Krakow - what to do and see
Updated: Nov 18, 2019
Probably everyone who has visited Poland at least once was in Krakow.
A royal city with almost 900 years of tradition, a beautiful old town and the largest market square in Europe.
Here everyone will find something for themselves: historic buildings, houses, churches, art galleries, bars and restaurants with Polish food at every corner, romantic horse-drawn carriages, Renaissance Royal Castle on Wawel Hill and even a dragon.
A city full of legends, artists, urban jugglers and ubiquitous traditions.
Visit Kazimierz, the Jewish Quarter, to feel the atmosphere of old times, sail a boat on the Vistula River, wander the alleys of the Old Town and visit the cult artistic Piwnica Pod Baranami.
Under the Cloth Hall on the Main Market Square is a fantastic multimedia Museum, the Underground Market.
This place wasn't discovered by archaeologists until 21C. A few meters underground you will find in many places relics of construction, objects and architecture, stone roads with ruts carved by the wheels of vehicles transporting goods in 13C; they are the oldest brick commercial buildings in Krakow.
You can also weigh yourself and see how many poodles, łut, stones and cetnars you weigh? Isn’t it nicer than a kilo or a pound?
Not far from Krakow is the Wieliczka Salt Mine, on the UNESCO list since 1989, a unique place with many corridors, salt sculptures and chapels. For 3 hours you move not only 320m underground, but also find yourself in the times of 13C.
This is a powerful experience! If you are already in Krakow, you have to visit Wieliczka Salt Mines.
Wine enthusiasts can taste wine in the vineyards located near Krakow, or relax in the picturesque Ojcowski Park and the castle in Tyniec.
You can take a walk in Lanckorona, a charming town that was the Mecca of Krakow's elite and bohemians before WW2, or go to Zalipie, a colorful village famous for its painted houses decorated by the inhabitants themselves.
Parents will surely satisfy the cravings of their children in nearby Zator, a town that has been attracting the largest roller coaster in Europe and a huge amusement park in Energylandia for several years.
Close to this location is a huge park with gigantic moving dinosaurs, and further in the Park of Mythology you can go back to the time of the creation of the world according to ancient Greeks and Romans. Such mythology in a nutshell will appeal not only to high school graduates, but can be a discovery for many adults. For the night you can stay in a cowboy village, designed to look like a classic western village from the American West.
For pilgrims it will be a real treat to visit Wadowice, the birthplace of John Paul II - the first Polish Pope and visit the Sanctuary in Łagiewniki, the resting place of St. Faustina Kowalska, the author of Secretary of Divine Mercy.
West of Krakow is also one of the largest WWII death camps, Auschwitz-Birkenau, where the March of the Living takes place every spring, during which Jews from all over the world commemorate the victims of the Holocaust.
A sad page in history, but very important for a posterity lesson.
From Krakow it is not far to the highest mountains of Poland - the Tatra Mountains.
Zakopane- the capital of the Tatra Mountains - is always full of tourists, regardless of the season. Poles go there for winter holidays and summer holidays, as well as on the so-called long weekends. Then it is better to avoid the city, because at Zakopianka (route from Krakow to Zakopane) although it is only about 100km, you can get stuck in traffic jam for 4h.
Apart from the wonderful SPA with thermal baths and mountain cable car rides to KasprowyWierch and Gubałówka, the city offers above all the highlander tradition: beautifully decorated costumes, music, dancing, food, speech, Podhale architecture and. . . strong drinks.
Currently, Kraków Airport serves 23 airlines and has hundreds of direct flights to various cities, mainly in Europe. From the airport to the center is about 15km. You can get there by bus, taxi or private transfer.
The hotel base in Krakow is probably one of the best in Poland, for every budget, from hostels to luxurious places for very demanding travelers. In Krakow, you can communicate in English in almost every restaurant, street, museum and tourist destination. But most of all, there are many kind people living here.
A weekend in Krakow is not enough to get to know all the attractions of the city and its surroundings, but you have to start with something, right?
Check our featured tours, and please note, that we can customize any itinerary to your wishes!
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