Polish road infrastructure is extensive but generally poorly maintained, and high speed motorways currently in place are insufficient. However, public transport is quite plentiful and inexpensive: buses and trams in cities, and charter buses and trains for long distance travel.
By taxi
Use only those that are associated in a "corporation" look for phone number and a logo on the side and on the top. There are no British style minicabs in Poland. Unaffiliated drivers are likely to cheat and charge you much more. Like everywhere, be especially wary of these taxis near international airports and train stations. They are called the "taxi mafia".
Because of travellers advice like this and word of mouth, taxis with fake phone numbers can be seen on the streets, although recently this seems to have decreased - possibly the police have taken notice. Fake phone numbers are easily detected by locals and cater for the unsuspecting traveller. The best advice is to ask your Polish friends or your hotel concierge for the number of the taxi company they use and call them 10-15 minutes in advance there's no additional cost. That's why locals will only hail taxis on the street in an emergency.
You can also find phone numbers for taxis in any city on the Internet, on municipal and newspaper websites. Some taxi companies, particularly in larger towns provide for a cab to be ordered online or with a text message. There are also stands, where you can call for their particular taxi for free, often found at train stations.
If you negotiate the fare with the driver you risk ending up paying more than you should. Better make sure that the driver turns the meter on and sets it to the appropriate fare taryfa:
Taryfa 1: Daytime within city limits
Taryfa 2: Nights, Sundays and holidays within city limits
Taryfa 3: Daytime outside city limits
Taryfa 4: Nights, Sundays and holidays outside city limits
The prices would vary slightly between the taxi companies and between different cities, and there is a small fixed starting fee added on top of the mileage fare.
When crossing city limits for example, when traveling to an airport located outside the city, the driver should change the tariff at the city limit.
Every taxi driver is obliged to issue a receipt when asked at the end of the ride. You can inquire driver about a receipt rachunek before you get into cab, and resign if his reaction seems suspicious or if he refuses.
By road
Hitchhiking in Poland is on average OK. Yes, it's slower than its Western Germany and Eastern Lithuania neighbors, but your waiting times will be quite acceptable!
Use a cardboard sign and write the desired destination city name on it.
Do not try to catch a lift where it is forbidden to stop. Look on the verge of the road and there should be a dashed line painted there, not a solid one.
As in any country, you should be careful, there are several reports of Polish hitchhiking trips gone awry, so take basic precautions and you should be as right as rain.
By bike
Bicycling is a good method to get a good impression of the scenery in Poland. The roads can sometimes be in quite a bad state and there is usually no hard shoulder or bicycle lane. Car drivers are careless but most do not necessarily want to kill cyclists on sight which seems to be the case in some other countries.
Rainwater drainage of both city streets is usually in dreadful condition and in the country it is simply non-existent. This means that puddles are huge and common, plus pot-holes make them doubly hazardous.
Especially in the south you can find some nice places for bicycling; e.g. along the rivers Dunajec from Zakopane to Szczawnica or Poprad Krynica to Stary Sacz or Lower Silesia Zlotoryja - Swierzawa - Jawor.Specially mapped bike routes are starting to appear and there are specialised guide books available so ask a bicycle club for help and you should be just fine. Away from roads which join major cities and large towns you should be able to find some great riding and staying at agroturystyka room with board at a farmer's house, for example can be a great experience.
By train
In Poland, the national railway carriers are PKP InterCity Polskie Koleje PaÅstwowe (http://pkp.pl) and Przewozy Regionalne. There are few local carriers that belongs to voivodships or major cities.
Train tickets are quite economical, but travel conditions reflect the fact that much of the infrastructure is rather old.
However, you can expect a fast, clean and modern connection on the new IC InterCity routes, such as Warsaw - Katowice, Warsaw - Kraków, Warsaw - PoznaŠand PoznaŠ- Szczecin or RE RegioEkspress. Consider first class tickets, because the price difference between the second and first class is not so big. The jump in comfort may be substantial but then it is also common to see trains where 2nd class carriages are recently renovated and 1st class carriages are old and correspondingly low quality.