten audio announce system in Polish. You could get help from fellow travellers but it's not always the case due to language barriers or because there's just not enough time to find one that speaks good English.
They take the alcohol test more seriously than in any other country I've been though, so don't even think driving after a beer. Eat good, have a good ****, wait some more, maybe even sleep it off, and then go.
I'd avoid trains in any non major city. The average worker doesn't speak a word of English on minor towns, that includes guards and salesmen at the train stations. Add that the signage design can be REALLY bad.
More times than you expect, either because in a rush, late train or whatever, you'll probably be depending on understanding a practically rotten audio announce system in Polish. You could get help from fellow travellers but it's not always the case due to language barriers or because there's just not enough time to find one that speaks good English.
They take the alcohol test more seriously than in any other country I've been though, so don't even think driving after a beer. Eat good, have a good ****, wait some more, maybe even sleep it off, and then go.