On the bright side, this time I came back to Gdańsk with Xavier, just as Independent People are meant to travel. Our budget was somewhat larger and, most importantly, I had already ticked off most of the touristy checklist. There was even a blog post on Gdańsk online already so there was no pressure around it! I wasn’t planning to write another one, but then I changed my mind. After all, this blog is a log of our life and reflections, so if two trips to Gdańsk happened within a year, then there will be two posts (although the week we spent in Paris beforehand will remain undocumented, oh well, I didn’t promise any consistency…)

Besides, I have a few new things in stock. I finally made up for last year’s omissions by visiting Gdynia and Sopot, explored the Museum of Gdańsk, and ate at some new kick-ass places. So consider this article an extension of Weekend in Gdańsk – What Not to Miss.

Just like the year before, Gdańsk captured and mesmerized us both. I was once again deeply touched by the outstanding reconstruction of the old town after its massive destruction during World War II — I was overwhelmed by a huge wave of tenderness and respect. On a different note, compared with my previous visit in September (this time we came in June), I was astonished by the number of hen and stag party groups roaming around the city. I hadn’t really imagined Gdańsk as this kind of destination (although why not?), and in general there were many more tourists, cruise passengers, coach tours and school groups — a good reminder of why I normally avoid travelling during the high season.

Długi Targ — the unavoidable heart of Gdańsk — was another not-so-hidden gem I was happy to rediscover. Each façade can be admired for ages and, despite my dozens of walks up and down this street, it was only on the umpteenth pass that I noticed this marvellous chicken façade. Me, a crazy chicken lady!

And, as promised, here are a few more food recommendations in addition to those from the previous article. As we travelled together this time, we could indulge in a little gluttony (something I didn’t feel like sharing with my voracious student brother) and finally try a few Michelin recommendations. What a feast — and what a gastronomic explosion of modern Polish cuisine had been waiting to be discovered all this time! Our wallet didn’t exactly appreciate our follies, but Xavier’s 42nd birthday deserved a proper, multi-day celebration.

Piwna47 Food & Wine Bar – A Michelin recommendation serving an amazing take on Polish cuisine, with attentive staff and a beautiful interior. We also discovered Polish wines here — what a pleasant surprise!

Pomelo – During our stay in Gdańsk, we ended up eating here four times. Yes, you read that right — four times. More affordable than Piwna47, yet without compromising on quality.

Zafishowani – Don’t be put off by its seemingly tourist-trappy location — the seafood was excellent.

There is one more thing that made Gdańsk even dearer to my heart — I discovered its city-bike system. As a cycling enthusiast, I try to get on a bicycle wherever I go. There is, however, one “but”: I hate city-bike apps. They always seem to come with bugs, cards, QR codes, strange requirements and other unnecessary complications, so I’m usually wary of trying them. 

This time, some silly circumstances forced me to install the Mevo app, and what a fantastic discovery it turned out to be. I’m not sure I’ve ever come across a city-bike system with an app and infrastructure better than Mevo. I know this sounds like an advertisement, but I assure you — it isn’t. It’s simply my endless bewilderment at how smooth, reliable, affordable and… did I already say perfect?… a city-bike service can actually be.

So all our trips inside and outside Gdańsk happened on these amazing bicycles. Gdynia might be a little too far (25-30 km) if you’re not used to longer rides, but cycling to Sopot (12-15 km) is the recipe for a wonderful day. I’ll tell you more about Sopot later in the article.

If you go to Gdańsk, you are bound to come across the names Gdynia and Sopot. Although these are separate cities, together with Gdańsk they form a unique urban area and function as one metropolitan region with a shared transport system. That’s why they are commonly referred to as Tricity (Trójmiasto). Last year I preferred going to Westerplatte, the memorial site associated with the outbreak of the Second World War in Europe. This time, however, I was determined to visit both Sopot and Gdynia.

I did an extremely bad job researching the place — or, to be more honest, I didn’t do any research at all. For some reason, based on absolutely nothing, I convinced myself that Gdynia would be a smaller, cuter version of Gdańsk. Please don’t ask me why.

So you can imagine my surprise when I realized that Gdynia has almost nothing in common with Gdańsk (apart from being part of Tricity). It turns out that the city was developed in the 1920s as Poland’s own major seaport, so that the country would no longer have to rely on the port of the Free City of Danzig. It attracted people from all over Poland and quickly became a symbol of the young Polish state. In 2026, Gdynia is celebrating its 100th anniversary, so if you’re planning a visit, it’s quite a special year to do it.

Being such a young city, Gdynia naturally has no Hanseatic old town to compete with Gdańsk. Instead, it is famous for its beautiful interwar modernist architecture and is even hoping to make it onto the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Gdynia market

I liked Gdynia. It really does have some wonderfully elegant architecture, an impressive harbour and, being much less touristy than Gdańsk, offers a nice glimpse of everyday life on the Polish coast. It has also repeatedly been ranked among Poland’s happiest cities, so perhaps there really is something in the air.

Gdynia harbor

Summer 2026 will be remembered as a season of relentless heatwaves that didn’t spare even the Baltic cities, usually associated with cool, rainy weather. I think it’s safe to assume we’ll be seeing more summers like this in the years to come, but for now we’re only just getting started. Spending the hottest day in Gdańsk with temperatures reaching 36°C was out of the question, whereas a day on the beach in Sopot sounded like the perfect solution.

Sopot is a seaside resort about a dozen kilometres from Gdańsk and, I must confess, it provoked a wave of jealousy. Not only because of its proximity to the sea — which is nice in itself — but because the beach is so stretched over the miles that my fear of not finding a single free spot on a Sunday quickly disappeared. But the best thing was the AMAZING cycling lane stretching all the way along the coast to Gdynia. It felt almost utopian: cycling among people on bicycles of every size and shape, beneath the shade of the trees and with the sea just beside you. This is the kind of world I wish we were moving towards but we are not.

Gdansk-Sopot cycling route

We spent the whole day beneath the famous Molo pier, one of Sopot’s best-known landmarks. As it was scorching hot, we didn’t even consider walking along it — 511 metres under the blazing sun was simply beyond us.

Grand Hotel of Sopot

Lighthouse

And that’s it for this short Gdańsk report! A very unexpected trip, but one that gave us wonderful memories, allowed me to see the city from a different perspective, slow down, and discover the places I had left aside on my first visit. Unexpected lesson that sometimes it’s just as rewarding to return to places you’ve already been. But before rounding up, I wanted to show you a bit of the temporary exposition near the railway station — we discovered it just before leaving Gdansk ourselves. The destruction and ruin of the war, and how it slowly stood up again. Very inspiring on so many levels.

Before and after Gdansk reconstruction

Thank you for reading, and don’t hesitate to reach out to us in any way – we would love to hear your thoughts, feedback, or experiences!