Tricity Student ID (ELS): Discounts and Benefits in Gdańsk, Gdynia, and Sopot

The biggest savings resulting from having a valid ELS card are daily trips around the Tri-City agglomeration.

• SKM / PKM / Polregio trains – 51% SUBJECT TO STATUTORY DISCOUNT (Single and Semester Tickets)
• ZTM Gdańsk Trams & Buses – 50% ULEGI (Single and Monthly Tickets)
• Trolleybuses and Buses ZKM Gdynia – 50% YIELD (Single and Monthly Tickets)

What do you need to remember?

• Age limit for trains (SKM/PKM/Polregio): The statutory discount of 51% on trains is available only to first- and second-cycle students up to the age of 26 (doctoral students have a discount up to the age of 35 on the basis of an ELD card).

• Public transport (ZTM/ZKM): A 50% discount on trams in Gdańsk or trolleybuses in Gdynia is available regardless of age, as long as you have a valid student ID card from Polish universities (UG, PG, MUG, etc.).

Culture for pennies – Museums for PLN 1, free days and theatres in the Tri-City

The Tri-City cultural offer is exceptionally generous for people with an EPP document.

Institution / Museum

• National Museum in Gdańsk (Oliwa)
• Museum of the Second World War (Gdańsk)
• Emigration Museum (Port of Gdynia)
• Wybrzeże Theatre (Gdańsk / Sopot)
• Musical Theatre in Gdynia
• European Solidarity Centre (ECS)│

1. National Museum for PLN 1

Branches of the National Museum in Gdańsk (e.g. the Department of Early Art at Toruńska Street with the famous painting The Last Judgement by Hans Memling, the Department of Modern Art in the Abbots’ Palace in Oliwa or the Green Gate) implement a government program: students up to the age of 26 buy an entrance ticket for a symbolic PLN 1!

2. Tickets-Tickets to Tri-City Theatres

You don’t have to buy expensive tickets a month in advance.

• Wybrzeże Theatre (Gdańsk / Sopot): 15-30 minutes before the start of the performance, at the ticket office at the Coal Market in Gdańsk or on the Chamber Stage in Sopot, students from ELS can buy the so-called Ticket (unnumbered seats or free seats) at the price of PLN 20-30.

• Musical Theatre in Gdynia: One of the largest musical stages in Poland offers student tickets for selected performances at very attractive prices.

Sports, Entertainment & Recreation with ELS discount

The ELS card is also useful in free time from lectures at Gdańsk University of Technology or UG.

• Studio Cinemas (Żak Cinema / Chamber Cinema) Student tickets 15–20 PLN
• Gdynia Aquarium (South Pier) Reduced ticket for students
• Municipal swimming pools (GOS Gdańsk / GOSiR) Reduced tickets for the swimming track

1. Studio Cinemas and Multiplexes

• Żak Cinema in Wrzeszcz (198 Grunwaldzka Street): An iconic center of student culture. With an ELS card, you can buy tickets for amateur, European and festival cinema at the lowest prices in the Tri-City (approx. PLN 15-18).

• Multiplexes (Helios / Multikino / Cinema City): In addition to standard discounted student tickets, it is worth taking advantage of super-Tuesdays or super-Wednesday discounts, where tickets cost less than PLN 20.

2. Gdynia Aquarium and Oliwa Zoo

Both the Marine Fisheries Institute – Gdynia Aquarium (on the South Pier in Gdynia) and the Gdańsk Zoological Garden in Oliwa offer discounted tickets for students upon presentation of ELS.

Taking care of the validity of the ELS hologram for a given semester, keeping an eye on the expiry dates of SKM semester tickets, checking grades in USOSweb/MojaPG and payments for the station require a good digital system. See how the all-in-one Student360 app works – it helps you plan your class schedule, convert ECTS credits, securely store notes and documents in the cloud on 5 GB of disk, and automatically share apartment fees with roommates.

Gastronomy & Nightlife – Discounts in clubs and bars

Many owners of pubs, cafes and music clubs in the Tri-City offer their own, dedicated discounts for students.

• Free admission to clubs: Klub Kwadratowa at Gdańsk University of Technology, Bunkier in Gdańsk or Seagull Łatana and Three Sisters in Sopot offer free admission for students with an ELS card until 11:00 p.m./12:00 p.m. (especially on Student Thursdays).

• Milk Bars: Iconic bars (e.g. Bar Akademicki at Do Studzienki Street in Wrzeszcz or Bar Słoneczny in Sopot) serve nutritious, two-course student lunches at a price of PLN 18–25.

Control of the monthly budget, including the use of promotional tickets and discounts for ELS in Gdańsk, Sopot or Gdynia, makes it easier to maintain financial liquidity. Install the Student360 academic life app, which helps you keep an expense journal, settle your boarding and organize your student affairs stress-free.

Connecting ELS to the FALA System – Automatic discounts on rides throughout the voivodeship

The Voivodeship FALA System allows you to use a physical ELS card as a direct ticket identifier and a carrier of discounts throughout the Tri-City agglomeration and on regional trains in Pomerania.

With integration, you don’t have to buy paper tickets or manually select a discount at ticket machines.

How do I set up ELS in WAVE?

• Create an account in the FALA app or on the systemfala.pl portal.
• In the Identifiers tab, select Add contact/contactless card and tap your ELS card to the reader on your phone (NFC) or enter its numerical string provided by the Dean’s Office.
• The system automatically verifies your insurance/student status and assigns your account the right to the statutory relief (50% ZTM/ZKM and 51% SKM/PKM/Polregio).
• During the trip, you bounce your ELS card at the validator in the vehicle (Check-in at the entrance and Check-out at the exit), and FALA automatically deducts the amount from the attached payment card, including the student discount.

Licenses and software for thousands of zlotys FREE with ELS and university email

The ELS card itself and the associated university e-mail address (e.g. @student.ug.edu.pl, @student.pg.edu.pl or @gumed.edu.pl) give access to free, professional digital tools for which commercial users pay thousands of zlotys per year.

Why is it worth taking advantage of it from the 1st day of study?

• Students of Computer Science and Gdańsk University of Technology (Gdańsk University of Technology): The GitHub Student Developer Pack and JetBrains environments give access to paid development tools, Heroku/DigitalOcean cloud servers and free .me domains, which allows you to build a commercial project portfolio at university.

• Management, Economics & Marketing Students (UG / WSB Merito): Unlimited Notion Plus and Canva Pro & Figma allow you to create professional academic presentations and reports without investing your own funds.

Managing free accounts at the university, controlling subscription expiration dates, tracking the schedule of classes, calculating ECTS credits at PG/UG/MUGed and efficiently settling fees for accommodation with roommates become simple thanks to digital control. See how the comprehensive application for students Student360 works – it allows you to automatically write down meter readings on your apartment, distribute bills to household members, track your schedule in casual work, calculate ECTS credits, and securely store lecture notes and scans of academic documents on a 5 GB cloud drive.

Sea sports, Aquapark and recreation – Wind and water concessions

Living in the Tri-City gives a unique opportunity to practice water sports and seaside recreation. The ELS card opens the door to dedicated student discounts at local sports bases.

1. Windsurfing and Kitesurfing in the Bay

Water schools located on the beach in Sopot (area of the Centennial Hall / Molo), Jelitków and Rewa offer students of Tri-City universities discounts on wetsuits, windsurfing boards and individual lessons with an instructor. The best promotions are valid in the academic months: October, May and June.

2. Aquapark Sopot and Saunarium

Aquapark Sopot (Zamkowa Góra Street) offers special student fares. Upon presentation of your ELS card, you get access to the pool area, slides and sauna complex at a price noticeably lower than a normal ticket.

The validity of the ELS Hologram and the consequences of counterfeiting – How not to lose discounts?

It is the duty of every student to keep an eye on the physical validity of their ID. The replacement of the holographic sticker on the ELS card takes place at the Dean’s Office of your faculty (UG, PG, MUG, WSB Merito, etc.).

Strict warning: Do not buy “collectible holograms” online!

Advertisements offering the sale of “collectible ELS stickers” with a new expiration date are common on the Internet. The use of such a sticker during ticket control on a SKM train, ZTM/ZKM bus or in the Museum is associated with disastrous consequences:

• Notification of the Prosecutor’s Office and the Police: The ticket inspector is obliged to keep the forged ID card and call the police.
• Criminal liability: Using a forged student ID card is a crime under Article 270 § 1 of the Criminal Code (Use of a forged document), which is punishable by a fine, restriction of liberty or imprisonment for up to 5 years!
• Expulsion from the University: The Dean’s Office, upon receiving information from the police, initiates proceedings before the Disciplinary Committee for Students, which without exception ends with disciplinary deletion from the list of students and a wolf ticket at other universities.

Planning the budget for student outings, controlling fixed fees at the dormitory and securely storing documents and notes in the cloud allow you to maintain full fluency and peace of mind. Install the Student360 student life support app, which makes it easy to settle utilities in your rented apartment, control grades and finances, and help you organize academic matters without stress.

Frequently Asked Questions About ELS Card

1. Up to what age are student discounts valid for SKM trains and transport in the Tri-City?

The 51% discount on SKM, PKM and Polregio trains is valid until the age of 26. 50% discounts on ZTM Gdańsk trams and buses and ZKM Gdynia trolleybuses are available regardless of age, provided that you have a valid student ID.

2. Does mLegitymacja in mObywatel give exactly the same discounts as a plastic ELS card?

Yes. The mStudent Card displayed in the mObywatel application on a smartphone is an official state student identity document. Inspectors of SKM, ZTM, ZKM and ticket offices in museums and theatres are obliged to honour mLegitymacja on an equal footing with a plastic ELS card.

3. Are part-time students entitled to discounts on the ELS card?

Yes! The provisions of the Law on Higher Education and Science and the Act on Entitlement to Discounted Travel on Public Transport treat full-time (full-time) and part-time (part-time/evening) students exactly the same.

4. How to buy a “Ticket-Ticket” to the Wybrzeże Theatre or the Musical Theatre in Gdynia?

Tickets are purchased at the theatre’s ticket office about 15-30 minutes before the start of the performance. The condition for selling a ticket is to have free seats in the room and to present a valid ELS card.

5. Until when is the hologram sticker on the ELS card valid?

In the winter semester, the hologram is valid until March 31, and in the summer semester until October 31. Remember to raise your ID card at the Dean’s Office (UG, PG, MUG) before the end of these dates, so as not to lose discounts on SKM trains!

6. Does the ISIC or Euro26 card give additional discounts in addition to the ELS card?

The International Student Identity Card (ISIC) or Euro26 is mainly useful for trips abroad and includes accident/disability insurance. In Poland and the Tri-City, basic discounts on transport and museums are guaranteed by the Polish ELS card.

The ELS card is your most important document in the Tri-City:

• Activate mLegitymacja in the mObywatel application in case you lose or unload your plastic card.
• Take advantage of the Museum for PLN 1 program at the branches of the National Museum in Gdańsk.
• Buy a Semester Ticket for SKM with a 51% discount and save hundreds of zlotys on commuting throughout the semester!