The bus route number 666 has been resurrected in Poland, and it is not just a gimmick. Known locally as the ‘Highway to Hel’, the service runs from the northern city of Wejherowo to the resort town of Hel, a popular summer destination on the Baltic coast. The route’s number, long a subject of dark humour, was changed to 669 in 2006 after protests from religious groups.
But this year, amid rising regional tensions and a bid to boost tourism, the original number has been reinstated. For British holidaymakers, the timing could not be more provocative. The route passes through areas with strong Catholic traditions, and some locals see it as a flippant taunt.
Yet the bus is packed with curious tourists, many from the UK, who treat the ride as a pilgrimage to the absurd. On a recent journey, I sat next to a retired couple from Manchester who had booked the trip specifically for its infernal reputation. ‘It’s a bit of fun,’ the husband said, as the bus lumbered past a roadside shrine.
But the fun sits uneasily alongside Poland’s current political climate, where the church and state are increasingly intertwined. The return of route 666 is a small act of defiance by a regional transport authority, but it has become a symbol of a deeper cultural clash: between tradition and tourism, piety and profanity. For now, the bus rolls on, carrying the curious and the devout alike, all heading to Hel.
And whether they find paradise or purgatory at the end of the line depends on their perspective.
