There are some tourist attractions that can’t be missed: The Vatican in Rome, the Eiffel Tower in Paris, Westminster Abbey in London, Kraków in Poland.
These are the kinds of places friends and family expect travelers to go. But there are plenty of places to see that are under the radar; often known only by locals.

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The Crooked Forest in Poland is a great place to visit. Although not really known by tourists, it is worth seeing. It is full of oddly-shaped trees that look like something really bad happened to them. It’s located outside Nowe Czarnkowo in the West Pomerania Voivodeship (województwo zachodniopomorskie) and it consists about 400 pines planted there around 1930, when the area was German territory. There are many theories explaining the strange shape of the trees.

It is generally believed that the pines were formed this way by some tools or planting techniques, but the motive of such actions is still unknown. Another theory states that the forest looks like that because of the tanks rolling over the young trees during the World War II which forced them to grow in a less conventional way for the trees to grow. Some people also believe that the woods were grown like that on purpose, created by the Compass Timbers (which are used in ship building afterwards). Foreigners in Poland believe that all of these stories are untrue and extremely boring. Whatever the answer is, it’s a great place to see so don’t hesitate to start planning your trip!

Also, make sure to visit Lublin. This town has a castle right in the middle of everything, with this nice ramp leading up to it that makes for a spectacular photo.  The main square of town, as you may have guessed from all the other Polish towns that have one of these, is a great place to spend a day people watching, enjoying some good Polish food with a glass of wine or beer! But Lublin also has some other monuments of historical significance, so it offers more sightseeing opportunities than just a nice town square.

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Over the years it has been a significant center of trade, as well as hosting a major student population, so it’s a lively place that still feels small and cozy, while also offering visitors some great castle-related photo opportunities. Most of the tourist attractions in Lublin are located in and around the Old Town, along the streets Grodzka – Bramowa – Krakowskie Przedmieście. The Concentration Camp Museum of Majdanek (another great place to see – you probably want to visit this one during the weekend, when there are many more attractions offered, than during the week) , the Open Air Rural Museum in Sławinek and the Botanical Garden are located on the outskirts, within a 10-20 minutes bus ride from the Old Town.

Do you know about some great “unknown” places, worth seeing in Poland? We would love to hear about them! Please share it with us in comments below:)

Do następnego razu… (Till next time…)