Great views

Scenic views in West Pomerania mean lighthouses with viewing terraces, Wolin cliffs, piers and lakes, from Gosań to the Szczecin Lagoon, and many cost nothing.

The region has two kinds of panorama: coastal, from lighthouses, piers and cliff-top hills, and inland, from lakeshores and moraine ridges. Some places lie in towns, but the best views usually wait a little further out, so it helps to choose a destination by whether you prefer to climb a tower, walk out on a pier or simply sit by the water.

Where to look for scenic views in West Pomerania?

Here the views come in five kinds: lighthouses with ports, lakes, hills with trails, viewpoints, and shoreline beaches. Lakes are the most numerous, followed by hills and trails, so even without access to the sea it is easy to find a panorama.

If you have one day on the Baltic, choose a lighthouse with a terrace and a pier. If you are heading inland, plan a day by one of the lakes of the Drawsko or Wałcz lakelands. For Szczecin itself, see Scenic views: Szczecin, and for ideas in Świnoujście, Scenic views: Świnoujście.

Which lighthouses have a viewing terrace and can be climbed?

Several lighthouses on the West Pomeranian coast are open to visitors. You climb stairs, from about one hundred and ninety to over three hundred steps, and the reward is a panorama of sea, beach and surrounding villages. Check opening hours with the lighthouse before you go.

Darłówko, Gąski, Jarosławiec and Niechorze

In Darłówko, at Wschodnia 14, stands Darłowo Lighthouse, next to where the Wieprza meets the sea. It does not resemble the slender towers of postcards: it is a squat brick building with a tower that gained an extra storey in 1927, the original having been put up in 1885. Higher, after one hundred and ninety steps, you reach the terrace of Gąski Lighthouse, one of the Słowiński coast lights, dating from 1876-1878.

Among the houses of Jarosławiec, at Szkolna 1, rises Jarosławiec Lighthouse: brick, from 1838, measuring 33.3 m. Higher still, at 45 m, comes the cliff-top light at Niechorze, Polna 30, Niechorze Lighthouse of 1866, with 208 steps to its terrace.

Świnoujście, Kołobrzeg and Kikut

The most steps, 308, belong to Świnoujście Lighthouse in the Warszów district, a brick structure of 1857 that Wikipedia calls the highest on the Polish coast. In Kołobrzeg, Kołobrzeg Lighthouse was set up in 1945 on the main platform of an old fort by the Bay of Pomerania.

The exception is Kikut Lighthouse in Wolin National Park, on the Strażnica rise near Wisełka. It was built in 1962 by converting a viewing tower, nobody staffs it and you cannot enter, so it stays an outside view. Visitors who cannot climb but enjoy technical curiosities will find, at Ludna 16 in Niechorze, the Lighthouse Miniature Park: every lighthouse of the Polish coast as a scale model, guiding in three languages and a walk shorter than an hour.

What do the piers and ports offer for sea views?

Piers and breakwaters let you walk out over the sea without a boat. The two biggest piers in the region are in Kołobrzeg and Międzyzdroje, and in Świnoujście the view ends with a white beacon at the end of the breakwater. All these places are marked as free.

The Kołobrzeg Pier is 220 m long and stands in the Spa District, continuing Mickiewicza Street; the concrete deck opened in 1971, after a wooden one dating to 1881. In Międzyzdroje the Międzyzdroje Pier reaches 395 m out into the Bay of Pomerania, two white towers greet walkers at the entrance, and excursion ships leave from the landing.

At the end of the West Breakwater in Świnoujście stands Stawa Młyny, a white structure resembling a windmill, with a black roof. It guides sailors as a navigation mark, measures ten metres, and the town treats it as its emblem; it went up in the 1870s. A calmer atmosphere belongs to Dźwirzyno Seaport, a small fishing and yacht harbour where the canal from Lake Resko Przymorskie reaches the Baltic.

What views do the cliffs and hills of Wolin give?

Wolin is the best place for cliff panoramas. The rises close to the Baltic lie within Wolin National Park, and one of them can be reached by a trail from Międzyzdroje.

Highest, a little over ninety metres above sea level, stands Gosań, right above the water, with an abrasion cliff and a viewpoint. Lower by over thirty metres, Kawcza Góra also looks at the sea from a cliff, and the black trail from Międzyzdroje leads to its viewpoint. In a similar spirit is Turquoise Lake (Jezioro Turkusowe) in Wolin National Park, a short way beyond Wapnica: a small water body, 6.74 ha, in a former chalk working, with bluish-green water.

For those who prefer to walk the whole coast there is the E9 European Long-Distance Path - Coastal Section. In this region the path follows the Coastal Trail between Świnoujście and Jarosławiec, and 706.1 km of the whole E9 runs through Poland. Cyclists have a loop, Cycle Route Around the Szczecin Lagoon: a Polish-German trail of 296 km split into seven sections.

Which hills and towers give the widest views?

Panoramas from height come from moraine hills and towers overlooking a town or a river valley. Some are fully open, others closed or inaccessible, so check before you travel.

In Koszalin spreads the moraine ridge of Chełmska Hill; its highest point, Krzyżanka, is 136.2 m, and beside the shrine stands a tower from 1888, 31.5 m tall, which visitors may climb. In Osinów Dolny, in the Cedynia Hills, 270 steps lead up Czcibor Hill, where a 15-metre eagle monument commemorates the battle fought at Cedynia in 972.

In Szczecin the viewing tower is the Bismarck Tower in Szczecin (Gocław Tower) at Narciarska 5a. The tower is 26 m high, has a viewing terrace and opened in 1921 on Zielone Wzgórze. Guided visits are suspended during renovation, so confirm whether it has reopened before the trip. In Świdwin stands another: the Bismarck Tower in Świdwin from 1911, 22 metres high, built of brick and granite but closed to visitors.

Near Kołbaskowo, on Morenka hill, the Wzgórze Widokowe nad Międzyodrzem nature reserve protects steppe vegetation, set up in 1973, with a view of the Oder valley.

Which lakes have the prettiest views?

Lakes are the largest and most varied group: from huge expanses to forest ponds with a bathing spot. Choose by what you are after: sailing harbours, wild beaches, a view from a bridge or quiet in the woods.

Lakes of the Drawsko Lakeland and around Szczecinek

A whole day is worth planning at Lake Drawsko in the gmina of Czaplinek: it is the largest water body of the Drawsko Lakeland, with twelve islands and several sailing bases, and in Poland only Hańcza is deeper. Lake Lubie takes up more than fourteen hundred hectares, with beaches, holiday centres and two routes around it, one for kayaks and one for bicycles.

At Lake Wielimie the eye stops at an island regarded as the biggest one on a Polish lake, and the water is best viewed from the village of Gwda Wielka. In the gmina of Szczecinek lies Lake Wierzchowo: long sandy beaches and water that feeds the Gwda, so you will meet kayakers here. Near Borne Sulinowo stretches Lake Pile, the biggest lake of the Szczecinek Lakeland at roughly nine hundred and eighty hectares.

Wałcz, Myślibórz and surroundings

In Wałcz itself lies Lake Raduń, spanned by the only suspension bridge of its kind in the country. A red trail leads from here to Drawa National Park, and there are bathing areas on the shore. On the same lakeland lies Lake Bytyń Wielki, its widest expanse of water, as deep as forty-one metres and protected as a reserve, with two hill forts.

In Myślibórz, Lake Myśliborskie offers some six hundred hectares of water used for regattas, plus two bathing areas. The bed of Lake Morzycko in Moryń lies below sea level, and an inland beach has been set up on the shore. In the Bierzwnik Forests there is Lake Bierzwnik of 202.93 ha, with an island where a reserve of old trees was created. The more modest Lake Karwowo near Łobez is ringed by beech forest, with a beach, a tent field and fishing.

Lakes by the sea and in Szczecin

A spit separates Lake Jamno in the gmina of Mielno from the Baltic; yachts moor here and boats leave with sightseers. Beyond Darłowo to the north-east lies Lake Kopań: birds nest here in numbers and the wind draws windsurfers. In the Ińsko Landscape Park you will find Lake Ińsko, which measures 596 ha and has an island reserve.

Two lakes with views lie within Szczecin. Lake Dąbie is a lake of the Oder delta covering 54 square kilometres; a fairway for sea-going ships runs through it, and there are marinas and moorings. Emerald Lake (Jezioro Szmaragdowe) in Zdroje formed in an old chalk quarry flooded in 1925, in the Bukowa Forest, and viewpoints stand nearby.

A landscape of water and harbours comes with the Szczecin Lagoon, a lagoon by the German border, with landings at Trzebież, Stepnica and Nowe Warpno. The Polish shore has bathing spots. Lake Wicko Wielkie in Świnoujście covers 12 square kilometres, was once a bay of the Lagoon and lies mostly in Wolin National Park; its harbours are Lubin and Wapnica.

How to plan a trip around scenic views?

Most views on the list are free, and many suit a quiet outing for two. Ticket prices for lighthouses and opening hours change, so check them with the site, and build the day around distances: lighthouses and piers combine within one town, lakes within one county.

A good day on the Baltic is Niechorze: the lighthouse and the miniature park. A second day is worth spending on Wolin: Międzyzdroje with its pier, Kawcza Góra and Gosań. Another trip suits lighthouse fans in Jarosławiec or Darłówko. Inland, in Wałcz look at Scenic views: Wałcz, and in the gmina of Mielno at Scenic views: Mielno.

The area around Stare Czarnowo is collected in Scenic views: Stare Czarnowo, and Wolin National Park with Wapnica in Scenic views: Wapnica. All the beautiful places of the region are on the Scenic views page.

Frequently asked questions

Which lighthouses in West Pomerania can you climb?

Lighthouses in Darłówko, Gąski, Jarosławiec, Niechorze, Świnoujście and Kołobrzeg are open to visitors. Kikut, in the national park on Wolin, stays out of visitors' reach.

Where is the tallest lighthouse on the Polish coast?

According to Wikipedia, in Świnoujście, in the Warszów district. It is a brick tower from 1857 with 308 steps.

What are the longest piers in the region?

The Międzyzdroje pier is 395 m long and the Kołobrzeg pier 220 m. Both are free to walk on.

Where on Wolin is the best view of the cliff?

From Gosań, a hill rising over ninety metres above the Baltic, and from Kawcza Góra, which the black trail from Międzyzdroje reaches.

Is there a viewing tower in Szczecin?

Yes, the Bismarck Tower, also called the Gocław Tower, but guided visits are suspended during renovation. Confirm whether it has reopened before the trip.