World City Guide

Getting There By Air

Warsaw-Okecie im. Fryderyka Chopina International Airport (WAW)
Tel: (022) 650 4220.
Website: www.polish-airports.com

Poland’s main airport, located 10km (6 miles) south of the city centre, annually serves 6 million passengers on 80 regular routes worldwide. It is one of the most modern and well-equipped airports in Central and Eastern Europe, operating more than 60,000 flights a year. The airport services flights to both national and international destinations. The smaller and lesser equipped Etiuda Terminal tends to service the low-cost airlines and some domestic traffic.

Approximate flight times to Warsaw: From London is 2 hours 25 minutes; from New York is 8 hours 40 minutes; from Los Angeles is 14 hours 10 minutes; from Toronto is 9 hours 25 minutes and from Sydney is 21 hours 45 minutes.

Airport facilities: The airport includes a transit hotel, tourist information centre, post office, bank/bureaux de change (kantors), duty-free shops, ATMs, bars, restaurants and car hire from Avis, Budget, Europcar and Hertz.

Transport to the city: The Polski Express coach service (tel: (022) 844 5555; website: www.polskiexpress.pl) connects passengers from the airport to other cities throughout Poland, and stops here enroute to the main city centre bus stop (around the corner from Warszawa Centralna on Aleja Jana Pawla II) from other cities. In order to use this service, you’d need to check when a bus is passing through to the centre, as it doesn’t run as regularly as the local ZTM services.

The local public transport authority, ZTM (tel: (022) 827 7966; local info line: 9484; website: www.ztm.waw.pl) bus no. 175 departs from in front of the arrivals hall and passes through the city centre and near the Old Town, daily (journey time – 30 minutes). Bus no. 188 goes to the right-bank (the eastern part) of Warsaw (Praga, Grochow, Goclaw). The night bus no. 611 follows the same route, as far as the central railway station, every half hour at night. Ticket prices are the same as other ZTM buses – ZL2.40 during the day and ZL4.80 for night buses. You can purchase tickets from the driver, but a surcharge may be added. Pickpockets have been known to operate on these routes.

Certain hotels offer a shuttle service for both guests and non-guests, but the price will be much higher than the regular bus, and usually more than a taxi. Taxis to the city centre cost approximately ZL30-45 (journey time – 20 minutes). It is advisable for visitors to book an official taxi and to confirm the price before setting off. Taxis can be hired in the arrivals hall at the airport or by calling MPT Radio Taxi (tel: (022) 9191).