Elbląg: Old Town, Art and Bażantarnia

Elbląg offers several distinct themes to consider when planning your trip: the historic Old Town, contemporary art and Bażantarnia Forest Park. Historic buildings and cultural venues shape a visit to the Old Town, while trails and recreational opportunities in the forest park take centre stage in Bażantarnia. This lets you tailor your stay more closely to city history, art or time in nature, and take different interests into account when planning.

Old Town and architectural history

Elbląg’s Old Town offers both a historic street plan and a number of clearly identified sights. Its features include an outer bailey, a monastery and hospital complex, reconstructed townhouses and the distinctive Ścieżka Kościelna. Sights include St Nicholas Cathedral, the Galeria EL Art Centre and the Market Gate. As you explore, you can distinguish between individual buildings and the wider urban fabric, with its routes and historic complexes.

Art at Galeria EL and in the urban space

The Galeria EL Art Centre is housed in a two-nave former Gothic Dominican church in the Old Town. “Two-nave” describes the division of the church interior into two naves. The Gothic architecture and former use provide a historic setting for today’s art venue, while Galeria EL primarily presents and creates contemporary art. Its programme includes exhibitions, concerts, performances, theatre productions and film screenings; the formats on offer may vary. Alongside the building’s history, the breadth of its artistic programme is another subject of interest.

The “Otwarta Galeria” is a collection of more than sixty spatial artworks across the city of Elbląg. The number may change as works are added or removed. In addition, several dozen works from the first and second Biennale Form Przestrzennych are distributed throughout the city. Thus, the art programme of an institution is complemented by works that are part of the urban space.

Archaeology and Truso

The exhibition “Truso – legenda Bałtyku” at the Archaeological and Historical Museum in Elbląg is dedicated to the Viking Age trading settlement founded on the shore of Lake Truso. It turns attention to the history of a settlement on the lakeshore, another historical subject alongside the buildings of the Old Town. The exhibition’s specific presentation may change.

Bażantarnia and its trails

Bażantarnia is a forest park and an important recreational area in Elbląg. The park offers a different focus from the Old Town: it is suitable for hiking, horse riding and cycling; in winter, its forest trails are suitable for cross-country skiing.

For specific directions in the park, the red Copernicus Trail covers a section with several named points. In Bażantarnia, it runs along the Srebrny Potok, past the Elewów Bridge and Parasol, over Góra Jagiellońska and as far as the car park by the forestry lodge in Dąbrowa. Its route and destination define this section more clearly than the general recreational opportunities in the forest park.

A trip on the Elbląg Canal can also start in Elbląg’s Old Town. If you include this option in your plans, check sailings and timetables separately.

Discover more destinations: Sałkowice, Gronowo Górne, Kadyny, Wopity, Bogaczewo, Kazimierzowo, Rychliki, Tolkmicko

For the broader travel overview: Elbląg.