Neon Museum

What makes it special

The current exhibition, City Lights, recreates Warsaw's nightlife in the 1970s, the golden age of Polish neon. About 100 restored signs are on show, most from the 1960s and 1970s and gathered from towns across the country.

Look at the lettering first. Most of these signs advertised what a place did, with no brand, so a single word such as Dancing hung over the door in a font drawn for that building. The museum shows them as typography and design history, and the odd shapes and fonts are what you are there to see.

Then find the Warsaw names: the Wedel chocolate sign, the Warszawa sign, the Shanghai and Ambasador restaurants and the Sezam department store. The Cow from the Bambino milk bar on Krucza Street has been recreated for this hall. Look too for the Syrenka, the Warsaw mermaid, rising out of the pages of a book.

Some signs are on show for the first time since restoration, among them the Antylopa from Poznań and the Jubiler from Lublin. A corner holds signs from other Eastern Bloc countries, Czechoslovakia and Hungary among them.

Nearly all of the collection was saved from destruction, and the rescue goes on: the last two Sezam signs were taken down from an office block on Marszałkowska Street.

Visiting

There is no need for the Palace's main entrance: use the Palace door on Marszałkowska Street instead. Go down to level -1, where the cloakroom is, then take the side lifts up to the museum on the 4th floor. The lifts stand to the left of the stairs up to the main entrance.

Buy your ticket at the museum desk on the day, by card or cash. Each sign has a panel beside it that explains what it is.

A wheelchair or a pushchair can go all the way round the exhibition.

Guided or on your own

A guided tour is a group booking: it needs at least ten people, runs about 45 minutes and must be reserved with the museum ahead of the day. On your own or as a couple you cannot join one at the door.

Tips

Turn off your flash and switch your phone to night mode, because the signs look best in the dimmed gallery light. If you bring children, keep a close eye on them: they will be tempted to touch the signs.

Older guides and maps still send you to the Soho Factory in Praga, the museum's home until 2025, so ignore them. There is no free admission day either, since the museum is privately run.