Warsaw · With kids

Ratuszowa 1/3 in Praga, over the river and served by tram. Around 12,000 animals of some 500 species, including the polar bear brothers Aleut and Gregor — the only polar bears in Poland — plus African elephants, hippos and hyacinth macaws. Opens daily at 9:00; buy online or at the customer service centre.

Free 30-minute water, light and music shows on the fountain park below the Old Town, Fridays and Saturdays from May to September — 21:30 in May and June, 21:00 in August, 20:30 in September. The 2026 show, 'Wielkie Serca', is built around Chopin, Lempicka, Lewandowski and Świątek. Bring something to sit on.

More than 50 locomotives and carriages at ul. Towarowa 3, a walk from the centre: steam engines, postal wagons and the only preserved armoured train of its kind in Europe, much of it out in an open-air railway yard. Open 10:00–18:00 daily except Tuesdays, last admission 17:30, and free on Mondays.

Olympic and recreational pools plus an outdoor pool at ul. Merliniego 4 in Mokotów, with aqua classes, squash courts and a spa floor for whoever is not getting in the water. Hours and the price list are on the site; the office line answers 08:00–16:00.

Warsaw's great palace park: peacocks on the paths, the Palace on the Isle in the middle of a lake, and open-air Chopin recitals by the Chopin Monument on Sundays at noon and 4 p.m. across the summer season, running since 1959 and drawing around 80,000 people a year. The park is the point — the museums inside it are ticketed separately.