Warsaw

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Warsaw
<map lat='52.232005085482086' lng='21.085853576660156' zoom='9' view='0' float='right' />
Information
Country:
Flag of Poland
Poland
Voivodeship:
Coat of arms of Masovian (Voivodeship).png
Masovian (Voivodeship)
Population: 1 709 781
Licence plate: WA, WB, WD, WE, WF, WH, WI,

WJ, WK, WN, WT, WU, WW, WX, WY

Major roads: S8 (under construction)
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Warsaw (Polish: Warszawa) is the capital and largest city of Poland.

Hitching Out

West towards Poznań, Berlin, (Germany) 2 E 30

Take the tram 8, 10, 26 direction Os. Górczewska and get off at Ciepłownia Wola. There you can get in the bus 713 and get off at Szeligowska. There is a Lukoil petrol station on the right-hand side of the road . Do not hitch rides at the petrol station as mostly local people stop there, but there is a merge lane behind a junction with traffic lights, so a lot of space for cars and trucks to pull over. Holding a Poznań sign could help.

However, since there are two lanes, cars going quite fast and a lot of city- or close-by-bound traffic you might still have to wait a bit longer. Besides traffic jams in this direction are quite common. To avoid local traffic and part of the traffic jams you can use an alternative place which takes a bit more time to reach:

Take a KM3 (short for Kolej Mazowieckie) train in direction of Łowicz or Sochaczew (sometimes only going to Błonie) and get of at the station Ożarów Mazowiecki. You can take these trains from platform #3 at Warszawa Śródmieście which is next to the Central Station, but not the same! It is more East of the Central Station and South to the Palace of Culture and Science. Have a look at the timetables and different station from where to take the trains on the website, since they run often just one or two times in an hour.

Tickets cost probably a few Zlotys and there are likely to be more or less frequent controls(?).

When you get out at the station in Ożarów Mazowiecki just leave the station at the Northern side and follow the street North until you reach a bigger street (about 500m). Another few hundred meters to the East you will find a bus stop with plenty of space to stop. It's just one lane, cars are going quite slow and you avoid a great deal of local traffic out of Warsaw.

South towards Radom, Kielce, Kraków 7 E 77

  • Option 1

Get tram 7, 9, 35 from the city centre e.g Aleje Jerozolimskie, Warszawa Centralna (Main Train Station), Centrum (Warsaw Metro station) going in the direction of Okęcie and get off at the last stop. Once you get there, there is a bus stop some 50 meters away from the tram terminus further down the road. It is one of the usual hitchhiking spots in Warsaw and many drivers often drive slowly to check if there are hitchhikers waiting. It also has the merit of being located some 50 meters from lights, which give the drivers some time to see you. This location has the downside of being a popular hitching spot for workers returning home for the weekend, usually to Kielce or Radom. It should be noted that for the most part, these people are not "hitchhikers", but simply individuals wishing to get a ride home, often in exchange for a small fare. As a result, rules commonly accepted amongst hitchhikers (such as waiting in line) may not be respected at this spot. To distinguish yourself from them, place your backpack in front of you and make a sign to look like a professional hitchhiker.

  • Option 2

From the final stop of trams 7, 9, 35 Okęcie look for the free bus to Centrum Janki (timetable), a large shopping centre some 20 kilometers from the city center. If you can't find the free bus, take any bus to Janki (eg 715), which stop in the shopping center. Once you're there, notice that the road splits into two separate roads. The earlier, eastern one (closer to the bus stop at IKEA) is national road no. 7 (E77) where you can hitch towards Kielce, Radom, Kraków. Walk some 100m on this road till you arrive at the first good spot to hitchhike. Last verified: August 2009.

  • Option 3

From the final stop of trams 7, 9, 35 Okęcie take a bus 707, 721, 728 to the Sękocin Łas stop (23 min). Hitchhike right from this bus-stop.

Southwest towards Wrocław 8 E 67, Łódź 72, Katowice 1 E 75

Get to shopping centre Centrum Janki (see direction Kraków, option 2 for details). Once you're there, notice that the road splits into two separate roads. The western one is the national road no. 8 (E67) which is located between IKEA and Real shops. Further down the road there is a wide shoulder where you can hitch. Last verified: July 2009.

North and northwest towards Gdańsk 7 E 77, Olsztyn 51 and Toruń, Bydgoszcz 10

Spot to Wrocław (in front of Festo building)
  • Option 1

Go to the Metro Station Plac Wilsona and take bus L) towards Łomianki . Get off at the stop called Woycickiego (press the stop button as the bus doesn't always stop there; the list of bus stops is within the bus itself and all bus stops are visibly marked). This is a perfect place to hitch-hike northbound, there is a lot of space for cars to stop.

  • Option 2

Go to the Metro station Plac Wilsona and take bus 181 towards Cmentarz Północny. Get off at the stop called Dzierżoniowska and from there you'll see the main road leading northwards. The road is fairly straight and has plenty of good spots to hitch-hike. An additional pro is a McD's located nearby with a toilet free of charge.

Northeast towards Białystok, Kaunas (Lithuania) 8 E 67

Take tram 25 from central railway station or any tram from metro station Ratusz going east. Get off at Dworzec Wileński, walk right down the underground passage, walk out the other side and turn right onto the bus top. This is situated beside the big clock on the commercial building. Catch bus 718 and get off at Struga. Note that this bus goes outside of the city limits and an additional ticket is required. The first stop outside the central fare zone is a place loved by controllers, so beware. You can hitch from the traffic lights, there is a street light, which helps at night.

Also, if all of the above is bad, walk for 30 minutes from the 718 bus stop (see above), in the direction of Białystok, and you will come to traffic lights that are better for hitch hiking and where more cars stop. Note that you will have to walk near the motorway for this one, so be carefull.

If you are heading to Lithuania, you might want to stop at one of the petrol stations located near the border. Last verified: August 2010.

Southeast towards Lublin, Lviv (Ukraine) 17 E 372

From Central Railway Station (Dworzec Główny) get on tram 9, 24 direction Gocławek and get off at Wiatraczna stop, from there, keep on walking the direction of the tram and you will get on a big bus station (200m). Get bus 704, 720, 722, 730 and get off at the Szosa Lubelska. Hitch right from the bus stop at Szosa Lubelska street.

Or from Central Railway Station (Dworzec Główny) or from metrostation Politechnika take a bus #502 to the last station Stara Miłosna, from here walk to the crossroads with Szosa Brzeska, turn right and walk 500m to the aforementioned Szosa Lubelska stop

East towards Siedlce and Brest, Minsk (Belarus) 2 E 30

Get to the Szosa Lubelska station (see above). Try to hitch right from the bus stop at Szosa Brzeska.

Public Transport

see jakdojade only in polish

Organized/Paid Hitchhiking