Łódź Airport

Łódź Władysław Reymont is a small, modern airport, offering a limited selection of flights from across Europe. If this is your point of arrival to the city, it is a simple and stress-free experience. Here is out step-by-step guide to arriving at (and departing from) the airport and getting everything you need for a great stay in Poland.

Landing at Łódź Airport

Łódź Airport Introduction

Unusually for one of Poland’s biggest cities, Łódź Władysław Reymont Airport may not be the most convenient point of arrival. Despite being only 6km from the city centre – some 30 minutes away by public transport – the airport currently handles just 15 Ryanair flights a week from Alicante, Brussels Charleroi, Dublin, East Midlands, London Stansted, Malaga, and Milan Bergamo. That’s a mere 2-3 flights into the airport per day!

If none of these departure airports are within easy reach, it’s likely you’ll be better off flying into Warsaw and making your way to Łódź from there. We discuss how to make this decision on our How To Get To Łódź page.

Check Łódź Hotel Availability

Destination

Check-in date

Sun 08 Sep 2024

Check-out date

Mon 09 Sep 2024

However, if you do decide to fly direct, you’ll find Łódź Władysław Reymont Airport to be a modern, easy-to-navigate, and largely stress-free experience. Once you’ve cleared passport control, you can be on the bus into the centre of the city within minutes. And, because the airport handles so little traffic, the terminal remains fairly quiet and orderly at all times – emptying out pretty soon after the plane has arrived.

The terminal building was finished in 2012, with capacity for up to 2 million passengers. However, this coincided with faster connections to the capital city, and traffic has suffered as a consequence. The airport no longer hosts any domestic flights and various other European destinations have come and gone. Furthermore, there are plans for a big new international transport hub between Warsaw and Łódź.

The layout of the airport is very simple. Departures and Arrivals are both on the ground floor. For Arrivals, there is a single passport control and baggage hall. Arrivals exit in a small corridor, which leads directly to the taxi rank and bus stop. It is almost impossible to get lost or make the wrong decision. For Departures, there is usually only one check-in desk open at a time, with a single queue, and everybody is processed through the same security area, to the right of check-in. And, although there are 5 gates, only one or two of these will be in service at any one time. There is an upper floor on the landside, but this is effectively empty. Basically, the layout of the airport is logical and can be grasped at a glance.

The airport is well-designed for a quick flow of passengers, and empties out astonishingly quickly once everyone has passed through passport control. The bus stop and taxi rank are on the street directly outside the terminal building, moments away from the Arrivals gate, and you should reach the city centre well within an hour of clearing customs.

Transport options to the city centre and what to expect when you get there are covered in How to Get to Łódź City Centre from Łódź Airport/a>. If you’re flying home, see our guide for getting to How to Get to Łódź Airport from Łódź City Centre.

The downside of such a small airport is that Łódź Władysław Reymont is fairly limited with the resources on offer. There is an ATM, somewhere to eat and pick up snacks, and you can use the free wifi. However, you can’t guarantee that everything will be open when you arrive and some things are definitely missing. We suggest you get out of the airport and into the city centre, especially for sorting out cash or buying a SIM card. You can pay for public transport or a taxi with a debit / credit card or contactless payments. See below for more details.

This guide will take you step by step through what to expect on arrival at Łódź Władysław Reymont Airport, which facilities are available, and how to navigate your way around. We’ll also follow up with a similar walkthrough for when you depart via the airport.

Walking to the terminal

Arriving At Łódź Władysław Reymont

The plane will usually land fairly close to the terminal building, near the departure gates on the land-hand side. You can see the departing passengers waiting to get onto the plane in the following photo.

Follow the crowd to the front of the plane and along the terminal building to the right-hand side. It is largely flat, so good for accessibility, but exposed to the weather.

After a few minute’s walk, you enter the terminal building on the ground floor, at one of two arrivals halls, depending on whether your plane has landed from within the EU Schengen zone or not. The non-Schengen hall leads directly into the baggage claim area and has no Border Control.

Entering the non-Schengen Border Control

If you are flying into Poland from outside the Schengen Zone (from the UK for example), you will enter the terminal via a small hall, with Border Control at the far end of the room. There are toilets to the right and clear signage in Polish and English. You’ll recognise the branding if you’ve been to another Polish airport.

EU Schengen passengers and non-EU passengers wait together in a snake queuing system, although those with accessibility issues are able to pass directly to the front of the queue. See the official airport website for an assistance form. Anyone with a stroller or pram also seemed to go straight to the head of the queue.

It took me roughly 25 minutes to reach the front of the queue. There were four passport booths open. However, only two of these accepted non-Schengen passports, which caused a bit of confusion.

Quite simply, if you are at the front of the queue and have a Schengen area passport, you can use whichever counter becomes free. If you have a passport from outside the Schengen area, you need to work out from the signage which counters accept non-Schengen passports and wait for one of those to become free. If you try and use a Schengen only counter with a non-Schengen passport, you’ll get barked at and told to get back in line. The people behind you will probably also be baffled, so be sure to let whomever has a Schengen passport go in front of you until a non-Schengen counter becomes free.

There is a reason for this apparent petty bureaucracy. Non-Schengen passport holders are required to have their photo taken and these machines are only available at some of the passport booths. Go to the device when instructed, it’s self-evident where to stand. Other biometrics, such as fingerprinting, are due to be introduced into EU airports over the next year or so.

Once your image is captured, your passport will be stamped, and you’ll be allowed to pass through directly into the baggage claim hall. If you don’t have any hold luggage, you can just head straight to the exit, a set of sliding doors at the back of the first carousel, which you should be able to see as soon as you enter the hall.

The baggage hall is about the size of a football pitch and has three carousels. My bag was already waiting for me once I’d cleared passport control. The layout is very simple and easy to navigate. There are toilets and plenty of benches to sit on. There aren’t a lot of other facilities, but you are unlikely to be in there for very long.

Looking right at the car hire stands

You’ll exit through the only Arrivals gate directly into a small corridor. Look right for some car hire counters and toilets.

Looking left towards the Departures hall

Look left for more car hire counters, more toilets, and the departure hall with the rest of the airport facilities, including an ATM, bistro, and small convenience store.

Exit from airport directly ahead of Arrivals

The main terminal exit is straight ahead, with a taxi rank and bus stop directly outside.

The airport forecourt directly outside the Arrivals exit

If you plan to get straight out of the airport and on your way into central Łódź, skip to our airport transportion page. Otherwise, read on to find out more about airport facilities.

The layout of the airport is extremely simple, and can be grasped very quickly. A simple corridor directly outside the Arrivals gate leads directly to the Departures hall. The airport only really handles one or two flights at any one time, so the landside areas are rarely full. There is an upper floor, but this is mostly empty. All transport is directly in front of this small terminal building.

Facilities For Arrivals To Łódź Airport

The layout of Łódź Władysław Reymont is fairly self-evident and easy to navigate. The ground floor is split evenly between Arrivals and Departures, connected by a small corridor. The Arrivals half of the airport is really just a handful of car rental booths, some seating, and some toilets. Departures has more facilities but these are still relatively limited. The upstairs area is largely empty, though there is a free observation deck. The entire landside can be covered in less than 10 minutes.

Information desk and waiting area

Getting Information

There is an information desk at the very far end of the terminal, tucked behind the elevator in the Departures hall. However, this is more for airport and flight information, rather than a tourist information centre.

Similarly, there is a lost property office at the other end of the airport, directly to the right, as you come out of the Arrivals gate, and there are SOS points dotted around the airport, in case of emergency.

Money

Although Poland is part of the European Union, their currency is the złoty and not the Euro.

While it’s definitely useful to keep a bit of currency on hand, you can probably get through a visit without any cash at all. You may find the odd shop, tourist attraction, or facility that are cash only, but the majority of places accept debit or credit cards, and the usual forms of contactless payment. This includes public transport. Note, however, it can be useful to keep some 1zł and 2zł pieces for public toilets and museums lockers.

A loose rule of thumb is to have about 300zł (about 70€) with you as backup. It’s a good idea to buy this before you leave for Poland but you can withdraw from an ATM once you arrive. It’s enough to cover many situations but not a terrible amount to lose. There are plenty of ATMs in Łódź if you ever need some extra cash. Also consider stashing a backup means of payment somewhere safe in your accommodation in case something happens to your wallet while you’re out.

Make sure you understand how your bank handles currency overseas before you travel and whether they charge. Also ask if they partner with any Polish banks for better rates. Most of all, make sure you can use your cards before you travel. Some cards are locked abroad unless you expressly request permission to use them. It may pay to open a separate travel account with a bank designed around the financial needs of travellers. My Starling account, for example, is effectively free to use abroad and brings some essential security features that make using a card much safer in a foreign country. Real-time notifications warn me of unauthorised use and help me keep track of what I’m spending, in both local and domestic currencies. It’s very reassuring to know exactly how much I’ve paid for something in sterling. With cash, I’d have to make the mental conversion. Best of all, I can lock my cards and put limits on how they’re used.

Changing Money

If you’re travelling into Poland from another country with a bundle of Euros, you may still need to convert some currency when you arrive. Unusually, Łódź Airport does not have an exchange desk, so you’ll have to wait until you get into the centre of town to do this.

In Poland, these are known as a Kantor, and you’ll find them dotted around the city in places such as the Manufaktura shopping mall. Compare their rates with an online converter like XE and be sure to check against their buying price rather than what they’re selling the currency for, and factor in any commission before agreeing a transaction. Shop around if you feel like you’re getting a raw deal.

Withdrawing Money

There are four ATMs in the airport terminal, including one in the baggage claim area. Personally, I would avoid any branded Planet Cash or Euronet, as they often charge a service fee and an exchange rate about 10% above market rate. It’s better to wait until you get into the city and use a branded ATM at the branch of a bank, such as mBank, ING, or Santander. These will almost certainly give you a fair exchange rate and no service fee.

You can pay for all forms of transportation with contactless or a card. In fact, you aer unlikely to be able to pay for a bus ticket with cash, so it’s better to wait until you get into the centre of Łódź to withdraw cash. But if you really need some immediate currency, you can just use the airport ATMs and take the hit. Personally, I didn’t use cash at all on my last trip to Łódź.

ATMs work exactly as you’d expect and usually offer a choice of languages. Check what you’re agreeing to before you click any buttons and cancel the transaction if you aren’t sure of anything. If asked to choose a currency, always go with the Polish złoty rather than that of your home country, as this should be the better exchange rate. This advice also applies whenever you pay for something by card in Poland. Similarly, try to avoid Planet Cash and Euronet ATMs if possible.

Coffee House & Bistro

Food And Drink

If you’re hungry when you arrive in Poland or want to get something to drink, you really have two choices landside.

In the corridor connecting Arrivals and Departures, you’ll find a 1Minute: convenience store, selling snacks and drinks. This is open daily from 7am until 7pm. There’s hot and cold snacks, confectionary, books and magazines, SIM cards, and even a beer if you want one. It’s not overpriced and you can pay with a card.

On the far side of the airport, next to Departures is the Coffee House & Bistro. This is open 10am-6pm on Monday, 7am-5pm on Tuesday and Wednesday, 7am-1pm on Thursday, and 7am-10pm on Friday to Sunday. You can get a coffee, beer, a snack, or a decent meal for about 25zł (about 6€). There’s an outside terrace for sunny days.

If these are both shut, there is a vending machine on the airport forecourt, by the taxi rank, which accepts card payments.

Phones, WiFi And SIMs

A basic, free wifi service is available at Łódź Airport. You don’t need to create an account, just click on ‘LodzAirport’ and accept the connection.

There are a handful of free 2-pin plug sockets dotted around the airport. Although these tend to already be in use. There are also paid USB recharging machines both land and airside. Basically, you shouldn’t rely on being able to recharge your phone at the airport. Make sure you are fully charged before you arrive or bring a backup charger with you.

Any visiting EU citizen should be able to use their existing phone contract in Poland. This means calls and data are available as soon as you step off the plane, although fair usage may apply. Check with your provider before you travel. Similarly, if you bought a travel SIM in another EU country, it will usually be valid in Poland too. Finally, non-EU mobile providers may extend your existing contract abroad for a nominal daily fee.

But what if none of these categories apply to you? Though SIMs are available in the airport’s 1Minute store, Łódź Airport has no dedicated mobile phone outlets. We recommend you wait until you get into town to deal with this. See Where To Get A SIM Card In Łódź for more information.

Other Facilities

Aside from the basic facilities above, Łódź Władysław Reymont Airport offers the following:

• An Aelia beauty store (opposite 1Minute), open from 9am to 5pm on weekdays, selling mainly cosmetics and perfumes at duty free prices.
• Plenty of toilets, including baby changing.
• First aid centre, on the ground floor, for emergency medical treatment.
• A “hall of fame” on the stairs, featuring pictures of various celebrities who have flown through the airport.
• Prayer room and observation deck, on the first floor.

The airport is very accessible with wide, flat areas. You shouldn’t need to travel between floors but there is a lift if you do.

Airport bus stop and taxi rank

Getting To Łódź City Centre

The choices for getting to Łódź itself from the airport are very simple: bus, taxi, or hire car. Notice the taxi rank directly to the left and the people waiting at the stop as the bus arrives to the centre in the image above. See our guide How to Get to Łódź City Centre from Łódź Airport for full details.

Łódź Władysław Reymont Airport

Departing From Łódź Airport

Łódź Airport only handles two or three flights a day, so travelling from here is a reasonable simple and stress-free experience. The terminal is very sleepy until a couple of hours before the flight is due to leave, when the check-in desk opens. Security is a swift, reasonably relaxed affair, with very little queuing and, though the gate fills up, there is plenty of space to sit, as well as options for snacks and duty free.

Whether your arrival at the airport is via bus, taxi, or some other motor vehicle, you will be dropped off directly outside the terminal, moments away from the small Departures hall. The car park and rental drop off is opposite the terminal, on the other side of the road.

Bus arriving outside Łódź Airport departures

For a detailed description of transport to Łódź Władysław Reymont, see How to Get to Łódź Airport from Łódź City Centre.

Łódź Airport departures hall

All departures are handled from the same hall on the ground floor to the right-hand side of the terminal building, mostly from a single check-in desk.

Entrance to the Departures hall

The main door to the building is clearly marked in Polish and English, and all parts of the terminal are directly connected to one another. It is impossible to get lost.

There are a handful of small TV screens around the terminal building with check-in and flight information.

People queuing at the Łódź Airport check-in

You’ll see a row of check-in desks, one of which will generally open two hours before your flight. People will start queuing a little before then. If there are two flights leaving at roughly the same time, a second check-in counter will open, so check whether you’ve joined the right queue. Baggage is handled manually with no self-service drop-off. You can go directly to Security if you don’t have hold luggage. It’s at the end of the check-in desks to the right.

View of the corridor leading to Arrivals

Landside, the terminal has a very simple layout. To the left, with the main entrance behind you, you’ll find a small corridor. This leads to the Arrivals gate, some toilets, ATMs, lost luggage and first aid, car hire desks, and a couple of shops.

Slightly to your left, you’ll see a staircase. There’s an entertaining photo gallery of celebrities who have passed through the airport but, otherwise, the upper level is empty space. You can have a look at the runway from the observation deck. There’s also some baby changing facilities next to the staircase. Disabled toilets are through Security.

Straight ahead, you’ll see a row of check-in desks and Security slightly to the right.

On the right-hand side of the terminal is a lift to the first floor with a bistro and terrace tucked behind it. There’s a fairly large seating area and a few counters offering airport information and ticket sales.

Landside Facilities At Łódź Airport

As noted above, Łódź Airport is compact and easy to navigate, with a few basic facilities. If you’re hungry, the bisto is worth a visit, particularly on a nice day when you can sit out on the terrace. Otherwise, you might as well pass through Security once you’ve dropped off any luggage.

Getting Information

We’ve already mentioned the information screens that dot the terminal. There is also an airport information desk to the right, next to the main seating area – see image further up the page.

All over-the-air announcements are multi-lingual and fairly easy to hear.

1Minute convenience store

Landside Food And Drink

If you’re looking for something to eat or drink, you basically have two choices this side of Security.

In the corridor connecting Arrivals and Departures, you’ll find a 1Minute: convenience store. This is open daily from 7am until 7pm, with hot and cold snacks, confectionary, books and magazines, SIM cards, and even a beer if you want one. It’s not overpriced and you can pay with a card.

The Coffee House & Bistro is open 10am-6pm on Monday, 7am-5pm on Tuesday and Wednesday, 7am-1pm on Thursday, and 7am-10pm on Friday to Sunday. You can get a coffee, beer, a snack, or a decent meal for about 25zł (about 6€). There’s an outside terrace for sunny days. You can also pay here with a card.

There’s also a vending machine on the airport forecourt, by the taxi rank, but you’re unlikely to need it.

Money

If you have a limited amount of Polish currency left, you can spend it at one of the shops or cafes at the airport, but there is nowhere to change currency. If you have a large amount, you should get convert it at one of the Kantors in town. There are a couple in the Manufaktura shopping mall.

There are a handful of ATMs dotted around the airport, but I’d avoid using them. You can pay for anything with a card, so it’s unlikely you’d need to withdraw cash at this point anyway.

Other Landside Facilities

There are limited free 2-pin charging points at the airport and these will probably already be in use. Alternatively, there are USB charging points both land and airside, but these are not free. Basically, you need to make sure any devices are fully charged before you arrive or bring a back-up power bank.

The airport wifi is free wifi and you don’t need to create an account. Just choose the unlocked ‘LodzAirport’ from the available networks and accept the connection.

There is a prayer room on the upper floor, as well as the aforementioned observation deck. It’s pretty quiet upstairs and there’s plenty of room for kids to run about.

In the corridor on the ground floor, you’ll find a first aid room, lost and found, a shop selling duty free cosmetics and perfumes, and more toilets. That’s pretty much everything.

Note: there is nowhere to smoke airside, so, if necessary, make sure you get a puff in before going through Security.

The Departures hall from above – security is just to the left

Going Through Security At Łódź Airport

Once you have checked in and dropped your bags, you can go through Security. As mentioned, this is located at the end of a short corridor to the right of the bag drop desks. It is fairly information, compared to most busier airports. Because there are only one or two flights being handled at any one time and because the check-in desk acts as a filter, there is generally only a few minute’s wait to get through Security.

The process is much the same as other airports. Take off your belt, remove any headgear, and empty out your pockets. Put any bags and coats into the trays to be x-rayed. Separate out any electronic devices. The usual rules apply for separating out any liquids, and bringing quantities of no more than 100ml through in a clear bag.

Schengen Area airside

Once you are airside, the terminal is effectively split in two. If you are flying to an airport within the Schengen, you’ll stay in main area. If you are flying out of the EU, you’ll need to go through Border Control, showing your passport and boarding pass. You can buy something to eat at the gate, but if you want to visit the duty free or other shops, you should do it while you still can.

1Minute cafe on the first floor

Airside Facilities At Łódź Airport

The space on the other side of Security is divided into two main zones: Schengen and non-Schengen. You’ll first find yourself in the Schengen zone with a seating area and gates 4 and 5 directly in front of you. There’s also an escalator up to the cafe on the first floor and, behind that, a small magazine and newspaper shop. All shops should be open before flights are due to leave.

Relay store and corridor to non-Schengen Border Control

Slightly to your left, you’ll find a Relay convenience store, as well as the stairs and elevator to the first floor. Directly on your left is a narrow corridor leading to the small Aelia duty free shop and toilets, including disabled and baby-changing facilities. You’ll also find the non-Schengen border control here.

On the first floor, you’ll find a 1Minute cafe, which is effectively a convenience store with places to sit and eat snacks. It can be a nice place to escape the hubbub downstairs. There are more toilets up here and a small, quiet business lounge. As with the landside, the space is very compact and it’s hard to get lost.

1Minute concession stand

The zone on the other side of passport control is divided into two waiting areas with gates 1-3 and plenty of seats. There are also toilets here, again including disabled and baby-changing facilities, and a small 1Minute concession stand selling snacks and drinks.

Waiting to board as the passengers disembark

The longest wait is likely to be when you board the plane, as everyone is queuing at the same time. But, you should be able to see your plane arrive from the waiting area and, once your flight is called and you’ve passed through boarding, you will walk out onto the tarmac and up the stairs onto the plane.

Łódź Map

Plan your Łódź visit with our Łódź map of the attractions, restaurants, sightseeing and hotels in Łódź.

Each type of landmark has a different colour marker on the map:

• YELLOW / ORANGE: Łódź Sightseeing
• GREEN: Łódź Transportation
• BLUE: Hotels in Łódź
• PURPLE: Shopping In Łódź
• DARK RED: Restaurants in Łódź
• LIGHT RED: Nightlife in Łódź

Click on a marker and it will give you the name of the landmark, with a brief description and links for more information and directions. You can pan, scroll, and zoom around the map, or use the + or – buttons in the bottom left of the map to zoom in and out.

Click on the icon in the top left corner for an index of every location, sorted by category. Scroll down or use the map search (the magnifying glass icon) to find the place you want. Click the name of the place in the list. Its location pin will be highlighted on the map.

Each category is on a different layer, which can be switched on and off. So you can just see the Hotel or Restaurant pins, for example.

If you are using the map on your phone, open the Visit Łódź map and then search for the name of the place. The map will then zoom in on its location.