Do it in the Tri-City! Alternative guide - part two
Gdynia pier in Orłowo district / Fot. Shutterstock
Gdynia Orłowo, Gdańsk Brzeźno
The pier in Sopot is a Tri-City icon and the city's most popular showpiece. You have to remember, though, that Gdańsk and Gdynia also have their own piers, albeit much younger and shorter. The pier in Gdańsk tends to be a bit problematic, being located between two districts, Brzeźno and Zaspa, as an extension into the sea of a pedestrian precinct situated in Czarny Dwór Street. Although located closer to Zaspa, it is officially part of Brzeźno beach and so you come across the phrase 'pier in Brzeźno' just as often as 'pier in Zaspa', though the former is the correct version. The pier in Gdańsk is a 'mere' decade and a half old, having been constructed in the mid-1990s. At present, this wooden facility is 136 metres in length, although the city plans to extend it. Nearby there is a beach, an all-year-round bar, and wireless internet access along the entire pier and in the vicinity. From Gdańsk pier you can get an excellent view of the Northern Port with the ships coming in, the Westerplatte monument and, in the distance, Sopot pier.
The pier in Gdynia Orłowo was built as early as 1934 and was then over 400 metres long. Up to the present, it has been frequently renovated and rebuilt after storms. Currently it is 180 metres in length and offers a splendid view of, apart the obvious waters of the Bay of Gdańsk and ships at roadstead, an impressive cliff - the steep shore of the Kępa Redłowska.