Best Things To Do in Krakow, Poland

  1. Krakow Old Town

    3 (3166 Votes)
    Krakow Old Town

    Art And Culture, Church, Museum, Palace

    The city of Krakow is a metropolis with over a million residents today. During medieval times Krakow was the capital of Poland, a burgeoning economy and a strong state, with befitting architecture; a walled city, 46 towers on the wall guarding it and only seven main entrances. The medieval town it protected was and still is one of the most beautiful locales in the world. It was made, in its ent...Read more
  2. Sandomierska Tower

    Castle, Historical Site, Tower

    Open only during the summer, this artillery tower was one of two that rose on the south side of the castle complex. It was erected as the defences on that side were thought to be weak. Despite its military purpose, the tower does possess some artistic flair. The entrance is prettily carved, for one thing. The chimney shows that it was used as a lodging too, perhaps as a prison for nobility. Thi...Read more
  3. Auschwitz-birkenau State Museum

    Art And Culture, Museum, Landmark, Camp

    Words cannot begin to describe the horror that took place in this camp. The Museum encompasses the entire Auschwitz concentration camp and its surrounding buildings. It is estimated that over 1.1 million people were killed here, a majority of them Jews. The camp has come to symbolize the Nazi atrocities against the Jewish people. The museum today educates visitors and researches the Holocaust.
  4. Szolayski Tenement House

    Museum, Historical Site

    The two storey Szolayski family house was built in the 17th century and was expanded over the next few centuries. In the 2000s this was the location of the Stanislaw Wyspianski Muzeum. Now, though the name has changed, the original collection remains here. Wyspianski’s personal artefacts, sketches, last self-portrait and other artworks are in exhibit. See the reconstructed meeting room of...Read more
  5. Oskar Schindlers Factory

    Art And Culture, Museum, Educational Site, Historical Site

    This is Emalia, immortalised in Steven Spielberg’s movie Schindler’s List, the enamel vessels factory where Oskar Schindler first began employing Jews as they were an inexpensive labour force. Schindler would go on to save over a thousand Jews from the concentration camps by first employing them here and then later building a munitions factory in his hometown. It was during his stay...Read more
  6. Church Of St Casimir The Prince

    Church, Religious Site

    Located next to the Franciscan Monastery and its catacombs, this church was constructed in 1640. The church had to be rebuilt after a flood and the Baroque building you see today was consecrated in 1672. It looks very plain from the outside, but is lavishly decorated in the inside. Check out the 18th century Baroque altars, and the painting of Saint Casimir on the side altar. In front of the ch...Read more
  7. Plac Nowy

    Bar, Art And Culture, Museum, Walking Area

    Located in the Jewish district, the Plac Nowy (New Square) was once the cultural hub of Polish Jews. Krakow has had a sizeable Jewish population since the 15th century. Post-war the square and the neighbourhood were slowly reclaimed by the Jewish community and one can now see Hebrew signs and the Star of David on many buildings. The square, a commercial hub since its establishment now holds a f...Read more
  8. Church Of The Holy Cross

    4.7 (2 Votes)
    Church Of The Holy Cross

    Church, Religious Site

    This religious complex, containing the Gothic basilica and Cistercian monastery, has been the center of the Cistercian order in Krakow for 800 years. There is also and Abbot’s palace, built in Renaissance style in 1569. The monastery was founded in 1222, but having been destroyed by the Mongols in the 13th century, by fire in the 15th, and the Swedish in the 17th, is has had to be rebuilt...Read more
  9. Wieliczka Salt Mine

    4.6 (2078 Votes)
    Wieliczka Salt Mine

    Art And Culture, Mine, Historical Site, Statue

    Usually from a cultural and artistic standpoint all a mine does is to provide the materials for something else. The Wieliczka Salt Mine goes beyond that. Begun in the 13th century AD, the mine was active till 2007 and at that time it was one of the world’s oldest operating mines. Over the course of time it was also extensively mined for salt, and it is over 287 kilometres long. Its long o...Read more
  10. Bosak Building Image
    ©
    Marek Bosak was one of the 1000+ Jews saved by Oskar Schindler. This was her original family home, where they had lived for four centuries before being forcibly removed. The art collective Broken Fingaz, with the permission of the family, painted a vivid black and white mural on the brick facade of the building. Today it's an important part of the street art heritage of Krakow, and an important...Read more
  11. Jewish District

    4.6 (3008 Votes)
    Jewish District

    Bar, Art And Culture, Museum, Historical Site

    Jews have been treated differently in Christian countries for centuries, their politics and living regulated. A notable example of this is Venice’s Jewish Ghetto. This, the Kazimierz, is the other notable example. Not only because it is a Jewish district, but it is one of the few that survived the Second World War though with heavy damages. Due to interest stemming from Spielberg’s ...Read more
  12. Cloth Hall

    4.7 (2618 Votes)
    Cloth Hall

    Art And Culture, Museum, Cafe, Restaurant

    Bang in the middle of the Main Market Square, at the heart of this city, is the Cloth Hall (known as Sukiennice in Polish). A commercial space it was used by international traders to barter and sell goods in days of old. Slowly the system of trade changed and now the Cloth Hall houses many commercial shops and stalls. Some call it one of the oldest shopping centres still functioning. And it is ...Read more
  13. Krzysztofory Palace

    Historical Site, Palace, Exhibition

    This small Baroque Palace on the Main Market Square of Krakow's Old Town was constructed in 1649. Today it houses the main branch of the Historical Museum of Krakow. It’s permanent exhibit - ‘Cyberteka. Krakow − time and space’ - is a new one! It’s a lovely recreation of the development and growth of Krakow over history. This fact alone means this should be one of ...Read more
  14. Collegium Maius

    4.6 (1431 Votes)
    Collegium Maius

    Art And Culture, Educational Site, Architecture

    Collegium Maius is Latin for “Great College”, which it is in many terms. This college, a part of the Jagiellonian University, was built in 1364 with grants from the King Jagiello’s late wife Queen Jadwiga. Built in the Polish Gothic style, it is still used by the University for its Lecture Rooms, professor’s quarters and library. An astonishingly old centre of learning i...Read more
  15. Palace Of Fine Arts

    Art Museum, Museum

    It's worth visiting the museum just to check out the Art Nouveau building. The busts of famous Polish artists circles the building in a beautiful frieze by Jacek Malczewski. Constructed in 1901 this was the city's first building of Art Nouveau architecture. In front of the building is a monument to sculpture of the head of Apollo. Today it is one of the city's foremost exhibition venues, and fo...Read more