Warsaw's old town square at dusk

Although reduced to rubble during World War II, Poland's capital has since undergone a pheonix-like resurrection.

The historic centre of this riverside city has been lovingly restored to its pre-war glory (it's now a UNESCO World Heritage Site) and sits juxtaposed against modern skyscrapers and grey, box-like Eastern European apartment blocks. 

Since the fall of Communism, Warsaw has again reinvented itself as a modern, cosmopolitan business centre that can hold its own beside other European capitals.

Travellers here can live it up in posh hotels or browse boutique clothing stores while taking in Warsaw's cornucopia of historic sites.

Chief among Warsaw's tourist attractions is the city's former Jewish neighbourhood and site of the tragic Warsaw Ghetto. The Warsaw Rising Museum recalls the horrors and the tales of bravery from the 1944 Warsaw uprising.

When you've had your fill of wartime grisliness, pay a visit to the Soviet-era Palace of Culture and Science, or ogle your way through the former Royal Castle (Zamek Krolewski), which has been partly converted into a museum. On a sunny day, chill out in Lazienkowski Park, a magnificently manicured green space that contains the 18th-century Palace Upon the Water, where the last king of Poland resided.

Warsaw Frederic Chopin Airport is the city's main international gateway.