The cycling season is at its height and although Warsaw has not overtaken Amsterdam or Berlin when it comes to cycling culture yet, everything is heading in the right direction! People in Warsaw love riding bikes. In weekdays, they use them to get to work, whereas at the weekends and on holidays they plan cycling trips. When on a bicycle, the city looks completely different than if you look at it when taking a walk, commuting or driving a car. This “perspective” of Warsaw will surely provide some new positive emotions.
So, how to get a bike? It is not a problem at all if you do not have your own two-wheel vehicle. Since 2012, an automatic urban bicycle rental, Veturilo, has been operating . There are about 2650 modern bicycles located in 73 stations across the city at people’s disposal. Each bicycle has gears, its own basket and an adjustable saddle. You can use Veturilo from March to November, 24 hours a day! An empty station is a common sight on sunny days (especially in the city centre) that is why finding a bicycle sometimes requires some patience. Luckily, Veturilo network constantly expands and new locations are planned. Find out more about Veturilo (and about the registration): http://www.veturilo.waw.pl/.
Now, when you have a bicycle, it is time to plan a route. Currently, Warsaw has around 275 kilometres of cycle lanes. The most popular is the one along the left bank of the Vistula. The proximity of the river and nature in most of its sections will surely guarantee all cyclists enjoyable trips. This lane leads from Młociny (northern part of the city) to Powsin, where it is worth visiting the local Botanical Garden. The cycle lane in Ursynów (along Aleja Komisji Edukacji Narodowej) is also very attractive and leads to the Kabaty Woods, an extremely popular nature reserve in the southern part of the city). Apart from an over a hundred-year-old ancient forest, impressive are picturesque gorges and a bluff. We also recommend the Kampinos cycle lane around the Kampinos National Park. It is quite long, 144.5 kilometres, and full of natural attractions. The exact routes of the cycle lanes can also be checked on a map.
To take a break, visiting a cyclist-friendly cafe is a great idea. Apart from bicycle parking station and service point, you can buy there designers’ cycling equipment and learn about currently organised cycling trips. For a start, we recommend OSIR, one of the first cafes of this type. You will find there lots of bicycles on the walls, drink some good coffee or refreshing lemonade as well as have a regenerating snack to cycle further. Popular coffee bar clubs Warszawa Powiśle and Plac Zbawiciela, where you will find lots of such places, are full of parked bicycles. If you turn aside from a cycle lane, you should visit Państwomiasto in Muranów. There is a big parking station where you can leave your vehicle and, in case something happens to it, a service point is at your disposal.
Last but not least, one more recommendation: ever last Friday of the month the so-called Warszawska Masa Krytyczna starts from Plac Zamkowy. Its goal is to draw attention to improve cycling conditions in Warsaw. If you want to support this goal and cycle across the city, make sure to visit the following website where you can learn some details (and also about other cycling events).
