Poland is a beautiful country with a fascinating history and although I obviously knew of the devastation wrought upon it in the 2nd World War I didn't appreciate that the country has actually been decimated and even obliterated 3 times in it's history.  That it and it's cities are as beautiful and vibrant as they are is testament to the spirit of the Polish nation and their love of the country, its customs and culture.  Anna, our local guide for the whole of the trip demonstrated this very clearly and was excellent in her explanation of the complex route taken to the Poland of today.  All of the individual local guides we had were also excellent.  Carole the TM did a fantastic job including keeping us entertained on the long coach trips (of which there were several) with quizzes and dingbats (new to me!!).

Of the cities we visited the one that surprised me most and I think many on the trip was Gdansk as for most of us our knowledge was limited to TV coverage of the Solidarity struggle and we visited an excellent museum located in the shipyard dedicated to this movement.  The hotel location was fabulous right on a vibrant waterfront and close to the old town.  Wroclaw (pronounced Vroslav) was a delight with the dwarf trail and I also loved Poznan.   It seemed everywhere we went there was a celebration of some kind going on - the Poles have a real love of life.  Food and drink were inexpensive in most places, a few hotels were more expensive but generally a coffee cost approx £2, a large beer £2 and a good meal could be had for £4 in the self service restaurants. 

To any singles concerned about going on a TS holiday I would say don't be.  All the couples were friendly and inclusive but there is no point in mentioning names as they don't use this forum.  However I will say thank you to Roger the Red and Caroline (Magpie 10) from here for their company.  Good to put faces to the Forum names, happy travelling and maybe meet again in some corner of the world.

Chris

Roger.

Many thanks for the review - I had this tour on my wish list and am sad that Trav aren't continuing with it.  Hopefully either they or JY will bring it back at some stage!  I'm delighted you enjoyed it and I agree with your comments about going with Trav - I've done 3 tours with them and have never been stuck for company - one of them was with Roger the Red!

All the best,

Bob

Cindy

I agree, a great review.

I really enjoyed this holiday and I think it is a huge shame it won’t be running next year. Poland is such a fascinating country, the people are lovely and friendly, and there is so much history.

I too loved Wroclaw (and counting the gnomes, I managed a mere 29), Gdańsk, and Poznań.

I hope JY/TS will offer Poland as a tour at some point in the future.

It was nice to meet you both Chris and Roger, and I’m sure our paths will cross at some point in the future.

Caroline

Cindy - I don't think numbers is the issue.  There were 37 on our trip which apparently was a combination of this tour date and the September one which TS cancelled.  So many people have said they want to go so there must be another reason.  We did visit Auschwitz and Auschwitz Birkenau - that day will stay with me.

Perhaps JY can give us a clue why they do not run a tour to Poland.....if it isnt down to numbers then what is the problem!.

Would be nice to get a answer...

And yes the concentration day trip will stay in my mind for ever. Each year since I have organised a service in my church to acknowledge the atrocity ...linked to the Holocaust Memorial Day ..

Cindy

Unfortunately despite having a number of bookings on this tour to start with, they then stopped, so we're looking at other options for this tour.

Hopefully we can include Poland in a new tour in the future.

Thanks,

Vickie

Cindy

Jaya