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NickRushbrook

Polish Speedway 2018 Travel & Info Thread

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Hey everyone.

 

I'm looking at attending a couple (at least) of Polish fixtures next year and would be grateful for any information such as nearest airports, places to stay etc.

 

Would like to sample the Falubaz atmosphere so can anybody tell me my best means of travel from London?

 

Perhaps this thread could be pinned for anybody else with similar questions?

 

Thanks in advance.

 

Nick

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I think you will need to do most of the finding out yourself as i have no idea where you are based in the UK. the main airlines flying to Poland are Ryanair and Wizzair from various regional airports to various Polish destinations. I have always hired cars in Poland so have flown into places like Poznan, Wroclaw, Bydgoszcz and Warsaw for the GP. When the fixtures come out, decide where you want to go to, then Google nearest airport to the place. I have flown into Berlin for Gorzow as well. Booking. Com is great for hotels. The rail network is pretty good in Poland if you didnt want to drive. I always use Bahn.de for the checking of trains in Poland.

Edit sorry just read again and saw London so the airlines i mentioned use Luton ,Stansted and possibly Gatwick plus BA and LOT from Heathrow

Edited by racers and royals

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You mentioned the Falubaz atmosphere, and certainly there are few fixtures to compare with Falubaz v Stal Gorzow, either at home or in Gorzow. Be aware though that Falubaz are masters of derbgy-day shenanigans, so don't be too surprised if for some mystery reason you go to Poland and the meeting is called off due to a supposedly dodgy track, or if the meeting is delayed in order to allow a star rider to arrive by specially chartered helicopter, or whatever. ZG play more mind games than Sir Alex Ferguson ever could.

 

My favourite airport to fly to is Poznan. It's served by so many airports in the UK, that you should be able to link in to it. The airport is a £1 bus ride from the central railway station, from where you are a £5-£15 train ride away from Gorzow, ZG, Leszno, Pila and Gniezno, amongst others. If you end up on one of these last flights of the night, and like me last time, arrive in Poznan airport at 00.50am, there's the Comm Hotel directly over the road from the airport that is very convenient to use.

 

I use the e-podroznik site for transport info such as times and fares. This site also has a decent phone app. It's also in English and it gives you car bus and train links between anywhere you ask. The site gives tthe option to use Blablacar.pl but you may not fancy getting into a car with a stranger. But you have the option. http://www.polskibus.com/en/index.htm is a decent alternative to the train on some routes. I used a Polski Bus (a new luxury coach in reality with power for your phone / laptop and wifi for free) between Gdansk and Torun. The bus was cheaper and the journey was 2 hours instead of 3 by train.

 

Booking.com seems to have the most comprehensive hotel listings in Poland although Airbnb.com is gaining popularity over there. I've found some decent places on Airbnb in the last couple of years.

 

Prices to Poland depend on season. You might want to look up Polish National Holidays, and try to avoid these as seats on the planes will be in high demand by people going home to see their families. During the main season though, you can usually get flights for about £40-£50 each way if you only take hand luggage. During the play-offs though, Wizzair seem to offer some amazing bargains. The last 2 years, I've been able to fly Birmingham-Poznan and back for under £25, all-in.

 

Beware though, Brexit has chucked a huge curve-ball into the price and cost equation. The overall cost of trips isn't as cheap as it was in past years and in the future the trend will continue upwards.

 

The best tip is to befriend some people over in Poland, and keep in touch with them. They can help you out with stuff that can only be done locally, like purchasing tickets, which for Falubaz v Stal, regularly sell out in advance. And whichever team you get to follow, see if you can go on an away trip with them and experience life "in the cage" as an away fan. Excellent fun, although maybe not for your first visit.

Edited by uk martin
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Just a quick list from me, used my memory and geography knowledge to complete it, so some airports or cities might be missing :P

Airport on the left, speedway city on the right

 

Berlin -> Gorzow and Zielona Gora

Poznan -> Poznan, Gniezno, Gorzow, Zielona Gora, Leszno, Rawicz, Ostrow Wielkopolski, Pila

Wroclaw -> Wroclaw, Rawicz, Opole, Leszno, Ostrow Wielkopolski

Krakow -> Krakow, Rybnik, Czestochowa, Tarnow, Rzeszow, Krosno

Rzeszow -> Rzeszow, Krosno, Tarnow, Lublin

Lublin -> Lublin, Rzeszow

Lodz -> Lodz, Czestochowa, Ostrow Wielkopolski, Gniezno

Warszawa Chopin-> Lublin, Lodz

Bydgoszcz -> Bydgoszcz, Torun, Grudziadz, Gniezno, Pila

Gdansk -> Gdansk, Grudziadz

Szczecin -> Gorzow

Katowice -> Rybnik, Krakow, Czestochowa, Opole

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Top tip if you are flying to Berlin and then going to Poland by train, the train does NOT terminate at Berlin's main railway station. Instead, you have to take the S Bahn to Lichtenberg, and get the train from there, which is a bit like taking a train to Watford if you are travelling out of London. Anyway, the next trick is NOT to buy the ticket in advance on the Bahn.de web site. Instead, buy your ticket to Kostrzyn (the border crossing point, where you have to change trains) on the train, and then buy a second ticket from Kostrzyn to Gorzow or ZG again on the train. German Railways charge about €20 for the combined ticket as a "border crossing duty" if you buy online.

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Would like to sample the Falubaz atmosphere so can anybody tell me my best means of travel from London?

My first ever trip to Poland for a speedway meeting was in 2010 to Zielona Gora v Leszno meeting(couldn't speak a word of Polish,but am good at it now ;) ).Stood in Sektor K with the Falubaz kibice(supporters).17,000 in the stadium and was almost full an hour before racing commenced.Away supporters were frogmarched from a meeting point to the stadium(more police than supporters).The atmosphere is like nothing else you will experience at a speedway meeting and if you're unfortunate you'll get tear gassed by riot police trying to leave the stadium,but don't let that put you off. ;)

Edited by bluejam

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if you're unfortunate you'll get tear gassed by riot police trying to leave the stadium,but don't let that put you off. ;)

 

The Police have got it down to a fine art now...they detain away fans inside the cage for about an hour after the meeting (bear that in mind if you have a train to catch), by which time the home fans will have dispersed...or at least they did when I was "in the cage" at Zielona Gora with the Stal Gorzow fans. Yeah, you could see that the Police were equipped to handle any situation, but they also believe in the prevention is better than cure ethos.

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