When first coming to Poland one of the problems a person may face is transport. Transport all over the world seems to be very alike, but still a lack of language skills and disorientation can cause some difficulties.
In Warsaw there is a variety of means of transport. They include trams, buses, night buses, metro, rail and taxi.
No doubt, the most convenient way to get to your destination is taxi, but definitely not the cheapest.
Taxi
- Taxi start is 8.00 PLN
- Taxi 1 km day fare ranges from 2.00 zl to 3.00 PLN (urban zone)
- Night fare is usually doubled
- Be sure you take a taxi with a symbol of Warsaw on the car’s doors – the mermaid. The fare info should be displayed on the glass of the door and a hologram with the license number at the front glass should be present as well. Those taxis are official and are less likely to cheat a foreigner :)
If you are a student, you will probably consider using public transport. From my own experience, the first thing you should do is to download “jakdojade” mobile app or simply access it on the jakdojade.pl website. It finds needed connections and is an irreplaceable tool during your stay.
Public Transport
- All the transport is perfectly equipped for people with special needs
- There are two so-called transport zones in Warsaw: Strefa 1 and Strefa 2. Strefa 1 is for urban area, the second is for suburban. Ticket price changes depending on how much zones you need to visit. Usually Strefa 1 is enough J
- City Rail requires an additional ticket
- Tickets for public transport can be bought inside the vehicle, in the ticket machine on the station, in a kiosk or sometimes even from a driver. However, in case of tickets trams may be a problem to buy inside them, so it is better to buy them somewhere in advance. And of course all the tickets should be validated
- The tickets are sometimes checked and you will have to pay a fine 200 zl if you do not have it
- Any info about ticket prices you may find here: http://www.ztm.waw.pl/?c=110&l=2
Good news, with student ID card you will have 50% discount!
Great post !
Another convenient way of getting somewhere for a cheap price, especially at night, is the Uber app.
As long as you have the app, an account and registered your card details, and of course access to the internet, you can order a car wherever you are, with a waiting time of less than 10 min usually. Plus, if you get a friend to sponsor you, you both get 20zloti of free rides.
For example, Centrum -Arkadia late at night will be around 15zloti, and the infamous Park Club – Centrum, 9zloti ;)