Eastern Poland

Still relatively unknown, yet considered by many experts on Poland to be one of the country’s most beautiful regions. Historic cities include Lublin, with its Old Town, Lublin Castle and Poland’s finest fifteenth-century Byzantine frescoes; Zamość, one of the first and most beautiful Renaissance towns in Poland; and Przemyśl, a historic border city near Ukraine, together with many other architectural and cultural attractions. The region also features Poland’s best-known route of wooden churches, including monuments dating from the 16^th and 17^th centuries. Palaces, castles and manor houses of Polish noble families can be found in Łańcut, Sieniawa and Krasiczyn—reminders of Poland’s former splendour. There are also numerous traces of Jewish culture, including shtetl towns, synagogues and cemeteries preserving the heritage and traditions of Orthodox and Hasidic Jewish communities. Thought-provoking memorial sites include the Majdanek Museum near Lublin and the former extermination camps at Bełżec and Sobibór. All of this is surrounded by unspoilt nature, numerous national parks and unforgettable landscapes of the Polish Carpathians, Beskids and Bieszczady Mountains.

Another beautiful part of Eastern Poland is further north: Podlasie. It is a unique region that boasts stunning natural beauty, distinct regional traditions and a prevailing sense of tranquillity and lack of haste. The largest city is Białystok, which offers many places worth visiting, the most notable being the Branicki Palace with its impressive gardens, often times called the "Polish Versailles". What's particular about Podlasie is that it's the most culturally and religiously diverse region in Poland, which is due to its location on the border with Lithuania and Belarus and its complex history. This contributed to the coexistence of three religions in this region: Catholicism, Orthodoxy and Islam, the latter thanks to Polish Tatars who settled here at the beginning of the 14^th century. To experience the religious richness of Podlasie, it's best to visit Supraśl with its beautiful Orthodox Monastery and Icon Museum or Kruszyniany which was primarily a Tatar settlement and is home to a wooden mosque, a Muslim cemetery and a Tatar centre and museum. Another must-see while visiting Podlasie is the Białowieża National Park, which protects the best-preserved part of the Białowieża Forest, Europe's last primeval forest and is home to the heaviest land animal in Europe: the European bison.

The easternmost part of Poland is a genuine hidden gem for travellers wishing to discover some of the country’s most beautiful and less frequently visited places.