Poland’s capital until the 17th century, Krakow escaped much of the structural destruction that befell Warsaw and other cities in the region during World War II. Its main square, Rynek Glowny, was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1978. While away a summer day at one of the square’s many tranquil outdoor cafés with a cool Zywiec (Polish lager) in hand. Wander the medieval streets, tour the Renaissance Royal Wawel Castle and Cathedral, check out what remains of the Jewish city within the city, Kazimierz, or take a day trip out of Krakow to marvel at the 13th-century Wieliczka salt mines (9 miles), hike amid Zakopane’s mountains (62 miles), or remember the human devastation of the Holocaust at Auschwitz (37 miles).
48 Hours in Krakow
Text by Mark Baker
Two decades after Communism, the city shines. Here are five top experiences.
Poland's medieval capital, Krakow (KRAHK-oov), may well be the love child of Prague and Vienna. Wawel Castle has every bit as much royal sophistication as Vienna's Hofburg, and Krakow's Old Town square is just as stunning as Prague's. Polish rulers converted to Catholicism at the turn of the first millennium (and in 1978 a local boy became Pope John Paul II), but in the 13th century the city also became a major refuge for Jews. This centuries-old mix of faiths means you'll find both gilded churches full of the devout and lively restaurants serving hearty kosher dishes.
1. View the "Lady" It's hard to know which is more surprising: that one of Leonardo da Vinci's rare female portraits is hanging in Krakow (a group of just four known paintings that includes the Mona Lisa) or that Leonardo once actually painted an ermine—a weasel. Indeed Leonardo's stately "Lady with an Ermine" is a must at the Princes Czartoryski Museum, which houses a collection that also boasts a Rembrandt, a Bruegel, and acres of old coins, weapons, tapestries, and porcelain. "Don't overlook the display of Hussar armor," says Kit F. Chung, a Frommer's Poland guidebook author. "This army played a big part in the Battle of Vienna [a 1683 conflict that saved much of Europe from Ottoman rule]."
2. Buy the Book Krakow, at heart, is an intellectual's town, and the city is filled with antiquarian booksellers. Massolit Books, for one, is angled specifically at English-language readers and is crammed with thousands of used and new titles. Push your way through to a hidden back chamber to find an afternoon's worth of browsing on central European history, art and architecture, and Polish authors in translation—the whole scene set to a soundtrack of smooth jazz.
3. Order a Czarna Poland is by tradition a tea-drinking nation, but Krakow loves its strong black coffee (czarna) too. In summer, the massive central square, the Rynek Glowny, becomes one big café. The city's best known coffeehouse, Jama Michalika, is admittedly more tourist trap than java joint, but still worth a look inside for its remarkable art nouveau interior and wall paintings. In the early 20th century, this was the center of a modern artistic movement known as "Young Poland." For a place that evokes Austro-Hungarian Krakow—i.e., the 19th century, when the city was under Vienna's benign domination—drop in at Prowincja, which also has excellent cakes. Dym, another great choice, is a spare space with exposed concrete walls and simple wooden tables, filled with hipsters and professorial types hunched over their newspapers and espresso cups.
4. Pay Your Respects to Royalty Perched on a hilltop overlooking the Vistula River, Wawel was the seat of Poland's kings and queens for some 300 years, before the capital shifted to Warsaw in 1611. You could easily spend a whole day touring the royal chambers, the treasury, and the state rooms, but if time runs short, limit in-depth exploration to the cathedral. The royal crypts hold the remains of most of Poland's rulers, including luminaries like Kazimierz the Great and oddities like the vertically challenged Wladyslaw the Elbow-High. Massolit Books owner David Miller recommends attending one of the evening concerts at the castle. "What's wonderful is that you get to go into the Wawel at night, after the front gates are closed, and have the feeling the castle is all for you."
5. Explore Kazimierz Day and Night Krakow's former Jewish quarter is neglected, badly frayed at the edges, and at the same time thoroughly engaging. During World War II, 55,000 Jews from Krakow were sent to Auschwitz. In the decades immediately after the war, the area was left to languish and only recently have Jews returned to reclaim their heritage. Walk the streets to see surviving synagogues and cemeteries and then cross the Vistula River to Podgorze, the site of the Nazi wartime ghetto immortalized in Steven Spielberg's film Schindler's List. Be sure to come back at night, when Kazimierz does double duty as a center of Krakow's nightlife. Find dozens of cafés and clubs, including Mleczarnia—in winter, a candlelit chill-out zone; in summer, an open-air beer garden.
Fast Facts Krakow was Poland's capital for nearly 300 years, until 1611. Much of the town’s early wealth—still very much in evidence—was derived from the salt trade. Most of the sights are situated on or around the Old Town's magnificent main square, the Rynek Glowny, or at the Royal Castle, known as the Wawel.
Krakow Hotel Finder: Four Insider Picks
Hotel Pod Roza This luxurious town palace dating from the Middle Ages puts you right on the doorstep of Krakow's main square. Vintage furniture and elegant public spaces give the place an Old World ambience. From $191.
Hotel Pod Wawelem The name means "Below the Wawel," and you can't get closer to Wawel Castle than this contemporary boutique hotel. Head to the rooftop terrace for a welcome drink, with photo-op views to the castle and out over the river. From $106.
U Pana Cogito Hotel prices have risen rapidly in the past few years, but this three-star pension in a renovated villa across the Vistula River from the Old Town remains one of the best lodging deals in town. The rooms are on the plain side, though spotless. Breakfast is served in the sunroom, with views out onto a small rose garden. From $82.
Hotel Karmel Kazimierz has a more neighborhood feel than the Old Town, and this remains the homiest of several 19th-century inns in the district, with hardwood floors and old-fashioned furniture. Splurge on a special "comfort" room, with a big double bed and two sofas. You're a short walk to the best nightspots, and the breakfast staff will make an espresso on request the morning after. From $71.
Published in the May/June 2009 issue of National Geographic Traveler.
Text by Meg Weaver
Before you wander Krakow's medieval streets, check out these resources to help you plan your trip.
Websites
Check out the live webcam of Rynek Glowny, Krakow's main square, and UNESCO World Heritage site since 1978.
This information directory for tourists features an interactive map viewable in both map and satellite view. The website also lists tons of must-sees, the weather report, and a partying guide.
The municipality's Web portal is chock full of info on Krakow including webcams; photos; culture, art, and festival listings; accommodations; tourist attractions and tour routes; and even contact information.
This travel-planning site offers everything from general information about the city to specifics about hotels, restaurants, nightlife, and more.
Blogs
An interactive outgrowth of Krakow Info, this blog covers a lot of useful topics for city visitors: facts, sights, event and festival listings, music, business leads, restaurants, hotels, and even etiquette tips (a handshake in Poland, turns out, means "the talk is over," not "it's a deal," so be careful with whom and when you shake).
Lonely Planet's Thorn Tree Travel Forum
While not exactly a blog, this is a good place to get your questions on travel to Krakow specifically and Poland in general answered.
Podcasts
Enjoy Mat Schulz and Eddie Burn's 13-minute podcast on the best places to drink and have fun like locals in Krakow's bar and clubs through Lonely Planet's Travel Stories podcast collection.
Newspapers and Magazines
Krakow's only English-language paper, the Krakow Post covers politics, current affairs, business and technology. Its City Life supplement comes in handy with the latest in Krakow's nightlife and restaurant and bar reviews.
Download this locally produced monthly guide to all things Krakow: restaurants, bars, hotels, cafés, nightclubs, sightseeing, special events, maps, and much more.
The city's guide to art and entertainment has listings of concerts, special exhibits at the city's many museums, and clubs. Karnet's listings are searchable by day so you can make the most of your time in Krakow.
Founded in 1989 by journalist activists supporting the then-burgeoning underground democratic opposition to the former Communist system and as a platform for the first democratic parliamentary elections, Gazeta Wyborcza now boasts a daily paid circulation of over 440,000 papers a day. Beyond merely reporting the news, the paper serves the public interest as it exposes corruption and bolsters Poland's fragile democracy. Its website features some of its most important articles translated to English.
Maps
While its text is only in Polish, this interactive map will help you navigate the city's neighborhoods, locate a specific address, and find the tramline closest to you.
This zoomable map of Krakow's city center lets you locate a slew of places to eat, drink, sleep, shop, and play.
Books
The Trumpeter of Krakow, by Eric P. Kelly and Janina Domanska
(originally published 1928; new edition, 2004)
Great for young readers
ages 9-12, this 1929 Newbery Medal-winning illustrated book transports
readers to 15th-century Poland, providing a vivid picture of early
Renaissance Krakow.
The Dragon of Krakow and Other Polish Stories, by Richard Monte and Paul
Hess (2008)
Classic Polish folktales come to life in this vividly
illustrated volume for all ages.
My Hometown Concentration Camp: A Survivor's Account of Life in the
Krakow Ghetto and Plaszow Concentration Camp, by Bernard Offen (2008)
Holocaust survivor Offen details his experiences in the Krakow ghetto
and the Plaszow concentration camp. His memoir pairs precise
descriptions of what happened and how he survived with what you can see
in the very same places today.
Schindler's List, by Thomas Keneally (1982)
The "facticious,"
less-melodramatic inspiration of Spielberg's award-winning film by the
same name, Keneally's book details the life of the Czech-born, Nazi
Party-member Oskar Schindler and the 1,100 Jews he saved during the
Holocaust through his enamelware factory in Krakow.
The Complete Maus: A Survivor's Tale, by Art Spiegelman (1986 & 1992)
Spiegelman, the son of Auschwitz survivors, explores his parents' ordeal
in this two-part graphic novel exploration of the Krakow ghetto and the
Auschwitz concentration camp.
A History of Cracow for Everyone, by Jan L. Malecki (2008)
Recommended by Martin Kraft of Massolit Books, an independent English-language bookstore in Krakow's old town, this English-language translation of A History of Cracow blends history, anecdotes, witty quotes, and colorful characters to provide its readers a sense of what makes the ancient city tick.
Movies
Krakow (1939)
Filmed in 1938 and 1939 and part of a six-film series made by film company Sektor Films, this ten-minute, B&W documentary captures everyday life in Krakow's Jewish neighborhood before its obliteration by the Holocaust.
Schindler's List (1993)
Much of Steven Spielberg's seven-time Oscar-award winning film was filmed in and around Krakow, site of unlikely hero Oskar Schindler's enamelware factory through which he was able to save the lives of over 1,110 Jews during the Holocaust.
Dekalog (Decalogue) (1989)
Though set in a housing project outside of Warsaw, Krzystof Kieslowski's TV miniseries provides an allegorical entrée into Polish life as each of the ten episodes examines the travails of everyday life refracted against one of the Ten Commandments.