In this guide
💡 The Short Version: Toruń is a Gothic brick city located 210 km north-west of Warsaw on the Vistula River (visittorun.com). A UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1997, it was the birthplace of the astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus in 1473 and is known for its gingerbread (pierniki). Direct PKP Intercity trains run from Warszawa Centralna to Toruń Główny in about 2 hours 15 minutes. The day’s three stops are the 40-metre Old Town Hall tower, Copernicus’s birthplace, and a baking workshop at the Museum of Toruń Gingerbread, where you press your own gingerbread with hand-carved wooden moulds. Or book a tour: Small-Group Tour from Warsaw to Torun with Lunchad (from 1,311 PLN, 4.9 stars from 3 reviews) is a small-group day trip from Warsaw to Toruń with lunch.
⚠️ Monday museum closures: The Old Town Hall exhibitions, Copernicus House and the Gingerbread Museum (all run by the District Museum, Muzeum Okręgowe w Toruniu) are closed on Mondays. The Old Town Hall tower stays open daily, but plan the trip for Tuesday to Sunday to see the museums (muzeum.torun.pl).
Train connections from Warsaw to Toruń
Direct PKP Intercity trains link Warsaw and Toruń:
| Departure Station | Destination Station | Train Operator | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|
| Warszawa Centralna | Toruń Główny | PKP Intercity (IC / TLK) | 2h 10m – 2h 30m |
| Warszawa Gdańska | Toruń Główny | PKP Intercity (select routes) | 2h 15m |
| Central Warsaw Hotel | Toruń Old Town Doorstep | Small-Group Guided Minivan | 10 hours full day |
Advance train tickets can be booked online via intercity.pl up to 30 days prior to departure. Upon arriving at Toruń Główny on the southern riverbank, walk through the station pedestrian underpass to the Dworzec Główny bus bay. Catch municipal bus Line 22 or Line 27 across the bridge to Plac Rapackiego.
The 40-metre Gothic tower of the Old Town Hall in Toruń. Photo: Krzysztof Golik, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Tours and organised day trips
A day tour avoids train timetables and the bus transfer, with transport to the Old Town and an English-speaking guide.
Small-Group Tour from Warsaw to Torun with Lunch
From 1,311 PLN · 4.9 stars from 3 reviews · 10 hours · small group, lunch included
Small-Group Tour from Warsaw to Torun with Lunchad: a small-group trip from Warsaw to Toruń, a medieval Gothic town on the UNESCO World Heritage list, with lunch.
From Warsaw: Krakow Sightseeing Tour by Express Train
From 1,333 PLN · 4.7 stars from 19 reviews · 11 hours · express train and guided Old Town tour
From Warsaw: Krakow Sightseeing Tour by Express Trainad: a full-day trip to Kraków by express train, with a guided tour of the Old Town.
From Warsaw: Lodz Private Full-Day Tour
From 1,201 PLN · 5.0 stars from 2 reviews · 8 hours · private full-day tour
From Warsaw: Lodz Private Full-Day Tourad: a full-day private tour of Łódź, covering its industrial architecture and factory owners’ palaces.
Entry prices if you go independently
| Sight | Price | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Old Town Hall tower | 28 PLN (24 reduced) | Open daily |
| Old Town Hall exhibition hall | 30 PLN (25 reduced) | Permanent exhibitions free on Wednesdays |
| Copernicus House | 31 PLN (26 reduced) | Permanent exhibitions free on Thursdays |
| Gingerbread museum and baking workshop | 49 PLN (43 reduced) | The exhibition hall alone is 31 PLN; permanent exhibitions free on Tuesdays |
| Small-group tour from Warsaw with lunch | From 1,311 PLN | 10 hours, transport and lunch included |
Museum prices are from the District Museum (muzeum.torun.pl).
Bronze monument of Nicolaus Copernicus (Mikołaj Kopernik) on the Rynek Staromiejski. Photo: Kumal, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0.
Top sights to see in Toruń
The main medieval sights are within a 15-minute walk of each other inside the old town walls:
1. Old Town Hall (Ratusz Staromiejski)
A Gothic brick town hall built in 1391–1399 on the Rynek Staromiejski. Inside, the District Museum shows Gothic panel paintings, stained glass and royal portraits.
- Free admission to permanent exhibitions on Wednesdays (tower excluded).
2. Nicolaus Copernicus House (Dom Mikołaja Kopernika)
At Ulica Kopernika 15/17, a pair of late-Gothic merchant houses, the presumed birthplace of the astronomer who “stopped the sun and moved the earth”. The museum has interactive displays on late-medieval astronomy, planetary models, 15th-century timber roof trusses and a reconstructed Renaissance scholar’s study.
- Free admission to permanent exhibitions on Thursdays.
3. Museum of Toruń Gingerbread (Muzeum Toruńskiego Piernika)
In a 19th-century former gingerbread factory at Ulica Strumykowa 4, the museum covers 700 years of Toruń’s gingerbread trade. In the baking workshop you choose a hand-carved wooden mould (kings, carriages, coats of arms), press the spiced dough and bake your own gingerbread tile.
- Free admission to permanent exhibitions on Tuesdays.
4. Cathedral of SS John the Baptist and John the Evangelist
A 14th-century Gothic basilica featuring the 13th-century baptismal font where Copernicus was christened, medieval wall frescoes depicting the Last Judgment, and the Tuba Dei (“Trumpet of God”) church bell, cast in 1500 and weighing over 7 tonnes.
5. The Leaning Tower (Krzywa Wieża)
Built in the 14th century as a square defensive bastion on the southern city wall, the tower shifted on unstable sandy soil and leans 1.46 metres off vertical. Local folklore says that if you stand with your heels and back against the wall and do not fall forward, you are honest and faithful.
The 14th-century Leaning Tower (Krzywa Wieża) leaning 1.46 metres off vertical. Photo: Dawid Galus, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0 pl.
Where to eat and buy gingerbread in Toruń
- Pierogarnia Stary Młyn (Rynek Staromiejski 10): Pierogi baked in a wood-fired oven (pierogi z pieca) with a crisp yeast pastry, and boiled pierogi filled with goose, buckwheat or forest berries.
- Gęsia Szyja (Ulica Podmurna 28): A tavern against the Gothic town wall serving Kuyavian goose, roast duck with apples and braised wild boar.
- Żywe Muzeum Piernika (Rabiańska 9): A live gingerbread show with costumed bakers, where you join in the baking.
- Sklep Firmowy Kopernik (Rynek Staromiejski 6): The shop of the Kopernik gingerbread company (founded 1763), selling chocolate-glazed Katarzynki gingerbreads, fruit-filled heart-shaped cakes and gift boxes.
One-day itinerary from Warsaw
From October to April the museums close at 16:00, so do the gingerbread workshop before lunch in those months. Check train times on intercity.pl.
- 07:55: Board PKP Intercity train at Warszawa Centralna.
- 10:10: Arrive at Toruń Główny; catch bus 22 or 27 across the bridge to Plac Rapackiego (8 minutes).
- 10:30: Walk down Szeroka Street to the Rynek Staromiejski and admire the Copernicus Monument.
- 11:00: Climb the 40-metre Old Town Hall tower for panoramic photos, then tour the Gothic hall.
- 12:30: Tour the Nicolaus Copernicus House Museum on Kopernika Street.
- 14:00: Sit down for lunch at Pierogarnia Stary Młyn on the Market Square.
- 15:30: Attend the interactive gingerbread baking workshop at the Museum of Toruń Gingerbread.
- 17:00: Walk along the river walls past the Leaning Tower and the Bridge Gate (Brama Mostowa).
- 18:15: Catch bus 22 back to Toruń Główny for the 18:45 intercity train back to Warsaw, arriving at Warszawa Centralna by 21:05.
What to see next
- Day Trips from Warsaw: Compares day trips to Łódź, Żelazowa Wola, Treblinka and Kraków.
- Łódź Day Trip from Warsaw: A former textile city, 75 minutes from Warsaw.
- Public transport in Warsaw: Getting to Warszawa Centralna by metro and tram.
- Warsaw in 1 or 2 days: City itineraries for a weekend break in the capital.
- Warsaw travel guide: Sights, transport, food and hotels.
Common questions
How do I get from Warsaw to Toruń by train?
Direct PKP Intercity trains run from Warszawa Centralna to Toruń Główny in about 2 hours 15 minutes.
Why is Toruń a UNESCO World Heritage Site?
Toruń was inscribed in 1997 for its 13th- to 15th-century street plan, Gothic brick churches, town wall towers and merchant townhouses, which came through the Second World War undamaged.
What are the attractions in Toruń?
The 14th-century Old Town Hall and its 40-metre tower, the Nicolaus Copernicus House, the Museum of Toruń Gingerbread (with baking workshops), the Cathedral of SS John the Baptist and John the Evangelist, and the 14th-century Leaning Tower (Krzywa Wieża).
Where is Toruń railway station relative to the Old Town?
Toruń Główny sits on the south bank of the Vistula, about 2 km from the Old Town. Buses 22 and 27 run from the station to Plac Rapackiego at the edge of the Old Town in 8 minutes; a taxi takes 5.
