EV10/13 – Stage 5

Logistics

In terms of communication, it is the most accessible part of the route. Gdansk, Sopot and Gdynia operate domestic and international rail connections. You can get to the Tri-City from almost anywhere in Poland. Additionally, there is an international airport in Gdansk.

Characteristics, mileage, tips

The route runs through the cities of Gdynia, Sopot and Gdansk, and a fragment of the rural communes of Pruszcz Gdanski and Stegna, which is already located on the Vistula Spit. The trail has been led through the most attractive parts of the Tri-City, which is why you should spend enough time to cover this stage in order to get to know the advantages of the seaside metropolis at least superficially. The ride itself without sightseeing should take a few hours depending on your pace.

In Gdynia, in addition to passing through the northern district of Obluze, the route passes the container terminal (bicycle overpass!), which can be an interesting experience considering the unusual port views. Then it reaches the very heart of the city, crossing the streets of the modernist downtown and the attractive seaside zone. The journey between the city centre and the two southern districts of Orlowo and Kolibki takes place along the main thoroughfare of the city, al. Wins using the asphalt bicycle road. From Orlowo to the border with Sopot, we drive all the time along the sea.

In Sopot, we briefly meet the busy Zwyciestwa Avenue, then Haffner Street we return to the sea. We go along the seaside promenade all the way to Gdansk, crossing Kuracyjny Square by the pier on the way.

In Gdansk, we initially drive through the Jelitkowo and Brzezno districts, still moving along the popular seaside avenue. Then, through a fragment of Wrzeszcz and Aniolki, the route first reaches the Old Town and then to the Main Town. The exit from CentralGdansk leads along Elblaska Street towards the refinery. The last accent in Gdansk is the Sobieszewo Island. In Swibno we cross Przekop Wisly by the ferry. The crossing operates from the end of April to the end of September and a bicycle ticket costs PLN 5 (bike + cyclist). In Mikoszewo, the trail turns into the forest and does not leave it until Jantar. The surface on EuroVelo 10/13 in the Tri-City is of the highest quality. Asphalt bicycle roads dominate, here and there made of concrete cubes. Outside Gdansk, from Mikoszewo to Jantar, the route leads along a forest road made of good quality aggregate.

Download the section map in PDF format here and here

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Possible difficulties

In fact, this stage does not have major difficulties related to the lack or poor quality of bicycle infrastructure or significant hills. Minor inconveniences for the more demanding may appear on the section of Janek Wisniewski Street. There is no dedicated bicycle path there, but the pedestrian and bicycle route on this fragment is sufficient, because pedestrian traffic is negligible here. There are designated bicycle lanes to the square in front of the Gdynia Głowna railway station. However, this is a temporary solution, as the city will soon start modernizing the entire section of Janek Wisniewski Street and the highest quality bicycle infrastructure will be built there. For cyclists traveling EuroVelo 10/13, apart from April-September, the closed ferry on Przekop Wisly between Swibno and Mikoszewo will be a major obstacle. Then you should go south along the Vistula Bicycle Route/EuroVelo 9 to Kiezmark (there is an asphalt bicycle road along the entire section) and cross the Vistula River over the local bridge. Then go back north, initially along the count road to Drewnica, and then along the asphalt bicycle path along the top of the flood embankment to Mikoszewo itself. Thus, we extend the journey by approx. 20 km, but the quality of the infrastructure and the extraordinary views of Przekop Wisly provide extraordinary impressions.

Dedicated parking spaces

• Gdynia Port – at the ferry terminal, view of the port (shelters, benches, tables, bicycle racks, repair kit for bicycles, information board).
• Gdynia Shipyard – Janek Wisniewski Street at the Monument to the Victims of December ‘70 (bike racks, benches, information board).
• Gdynia Boulevard – on the boulevard with a view of the sea (shelter, table, benches, bicycle racks, toilet, repair kit for bicycles, information board).
• Gdynia Park Kolibki – by the bridge in the park by the sea (shed, meadows, table, bicycle racks, information board).
• Sopot Northern Park – at the mouth of the Swelina stream to the sea (bike racks, benches, information board).
• Sopot Pier – at the entrance to the beach, next to the pier (bike racks, benches, bicycle repair kit, information board).
• Sopot Camping – by the seaside promenade next to the beach entrance (bike racks, benches, information board).
• Sopot Sailing Club – on the promenade next to the Sopot Sailing Club (bike racks, benches, information board).
• Bogatka – by the provincial road 501 in the direction of Sobieszewska Island (canopy, bench, bicycle stands, information board).
• Wislinka – by the bridge on the Martwa Wisla (canopy, bench, bicycle racks, information board).
• Gdansk Sobieszewska Island – in Przegalina on the peninsula by the Vistula River (place under construction).

You will see on the EuroVelo 10/13 route in Gdynia

• Gdynia Obluze – container base, view of the port area, working overhead cranes, cranes and ships.
• Gdynia Shipyard – Monument to the Victims of December ’70.
• Gdynia Main Town – modernistic buildings on Starowiejska Street and Abraham’s House, Kaszubski Square (a statue of Antoni Abraham), Swietojanska Street, The building of the Meteorology Institute and Water Management from 1927 (Washington Street), Kosciuszko Square and the South Pier (including the ship – museum Polish Navy Ship “Byskawica”, the ship – museum Dar Pomorza, Gdynia Sea Aquarium, marina), the Museum of the City of Gdynia, seaside boulevard named after Feliks Nowowiejski (Naval Museum), city beach on the boulevard.
• Gdynia Redlowo – Experiment Science Centre.
• Gdynia Orlowo – pier, Orlowo cliff, Zeromski’s House, promenade of Queen Marysienka (scenic spot).
• Gdynia Kolibki – a 19th-century manor house, a park, Marysienka’s Grotto (former viewpoint), Marysienka Oak (about 400 years old!), Sleeping Swede Cave (!).

Selected attractions outside the course of EuroVelo 10/13 in Gdynia:

• Gdynia Oksywie – a small fishing port with a lift and a viewing point (Osada Rybacka Street), Oksywie Boulevard (a view of the torpedo boat in Oksywie and Babie Doly), the church of St. Michael the Archangel (the oldest in Gdynia and one of the oldest in Pomorskie, Płk. Dabka Street).
• Central Gdynia – modernist buildings 10 Lutego Street, Kamienna Hill (examples of former villa buildings from the interwar period, a vantage point at the cross, a cable car), the Museum of Emigration in the building of the former Maritime Station from the 1930s, Polska Street).
• Maly Kack – a palace and park complex, a palace from the 19th century (currently a hotel, Folwarczna Street).
• Kolibki – observation tower on Kapliczna Gora (access via Spoldzielcza Street), fire control bunker and cannon bases from World War II (in the vicinity of the observation tower), Adventure Park Kolibki Gdynia (Bernadowska Street).
• Kepa Redlowska – remains of fortifications from the post-war period of the 11th Battery of the Permanent Artillery (3 firing positions with cannons, garages, ammunition shelters, trenches).

You will see on the EuroVelo 10/13 route in Sopot

• Swelinia Stream – a picturesque river flowing in a rapid stream at the bottom of a deep ravine. It flows into the sea on the beach, on the very border of Sopot and Gdynia.
• Northern Park.
• Kuracyjny Square, building of the famous Grand Hotel from 1927 (initially Casino Hotel and now Sofitel Grand Sopot), pier with a marina, Dom Zdrojowy, a lighthouse.
• Southern park – the Evangelical-Augsburg church from 1919, the building of the former southern baths from 1907 in the Scandinavian style.
• Sopot Museum in the magnificent Claaszen villa from 1903.
• An intimate fishing harbor with a mini-museum of fishing.
• Sopot Sailing Club.

Selected attractions outside the course of EuroVelo 10/13 in Sopot

• Archaeological open-air museum – Grodzisko in Sopot (Haffnera Street).
• Bohaterow Monte Cassino Street (commonly Monciak) – the most popular walking route in the city, numerous restaurants, cafes, bars, shops and art galleries, in the middle part of the street the famous Crooked House and in the upper neo-gothic church of St. George.
• Sopot Friends’ Square – a vast square connecting Monciak with Plac Zdrojowy and the pier, the architectural dominant here is the Haffner Centre with restaurants and a complex of cinemas.
• Sierakowski Mansion – an 18th century manor house, currently the seat of the Society of Friends of Sopot and the “heart” of Sopot culture (Czyzewskiego Street, side from Monciak).
• Forest Opera (Moniuszki Street), viewpoints Strzeleckie Wzgorze and Lysa Hill in the vicinity (a ski slope operates here in winter).
• Goyki 3 Art. Incubator – a cultural institution located in a charming palace from the late 19th century, surrounded by a historic park (Goyki 3 Street).

You will see EuroVelo 10/13 in Gdansk on the route and in the vicinity

• Gdansk Jelitkowo – a picturesque estuary of the Jelitkowski Stream to the sea.
• Gdansk Przymorze – President Ronald Reagan’s Park, a vast recreational and leisure area for the inhabitants of Gdansk.
• Gdansk Brzezno – a wooden pier over 130 m long, fortifications from the 19th and 20th centuries. J.J. Haffnera (Beach Battery) and in a closed port area (Port Battery).
• Young City (in close proximity to the route of EuroVelo 10/13) – the European Solidarity Centre and Solidarity Square with the Monument to the Fallen Shipyard Workers, the historic health and safety hall (the place where the August Agreements were signed), the area of the Imperial Shipyard with numerous historical buildings, the M3 crane viewpoint (former shipyard crane!).
• Old Town – Neo-Renaissance building, railway station from 1900, Gothic churches: St. James, St. Bartholomew, St. Elizabeth, St. Joseph, St. Bridget (former temple of Solidarity), St. Catherine (the oldest in Gdansk – 13th century, burial place of the astronomer Jan Hevelius), the Great Mill (the largest medieval industrial plant in Europe – currently the Amber Museum), the Renaissance Old Town Hall, the building of the Polish Post Office in the times of the Free City of Gdansk (now a museum) with Monument to the Defenders of the Polish Post Office, Museum of the Second World War.
• Main Town – Upland Gate from the 16th century (once the main entrance to the Royal Route – currently the Pomorski Tourist Information Centre, Torture Chamber and Prison Tower (Gothic Foregate Complex at Dluga Street), the Golden Gate from the early 17th century, the Baroque Uphagen House ( Dluga Street, currently a branch of the Museum of the City of Gdansk), the Main Town Hall (a Gothic-Renaissance work of world-class architecture, currently the headquarters of the Museum of the City of Gdansk, the most valuable is the interior of the Red Room with a set of Renaissance paintings on the ceiling), Artur’s Court (a Gothic-Renaissance former seat of merchants gilds, currently a branch of the Museum of the City of Gdansk), Neptune’s Fountain from the 17th century at the Long Market, the Green Gate from the 16th century, Gothic water gates on the Motlawa River (Krowia, Chlebnicka, Mariacka, Swietego Ducha, Staganiarska and Crane – a medieval crane and gate), Gothic churches: Blessed Virgin Mary (the largest brick temple in the world, filled with works of Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque art, in particular the main altar from the early . XVI century, astronomical clock from the second half of the 19th century. the 15th century or the sculpture of the Beautiful Madonna from the first half of the 19th century. fifteenth century), St. Nicholas (one of the oldest in Gdansk, almost fully preserved historic decor), St. John (currently serves as a cultural centre, inside there are several elements of historic decor, including a unique, stone main altar from 1611), the Baroque Royal Chapel, the Mannerist Great Armory from 1609, ul. Mariacka (full of tenement houses with the famous Gdansk porches, numerous shops and amber workshops).
• The Granary Island – formerly the largest district of port warehouses in Europe, at the beginning of the 19th century there were over 350 of them. Currently, modern buildings resembling old granaries house restaurants and hotels. Only a few original granaries have survived to this day, some of them were rebuilt in the post-war years, but most of them were built in recent years, especially in the northern part of the island. On the neighbouring Lead Island there are: an authentic, Renaissance Royal Granary (currently a hotel), the Polish Baltic Philharmonic (the building of the former power plant), the National Maritime Museum with a ship moored at the quay – the Soldek Museum.

Dlugie Ogrody Street– the Gothic Stagiewna Gate opening the Dlugie Ogrody Street, marina on Szafarnia Street with an original 17th-century granary called Nowa Pakownia or Mountain, currently a hotel and brewery), the Gothic church of St. Barbara, the Renaissance Lowland Gate closing Dlugie Ogrody Street (originally called the Long Gardens Gate).

• Dolne Miasto (in close proximity to EuroVelo 10/13) – Uphagen Manor from 1800 with the adjacent building of the former hospital from the second half of the 19th century. (now a hotel) and the neo-Gothic church of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the remains of several modern bastions, including two preserved in their original size (The Bison and St. Gertrude).
• Stare Przedmiescie (in close proximity to the route of EuroVelo 10/13) – the Renaissance Lowland Gate, the Stone Sluice (a unique hydrotechnical monument from the 17th century), the Gothic White Tower and the recently discovered casemates of the Wiebe Bastion (17th century) and relics of the New Tower ( 15th century) incorporated into a modern cubature car park, the Renaissance Small Armoury, the Gothic Church of St. Peter and Paul, a late-Gothic Franciscan monastery complex (the Church of the Holy Trinity, the chapel of St. Anne and the former monastery building, now the seat of the National Museum – among the collections is one of the most valuable paintings in Polish museums: the Gothic triptych The Last Judgment by the Dutch painter Hans Memling.
• Sobieszewska Island – a bridge over the Martwa Wisla River, a walking on the river bank, nature reserves: Ptasi Raj (at the mouth of Wisla Smiala) and Mewia Lacha (at the mouth of Przekop Wisly) which are considered to be particularly valuable areas of occurrence of marsh and water birds in this part of Europe, lock in Przegalina from the end of the 19th century, ferry crossing in Swibno (Mikoszewo is located on the other side of the river), Kazimierz water reservoir with a viewing point and a multimedia exhibition.

Suggestions for other bicycle trips

• Gdansk has a well-developed network of bicycle routes, considered one of the best in the country. From Central Gdansk (e.g. from the railway station) you can plan all-day trips around the city and the surrounding area. When choosing the urban option, it is worth visiting districts that are not located in the vicinity of the EuroVelo 10/13 route.

– Oliwa – Oliwa Cathedral (rich interior design in Gothic style, Renaissance and Baroque art) with a park and the Abbots’ Palace (currently the National Museum), St. Jackob church, Pacholek Hill with a  viewing tower (perhaps the most beautiful view of Gdansk and the Gdansk Bay) – access from the Gdansk Głowny railway station via bicycle routes through Zwyciestwa Avenue, Grunwaldzka Street to the intersection with Abbot Jacek Rybicki Street (approx. 9 km).

– Wrzeszcz – Lower Wrzeszcz with charming streets (Wajdeloty, Aldony, Grazyny, Konrada Wallenroda, Lelewela – the family home of the Nobel Prize winner Gunter Grass), Kuzniczki park, Wybickiego Square with the Grass bench, neo-gothic church of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and many cosy pubs and cafes. Upper Wrzeszcz with magnificent villa buildings (in particular Jaskowa Dolina Street), the Orthodox Church of St. Nicholas, the neo-Gothic garrison church of St. Peter and Paul or the modern Garnizon housing estate in the historic barracks complex – access from the Gdansk Golowny railway station to the intersection of Grunwaldzka and Dmowskiego Street (about 4 km – the center of the district, from where it is easy to get to Lower and Upper Wrzeszcz).

– Westerplatte – a monument to the Defenders of the Coast and a battlefield on Westerplatte, in the vicinity also the Wistulamouth Fortress (a unique example of a sea fortress in Europe, currently a branch of the Gdansk Museum) – access by bicycle routes from the railway station, such as EuroVelo 10/13 to Lowland Gate, then Siennicka Street to the north and then Major Sucharski Street straight to Westerplatte (approx. 10 km).

– Tri-City Landscape Park – a forest complex directly bordering the Tri-City agglomeration, an area of special landscape value, which is a recreational base for the inhabitants of the Tri-City – access is best from Gdansk Oliwa or Sopot, or possibly from Wrzeszcz. However, it should be borne in mind that the park is located on an upland and access by bike from the city in most cases leads uphill. In the park itself there are numerous roads, paths and ducts that can be used by bicycle. The terrain is sometimes not significantly different from mountainous areas.

• Gdynia is an excellent starting point for trips to Northern Kashuby (using EuroVelo 10/13 in the direction of Kosakowo) or the Northern part of the Tri-City Landscape Park, which offers great opportunities for forest trips, for example to the lakes of Bieszkowice, Zawiat, Borowo, Wyspowo or Wejherowo Calvary. It should be remembered that the Tri-City Landscape Park is an area with large elevation differences.
• Sopot, due to its location between Gdynia and Gdansk, is also a good starting point for trips to the Tri-City Landscape Park.