Capital: Warsaw

Area: 312,679 km2

Population: 38,483,957

Ethnic groups: 93.52% Polish, 1.09% Silesian, 0.13% German, 5,26 % other

Language: Polish

Religion: the population of Poland is 87.5% Roman Catholic.

Neighboring countries: Germany, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania, Russia.

Climate: maritime and sometimes continental. The average monthly temperature in July is 19 degrees Celsius, winters are usually very cold, but can be mild some years. The temperature is usually below 0 and sometimes goes till -20 °C .

Time zone: UTC/GMT + 2 hours

National currency: the zloty (10 zloty=2,45 euro)

Joined the European union: May 2004

Visa: EU citizens do not require a visa

Travel documents: Poland joined Schengen area on 21st Dec 2007. If you are an EU national , you do not need to show your national ID card or passport when you are travelling from one border-free Schengen EU country to another. It is still always highly recommended to take a passport or ID card with you, so you can prove your identity if needed.