Lets present full Krakow Guide! Fun and cultured, modern and traditional, crowded and intimate – Krakow is truly a city of contrasts, despite its coherently beautiful architecture. The young and dynamic will spend their time in countless clubs of Krakow, taking advantage of cost-effective prices in its creatively designed hostels or participating in numerous festivals organised in the city. Those who appreciate tradition will devote their time to discover the impressive architectural, artistic, culinary and historical heritage of this royal city, slowly sipping coffee in one of the cosy cafés surrounding the Main Square of Krakow. Before the first visit, when you may select the favourite places of Krakow on your own, definitely take a glance at the guide below to find out what Krakow attractions have been essential to the city’s popularity.
Table of Contents
A DAY IN A THOUSAND-YEAR-OLD KRAKOW
Krakow wasn’t built in a day and the origins of its municipality reach the 8th century, when the area would be populated by the pagan tribe of Vistulans – give yourself a chance to witness the historical heritage of the city accumulated across millennia, where such notable individuals as Nicolaus Copernicus, John Paul II or Stefan Banach would once live. Devour the Krakow Old Town, the UNESCO World Heritage site, with your eyes and visit the charming Jewish district of Kazimierz.
MAIN SQUARE
The largest market square of medieval Europe is a must-see for each visitor to Krakow. The buzzling life of the heart of Krakow attracts thousands of tourists a day with its creative performers, artists, bagel stands and stunning architecture. The Sukiennice Cloth Hall occupies the central spot of the market, housing elegant jewellery and souvenir shops inside, as well as the Gallery of the 19th Century Polish Art in its interior. As enchanting on a sunny day, as after the dusk, being beautifully illuminated along with the impressive facades of ancient kamienica buildings surrounding the market.
LITTLE MARKET SQUARE
The sister square of the Old Town’s Main Square is a charming and less crowded area stretching behind the St. Mary’s Basilica, offering a number of beer gardens, traditional restaurants and hosting summer festivals of alternative, jazz and folk music. The most bourgeoisie-like place within the area of the Old Town.
THE UNDERGROUND MUSEUM OF KRAKOW
A lot of Krakow’s life is led under the street level – at its cellars adapted for pubs, clubs and art galleries. The unique museum covers an extensive area under the Main Square with its exhibition located 4 metres under the ground. Exploring the past of once mighty Krakow, sightseeing the archeological artifacts related to the trading activities led in the medieval Market Square and interacting with the multimedia of this modern museum allows for taking a trip back in time to see what has made the greatest influence on the city’s modern shape. The museum will surely prepare you for a greater challenge – visiting the UNESCO-listed Wieliczka Salt Mine, with its impressive exhibition placed 327 metres underground.
ST. MARY’S BASILICA
The hallmark of the Main Square of Krakow. Built in the 14th and 15th centuries, the Gothic basilica and its two soaring towers house a wonder of medieval sacral art – the Altarpiece chiseled in the wood by Veit Stoss, being the largest Gothic altar of its kind to have ever existed. The bugler of St. Mary’s Basilica may be heard giving his trumpet call (the melody of Hejnal Mariacki) from the higher of towers every hour, and so in every corner of the market. The interrupted melody heard at noon is said to commemorate the tragic death of a medieval bugler trying to warn the city’s residents of the Mongol troops approaching the fortifications, when he was shot with an arrow by one of the invaders.
WAWEL CASTLE
Proudly overlooking the city from the Wawel Hill, the Wawel Castle has been sitting at the left bank of Vistula river, over the den of the legendary dragon of Krakow (the statue placed there breathes with real fire!) since the 11th century.
KAZIMIERZ DISTRICT
The unique Jewish quarter of Krakow is beloved by so many due to its charm and nostalgia of the old world that is not coming back. Its tiny Jewish residential buildings with antique signboards, cosy restaurants of Jewish cuisine, synagogues and numerous Jewish festivals bring back the memories of when the king-sanctioned religious tolerance of the Polish Crown would make the Jewish communities thrive in the places like this.
THE CZARTORYSKI MUSEUM
Do not miss the chance to see one of the most famous paintings by Leonardo da Vinci with your own eyes! The collection of Princess Izabella Czartoryska placed in this facility with a welcoming intimate courtyard includes the Lady with an Ermine that closely follows the fame of the Mona Lisa portrait.
THE SCHINDLER’S FACTORY
The visit to Schindler’s factory is often a prelude to the one paid to the Auchwitz-Birkenau concentration camp. The Oscar-winning story of Oscar Schindler who used his position and German origin to save a number of Jewish workers hired in the factory during WWII stops being only “a movie tale” once you see the place with your own eyes.
NOWA HUTA – THE COMMIE DISTRICT
Goodbye Lenin is the best movie to describe what you may expect in the newest district of Krakow Nowa Huta is (actually – the Polish-made Mis comedy movie is a better, yet less known one). Designed to house the labourers of the nearby Steel Mill, it was meant to show “them capitalist westerners” that it was possible to construct a utopian communist Social-Realist city from scratch, with its ideally planned squares, streets and residential buildings. The perfect dwellers of Nowa Huta were intended to live peacefully in such surroundings and endlessly praise the communist system for providing them with such wonderful conditions. The plan has failed, but today you may still get in a commie Trabant car, travel to the heart of Nowa Huta, sightsee a typical and fully-fitted commie flat or have a meal in an accordingly decorated restaurant. Familiarising yourself with the absurd aspect of everyday commie existence is a fun experience once you know it will only last for an hour or two.