Świdnica

Świdnica Peace Church

Świdnica is a city of 58,000 inhabitants in Dolnośląskie, Poland. It lies 55km southwest of the regional capital Wrocław. The Peace Church of Świdnica is on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Get in

By plane

There is an international airport in the near city of Wrocław.

By train

The regional rail operator Koleje Dolnoslaskie has train going from Wroclaw Glowny that takes 1-1.5 hours (sometimes require a connection).

By car

You can easily get there by car from Wrocław, Wałbrzych and Jelenia Góra.

By bus

The local minibus departs from a side road outside Wroclaw main bus station with several departures every hour (time table). The journey takes about 1 hour. (See Poland by bus.)

See

• 1 Peace Church (Kościół Pokoju), plac Pokoju 6, ☏ +48 74 852 28 14. On the UNESCO World Heritage List - dating from the 1600s and built out of unusual materials (wood and hay), it resembles a theatre or opera house more than a church. Covered top to bottom in beautiful, old, folk-art-style paintings, the Peace Church is absolutely worth a visit. 15 zł.  
• Cemetery (Cmentarz Komunaly). Behind the Peace Church is an old German cemetery which as of July 2008 was completely overgrown, giving it a creepy atmosphere and making it a great destination for photographers and seekers of the arcane. 
• 2 Museum of Weapons and Military Items (Muzeum Broni i Militariów), al. Niepodległości 21, ☏ +48 791 376 320. Daily 8:00—18:00. 
• 3 Museum of Old Trade (Historia Muzeum Dawnego Kupiectwa), 58-100 Świdnica, Rynek 37 (in the Old Town Hall at town centre), ☏ +48-74-852 12 91. It deals with old commerce with exhibits of weighing scale, containers, advertisements, and so on. (updated May 2019)
• 4 Museum of Railway in Silesia. A private museum in Jaworzyna Śląska, with the goal of protection and promotion of the technical cultural heritage. The collection consists of 50 steam, diesel and electric locomotives, as well as 100 wagons and specialized railway vehicles, e.g. WM-10 handcars. The collection also includes functional rail vehicles - a Polish TKt48-18 steam locomotive from 1951, a Czechoslovak 830 series rail bus from 1955, the oldest active diesel locomotive in Poland, a Deutz OMZ 122 R from 1940, an Ls40 4606 diesel locomotive , and a locomotive maneuvering vehicle SM30-531 from 1961. (updated Jan 2024)

Do

Attend the summer Bach Festival in July. Concerts are held in the Church of Peace and other venues in the town. For further details go to and follow the links through 'schedule of concerts' and 'Bach festivals'.

Sleep

• School Youth Hostel. 

Go next

• Jawor with very similar peace church
• Wałbrzych former coal mining centre and location of Książ Castle
• Wrocław capital of Lower Silesia