Żyrardów – Visit a small Polish Town

This tour is more personal for me – I will take you to my hometown 😊

Żyrardów is the only entirely preserved 19th-century industrial urban complex in Europe. For over 150 years it was called the „Polish Capital of Linen”. It was the European leader of the textile industry. The Żyrardów factory was once the biggest linen production centre in Europe, employing nine thousand people.

But I know different Żyrardów. The one in 1990s when communism ended and industry collapsed. A small town that relied on one factory suffered immensely. Unemployment and poverty spiralled.

On the tour you will see Żyrardów in a moment of a very interesting transformation. It started recovering and there`s a new, young generation – people my age – who make effort to revive the town. They have energy, vision, ideas and determination. Will they succeed?

The town is in the middle of the road between old and new. You will see a few of the largest industrial buildings in Europe – some still ruined and collapsing, some re-done and turned into pricey lofts, restaurants or art centres.

I consider Żyrardów an epitome of Poland`s post-communist economic transformation – both painful and successful. I find it the right place to understand Poland after communism – the good and bad sides of the end of communism, birth of free-market economy, the impact of all these changes on people`s life.

The tour will commence with collecting you from your accommodation in a comfortable car or minivan. Driving time to Żyrardów is only half an hour.

On the tour, we will find some time for lunch 😊

 

You can combine this tour with:

Informacje

Czas trwania:
5 hrs

Miejsce spotkania:
at a place convenient to you: your hotel, airport, train station etc.

Komunikacja:
Private car

Cena:
2200 zloty – maximum 4 persons (5-seat car)
2600 zloty – 5-6 persons (mini-van)
2900 zloty – 7-19 persons (bus)
3200 zloty – 20 persons and more

Cena zawiera:
Guiding service
Car service
parking fees

Dodatkowe wydatki:
Entrance fees – no more than 20 zloty per person

Zarezerwuj:
If you like this tour, just drop me a message with your preferred date and time. Let me also know how many of you are coming and where are you staying in Warsaw.