Great views: Szczecin

Scenic views in Szczecin: a dozen or so places, from Academic Hill to Lake Dąbie and a café with a city panorama on a high floor.

Szczecin sits in the valley of the Oder, ringed by moraine hills and forests, so the views are as varied as the places you see them from. Some wait on a hilltop in the Bukowa Forest, others by the water of Lake Dąbie, and one in a café on a high floor of an office tower. All suit a walk, and some call for a proper hike.

Where can you see the best panorama of Szczecin?

The city panorama is easiest to see from Café 22 in the centre, and outdoors from Academic Hill and the viewpoint in Stołczyn. Each shows a different part of the Oder valley.

Café 22 is a café on the twenty-second floor of the Pazim office tower at Rodła Square 8. Its website promises a panorama of the whole of Szczecin, and the menu offers coffee, cakes, desserts, snacks and bar drinks. It is an ordinary café with one big advantage: height. Check table reservations before you go.

Academic Hill stands 51 metres above sea level in Zdroje Forest Park, in the northern part of the Bukowe Hills. From the top the view takes in the city, the Oder valley and the neighbouring heights. The western part of the hill is an old chalk-quarry spoil heap, and the southern and eastern slopes are wooded, while the northern and western ones are grassy and steep. The Viewpoint on Górska Street in Stołczyn sits on the edge of the Warszewo Hills. According to the encyclopedia entry on these hills, the contrast with the Oder valley makes their summits good viewpoints, and in clear weather the cliffs of Wolin Island can even be made out from some of them.

How can you see Szczecin from a tower?

For a view from a tower there is the Bismarck Tower in Gocław, but its condition changes, so first check whether you can go up. It stands 26 metres tall, is made of reinforced concrete and has a platform for looking out.

The Bismarck Tower in Szczecin (Gocław Tower), now called the Gocław Tower, stands on Zielone Wzgórze at Narciarska 5a. It opened on 10 August 1921, and construction was first proposed in 1899. Renovation work is under way and guided visits are suspended. If you cannot go in, you can see it on a longer walk: the long green walking route across Arkonka Forest and the Warszewo Hills runs near it, and the Quistorp Tower stands a little farther on.

Where are the beautiful views by the water in Szczecin?

The best views over water are on Lake Dąbie, a large body of water with a dozen or so islands, plus Emerald Lake in Zdroje and the nearby marinas.

Lake Dąbie lies entirely within Szczecin and, according to the encyclopedia entry, covers 54.08 km², which makes it fourth in Poland and first in the voivodeship. It divides into the northern Dąbie Wielkie and the southern Dąbie Małe, and canals to the Oder left a dozen or so islands around it. A shipping channel for seagoing vessels crosses the lake, and marinas and sailing harbours line its shore.

From the shore you can visit three harbours. The Sailing Centre in Szczecin at Przestrzenna 19 has run since 2015. Besides renting kayaks, it organises cruises and windsurfing lessons and can put guests up in cabins or a hostel. Pogoń Marina at number 3 has berths for as many as three hundred boats and belongs to the West Pomeranian Sailing Route. There is a tavern serving lunch and a fuel station with a shop. The Dąbie Marina Yacht Harbour, managed by the Sun & Sail foundation, was completed in April 2019. Kayaks, pedal boats and SUP boards can be hired there by people who have no yacht of their own. Outside the city, in the Goleniów municipality, lies the Lubczyna Marina, a harbour with a bathing area and a sandy beach about two hundred metres long.

Emerald Lake (Jezioro Szmaragdowe) in Zdroje fills an abandoned chalk and marl quarry that water covered in 1925. It owes its name to the emerald colour of the water, caused by calcium carbonate. Before 1945 it was called Herta See and Kreide See, and it lies in the Bukowa Forest Landscape Park.

Which walking trail in Szczecin has views?

For a short walk with views the best is the Family Trail around Emerald Lake, and for a day-long hike the green Czwójdziński trail. The trails range from 2.5 km to nearly 35 km.

The Family Trail through Zdroje Forest Park is 2.5 km long, circles Emerald Lake and begins by a lookout bridge across the water. After half a kilometre it reaches Polana Widok, a spot with a panorama of Szczecin where a campfire is allowed. It passes the Grota za Łukami and the high southern bank of the lake. It is a yellow waymarked trail for families and anyone wanting a short route.

Longer outings include the Bolesław Czwójdziński Trail, a green walking route of 34.8 km that leads out of Klęskowo, passing the Bukowa Forest, Glinna and Kołbacz, before ending at Lake Miedwie. It begins at the monumental Oaks of Bolesław the Wrymouth and passes nature reserves and the Chojnówka valley. The Trail through Arkonka Forest and Warszewo Hills is about 13.8 km and leads through Niemierzyn, Osów, the Wkrzańska Forest and Przęsocin to Skolwin. The Wielecki Staw Trail, a black one, is 6.0 km and circles a pond in the Płonia valley, on former Cistercian lands of Kołbacz. It starts at a bus loop in Śmierdnica. The Pilchowo Trail is a short black path of roughly 4.2 km that runs from Głębokie across the Wkrzańska Forest as far as Pilchowo, a village with an old church.

Are there viewpoints in the centre of Szczecin?

In this selection the centre is represented by Café 22 on the twenty-second floor. The other views lie closer to the edge of the city: in Stołczyn, Zdroje, Dąbie or on the Warszewo Hills. A wider selection of places with this tag is on the Piękne widoki page, and the city itself is covered under Szczecin.

Frequently asked questions

Where is the best viewpoint in Szczecin?

It depends on what you want to see. A panorama from height is Café 22, the Oder valley and Lake Dąbie are the Górska Street viewpoint, and a forest-hill view is Academic Hill.

Can you go up the Bismarck Tower?

Renovation work is under way and guided visits are suspended, so check before travelling whether the tower can be entered.

Which trail with a view suits a short walk?

The Zdroje family trail is only 2.5 km, loops around Emerald Lake and goes by the Polana Widok lookout.

Can you rent water equipment on Lake Dąbie?

Yes: the Sailing Centre has a kayak rental, and the Dąbie Marina Yacht Harbour has kayaks, pedal boats and SUP boards.