← Toruń Marathon·1 night

Grudziądz: Medieval Granaries Above the Vistula

Grudziądz is a Vistula town about an hour and a quarter from Toruń by train, known for its medieval granaries standing on a bluff above the river, now museum branches.

Duration1 night
TransitTrain from Toruń, about 1 hr 15 min with a change
DepartsToruń

After the Toruń Marathon: Grudziądz

The Route: Toruń → Grudziądz → Toruń Logistics: Train from Toruń to Grudziądz, one night, train back. Short walks in the centre. Marathon Month: October Duration: 1 night

Toruń ──(train, about 1 hr 15 min, change at Toruń Wschodni on one listed service)──> Grudziądz (granaries, museum, hotel)
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The Toruń Marathon finishes on a Sunday in October, and Monday is a day for moving slowly. Grudziądz is the next sizeable town down the Vistula, and its granaries are the reason to go. They face the river from a bluff, so the walk is short and the sights are close together.

October in Grudziądz: the Vistula bluff is exposed to wind, the days are short and the evenings are cold, so bring a coat and plan the granaries for the daylight hours.

The rail connection is thin. One timetable page listed a single Intercity service from Toruń Główny at 16:09, arriving at 17:23 with a change at Toruń Wschodni of about 11 minutes, and said no other Intercity trains ran on the route on that listing. Fares were from PLN 46 in second class. The regional operator Arriva also runs a Toruń, Chełmża and Grudziądz corridor, but no October departure times were found. Do not plan this trip until you have checked the dated timetables of both operators, and keep the return time open.

Night one: the granaries

The granaries date from the turn of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries and were first mentioned in 1365. From the river side they look like six-storey medieval buildings, up to about 20 m tall, and from the town side they look like one-storey tenement houses. They stand on an escarpment above the Vistula. The river once reached the walls, and a terrace was built about a century ago to hold it back. A grain chute survives in the wall of building number 13/15. They served as grain stores and as part of the city's walls.

Five of them house branches of the Museum named after Fr Dr Władysław Łęga, covering the city's history and the history of the uhlan uniform. The museum is at ul. Wodna 3/5. Its public record lists opening Tuesday to Sunday, Check the hours and prices with the museum by phone or on its site before going. The walk along the Vistula side passes the Water Gate, which guards the entrance to the town. The ground slopes between the river terrace and the town, so allow for a climb.

A tourist information office was listed at Rynek 3/5 in an article from 2011, so confirm that it is still there.

For a bed, booking sites list Hotel City and Hostel Staromiejski in Grudziądz. Check each address and its distance from the granaries before booking. For food, ask at the tourist office or choose a place near the Rynek.

Getting back

Take a train back to Toruń and check the departure time when you buy the ticket, since a single listed service may not suit the morning. If the connection does not work, a day in Bydgoszcz or another night in Toruń is an easier plan.