Gdansk: A quiet contender for Krakow's crown?

Krakow exists for those intimidated by the grit of Warsaw. Poland's other great city – and until the late 1600s its capital – lures travellers from across Europe, its stunning architecture (miraculously preserved during World War II) and artistic past earning it a reputation as the nation's cultural hub, complete with jazz clubs, independent booksellers and sleepy cafes.

However, that reputation is being slowly challenged, with a quietly confident underdog emerging eager to seize Krakow's cultural crown.

Enter: Gdansk

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Part of Poland's Trojmiasto – or Tri-city – metropolitan area with Gdynia and Sopot, Gdansk sits off the Baltic Sea in the north of the country. A former economically prized port city with a bloodied past – it has survived two national partitions and both fascists and communists – Gdansk has undergone a period of rapid development that has transformed it into an elegant and enchanting getaway.

Scarred streets

After a surprisingly swift journey (direct flights to Gdansk run from most cities in the UK), I made my way to the peach-coloured Dwor Oliwski Spa Hotel.

Peach, of course, isn't a colour typically associated with the interior design of a five-star hotel – nor are clashing floral motifs, netting, and textured, floor-to-ceiling wallpaper. Yet the spa's old-fashioned design feels authentically Eastern European, creating a sense of charm that pervades my entire stay – one boosted by the friendliness of the resident cat and the staff's general air of enthusiasm.

The hotel boasts a picturesque terrace bar, where guests tend to tuck into an impressive breakfast spread, and a spa set in the beautiful and unspoilt Oliwa forest, which gives literal meaning to the notion of a retreat.

Although located in the heart of the forest, Dwor Oliwski – which, in a nod to sporting diplomacy, welcomed the entire German national team for the 2012 Uefa European Championship - is only a 15 minute drive from the city's landmark Targ Weglowy square, where my pre-conceived ideas of industrial bleakness were lost to a grand, picturesque walkway, decorated with colourful and snugly-lined burgher houses and a grand, gothic town hall (a hint as to the city's former industrial importance).

Known as the "royal route", this pedestrian street connects the 16th century Golden Gate to the rather grand Green Gate, a former royal residence that overlooks the sedative River Motlawa. It is a reminder that Gdansk was once walled - ironic, given its former status as a free city.

A view of how the city looked before the Second World War can be found in the medieval town hall, now home to the Historical Museum of Gdansk. As well as providing unrestricted and unparalleled views over the city, it houses a permanent exhibition that documents the city before 1939 and the devastation that occurred during the conflict, when the city was practically obliterated. More than 90 per cent of the city has been rebuilt to mirror the beautiful architecture that overnight crumbled to rubble, including the "medieval" town hall itself.

Leading the fightback

The physical scars of the war may have gone, but its legacy remains. Besides touring the port of Westerplatte, visitors can send a postcard from the old Post Office and stand in the very spot where workers resisted heavily armed German soldiers for several hours.

These locations fuel David and Goliath stories of wartime resistance, an essential volume of Polish folklore, but they are mere background reading compared to the city’s main chapter in history: its pivotal role in the collapse of the Eastern Bloc.

Located next to the city’s shipyards stands the European Centre of Solidarity, a fascinating museum that narrates the role Solidarnosc and the Lenin Shipyard played in Poland's break from communism and the impact this had on the Soviet Union. Its permanent exhibition blends modern multimedia experience with authentic artefacts, keeping visitors engaged for hours and winning it the Council of Europe Museum Prize last year.

Contemporary cool

Despite most people thinking Polish cuisine revolves around beetroot, cabbage and potato, there is an emerging "foodie scene" in Gdansk. On the same street as the renowned Pod Lososiem - an ornately decorated and intimidatingly grand restaurant famed for its production of goldwasser, an ancient German drink decorated with gold leaves - lies the minimalist and modern gourmet restaurant, Metamorfoza.

Here you will find exquisite, seasonal dishes all ethically sourced from the region's farms, forests and rivers. Priced at 160 zloty (around £30) Metamorfoza's six-course tasting menu can be enjoyed for a fraction of the price tag typically associated with fine dining. Best of all, the restaurant is not at all pretentious. Its playful daily menu – which in my case read: "What did the huntsman shoot?" (that would be deer) and "Pine in the snow" (frozen custard disguised in meringue) – is matched with friendly service.

For the beetroot, cabbage and spud-loving traditionalists out there, the city still boasts many restaurants offering hearty, homemade dishes. Tawerna Mestwin is one of the best. Here you can tuck into plump and perfectly steamed pierogis filled with beef and sauerkraut and deliciously topped with crisp, fried onion while enjoying the cosy ambience of a family cottage, complete with exposed wooden beams, floral tablecloths and enough crochet to inspire even the most reluctant of knitters.

The contrast between these two restaurants reflects the city's mix of old and new, earthy and refined. Milk bars - communist relics catering for lowly paid workers - sit beside hipster bars such as Josef K, a trendy den-cum-junk-shop at the top of Ulica Piwna and a short walk from the awe-inspiring St Mary's Church.

Gdansk's gentrification does not appear as even-handed as Krakow's, which benefits from a large student population and an established connection with the arts. In Gdansk, there is a sense that its changing face – brought about by EU membership, increased tourism and the emergence of new industries at the expense of blue-collar manufacturing – has, in the words of one local bar-dweller, "created winners and losers".

A genuine contender or a worthy runner-up?

The cultural gains may be of little comfort to the industrial workers of Gdansk, whose role in shaping the city's incredible history has ironically paved the way for an influx of middle-class visitors.

What lingers in the memory after a visit to Gdansk is not the cranes, the smog and the shipyards, but the engaging museums, refined cuisine and beautiful architecture. It may not have the same sophistication as Krakow, but its charm and history make Gdansk, at the very least, an intriguing equal.