Krakow

Strongbow10

Going to Krakow this weekend for 3 nights with the family, was just wondering what things there are to do.

We have the basics, we'll visit Auschwitz and the salt mines. does anyone have any other recommendations?

cheers in advance

thebiglad

We did a 1/2 day tour in electric car (golf buggy type thing) around the city and suburbs (few churches) and then to Schindlers factory - pick them up around the square in the old town.

There is the old town itself particularly the Linen Hall and market (good amber jewellery) and the castle.

We were there for 3 days too and with day trip to Auschwitz and Salt Mines not a lot of time really left over.

If you are into that sort of thing take in a quartet in the evening - some do movies type music to accomodate everyday folk and some are Beethoven etc

Absolutely loved Krakow though...

homer.j

If you are interested in the nazi occupation and the whole treatment of jewish people, I would highly recommend the jewish ghetto and especially the pharmacy under the eagle.

In parts around the ghetto you can still see the original ghetto walls. Another area which is slightly off the beaten track if you have time is the Plaszow force labour camp, whilst there is nothing left here except for a couple of monuments and a huge memorial dedicated to those who were murdered on the site.

This is the labour/concentration camp that featured in Schindlers List under the control of the tyrant Amon Goeth. Just outside the camp you will find the 'Red House' which is where Amon Goeth lived, it's in pretty run down state now and the 'Grey House' with an infamous basement where the SS tortured prisoners.

There is quite a bit of information in Schindlers factory about the camp that used to exist, and a small bit of information about the engineer who was responsible for the building of the camp in the pharmacy under the eagle.

Auschwitz is quite an eye opener, you will probably need an entire day here and some of the exhibitions are ......... well they just have to be seen. When you are finished the guided tour in the Auschwitz I you are taken to Auschwitz II or Birkenau this is where most of the executions took place.

Your hotel should be able to arrange this tour for you, alternatively if you want to do it the independent way like we done you can catch a bus from the main bus station to the camp for about 1/4 of the price.

If it is a nice day there is nothing like sitting down at the main square enjoying a beer if that's your thing and watching the world go by for an hour.

Also in the main square is St. Mary's Church where a lone bugle player plays from the top of the tower on the hour, all of a sudden the music comes to an end, you'll know what I mean if you hear it.

Krakow overall is quite a small city and easy to get around on foot, but it also seems to have a great tram network which is relatively cheap too.

To get from the airport to the city, outside the arrivals you will find a free shuttle bus taking you to the train station about 2 mins away, this is by far the cheapest way into the city as if memory serves me correctly taxis from the airport are quite expensive and the train gets you there faster.

There are also regular trams direct from the main train station around the city.

MANUTD99

We're heading to Krakow this weekend. Really excited!

Just wondering if any tips on inexpensive restaurants in the Old Town?

Cheers

SligoL

Hi everyone,

This thread hasnt been very active but am just wondering has anyone been to Krakow in January? It's an unusual time to visit a city and I want to ensure that places like Auschwitz and the Salt Mines open in January?

Thanks

spurious

The Auschwitz Memorial is open all year round except for January 1st, December 25th and Easter Sunday. It's an even grimmer visit in the cold of a Polish winter.

The Wieliczka Mines would have short hours on New Year's Eve, but other than Jan 1st, Dec. 24th and 25th and Easter Sunday would be open as normal other days in January.

Lovely city to visit at any time of year.

Virtualny

Recently I spoke with my friend who went go to Poland with his family for the first time and wanted to see Auschwitz Birkenau. I asked him why you want to go to Poland to see a big cemetery? It is now 70 years after the war and still feel the smell of death in the air there. He told me that everyone going there.

Interesting.

I tell him that there are many other interesting and beautiful places, as the best preserved castle of the Teutonic Order in Europe in Malbork town, near Gdansk. Beautiful Masuria called land of a thousand lakes with many castles of the Teutonic Knights. You can rent a boat and go for a swim at the most of them. Grunwald fields where was the biggest battle in medieval Europe "The Battle of Grunwald".
Jan Matejko's painting The Battle of Grunwald, which has dimensions of 14 feet high and 32 feet long is located in the National Museum in Warsaw.

Another very interesting place is Podlasie where you can meet animals as wisent that no longer exist anywhere in Europe, wild nature, very old trees, can see Tatar mosques and meet even the same Tatars who came to Poland with Golden Horde in the Middle Ages.

Of course. You can see the huge cemetery where ghosts still walk and show it to your children, but I still think that the northeast of Warsaw areas would be more interesting for anyone who would like to see Poland.

Some Photo

spurious

Yes, but this thread is about things to do near Krakow.

I would agree with you. The Gdansk region is my favourite part of Poland too.

Virtualny

Sometimes it's not worth it just to watch people as they died. sometimes better to watch people as they lived.

In the Middle Ages 75% of Jewry in all Europe lived in Poland, mainly because in Europe Jewrys was expeled or burned at the stake. Poland was the only one country in Europe where everyone could be free. In Poland in the Middle Ages for someone discrimination for his religion or nationality threatened to exile in Ukraine. In past Ukraine was called wild field.

Today in Poland live very few Jews, but thay left a many wonderful buildings and architecture as Kazimierz in Krakow.

Auschwitz is like place as from horror film, only the real. Of course, I not discourage anyone to go to Auschwitz, because I certainly worth it, but I thing that should not to be the only one destination of trip to Poland to Krakow. You have to balance it with something else, with something nice, otherwise will you have bad dreams.