The Vistula Spit is a narrow strip of land – as narrow as hundreds of meters – separating the Vistula Lagoon and the Gdańsk Bay, and has been on my personal bucket list: I am a (very) amateur cartographer and enjoy looking at maps, and the Spit seemed like an anomaly needing my attention.
Its history is also fascinating: Prussian before World War I, divided by the Treaty of Versailles between the Free City of Danzig and East Prussian, assigned after World War II to Poland and Russian (specifically, the Kaliningrad Oblast).
Getting There
A non-negotiable stop on a (relatively) quick driving tour of northern Poland was to drive the length of the Polish part of the Spit (definitely not going to Russia and don’t believe there’s a border crossing anyway) It’s roughly a 90 minute drive from Old Town Gdańsk to Krynica Morska, specifically Nowa Karczma. On the Spit itself it’s mostly a rural two-lane highway.
What’s There?
Beaches on both sides with the requisite/expected hotels, campgrounds, resorts, restaurants, etc. Hiking paths which, at the eastern end, takes you within a mile of the Russian border (a little too close for my wife). A historical site which requires hiking.
Mid-October is definitely not prime season, so very few tourists and few open businesses – actually saw very few locals and almost no cars – but it’s easy to envision this as a summer destination: long expanses of beach, fine-grained sand, plenty of parking and public access, cool breeze off the sea. Most beaches seem to have no facilities, though did stop at a boardwalk with simple coffee shops and cafes.
Piaski has an amusement park with basic rides for kids, you can’t miss it as you drive east, it’s the largest concentration of houses, restaurants, and other business at the eastern end of the Spit.
But alas, most everything is shutdown in mid-October and hiking was not an option due to time, cold, and rain, but I am content knowing that I have actually been to the Vistula Spit!
What’s Next?
On the other side of the Kaliningrad is the Curonian Spit which is accessible via Lithuania, perhaps I’ll take a similar selfie there!
Pictures and videos © 2023 Scott Christopher Sosna
