The three main star-shaped squares of the city are modeled on the plan of those in the French capital. Their arrangement reflects the position of the Giza pyramids in relation to the Nile and the constellation of Orion in relation to the Milky Way. And this is just the beginning of the attractions …
Szczecin is not located by the sea, although many tourists expect this from the city of the West Pomeranian Voivodeship, which has 185 km of coast line! However, the city is crossed by the Oder River. Its majestic beauty is best admired from the terraces of the Chrobry Embankment (Wały Chrobrego), but also to embark on a cruise, for example to the wreck of the 90-meter-long German reinforced concrete tanker "Ulrich Finsterwalder", sunk during the last war on the Dąbie Lake. It is the fourth largest inland reservoir in Poland. It offers a beach and a bathing area, as well as the Głębokie, Dziewoklicz and Miedwie lakes, which are also located within the city.
Venice of Szczecin is waiting for romantic visitors. You can reach it using the City Kayaking Tours offer, but also reach it on foot from the 88/89 Kolumba Street - by a small bridge to the Jaskółcza Island. Reflecting in the Odra river brick facades of tenement houses and the buildings of the 19th century of the former alcohol and yeast factory evoke associations with an Italian city on the islands.
The river island of Łasztownia, whose name means a place in port cities where goods are unloaded and loaded onto ships or ballast dumped, is bustling with new life. Symbolizing those times are the historic cranes on the Old Town wharf - illuminated at night, they resemble prehistoric creatures, hence their unofficial name "craneosaurs". You can also see the mast of the SS general cargo ship from a distance. Captain K. Maciejewicz, who, before being scrapped in 1985, was named after Konstanty Matyjewicz-Maciejewicz's, "the captain of the captains" of the deep-see navigation, but previously sailed under different names and flags. Pedestrians, runners, cyclists and anglers are attracted by new boulevards with atmospheric cafes on the sides and boats mooring at the coast, as well as by the Stara Rzeźnia Euroregion Cultural Center.
Located in the Zdroje district, it has a shade matching its name. Located in the area of the Landscape Park “Beech Woods” (Park Krajobrazowy Puszcza Bukowa) was created in the workings of the former chalk mine - fragments of mining machines still rest at the bottom. The surroundings of the lake are a refuge for many protected species of animals, including bats hibernating in the nearby bunkers and underground tunnels.
A great way to get to know Szczecin in a nutshell is the City Tourist Trail. It is designated by, among others: Mieczysław Karłowicz Philharmonic(Filharmonia im. M. Karłowicza) in the shape of an iceberg, Pomeranian Dukes' Castle (Zamek Książąt Pomorskich), Solidarity Square (Plac Solidarności), reminding that the August 1980 Agreements were first signed by Szczecin, before Gdańsk, the Breakthrough Dialogue Center Museum (Muzeum Centrum Dialogu Przełomy) with an exhibition devoted to the post-war history of the city, St. St. James Cathedral (Katedra św.Jakuba), the Royal Gate (Brama Królewska), Harbor Gate (Brama Portowa) or the birthplace of two later tsarines of Russia - Catherine the Great and Maria Fedorovna.
The mission of "building the regional, national and European identity of West Pomerania and its inhabitants in the spirit of multicultural, cross-border dialogue and cooperation" is carried out by the National Museum in Szczecin through its branches, including the Museum of Regional Traditions.
How the vehicles manufactured in Szczecin looked and moved: pre-war Stoewer bicycles and cars, the unforgettable Junak motorcycle or the prototype of the "Smyk" passenger car are exhibited in the Museum of Technology and Communication.
