Hotels near Palace of Culture and Science (PKiN)

The Palace of Culture and Science (Palac Kultury i Nauki, or PKiN) is the tallest building in Poland at 237 metres including its spire. A "gift" from Stalin to the Polish people, completed in 1955, it was modelled on Moscow's Seven Sisters skyscrapers. Varsovians have a complicated relationship with it - some see an unwanted Soviet relic, others a defining part of the skyline. Regardless, the 30th-floor observation terrace at 114 metres gives the best 360-degree panorama of Warsaw, including views across to the Vistula River and the distant forests beyond.

Tickets for the viewing terrace cost 25 PLN (about 6 EUR). The building also houses theatres, cinemas, a swimming pool, and the Congress Hall where the Rolling Stones played the first major Western rock concert in the Eastern Bloc in 1967. The surrounding Plac Defilad is being redeveloped with the new Museum of Modern Art and TR Warszawa theatre complex.

Pro Tip: Go up 30 minutes before sunset to catch both daylight and city-lights views. The west-facing side gives you the Old Town skyline at golden hour.