Krakow City Guide
If you’ve been following our blog for awhile, you’ll know we’re fans of a good Euro City Break. In December 2019, a friend and I decided to take a trip to Krakow to see the city and, of course, the Christmas markets. So, I thought why not pull together a Krakow City Guide for you all.
DURATION
I would say 3 days is a good amount of time to visit the city. Depending on what you’d like to do, you may need more or less time.
TRANSPORT
The transport in the city is pretty good, however, with a lot of stuff being so close it’s pretty easy to walk.
As always, they have Uber which you can use if you’re heading somewhere a bit further out (e.g. the Salt Mines).
In terms of getting to and from the airport, I would suggest the train is the best option. It’s a super easy, direct journey that’s minimal effort and pretty cheap/
ACCOMODATION
Typically, we stayed in an Airbnb. There are SO many that it’s really up to you, depending on what you’re looking for.
I will say though we managed to find a really great Airbnb, right in Old Town Krakow, with a really helpful host. This was proved when we got locked out of the apartment the night before we left, and our host came running over within 5 minutes and had us all sorted in no time.
We stayed here, but beware there were a few steps and no lift so if you’re bringing a huge suitcase you will be carrying it!
Old Town was a really good central point to stay in, and meant a lot of things were within walking distance. So as areas go, I’d definitely recommend staying in that area.
THINGS TO DO
There are SO MANY things to do!!
Salt Mines
The Salt Mines are a bit further out of the city, so I would recommend getting an Uber. I had no idea what to expect, but it was actually super interesting. They take you 135m underground and take you on a tour of some of the chapels and other areas of the salt mines. You wouldn’t be surprised to know that everything is made of salt. Everything.
Jewish Quarter
The Jewish Quarter is a really nice area to stroll around, full of all sorts of different cafes and shops.
There was some building work going on whilst we were there so didn’t get to fully explore, but I’d encourage you to take a look.
Auschwitz
It’s a bit of a given that this is a must in Krakow. I would recommend buying a tour from one of the many tourist centres. You can organise your own trip, without a guide, but to fully understand I would recommend buying a trip beforehand to get a guide.
Wawel Castle & Cathedral
If you can, I would really recommend going here around sunset. If not it’s not the end of the world, but sunset does make it pretty magic. We just explored the grounds, we didn’t do any tour or anything – you may be able to but I can’t say for sure.
But it was really beautiful so I would definitely recommend going.
Museums
There are so many museums. So many. A lot more than I realised.
This was one thing that we unfortunately missed due to poor planning. However, there are supposed to be some really good ones and they’re dotted all over the place so definitely take a look!
Wander
Just have a wander. It’s a really nice city to stroll around, and it’s the best way to find things that you would otherwise miss!
So go take a walk, enjoy!!
PLACES TO EAT & DRINK
Since we were there for the Christmas markets, we went to eat there a lot. However, we did go to some other really good places.
Farma
Vegan, good food, nice and chilled out atmosphere. Really good value for money.
The Main Square
So this is more of an area than a restaurant. However, there are so many restaurants & bars surrounding the square, I would even recommend just wandering around and seeing which menus take your fancy.
Restaurant No. 7
One of the restaurants on the Main Square that was really good. We sat in the outdoors ‘greenhouse’ type things that they put up in the Winter.
Staff were friendly and the food was good, no complaints.
La Bodega del Ron
Really nice bar and, I think, they sometimes do food too. We didn’t grab food there but the drinks were really good.
Bull Pub
For any fellow Brits, this is your British pub away from home! Again a nice atmosphere, but maybe I’m slightly biased being a Brit and all.
Pod Papugami
An Irish pub that follows a similar suit to the Bull Pub above.
CHRISTMAS MARKETS
Obviously, Krakow is a great city to visit year round. However, around Christmas there is the added pull of the Christmas markets! The Christmas markets themselves are pretty self-explanatory, they’re based in the Main Square and are full of all sorts of stands.
You HAVE to try the pierogis, it’s Poland after all!
My FINAL recommendation is to follow @krakowcityguide on Instagram. Not only is it a beautiful account, there’s ALL the recommendations and tips that you could ever need! You’ll be able to find more places to eat and more things to do, so definitely have a look.
If you have any questions, I will do my best to answer them haha! But I hope this has been somewhat helpful for you.
Have an epic day!
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