In a bid to escape the grey British weather, one traveller has become a regular on Ryanair’s less popular routes, discovering hidden gems at bargain prices. Lublin, a relatively unknown Polish city near the Ukrainian border, has become a favourite after a trip with £16 each-way tickets from Luton.
The two-hour flight was mostly empty, and the city’s Old Town, a 15-minute Uber ride from the airport costing just £6, charmed with its fairytale feel despite a dark past. Before World War II, Lublin was home to around 42,000 Jews; by 1944, only 300 remained. The city’s Jewish heritage lives on, notably at Restaurant Mandragora, featured in the 2024 film A Real Pain starring Kieran Culkin and Jesse Eisenberg.
The restaurant serves classic Jewish dishes like Lublin-style beef cholent, a slow-cooked stew. Accommodation is equally traditional: a 15th-century tenement house, Apartment Magdalena, overlooking the medieval square, costs just £56 per night, or £18 each for three people. The city’s New Town, renovated in 2017, features the Portal sculpture showing live street scenes from Vilnius, Lithuania.
Lublin’s blend of modern and traditional, its affordability, and its poignant history make it an ideal city break for those seeking something off the beaten path.
