Top 10 attractions in Kociewie

Pelplin

Pelplin is the spiritual capital of the region, dominated by the Gothic Cathedral Basilica built by the Cistercians. This is where the famous painting by Herman Han, “The Coronation of the Blessed Virgin Mary”, is located. When in Pelplin, you cannot miss the Diocesan Museum, which has in its collection the only copy of the Gutenberg Bible in Poland.

Gniew

Lovers of the Middle Ages should definitely visit here. A charming town located on the bank of the Vistula River, where it is worth getting lost while walking the streets. The Old Town Square with the historic town hall and tenement houses gives this place an unforgettable character. The Teutonic fortress towering over the city – Gniew Castle – is an ideal place to learn about history in an active way. Numerous tournaments and knightly competitions, fairs and battle reenactments show what the life of the local population was like hundreds of years ago. Those who like active recreation can take advantage of horse riding lessons, recreational gondola cruises on the Vistula, carriage rides and bicycle trips.

Tczew

Tczew is a good city to visit at any time of the year. It is worth visiting Tczew to see the historic road bridge from the XIXth century, built under the supervision of Carl Lentze. Only here you can visit the museum dedicated to the queen of Polish rivers – the Vistula, and at the Shipwreck Conservation Center you can see a collection of boats from all over the world.

Owidz Stronghold

Owidz Stronghold is another place that offers a closer encounter with history. When visiting Owidz, you will be able to see a restored fortified settlement from the IXth century where the Slavs lived. The history of the local population is presented in the Museum of Slavic Mythology operating within the stronghold. It is also worth visiting here during fairs, the exhibited handicrafts will tempt many lovers of nice things.

Wirty Arboretum

This amazing garden was founded in the mid-XIXth century as a place for the first experimental areas for North American trees. The over 100-year-old trees impress with their dimensions, mainly their height, reaching up to 40 meters, and powerful, columnar trunks.

Frank Gardens - Paradise

Frank Paradise is an ornamental garden located in the town of Frank. It is a place created with passion, combining love for beautiful plants with incredible knowledge used in practice when creating demonstration gardens. The owners, who once established a small home-grown plant farm, did not think that tourists from all over would come to their gardens and admire the stylish gardens. It is worth taking a walk to see what the gardens look like in the rural, Japanese, modernist, rococo, baroque-English or medieval style.

Rybaki water junction

Rybaki is a small town in the Subkowy commune, where you can see a historic hydrotechnical junction consisting of a lock and pumping stations draining the area of Walichnowo Plain into the Vistula. The lock was built in the XIXth century from a brick wall, in front of the lock there are pumping stations called “Hope” and “Peace”, which are located between the Vistula embankments and Peplinskie Lake. Both pumps constitute the second stage of water pumping in relation to the “Peace” pumping station, which drains the Plain and pumps water to Peplinskie Lake.

Hydroelectric power plants Wierzyca River

Wierzyca is a river flowing from the central part of the Kashubian Lake District, and ends its course flowing into the Vistula in Gniew. Its upper course runs through Kashuby, and its middle and lower course leads through picturesque Kociewie. There are several portages along the trail near historic hydroelectric power plants, which are an additional attraction of the trip. It is worth stopping for a moment to see in Owidz, Kolincz, Stocki Mlyn or Czarnocinskie Piece how electricity has been produced from energy collected in the river waters for over a hundred years.

Kociewie Bicycle Routes

The routes popular among Kociewie Bicycle Routes enthusiasts lead along quiet local roads through charming corners of Kociewie. More than a dozen trails with a total length of over 1,000 km will allow you to visit the most interesting places in the region.

Osiek

Osiek is an interesting place on the southern outskirts of Kociewie. The village located on Kalebie Lake, called the Kociewie Sea, is a popular and popular place to relax. In summer – fans of swimming, kayaking, windsurfing and sailing will find perfect conditions for recreation here. In autumn – mushroom pickers will be in paradise, while in winter you can admire the performances of iceboats on the frozen surface of the lake, and the surrounding forests are perfect for sleigh rides. Spring is the perfect time for outdoor forest trips.