Best green zones to relax in Poznań

When you are visiting Poznań and the weather is gorgeous, what can be better than spending time outside and enjoying some of Poznań's best green zones? Did you know that Poznań is one of the greenest cities in Poland? Yes! Approximately 20% of the surface is covered with green spaces. Here is the selection of our favourites places to relax in Poznań:

• Park Cytadela

The biggest green zone in Poznań is a place where you can spend many hours strolling around. Not just a simple park, it’s also an open-air gallery with sculptures of many artists like Magdalena Abakanowicz and part of the fortifications from the Prussian times, when Poznań was a fortress. Cytadela is one of the most valuable places in Poznań when it comes to nature and biodiversity and a beloved place for the locals to organise picnics or stroll with family and friends. One of the most popular spots to take a rest is the rose garden. If you’re there, do not miss the nearby Oak of General Wasilij Czujkow, a 28-metres tall nature monument.

Cytadela Rose Garden in Poznań - Photo by Małgorzata Tylińska

• Lakes of Poznań

Within the city limits, there are three lakes, all of them artificial. In the eastern part of the city there is the Malta lake. The name comes from the Sovereign Military Order of Malta that in the past occupied the area close to the lake. Finished in the communist times, it is often used for rowing competitions. In the western and north-western part of the city there are two other lakes – Rusałka and Strzeszyn, both created during the Nazi occupation. Many Polish and Jewish prisoners were sacrificed to build them. Unfortunately, until nowadays when the water level is low you can see parts of the graves from Jewish cemeteries that were used to create a strong ground for the lake. What are other options? 5 minutes on a train from Poznań Main Station and you will find another lake, Jezioro Kierskie. Beloved by the sailors, it was the first place in Poland to organise triathlon competitions in 1984.

Rusałka lake in Poznań - Photo by Aleksandra Paukszta

Rusałka lake in Poznań - Photo by Aleksandra Paukszta

• Sołacz Park

Located in the marshy territory of the Bogdanka valley, Sołacz Park was designed to serve the neighbouring villa owners. Go round the ponds to see the highlights of the park: villas on surrounding streets, more than 100-years-old building used now as a hotel and restaurant with an amazing view on the park and the neoclassical round church of John Vianney. You might be surprised to see many exotic trees such as pseudotsuga, acer ginnala or tsuga canadensis as well as Mandarin ducks native to Japan and China. Make sure you get to the only preserved wooden waiting room for the tram passengers in Poznań, coming from the early XXth century, created in Swiss chalet style, now used by the Polish Fishing Association. You will recognize it easily for its green colour.

Sołacz Park in Poznań

• Botanical Garden

One of the best places to visit in the spring time in Poznań. Created in 20s, since its first years it has been used both as an educational place and a public garden. You can see here more than 6000 plant species from almost every climate zone of the Earth. Two landmarks of the Garden are sculptures: of a ballet dancer from Swan lake that is covered by a water skirt and of a couple of two people in love. Botanical Garden organises a lot of events such as lectures, workshops, bird watching, sightseeing while running or meditations under horse-chestnut trees.

Botanical Garden in Poznań - ballet dancer sculpture

Botanical Garden in Poznań - couple in love sculpture

• Warta river bank

City beaches and the 13-kilometres-long recreational route Wartostrada were created especially to practise sports such as running, cycling or skating and make this place very popular even during the weekdays. Currently the city is removing the concrete placed here in the communist times as a part of the project of bringing back nature to the Warta riverbanks. During the summer there are zones to organise BBQ and bars where you can drink coffee admiring the third biggest river in Poland. Along the river you will see historical sections of the town such as Cathedral Island as well as communist blocks or wooden building of former wardrobes of the bathing places, very popular in the 20s when even 5 000 people bathed here daily.

Warta riverbank in Poznań - Photo by Aleksandra Paukszta

• Szachty

Construction boom from the turn of the 19th and 20th century was the reason for establishing various brickworks in this part of the city. Situated close to the company's 40 clay pits once used to extract clay and manufacture bricks recently became a popular walking area. It is amazing that even in the industrialised landscapes nature eventually wins: in the reservoirs there is a multitude of fish such as eel, common bream or European perch. To see the panorama of the place, climb the observation tower. Nice at every time of the year, we highly recommend visiting it in autumn when the abundance of colours makes it even better.

Poznań Szachty recreation zone - Photo by Małgorzata Tylińska

• Morasko 

Highest natural point in Poznań of 154 m called Moraska Mountain, small lake named Cold Water, Morasko forest, Morasko Meteorite Nature Reserve – visiting Morasko you won’t get bored! If you don’t like crowds, Morasko is a place for you. Morasko Meteorite Nature Reserve contains seven meteorite craters that were probably formed 5000 years ago. Two meteorites weighing 164 kg and 300 kg were found here in the past years. Follow the educational path to get to know the details of the craters. Maybe you happen to see some uncommon birds that appear in the nature reserve such as the European nightjar or the black woodpecker. On the way you can stop by Morasko Campus, where some of the departments of Adam Mickiewicz University are located. 

Cold Lake Morasko in Poznań

Hope you've enjoyed reading about the green zones in Poznań, now get out there and explore them! 

Written for you by Zuza Michalska