The Vistula river runs north to south, slicing the city of Warsaw in two - "Old" and "New".

The New Town, or Nowe Miasto, dating back to the 15th century, is adjacent to the Old Town or Stare Miasto.

Despite its name, Warsaw's new town is not the location for brand new office blocks and shiny glass buildings. It is home to many ancient gothic churches and picturesque old buildings. In fact, this area of the city began to develop hundreds of years ago, during the 14th century, and has been a part of Warsaw since it was incorporated as an official part of the city in the early 1790s.

Not restricted by fortified walls like its older neighbour, Warsaw New Town was able to grow and flourish with only the natural border of the river to restrain it.

After World War II, the New Town was fully refurbished, and today it is one of Warsaw's most popular districts.

The natural place to start discovering Warsaw for most visitors is in the Old Town, perhaps beginning at plac Zamkowy (Castle Square). But the New Town is perfect for a leisurely tour on foot and it has many rewards for those who escape the tourist throngs and tour-bus crowds of Old Town. Although beyond the medieval city walls, it is just as picturesque, but with a fraction of the foreign visitors. Many of its streets are closed to traffic, and it is the more genteel and glamorous part of Warsaw. From the Stalinist to the reconstructed Gothic, to the cutting-edge contemporary, Warsaw's New Town offers an intriguing mix of architectural styles and attractions. It boasts the Citadel Museum, an enormous fortress, the Marie Curie Museum, the Raczynriski Palace and the vast Sapieha Palace, the Market Square and the Church of St Francis, all examples of the city's magnificent architectural achievements and the heroic work of meticulously 'reconstructing the old' that followed the war, when 80 per cent of the city's buildings were destroyed or ruined.

Following The Royal Route is the easiest way to get there, down through one of the most bustling and handsome parts of the city, past the president's official residence, the university (where the spectacular green facade of the the new university library, decorated with languages, mathematics and music score is a Polish-designed architectural extravaganza) and the elegant designer shops along Nowy Swiat. And if you're going to indulge yourself in the timeless ritual of coffee and cakes along the way, this is the classiest part of Warsaw to do it. You can choose from several elegant cafes including the old-established, Viennese-style Cafe Blikle and another in the luxurious Bristol hotel, which is truly a grand hotel of the old school. There's yet another cafe in the Europejski, a further traditional pile of a hotel that once provided a home to the exiled King Zog of Albania.

Finally, don't miss the Freta Porter restaurant at number 37 Freta Street on the New Town Square. The menu varies from braised goat cheese en curette with mixed greens and a light dressing, to a truly delicious French onion soup and filet of sole almondine with shrimp linguini - to name but a few of the moderately priced dishes. The food is high quality and the presentation is first-rate.