Where to stay in Gdańsk

In Gdańsk you choose between three addresses that are neither close nor far from one another: the Main Town sits among the sights themselves, Wrzeszcz is a few SKM minutes away and cheaper, and Sopot is the same train in the other direction, towards the beach. A hotel in Gdańsk is €44–60 per person, and a room in Sopot costs about half as much again.

Outside the door are reconstructed façades, Mariacka's cobbles with amber laid out on stalls, and a Długi Targ crowd that doesn't thin even at night. The Museum of the Second World War, the Basilica and the Motława are all a few minutes' walk away, and that's the whole advantage — and the price, the highest in town, and for three weeks during St Dominic's Fair the hardest to book.

It suits short stays where you want everything on foot, and early risers who beat the museum queues. It doesn't suit anyone counting every euro or planning late nights out in Sopot.

Getting aroundHow you get from the airport to any of these three parts of town:Getting around Gdańsk →

Instead of cobbles, Wrzeszcz offers an ordinary street with shops for residents, not tourists, and an SKM stop on the lowest fare into the centre, €1.61. The district sits between the Main Town and Oliwa, on the same line the Sopot trains use, so the ride to the sights is short and frequent. Günter Grass, the Nobel laureate in literature, was born here — in his novels the district keeps its German name, Langfuhr.

BudgetWhat that price gap adds up to over a day:What Gdańsk costs →

Sopot changes both the street and the transport: outside the door is Monte Cassino, the pedestrian street lined with cafés running down to the pier, and the sea is a five-minute walk instead of an SKM ride (€2.07 from Gdańsk). The price of that closeness is a room about half as dear again as Gdańsk, since the town's spa character hasn't changed since the nineteenth century.

BeachesWhich beach is which, if you sleep in Gdańsk rather than Sopot:Beaches in Gdańsk →

For one night

For a single night, stay in or close to the Main Town — the shorter ride outweighs the higher price when you only pay it once. For three nights or more, Wrzeszcz's price gap or Sopot's distance start to make sense.

• You won't need a car for any of these three addresses. The Main Town's streets are narrow and pedestrian, and Wrzeszcz and Sopot are both a short SKM ride away.

2 daysThe same city, day by day:Gdańsk in 2 days →

Day tripsWhat lies beyond the city:Day trips from Gdańsk →

FoodWhat to eat and where:What to eat in Gdańsk →

When to goWhich month to pick:The best time to visit Gdańsk →

Hidden gemsWhat the guides skip:Gdańsk behind the façades: the crane, the tower, the fortress and the district the guides skip →

MistakesWhat not to do:Mistakes everyone makes in Gdańsk →