Palaces

Sulisław Palace

Near Grodków, by a set of ponds, stands a neo-Gothic palace whose history reaches back to a medieval knightly castle associated with the Knights Templar. After decades of neglect the palace-and-farm complex has regained its splendour: since 2012 it has housed the first five-star hotel in the Opole region, with a restaurant, a spa and the Centre of Yoga and Ayurveda.

The Silesian Cinderella buys the palace

In 1888 the owner of Sulisław became Hans Karl Count von Schaffgotsch, son of the owners of the palace in Kopy. The purchase was financed by his mother, Joanna Gryzik von Schomberg-Godulla, known as the Silesian Cinderella. Hans Karl lived here until 1908, and in 1915 the estate was bought by Count Johannes von Franken-Sierstorpff. Cartouches with the owners' coats of arms survive above the entrance.

From ruin to hotel

After 1945 the palace changed managers frequently and decayed; from 1966 it stood abandoned. The turning point came in 2006, when the palace, the outbuildings and the park were bought by an investor. After renovation the hotel opened in 2012, and the restored manor farm followed two years later. The hotel belongs to the Historic Hotels of Poland association.

Beach by the ponds

A hundred metres from the palace lies a beach with a building known as the Palace on the Water, benches under thatched parasols and walking paths. The grounds serve recreation all year round — not only in summer.

In practice

Sulisław lies in the Grodków commune in the Opole region. It is a working hotel, so you can see the interiors as a guest of the hotel or of its restaurant; after a walk along the ponds, visit nearby Grodków with its Gothic church and fragments of the town walls.