Having been to Wrocław many times before, including four times over the last year, I thought that I’d get the train to somewhere new as I move across Poland to get to Warsaw Beer Festival. Here’s Wrocław Główny railway station looking rather lovely in the morning sun.
Wrocław Główny was originally constructed between 1855 and 1857 according to the Neo-Gothic designs of royal architect Wilhelm Grapow. At the time of its completion it stood as one of the largest and most architecturally ambitious railway structures in Europe and served as the primary gateway for the Upper Silesian Railway. Throughout the twentieth century the station underwent several significant expansions and survived the Siege of Breslau in 1945, being comprehensively restored in 2012. It now also has a rather lovely shopping mall attached to the back of it, which is also home to the city’s coach station.
And there’s my train, which is a regional service.
Very shiny, this is part of the Koleje Dolnośląskie (KD) fleet.
The journey to Oleśnica takes around forty minutes and costs around £3.
I bought my ticket at the railway station as it was a short and regular regional service, I normally buy them in advance. The train was clean and comfortable, with power points available under the seats. My ticket was checked by a cheerful guard as she meandered down the train.
It’s a reasonably beautiful journey across the Polish countryside.
Safely into Oleśnica railway station which officially opened on 28 May 1868 as a key stop on the new line connecting Wrocław Nadodrze with the industrial regions of Upper Silesia. Its arrival marked something of a transformative era for the town, prompting the removal of medieval city gates to accommodate increased transport and establishing the station as a major Prussian transport hub between the Oder River and Greater Poland. This reminds me of the hole in the city wall that they punched through in York for the city’s railway station, then promptly built the new railway station outside of the city walls…
Like seemingly many things in Poland, the railway station has received a large investment and the building is being restored back to its grand former past.
And this is what it’ll look like when the work is completed.