Cheap Flights To Rzeszow

Pronounced "shess-ov", Rzeszow is one of Poland's most beautiful destinations and the focal point for the southeast of the country. On one hand, this is a city that offers some classical tourist attractions. It's been around for over 800 years, so there's no shortage of historical monuments -- from the Bernardine Church and the 18th-century synagogue to the "Underground Tourist Route": a network of tunnels underneath the city centre that once provided shelter for locals from conflicts that swept across the region. Nowadays, it links together wine bars and homes and offers some unique guided tours. With museums and an elegant urban core, city-break fans will have plenty to occupy themselves in the city centre, but there's more here than monuments. You can head to traditional "milk bars" serving Polish delicacies like pork cutlets or pierogi (dumplings), join the 50,000 students in town as they cram the city's bars and clubs or attend one of the many cultural events that pack the annual calendar like the Carpathian Song Festival or July's Festival of Polish Folklore. Lively, historic and beautiful, this is a Polish destination you'd be foolish to overlook.

Things To Do

Whether you're a history nut or you just want to unwind with some fine food or rustic scenery, Rzeszow offers a range of activities and attractions to enjoy.

• Go underground

The city centre is built on a complex series of tunnels that were carved out of the rock between the 1500s and the mid 20th century. Built as a defensive measure, they are now a magical, if eerie, tourist attraction and are great fun to explore with an expert guide.

• Explore some magical castles

While Rzeszow's own castle is an elegant building (and well worth exploring), the region around the city offers still more breathtaking sights. Don't miss Lancut (15 miles to the east) with its gorgeous palace or Krasiczyn with its own fairy-tale castle.

• Try some delicious Carpathian cuisine

The area around the city is Poland's gastronomic heartland. From gorgeous smoked cheeses to hearty dumplings, meaty sausages and sourdough loaves to savoury pancakes cooked in wood-fired ovens -- gastronomes will be in heaven. And with local brews by the bucketful, it's a great place for a drink, too.

Calendar Of Events

Rzeszow is one of Poland's biggest cultural centres. In fact, it styles itself as one of the homes of Polish folk culture and offers a rich program of events.

• International Festival of Polish Folklore. Scheduled for July, this ebullient event features stunning costumes, bands from all over the Polish-speaking world and dazzling dancers.

• Carpathia Song Festival. A celebration of the region's rich musical heritage, this May event brings together folk and pop acts as well as artists from all over Eastern Europe in a fiesta of harmonies.

• Cieszanow Rock Festival. Taking place in a village not far from Rzeszow, this August open air event is Poland's third-biggest summer music event and a showcase of Eastern Europe's vibrant metal and hard rock scene (which happens to take place in beautiful surroundings).