Krakow - recommendations

gooner99

Hi.

Couple thinking of Krakow at the end of the month for a few days. Any up to date recommendations for accommodation (airbnb, hotels, etc), transport to/from airport and around the city. Tips for restaurants/pubs. Day trips. etc..

Thanks.

Kablamo!

I stayed in the Topolowa Residence some years back. They organised a trip to Auschwitz for me and even gave us a packed lunch to take along. They also arranged airport transfers. Couldn't recommend them highly enough.

7aubzxk43m2sni

The salt mines are definitely worth a visit, and of course Auschwitz

spurious

There is a train goes from the passenger terminal to the central station.

If taking a taxi, organise it in advance. Don't just pick up one at the airport.

Kevski

Uber is also a good option for transport to and from the airport. I paid 49 zloty from just off the main square to the airport a couple of months ago which works out at about €11.

uck51js9zml2yt

We booked a chauffeur to get to our apartment a few years ago.
Wasn't too dear.

gooner99

Thanks for the tips all.

ednwireland

trains handy enough from the airport got a taxi from the train station to the apartment which was at the back of starbucks near the theatre bagatella very clean although needed some ladder skills to get to the mezzanine to sleep !

salt mines were good but the tours dont take your round (the empty of people ) museum but its included in your ticket , so we ducked out and went anyway and you come out in the mine entrance in the village and then got the train back to krakow (20 mins 3 euro !)

(fyi i speak polish so may have more confidence in doing that !)

lots of great restaurants and cheap beer

kazimierz - the old jewish quarter is worth wondering round before its totally touristed up

the wawel castle

schindler museum (handy enough trams) didnt think much of it myself.


nowa huta if you want to see classic 50's soviet realist architecture and the museum in the prl building

spurious

Nice little coffee shop Cafe Zakatek in the south east corner of the Rynek.
Down a little passage on the left. Just at the start of Ulica Grodzka.

Once you go off the Rynek, there are many interesting little bars, galleries, coffee shops.

Drop in to Tom, the Irishman who runs a Milk Bar (cheap tasty food) at 24 Ulica Sw. Tomasza.

MarkY91

Auschwitz is a must do when in Krakow.

Bit of a drive sure but well worth it.

fabvinny

we hired one of the guys in the buggys that drive around the city(like a golf buggy) we met him near the bridge by the castle.we agreed a price with him and he took us all over the place,some churches,the old jewish ghetto. audio guide included,found it interesting.

dizzyn

I'd highly recommend the ghost walking tour in the evening; It's good fun and very interesting https://freewalkingtour.com/krakow/tours/free/krakow-macabre/

I'd also recommend the salt mines! Theres no need to book a tour though imo; we got the public bus and ended up saving 12 euro each!!

Also Cafe Camelot does super breakfast, couldn't recommend it enough

gooner99

Thanks for the replies. Plenty of good tips.

Airbnb host has offered to sort the transfer from arrivals to apartment door for 80zl.sound OK?

Also offering to organise tours. Auschwitz-Birkenau or Salt Mine in Wieliczka - transfer, ticket and English speaking guide included. Duration 8h, adult ticket 185zl.

Another question. Is it best to wait and get zloty from the Atmosphere at the airport and in general use atms for cash and or credit card?

Thanks.

spurious

80zl from the airport is fair enough.

The price for the tour to Auschwitz or Wieliczka is a little bit steep. You should be able to find better value than that from the guys in the street with leaflets.

I generally use ATMs, though not at the airport.
The Kantors offer reasonable value unless you are changing thousands. The one with the best rates I have found is Grosz at 4 Sławkowska (the street at the 'northwest' corner of the Rynek).

gooner99

dizzyn wrote: »

I'd highly recommend the ghost walking tour in the evening; It's good fun and very interesting https://freewalkingtour.com/krakow/tours/free/krakow-macabre/

I'd also recommend the salt mines! Theres no need to book a tour though imo; we got the public bus and ended up saving 12 euro each!!

Also Cafe Camelot does super breakfast, couldn't recommend it enough

Thanks. I notice the tour is free. How do they make money or is it just for a hobby. Do you tip them?

Kevski

gooner99 wrote: »

Thanks. I notice the tour is free. How do they make money or is it just for a hobby. Do you tip them?

Yeah, they usually ask you to give what you think the tour was worth at the end of it. I’ve been on a few of Sandeman’s free walking tours and that’s how they work it

OUTDOORLASS

Travelled to Krakow about 3 years ago. really enjoyed it. One thing we really enjoyed was the free walking tours.
Go into the main square, and pick your english speaking guide by lady/man holding up British Brolly or flag, thus
indicating english speaking guide. We did the Old Town in the morning, took about 2 hours, but it gave you a
great idea of how Krakow is laid out. In the afternoon we did the Jewish Quarter, again about 2 hours.
All these are free, but you tip at the end of the tour. That is how they make their money. Some cheap skates actually walked away without tipping any money. Could.nt believe it. Their local knowledge was unreal.
Shopping is bad there. There is a new shopping at the edge of the town, but it is comparable to
Dundrum shopping centre. All the bit European names, and same prices. We had thought we.d get some
good make up brands at cheaper rates...not so. With so much to see there, we did.nt want to waste time shopping anyway. Food, drink, all very good value.

gooner99

Just back from Krakow. Lovely city, would highly recommend. I'd say food and drink prices were probably around 50/60% of what they are here, although directly in the square it can vary, bit like most Cities I guess.

Money - I withdrew some zlotty at the atm in the airport and just checked and the rate was 4.28 to the Euro, however there was a €2 commission, so probably best to avoid if possible. After this we used money exchanges called Kantors. Avoid the ones that only give the sell rate only (or ask for the buy rate), your interested in the buy rate. I think the best we seen was 4.28, average was around 4.20 - 4.23. We used a mix of this and cards and the rates on the cards were approx 4.26 mostly. Although I guess bank charges may vary also.

Restaurants we ate in and would recommend - Czarna Kaczka The Black Duck. This is a gem of a restaurant, we ate there twice and it was excellent. The Duck is superb. It's not big and gets very busy. Best to book if you can or go early and take a chance. As it was only two of us we got in as someone was finishing up. We also ate dinner in Morskie Oko. Polish food and very tasty. Again very busy and we luckily got a table. But the amount of people turned away from here was amazing. We went back again on Wednesday night and were told they would have a free table on Saturday. We ate breakfast a couple of times in Milkbar Tomasza (run by Tom from Ireland). Great scrambled eggs and omelettes. You can also get an Irish breakfast here.

Tours - We did both the Old Town and Jewish Quarter tours with Krakow Explorers. Highly recommended. They are all qualified historians, so have great knowledge and passion for the job. Look out for them beside St. Mary's church. They have full union jack umbrellas with free tours on them. The Old Town tour will give you a great insight into the Old Town and it's better than just wandering around with a map looking at buildings. The Jewish Quarter and Ghetto tour is a must for anyone that is going or has been to Auschwitz. I won't pretend that it's a happy tour, but like Auschwitz I think it's important to hear and see this part of history. It also finishes close to Schindler's factory, but unfortunately for us it was fully booked for the rest of the day.

All in all a very enjoyable City Break and would definitely go back again and do the Salt Mines and Zakopane.

crackcrack30

I traveled over a few years ago for 3 nights with a few friends a really beautiful city... We enjoyed the history of the mines and holocaust camp. if i were to go again I would book a private tour... but dont know the cost.
What other cities would you recommend for value, history, food and & sightseeing on a budget for a lads weekend away?

otnomart

crackcrack30 wrote: »

What other cities would you recommend for value, history, food and & sightseeing on a budget for a lads weekend away?

Gdansk: beautiful architecture, several history links: WW2 with Westerplatte penisula, Solidarity Museum, maritime history.

JohnCleary

Just back from our 2nd trip, we arrived back on 3rd Oct.

T-shirt during the day, but need a decent jacket at night. It's going to start getting a lot colder quite quickly.

As a couple we stayed here and found it perfect, as the Jewish Quarter suited us more-so than the Main Square: https://www.booking.com/hotel/pl/harmonica-apartment-11.en-gb.html?aid=356998;label=gog235jc-hotel-XX-pl-harmonicaNapartmentN11-unspec-ie-com-L%3Aen-O%3AwindowsS10-B%3Achrome-N%3AXX-S%3Abo-U%3AXX-H%3As;sid=c6e428d72d3f7bf2f92e00bee88537cb;dist=0&keep_landing=1&sb_price_type=total&type=total&

The accom is 5 mins from main Jewish Quarter, bars etc...
A casual 15 min walk to Main Square
Right next to Trams

We normally get the train (and in this case a tram) from the airport but got lazy and booked a shuttle for 79PLN... ended up giving the guy a 100PLN Note... he was on time, spoke excellent English, brand new Merc van for just 2 of us: https://krakowshuttle.com/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIz8Kus5D33QIVTLDtCh1v2wabEAAYASAAEgL7VPD_BwE

Salt Mines: We just hopped on the train and did it ourselves, very easy.

I recommend getting a shuttle for Auschwitz - I can't remember who we used but there's loads of choice. Do NOT try to do Auschwitz / Salt Mines in the one day - you'll be exhausted and won't appreciate either.

For Cash, we withdrew 800PLN from our Revolut card (no charge) at the airport ATM. When we ran out, we just used the card at POS terminals. Almost everywhere (with the exception of markets etc.) takes card, even more so than Ireland!

bottlebrush

would recommend the Schindlers List walking tour. as far as I remember they do two every day, lasts about two hours. we went the last week in October and while the weather was lovely overall it started to snow the last day while we were on that walking tour.

JohnCleary

bottlebrush wrote: »

would recommend the Schindlers List walking tour. as far as I remember they do two every day, lasts about two hours. we went the last week in October and while the weather was lovely overall it started to snow the last day while we were on that walking tour.

All of the walking tours in Krakow are great, IMO... if you have time to do them all, do!

If you want to visit Schindlers Factory Museum, book online in advance (like, at least 1 week in advance). Entry is free on the 1st Monday of each Month (as with other museums)