Warsaw becomes a city of skyscrapers. Skyscrapers in Poland are buildings over 100 meters high. Unofficially, skyscrapers are buildings over 60 meters high. All houses with a height of more than 55 m above ground level, according to Polish law, are classified as high-rise buildings (WW). When referring to the height of buildings, different terms are used (architectural height, overall height, structural height, and roof height).

The architectural (total) height is measured from the ground to the top mark of the highest structural element of the building (parapet, ridge, spire, tower). All self-respecting skyscrapers have various superstructures above the roof to increase their height. Structural height and height to the roof are inferior in terms of architectural height.

In Warsaw, by mid-2023, there are 32 buildings over 100 meters high. The largest number of such buildings has a height of 100 to 150 meters (22), in the range from 150 to 200 meters there are 8 buildings (Skyliner, height 195 m., Q22, 195 m., Złota 44, 192 m, Rondo 1, 192 m ., Centrum LIM, 170 m., Warsaw Financial Center, 165 m., InterContinental 164 m., Cosmopolitan Twarda 2/4, 160 m., Skysawa 155 m., Chałubińskiego 8, 150 m.), have a height of up to 250 meters 4 buildings (Palace of Culture and Science, 237 m, Warsaw Spire, 220 m, Warsaw Trade Tower, 208 m, Warsaw Unit, 202 m). More than 300 meters has 1 skyscraper. This Varso is the tallest building in Poland and in the European Union. Its height is 310 meters.

In Warsaw, 8 more multi-storey buildings are currently under construction. 12 skyscrapers received approval for construction, and each of them already has its own name. Another 14 buildings over 100 meters high are under consideration. Among them is the Grunwaldzka Tower, 300 meters high.

In total, there are 49 skyscrapers in Poland with a height of over 100 meters. There are 13 such buildings under construction. The construction of another 16 skyscrapers in Poland has been approved, and 35 buildings are under consideration.

The main skyscrapers of Warsaw are located in the districts of Śródmieście and Wola.

Now let's continue the story about the most outstanding high-rise buildings of the Polish capital, the height of which exceeds 150 meters. There are 15 of them.

1. The first in the register of skyscrapers in Warsaw is Varso - a neo-modernist complex of office buildings, the tallest building in Poland. The complex consists of three buildings. Chief among them, the Varso Tower, is the tallest building in Poland and the European Union and the sixth tallest building in Europe, at 310m (after high-rise buildings in Russia). The building was put into operation in September 2022. The observation deck is expected to open in 2023.

The name Varso refers to the Latin name for Warsaw - Varsovia. The architectural (total) height of the Varso tower is 310 m (1,020 ft), including the spire that dominates the building. It is located on the corner of Chmielnej street and Jana Pawła II alley.

As we have already said, Varso Place is a complex of three buildings: the main tower with a height of 310 m (the roof height reaches 230 m with an 80-meter spire at the top) and two buildings with a height of 81 and 90 m, respectively called Varso 1 and Varso 2. Varso Place has an area of 140,000 m2, of which 10,300 m2 is dedicated to commercial services. The main areas in Varso are occupied by offices.

At an altitude of 230 m on the main tower, Vista Terrace will become a public observation deck offering panoramic views of the city. Another observation deck is located at an altitude of 205 m. The restaurant and bar will occupy the 46th and 48th floors. All three buildings are connected to each other at ground floor level, and the entire complex is connected to the Warsaw Central Station.

The building has 53 above-ground floors and 4 underground. The four-story underground parking is designed for approximately 1,100 cars, 80 motorcycles and 750 bicycles. Trees have been planted in the lobby of the skyscraper. The modernization of the area around Chmielnej Street is part of the investment and includes new sidewalks, street lights, benches, bike racks and signs, as well as the planting of shrubs and trees.

In 2019, the Varso tower was recognized by the BREEAM Awards as a project aimed at achieving a high level of environmental friendliness and energy efficiency.

2. Palace of Culture and Science (Pałac Kultury i Nauki; abbreviated as PKiN) is the most famous high-rise building in the center of Warsaw, Poland. Its total height is 237 meters. So far, it is the second tallest building in both Warsaw and Poland (after Varso Tower), the sixth tallest building in the European Union and one of the tallest in Europe. When completed in 1955, the Palace was the eighth tallest building in the world, holding that position until 1961. It was also the tallest clock tower in the world prior to the installation of the clockwork on the NTT Docomo Yoyogi Building in Tokyo, Japan.

Inspired by Polish historic architecture and American high-rise Art Deco buildings, the Palace of Culture and Science was designed by Soviet architect Lev Rudnev in the Seven Sisters style and is informally referred to as the Eighth Sister.

The palace houses various public and cultural institutions such as theatres, cinemas, libraries, university faculties and organs of the Polish Academy of Sciences. The building is surrounded by a collection of sculptures representing figures of culture and science, and at the main entrance there are sculptures of the Polish astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus by Ludwika Nytchova and the Polish poet Adam Mickiewicz by Stanislav Gorno-Poplavsky. Since 2007, PKiN has been included in the Register of Cultural Heritage Objects.

A lot of materials have been written about the Palace of Culture and Science, which can be additionally viewed on the Internet.

3. Warsaw Spire - a complex of neomodern office buildings in Warsaw. It consists of three buildings: a 220-meter (180 meters without spire) main tower with a hyperboloid glass facade, Warsaw Spire A, and two 55-meter side buildings, Warsaw Spire B and C.

Warsaw Spire is a complex of office buildings in Warsaw, located in the Wola district, at Europejski Square 1, 2 and 6. Their total area is approximately 100,000 m².

The complex was officially opened on May 12, 2016. It is the third tallest skyscraper in Warsaw (after the Varso Tower and the Palace of Culture and Science) and one of the tallest office buildings in Europe. Under the building there is an underground car park for more than 1000 cars.

A spacious square has been created inside the complex, open to the residents of the city, with elements of small architecture, surrounded by green spaces. The investor planted 140 trees and other plants. A small lake and a cascading stream 120 meters long were also created.

4. Warsaw Trade Tower - a skyscraper on the street. Chłodnej, 51 in the Wola district in Warsaw. The skyscraper with a height of 208 meters (together with the antenna) consists of 42 above-ground floors (2 commercial, 35 office and 5 technical). In addition to offices, the first two floors above ground are used for commercial purposes, while the three underground floors serve as a car park for 300 cars. Office area - 42 300 sq.m., commercial area - 2100 sq.m.

The construction of the building lasted from June 1997 to November 1999. Along with the Varso Tower, the Palace of Culture and Science, the Warsaw Spire and the Warsaw Unit, it is one of five buildings in Warsaw with a spire height of over 200 meters.

The foundation of the Warsaw Trade Tower (WTT) goes 11 meters underground and rests on 156 piles. The central element of the building is a reinforced concrete core, inside of which there are high-speed elevators reaching a speed of 7 m/s. The WTT spire is a metal mast with a relay antenna attached to the building with steel hoops. The spire starts at a height of 32 floors and has a total length of 85 meters.

In 2015-2016, the skyscraper underwent a thorough modernization. As a result of the changes, the property has acquired a number of amenities that meet the standards of modern office buildings, including the nature of common areas and the environment. Further renovations in 2023 included a new tower vestibule.

5. Warsaw Unit - a skyscraper in Warsaw. It is located at the Daszyńskiego 1 roundabout in the Wola district. The name Warsaw Unit refers to the typology of residential buildings developed by Le Corbusier. Until November 2018, the building was called Spinnaker. Its construction began in April 2017 and was completed in March 2021.

The building has 46 floors. Its height from the base to the roof is 180 m, and the architectural height, including the technical equipment on the roof, is 202 m. In terms of total height, it is the 5th tallest building in the city and the 6th tallest building in Poland. The area of the building is 59,000 m2, including 57,000 m2 of office space and 300 m2 of commercial and office space. It has 14 elevators and 456 parking spaces.

Part of the facade of the building was covered with a kinetic Dragon Skin type facade, consisting of several thousand thousand moving plates that react to gusts of wind, creating unique images. This type of facade was used in Poland for the first time. On the top floor of the skyscraper there is a terrace surrounded by a glass wall.

6. Skyliner, sometimes also called Skyliner I, is a skyscraper in the Wola district. It is located at Prosta Street 67, near the Daszyńskiego roundabout. Was opened in 2021. It is planned to be connected to the currently under construction Skyliner II, forming a complex of twin buildings. The Skyliner II office building is to be 130 meters high. Once completed, the entire complex will offer over 73,000 sq.m. office space for rent.

The building has 45 floors. Its architectural height is 195 m. The 195 m high building is one of the tallest office buildings in the capital. The first four floors are occupied by commercial and service premises, including shops, restaurants, coffee houses. Their total area is 3000 m2. On 30 floors of the building there are office premises, the area of which is 43,633 m2. The total area of the building is 72,000 m2. At an altitude of 165 m on two floors is the Sky Bar, a bar overlooking the city skyline.

The building has 430 parking spaces and 300 bicycle spaces. The Skyliner is classified as "Excellent" by BREEAM. The building has been awarded the Prime Property Award: an award in the category "Architecture"; CIJ Awards in Poland for the best leading green development; 3rd prize of the 26th competition "Polish cement in architecture"; HOF Awards 2022 award for the best leading environmental development.

7. Q22 - office building in Warsaw, located in the Śródmieście district, on alei Jana Pawła II 22, on the corner of Grzybowskiej. The building was built on the site of the Mercure Fryderyk Chopin Hotel, which closed in 2011. The hotel building was demolished in 2012. During its demolition, all materials were recycled, resulting in 1,500 tons of steel and 25,000 tons of concrete aggregate. The construction of the office building began in 2013 and was completed in 2016. The total area of this multi-storey building is 91,164 square meters, and the usable area is 53,886 square meters.

The architectural height of the building is 195 m, the height to the roof is 155 m. There is a 5-storey car park under the building. Architectural style - modernism, constructivism, hi-tech, neomodernism. The building has received two important certificates in the field of safety - an outstanding BREEAM and environmental policy - SGS Covid Free.

Q22 is a modern skyscraper that offers tenants premium office space. It is located in the business center of the capital. Tenants have 52,000 m2 of office space and 347 underground parking spaces at their disposal. The size of a typical floor varies from 900 to 2000 m2. The office building has 42 overground and 5 underground floors. The unique architecture includes a 30-meter glazed lobby and office space under a glass pitched roof. The layout of the interiors allows you to create comfortable working conditions, taking into account the individual needs of the tenant. Levels 14-17 are for additional services such as conference centers, fitness club and restaurant premises.

The letter "Q" in the name of the skyscraper refers to the word "quality" and also to "quartz", the shape of the building resembles a broken quartz crystal. The number "22" is part of the address of the property.

The location in Warsaw's Śródmieście district provides easy access to other parts of the city both by car and public transport. There are bus and tram stops nearby, as well as the Rondo ONZ station of the second metro line and the Veturilo bicycle station. The location in the heart of the city also allows you to enjoy all its attractions and amenities. The area has many restaurants, hotels, banks, shopping centers, including Złote Tarasy.

It takes just a few minutes to get to the Central Railway Station by car, to the international airport. Frederic Chopin - about 20 minutes, to the A2 motorway - about 25 minutes.

8. Złota 44 - residential skyscraper in Warsaw on the street. Złota, 44 in the Śródmieście district. The name of the building comes from its address. The house is located next to Varso Tower, the tallest building in the European Union, the Palace of Culture and Science, the second tallest building in Poland, and the Złote Tarasy shopping center.

Construction began in March 2008 and was completed in autumn 2013. Due to the financial problems of the investor, the official opening took place in March 2017. Złota 44, the tallest residential building in Poland and the European Union, is a luxury apartment building with a height of 192 meters.

Luxurious 52-storey skyscraper contains 287 apartments. All of them are equipped with a home management system (HMS) that makes it easy to control air conditioning, roller shutters, heating, lighting, as well as ordering food from restaurants and other services. All residents receive an individual magnetic card, which allows them to get only to the floor on which their apartment is located.

The apartments are located between the 9th and 52nd floors. Fully finished apartments were offered in nine layouts and four sizes: one-room (from 62 to 70 sq. m), medium (from 90 to 120 sq. m), large (from 140 to 250 sq. m) and penthouses (whose area may exceed 1000 square meters, occupying the entire floor). Depending on the location, size, layout and level of finish, the price per square meter ranges from PLN 24,000 to PLN 40,000.

The following services are provided to the residents of the building. They have access to a wine cellar that holds up to 10,000 bottles and includes a tasting room. In addition to the 25-meter swimming pool, the recreational floor has a jacuzzi, massage rooms, a Finnish sauna, a steam room and an outdoor terrace. There is also a private cinema with a golf simulator, a fitness club with a yoga room, a children's playroom and meeting rooms. It offers residents a reception with a concierge and an observation deck.

9. Rondo 1 is a prestigious AAA class office and retail complex located in the very center of the Central Business District, on the border of the Śródmieście and Wola districts, not far from the Palace of Culture and Science. Opened in March 2006. The architectural height is 192 meters and the height to the roof is 159 meters.

It consists of two buildings - a 40-story glass office tower and a 10-story building with a car park and retail and service premises. This is one of the tallest and most recognizable buildings in the capital. The facility features world-class architecture and diverse appearance. The entire skyscraper is glazed and illuminated at night.

The elevators are designed outside the main contour of the tower, and their stepped arrangement makes the shape more interesting and dynamic. The unusual architecture has received numerous awards. The skyscraper offers attractive office space with stunning views of the Warsaw skyline. It has 67,000 m2 of office space, and a typical floor area is about 1,500 m2. The building has 18 high-speed panoramic elevators and 2 freight elevators. The high standard of finishes, the use of LEED Platinum-certified sustainable solutions, flexible space arrangements, as well as glazed façades and optimal access to daylight ensure a comfortable working environment.

Numerous amenities are available to tenants, such as conference rooms, a supermarket, a kindergarten, service points, a fitness club, a restaurant, a cafe and a car park. The height of the building and the mast located on it are valued by radio stations.

Nearby are high-end office buildings and major communication arteries. Nearby are the shopping center Złote Tarasy and Świętokrzyskiej park. The location in the very center allows you to take full advantage of the trade, service, gastronomic, cultural and hotel offer of the capital. Nearby are numerous bus and tram stops, as well as the Rondo ONZ station of the second metro line. Warsaw Central Railway Station is within walking distance. Warsaw Chopin Airport is about 20 minutes away by car.

10. Centrum LIM - office and hotel complex located in the center of Warsaw, at Aleje Jerozolimskie 65/79. The building houses a Marriott hotel. The planned LOT Polish Airlines complex was part of the Ściany Zachodniej project and was supposed to accommodate the Dworzec Lotniczy station (in the lower part) and the LOT hotel and offices (in the skyscraper).

Construction began in 1977. In 1989 the construction was completed. Its architectural height is 170 meters. Without a 30-meter antenna, the skyscraper has 140 meters to the roof, 42 above-ground and 2 underground floors. The building is designed in the forms of international style. The skyscraper has a dark green color with white edges (illuminated by bright white light at night) and two dark stripes, one in the middle and one at the top, covering the technical floors.

The LIM gallery is located on the two lower floors. It has about 40 shops, cafes and restaurants, as well as LOT cash desks. Offices are located on the next, upper floors, and hotel floors begin from the middle of the building. The Marriott hotel, the first property of the chain in Central and Eastern Europe, is located on the 20th floor and above. The hotel has 523 rooms and 16 meeting rooms. The Presidential Suite is located on the top floor of the hotel. Each room has air conditioning and satellite TV. The Marriott Hotel offers a sauna, a swimming pool, conference rooms, underground parking, restaurants and 9 bars, including the highest bar Panorama Sky Bar in Poland, the modern Floor No2 restaurant and a lobby bar with an atmospheric garden overlooking the city center. A variety of conference and event facilities, swimming pool, fitness center and underground parking.

The main entrance to the hotel from the street. Emily Plater. The building is connected by an underpass to the Warsaw Central railway station.

11. Warsaw Financial Center (WFC) is one of the most prestigious office buildings in Warsaw. It is located at the intersection of Emilii Plater and Świętokrzyskiej streets in Warsaw, in the very center of the city. The object was put into operation in 1998 and was the first modern office building in the capital. The skyscraper is 144 meters high, the top of its spire (with an antenna mast almost 20 meters high) is 165 meters above the ground.

Warsaw Financial Center offers for rent a total of 50,000 sq.m. class A+ space and 350 parking spaces for cars and bicycles. Each of the 32 floors of the building has 1900 sq.m. area with a height of 2.75 m. Movement between floors is facilitated by 16 elevators, the building is fully equipped for people with disabilities. This skyscraper houses the headquarters of about 70 companies.

The building was constructed in accordance with United States building codes, including an emergency generator that provides power for all life safety systems, fire alarm systems, HVAC fire support systems, a fire pump in the building, emergency exit elevators and lighting, and its own water tanks. (with a capacity of approximately 600,000 liters) for the production of safe drinking water.

12. InterContinental Warsaw - a five-star hotel in Warsaw, located on the street. Emilii Plater, 49 in the Śródmieście district in Warsaw, between Emilii Plater, Śliskiej and Sosnowej streets.

Its construction began in 2001 and ended in November 2003. The height of the building is 164 m, the number of floors is 45, the area is 57,500 m2. It has 10 elevators. InterContinental Warszawa is the highest hotel in Poland, the third highest hotel in Europe after the Ukraine Hotel in Moscow and the Spanish Gran Hotel Bali. This is one of the tallest five star hotels in the world. The hotel has the deepest foundation of all skyscrapers in Poland, its depth is 20.7 meters.

The building has an unusual shape, a uniform, slender body, designed in pea tones, like the neighboring one (Warsaw Financial Center. The hotel has 414 rooms of various categories, including a presidential suite, 76 suites with a kitchenette, and 14 conference rooms. The building also has a ballroom, two bars, two restaurants, an E. Wedel chocolate fountain, a sauna, a fitness club, a spa and a solarium.

On the 43rd and 44th floors (150 m above the ground) there is a recreation center with a gym, an aerobics room, a jacuzzi and a 6×14 m pool. This is the highest indoor pool in Europe. From the windows of the center you can see the Vistula River. Underground, on five levels, there is a parking lot for 175 cars.

Residents of a nearby apartment building protested the construction of the skyscraper, arguing that it would limit access to sunlight. In the end, an agreement was reached with the residents - thanks to the "carved" form of the building, the access of light to nearby houses is less limited. However, this affected the structure and appearance of the building. Between the fifth and twentieth floors, a cutout was designed to provide sufficient insolation to the apartments in the neighboring building.

In 2016, the hotel received five stars (building symbols that determine the level of service) in the red Michelin guide "Europe's main cities".

13. Cosmopolitan Twarda 4 (formerly Twarda Tower or Hines Tower) is a skyscraper in Warsaw, at the intersection of Emilii Plater and Twardej streets. It has 44 floors and a height of 160 meters. Building area 60 939 m2. The Cosmopolitan building consists of two parts: the lower one, located closer to Grzybowskiego Square, and the higher, 160-meter tower. There are parking spaces for about 300 cars on 4 underground levels of the building. Service and office premises are located on the first four floors (restaurant on the first floor).

The building includes 252 apartments ranging in size from 54 to 198 square meters, with a net total above ground floor area of up to 32,000 m2.

Starting from the 8th floor, the building houses luxury apartments ranging from 54 to 700 m², fully finished and equipped. The last two floors are occupied by duplex apartments (penthouses).

The first tenants moved in in June 2014. A skyscraper for the Jewish community is planned to be built on the neighboring site in the future.

14. Skysawa is an office and retail complex located at 36 Świętokrzyskiej Street in the Śródmieście district in Warsaw. Its other name is PHN Tower. Construction of the tower began in June 2019 and was completed in August 2022. The architectural height is 155 meters, the structural height and the height to the roof is 150 meters.

The complex was built on the site of a demolished 10-story administrative building from the 1960s. It consists of two buildings - building A with a height of 4 to 9 floors and a total area of 11,500 sq.m. and 155-meter building B with an area of about 28,300 sq.m. and 40 stories high. On the ground floor and at level -1 of the complex there are catering and trade premises with a total area of more than 3000 sq.m. Under each building there is a three-storey underground car park with 140 parking spaces, stations for electric vehicles and about 200 bicycle spaces. The usable area of the complex reaches 65,000 square meters, of which most of it is occupied by office space - almost 37,000 square meters.

Skysawa has a direct connection to the Rondo ONZ subway, they are connected by an underpass. The name Skysawa was created from a combination of the words "sky" (English sky) and "Sawa". The first of these relates to the architecture of the 155-meter tower, which is part of the PHN office complex. Sawa, on the other hand, goes back to the Warsaw legend, according to which the mermaid Sawa and the fisherman Vors founded the settlement of Warsaw.

The external structure of the buildings consists mainly of transparent surfaces enriched with matte concrete elements and aluminum edges. Structural elements visible from the street are made of structural concrete. Each of the two buildings has terraces located at different levels.

Rondo 1-A is 82 meters away, Spectrum Tower is 93 meters away and Rondo 1 Office Complex is 95 meters away.

15. Chałubińskiego 8, abbreviated as Ch8, originally Intraco II, later Elektrim and Oxford Tower is a skyscraper located in Warsaw at ul. Chałubińskiego, 8, at the intersection of Nowogrodzka and Wspólna streets.

The skyscraper has 46 floors above ground, the top of the latter is 140 meters above the ground. At the top is a 10-meter antenna, thanks to which the 150-meter Chałubińskiego 8 skyscraper is the fifteenth tallest building in Warsaw. The usable area of this skyscraper reaches 70,000 square meters, of which office space occupies most of it - 42,224 square meters. There are two underground floors with 193 parking spaces.

The administrative building was built in 1975–1978 on the site of the former Pomologicznego garden as part of the architectural and urban design of Ściany Zachodniej. The office building, then called Intraco II, was the second building with that name built in Warsaw in the 1970s (the first, Intraco I, was built in 1973-1975 at 2 Stawki Street). The building at Chałubińskiego 8 housed, among other things, the headquarters of the Elektrim company, which is why it was also called the Elektrim building. It is sometimes called the Oxford Tower, after Oxford Polska Sp. z o.o.

Chałubińskiego 8, together with the Centrum LIM built a few years later, form the so-called Centrum Zachodni, erected to weaken the dominance of the Palace of Culture and Science over the city. Chałubińskiego 8 is an angular blue building. The building was one of the first skyscrapers in the city. At the time of commissioning, it was the most modern and the second tallest building in Poland after the Palace of Culture and Science. It was intended for the offices of Bank Handlowy and the headquarters of foreign trade.

The building is the first skyscraper in the capital with a central core, which houses 12 high-speed elevators and technical installations. Thanks to this solution, you can freely arrange the arrangement of rooms on individual floors. Despite the fact that the offices of the building are class B, i.e. slightly lower standard, Chałubińskiego 8 is a very prestigious building, mainly due to its location and height.

Chałubińskiego 8 is located in the very center of Warsaw. The panorama that he creates with Centrum LIM and the Central Tower skyscraper is really impressive. The skyscraper offers a beautiful view of the entire city center, especially its southern part. Nearby are the Hampton by Hilton Warsaw City Centre, the building complex of the Ministry of Infrastructure and the LIM Center.

In 2022, the owner of the building applied to the Warsaw City Hall with an application for permission to build a skyscraper on 7 floors with technical rooms (up to 180 meters high) and build a second tower at a distance of about 20 meters (on the south side).

These are the tallest buildings in Warsaw.