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Visit the Wilanów Palace in Warsaw

a woman and two boys and two man standing outside the palace with yellow facade
No need to write anything here. The Wilanów Palace. Photo by A. Rybczyńska

I really did not know what treasures we have in our capital. I'm writing this with shame and embarassement…… but a man learns from his mistakes all the time. I used to be big ignorant, but I am not anymore. I have been to Florence, Venice, Vienna, Prague, Berlin or Milan. I have admired there outstanding palaces, museums, works of art, sculptures, monuments and so on but I didn't realize that here in Poland, in Warsaw we have also great works of art literally. 

a woman is inside the palace, she is standing next to the stone statue, there is also a wooden table with flowers on it
We had headphones with a guide, thanks to which we could listen a lot of interesting information about the Wilanów Palace. Photo by A. Rybczyński

Wilanów Palace is another pearl on our sightseeing route. The baroque Royal Palace was built in the years 1681–1696 for King Jan III Sobieski and his wife Maria Casimire according to the design of Augustyn Wincenty Locci. Over the centuries, the property passed into different hands and changed owners. During World War II, the Germans and Hungarians plundered about 80% of the interior furnishings of the palace, and the palace garden was also destroyed. After the war, the complex became state property. Thanks to conservation work and recovery of a significant part of the collections taken away by the Germans, in 1962 the palace was made available to the public.

Currently, the Museum of King Jan III's Palace is located in Wilanów. The Palace together with the surrounding park and buildings has retained its architectural form, historical and artistic values. In 1994, the Wilanów palace complex with Morysin was declared as a historical monument. It is a place of cultural events, concerts and meetings. There is a beautiful garden next to the palace, many free standing sculptures, a Chinese pavilion and even a "Roman bridge". Visit Warsaw with me.

More information about The Wilanów Palace you can find on Wikipedia

You can also read my other threads about Warsaw: The Royal Castle,  Warsaw in a few words and monuments and the Royal Łazienki. If you have some spare time, I recommend you to go to Palmiry. 

What to see in the Wilanów?

The biggest attraction in Wilanów is of course the palace built under the watchful eye of King Jan III Sobieski. The palace is built in the Baroque style. An excellent collection of European, Polish and Oriental art is presented in the Wilanów Palace. Jacques-Louis David's "Equestrian Portrait of Stanisław Kostka Potocki" remains the pearl of the collection - the only work of the great painter in Polish collections. Next to the castle there is a wonderful garden, the complex also includes an oriental Chinese pavilion, a Roman Bridge connecting the gardens with the island and a pumping station building inspired by medieval architecture.

What to see in the Wilanów Palace?

Currently, you can visit: Chinese and Hunting Rooms, Warehouse Gallery, Marszałkowa Lubomirska's Hall and Living Room, White Room, Royal Apartments, Great Hall with a collection of antiquities, former rooms of the Sobieski family on the first floor of the palace and a new permanent exhibition in the galleries on the first floor of the palace - "Potocki collecting ". There are also various temporary exhibitions from time to time (it is always worth to see the official website of the Wilanów Palace and check available routes).

Is it worth visiting the Wilanów Palace?

Yes definitely. I highly recommend visiting this place. You can spend many hours there and feel the baroque atmosphere, admire the beauty of art and wonderful interiors. You can also take a walk around the complex, go to Lake Wilanów, rest in the shade of trees on one of the benches or drink coffee in a nearby cafe. 

Is one day enough for the Wilanów Palace?

Yes, you can easily see all the monuments of the complex in one day.

Is there a restaurant in the Wilanów Palace?

There is a cafe next to the palace, several restaurants are very close to the palace complex.

The Wilanów Palace opening hours

Palace opening hours for individual guests: daily except Tuesdays 10.00-16.00 (entrance until 15.00). 
Group visits and museum lessons will be available daily upon advanced reservation.

What day is free at the Wilanów Palace?

On Thursdays, entrance is free. Tickets are available at the box office, but they are limited for conservation reasons and cannot be booked. The order of applications decides. Entrance to the park is also free on Thursdays, and tickets to the park cannot be booked.

Is the Wilanów Palace open every day?

The Wilanów Palace is open every day, except Tuesdays.

 

The Wilnanów Palace made huge impression on us. The interiors of the Wilanów Palace greeted us with stunning splendour. They are just unbelievable in their beauty. I hope you can see it in my photos. 

But let's start from the beginning :) from St. Anne's Church. It's very close to the Palace.

a church with bright walls, around the church there are green trees and bushes
We are standing in front of the entrance to the St. Anne's Church in Wilanów. Photo by A. Rybczyński

In 1772, the wooden parish church was replaced with a brick church dedicated to St. Anna. The church was erected from the foundation of the then owner of Wilanów - Prince August Adam Czartoryski. In the years 1857-1870, Aleksandra and August Potocki rebuilt and enlarged the existing church (according to the design of the architect Henryk Marconi). The church received a Neo-Renaissance form and is a magnificent temple next to the Wilanów residence of King Jan III Sobieski.

the main entrance to the church seeing from the inside, a large chandelier hangs from the ceiling, there are two statues on either side of the entrance
The St. Anne's Church in Wilanów isn't large but it has its own charm. Photo by A. Rybczyńska

The interior of the church.

one of the altars in the side room of the church
The ceiling has a dome shape. St. Anne's Church in Wilanów. Photo by A. Rybczyńska

A giant mammoth bone found while digging foundations 

huge, mammoth bone found in 1770 while digging the foundations for the church, the bone hangs in the church
I have never seen such a huge bone! St. Anne's Church in Wilanów. Photo by A. Rybczyńska

The park around the Palace is quite large with big trees which give a shade in a sunny day. 

stone mausoleum in the middle of the lawn
Walking a park alley we saw the Potocki mausoleum in Wilanów. Photo by A. Rybczyńśka

The mausoleum is a symbolic tombstone erected in 1836 for Stanisław Kostka Potocki and his wife Aleksandra by their son Aleksander

stone mausoleum, the boy is sitting on the stairs that lead to it
In the background, the roof of St. Anne's Church appears from behind the trees. Wilanów. Photo by A. Rybczyńska

You can spend hours there and admire all the beauty of this magnificent Palace. Just look at these facades with many statues, column capitals and even vases on the roof!

a yellow facade of the palace close up
It is simply breathtaking. The Wilanów Palace. Photo by A. Rybczyńska
a boy is standing in front of a palace with a yellow facade
Maciek is a great model, isn't he? :) The Wilanów Palace. Photo by A. Rybczyńska
two boys are standing on an alley of cobblestones, behind them a green lawn and a large palace with a yellow facade
I though that the Wilanów Palace isn't big, but I was wrong. Photo by A. Rybczyńska

Sometimes it's hard to capture the beauty of a particular building……. the best way is to see it on your own eyes :)

a palace with yellow facade in all its glory
This photo was taken from the cafe. The Wilanów Palace. Photo by A. Rybczyńska

After visiting the palace, we had to gather strength for further sightseeing. It was nice to sit down to drink coffee and eat a tasty cake. I felt like I was transported to those times. 

a woman is sitting at the table and she is drinking coffee
A moment of rest. The Wilanów Palace. Photo by A. Rybczyńska

The other side of the Palace.

A woman, two boys and a man are standing in front of the baroque palace, the palace has yellow walls, and Roman style statues on top
My family. The Wilanów Palace. Photo by my dad :)

There is a wonderful garden around the Palace. 

A woman, two boys and a man are standing in the garden which belongs to the palace
I'm glad we had such beautiful weather. The Wilanów Palace. Photo by my dad :)

Our selfie in a palaces garden :)

a woman and a man are hugging, they are in the garden, a stone statue is behind them
There are many free standing statues. The gardens of the Wilanów Palace. Photo by A. Rybczyńska

Below are pictures from the inside of the Palace.

a man and two boys are watching vintage clothes in a palace
Maciek listener :) in the Wilanów Palace. Photo by A. Rybczyńska
decorative element of palace decor, buddhist golden figurine
And again the fondness for orientalism like in the Royal Łazienki. The Wilanów Palace. Photo by A. Rybczyńska
a woman and a boy are taking selfie, behind them there are decorative elements of palace like small bookcase and a painting of woman hangs on the wall
Great exhibition in the Wilanów Palace. Photo by A. Rybczyńska
 decorative table
Charming piece of furniture in the Wilanów Palace. Photo by. A. Rybczyńska

Monumental statue of King Jan III Sobieski.

a boy is standing next to huge statue which presents a ruler on the horse. A statue is white
Pay attention to these capitals - they have faces! The Wilanów Palace. Photo by A. Rybczyńska

There were so many secret drawers! The element looked unopened, but it was opened.

a decorative bookcase with many drawers, books and piece of papers
I like such things. I would like to have such a piece of furniture in my apartment. The Wilanów Palace. Photo by A.Rybczyńska
many porcelain plates and vases standing on the shelves
Full of orientalism in the Wilanów Palace. Photo by A. Rybczyńska

There were also unique ceilings.

the ceiling is decorated with images of scholars in round frames
The ceiling in the Wilanów Palace with images and names of famous scholars like Copernicus, Ptolomeus, Archimedes. Photo by A. Rybczyńska
a domed ceiling with a painting of a cupid, the walls of the room decorated with blue decorations, two vintage clothes
 I really like this ceiling ... maybe because of this little Cupid and the illusion of his hanging leg. The Wilanów Palace. Photo by. A. Rybczyńska

We are in the bedroom of Maria Kazimiera. The original bed did not survive, the basis for developing the arrangement and decoration of the reconstructed furniture were Daniel Marot's projects. Particularly noteworthy are great painted ceiling and the mirror placed on the dresser the so -called Queen Maria dressing table probably made at the end of the 17th century.

a very decorative bedroom in a palace with a large bed, paintings on the walls, sculptures by the ceiling, a woman with a boy standing next to the bed
I always wonder why the beds from those times were so short. The Wilanów Palace. Photo by A. Rybczyński

The most valuable picture at the Palace in Wilanów is the "Horse portrait of Stanisław Kostka Potocki" painted in 1781 by the great French painter of neoclassicalism, Jacques-Louis David. This is the only work of David in the Polish collections created in the Parisian Workshop of the Master.

a large painting of a rider on a horse in a golden frame
This huge painting in the Wilanów Palace made a big impression of me. Photo by A. Rybczyńska
three paintings of women in wooden frames
But the museum's collections in Wilanów also have works, for example Cranach or Rubens. Photo by A. Rybczyńska
a Cranachs painting shows a girl in a green long dress with few orange stripes on a dress and with a red hat
Portrait of a Girl with Forget Me Nots (“The Princess”) by Lucas Cranach the Elder. The Wilanów Palace. Photo by A. Rybczyńska

The building called the water tower is an interesting landscape attraction, located right on the lake. Probably you can rent a canoe or boat there, when we were there that option was closed.

a boy is sitting on a stair next to small building made of red bricks with green door
It's very interesting water tower in the Wilanów Park. Photo by A. Rybczyńska

During our walk we got to the other interesting biulding. 

two boys are standing next to Chinese style pavilion
Chinese style pavilion in the Wilanów Park. Photo by A. Rybczyńska

There are magnificent free-standing statues everywhere. There were also little ducks. The boys were delighted with them.

a boy is near the lake, there are several ducks, a large stone statue is behind him
Lots of marigolds on the water. The Wilanów Park. Photo by A. Rybczyńska

The Roman Bridge is a small bridge connecting the park with the island on Lake Wilanowskie - also belonging to the historic park and garden complex of the Royal Palace in Wilanów. The bridge was built at the beginning of the 19th century. I found out that it was in 1806.

a woman is standing on a bridge which is made of red bricks, behind her there is a small lake
The name of the bridge comes from the way of laying bricks that was popular in ancient Rome. The Wilanów Park. Photo by A. Rybczyński

On an island in the Wilanów Park, there is a beautiful, classical monument commemorating the Battle of Raszyn in 1809.

a boy is next to the stone monument
You can get to the island through the Roman bridge. The Wilanów Park. Photo by A. Rybczyńska

We also had a moment of rest. We came across a unique example of furniture: a wooden table with several chairs.

a family is resting at the wooden table and they are sitting on wooden chairs, they are near the column with the eagle on top
There was also a great column with a Corinthian capital, with a sculpture of an eagle mounted on it. The Wilanów Park. Photo by A. Rybczyński

The second side of the Royal Gardens.

two boys are near the fountain, in the center in fountain there is a small cupid, the fountain are in the palace garden
What are they doing? I'm sure they're looking for money :)) The gardens of the Wilanów Palace. Photo by A. Rybczyńska
Polish map outline and website address
If you have any questions,
please write to me
Agnieszka Rybczyńska

aga@gotopoland.net

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