Located on a hill facing the Vistula river at one end of the historic center, this imposing castle is one of the best preserved sites in Krakow. Inside the Wawel Castle you can see the beautiful state halls, the crown treasure, the armory, the royal apartments and end up touring the mysterious Wawel Dragon Cave. Next to the castle is the cathedral, one of the most important religious buildings in all of Poland and that is really worth a visit, you can also climb its towers and appreciate spectacular views of the city and the river.
The Market Square and its beautiful church are undoubtedly the best known postcard of Krakow in the world and with good reason! This Gothic church is dedicated to the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, inside we can see a beautiful interior in which a huge medieval wooden altarpiece stands out. From the top of the north tower every hour a trumpeter plays the Hejnał mariacki, a traditional Polish melody that commemorates a trumpeter who was killed by a shot in the throat while sounding the alarm before a Mongol invasion came. The square that surrounds the church is surrounded by colorful palaces and houses of medieval origin, where we will find restaurants, souvenir shops and terraces to have a drink.
This was the place where some of the saddest and darkest events in human history happened. A true factory of death where more than a million people lost their lives, the vast majority of them just because they were Jews. The Nazi concentration camp in Auschwitz is located only about 65 kilometers from Krakow, which makes it a virtually obligatory visit to understand the history of the Second World War. A really exciting and moving place where we can reflect on the sad events that happened there during the Second World War.
These impressive salt mines, located a few kilometers from Krakow are the oldest in all of Europe and have more than 3 kilometers of underground galleries and labyrinthine tunnels, which descend to 300 meters deep. Within them incredible places were built like the Chapel of St. Kinga, a huge room decorated with statues and chandeliers made entirely with salt from the mine, a true underground palace! Also during the Second World War, the Germans used these mines as a war warehouse and according to the legend they hid their treasures here.
This picturesque neighborhood was occupied by the Jewish community since the mid-fourteenth century and was virtually uninhabited during the Nazi occupation of the city, when its inhabitants were forced to move to the Krakow ghetto. Do not miss walking through its little streets full of houses with decorated fronts and enter one of its synagogues and its old cemeteries, as well as visit Nowy Square and the Basilica of Corpus Cristi. Here you will also find some of the best restaurants in the city, where you can try authentic Polish cuisine at its best, such as its powerful cold soups or delicious pierogis.
If you were moved by the famous Spielberg movie: Schindler’s List, this is the place you have to visit in Krakow. The Oskar Schindler Factory was the real place where these events took place, a place where hundreds of Jewish citizens were saved from death and that today is a museum of the Holocaust and the Nazi occupation of the city. Inside this factory was where Schindler himself, together with his accountant Itzhak Stern, wrote a list where his employees appeared, which were transferred to Brünnlitz, Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia and once there, they remained in the factory until They were released by the Red Army.
