For starters, let’s just say that thunderstorms were forecasted for the entire time that I was in Krakow (pronounced Kra-cove), and it only rained for a couple of hours on my bus ride back to the city from the Auschwitz Concentration Camp.

I was really taken aback by the beauty of this city. I went in not knowing much at all about it, and really only chose it as one of my destinations because it was one of the access points to Auschwitz. But even just after my first day there, I realized that I could have easily spent a week because there is so much to do in the city and around the region. It is filled with centuries of history, beautiful landscape and architecture, and incredibly delicious food.

The Basics

Length of Stay: Four nights, five days

National Currency: Polish Zloty

Accommodation: Hotel Eden (3-Star hotel)

Arrival Day

Evening – After quite an exhausting travel day, I appreciated the ease of arriving into the city via the train. A $2 ticket brings you directly from the Krakow Airport to Kraków Główny (the central station) in just under twenty minutes. After arriving at the station, I made the thirty minute walk to my hotel, checked in, and spent the rest of the evening exploring my immediate surroundings just so I had a sense of my bearings.

Day One: The Old City

The Historic Center of Krakow, also known as the Old City or Stare Miasto in Polish, refers to the 1.9 square mile area of the city that was fortified during the medieval acres. In 1994, it was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site, one of the first chosen for UNESCO’s World Heritage List.

Breakfast – Hotel Eden

Morning – The walk from my hotel to the closest entrance of the Old City should have been about twenty minutes, except that I took a detour through the Planty Krakowskie – the park that surrounds the Old City – because the sounds of Polish folk music caught my ears. I sat down and listened to the band finish their act, though I really could have listened to them for the rest of the day. Once I did enter the Old City, the first sight I happened upon was the Church of the Holy Cross. Did you know that there are over 120 Roman Catholic Churches in Kraków? I had no idea just how important Catholicism is in this city. In fact, it completely escaped my mind that Pope John Paul II was Polish, and actually lived the majority of his adult years in Kraków before he moved to Vatican City. For the Polish, especially the Krakovians, his legacy still lives on, and he will always be their pope. Following my visit inside this beautiful church, I decided that the best way to see the Old City was to just walk the entirety of its gridded streets and look for the important sights along the way. The next sight that I came across was the Florianska Gate, which is the only gate to the Old City that still stands. From there, I walked over to the main square, Rynek Główny, which dawns the majestic St. Mary’s Basilica. Honestly, I was floored by not only the beauty of this plaza, but its size as well. I would say that it’s comparable to St. Mark’s Square in Venice. In the middle of the square stands Cloth Hall, which is said to have been the first department store in the world, as old citizens of Kraków would come inside to purchase their fabrics and other goods. Now, it holds a souvenir market. The rest of the square was activated with cafes and restaurants, and at one end, a stage had been set up where a dance festival was just beginning.

Lunch – Cafe Bunkier. This cafe/restaurant is located right at the western edge of the old city, along the Planty Krakowskie. I had a small yet delicious meal of a Krakovian pretzel stuff with cheese and salami, and served with what tasted like ranch dressing – though I don’t think it was. To drink, I had a Tyskie, a Polish pale lager that cost a whopping $2.60.

Afternoon – I continued my tour of the Old Town, walking first down Kanonicza Street toward the south end of the city. It was on this street that I passed a small museum that advertised a movie screening entitled “Krakow in Fifteen Minutes.” I figured for $2, why not? It ended up being decently informative and provided me with basic knowledge that really helped me for the remainder of my time in the city. After the movie, I passed by 19 Kanonicza, the address at which Pope John Paul II resided during his time in Kraków. His residence has since been turned into a museum, but I did not have the chance to go inside. My last stop of the afternoon was Wawel (pronounced Vavel) Castle, the former residence of many of Poland’s kings, which now stands as an art museum. I did not visit the museum itself, but I did pop inside the adjacent cathedral which I would argue is worth a visit. The grounds themselves are really exceptional.

Dinner – After a log day of walking, I relaxed in my hotel room to regain some strength before setting back out again into the Old Town. The dance festival that was happening in the afternoon was scheduled to have some sort of “public dance” around 9PM in the main square, so I knew that it was something I did not want to miss. I opted for dinner at one of the restaurants in the main square, that way I would be able to watch the dancing from my seat. My meal of potato pancakes was pretty decent, and I completed it with another Tyskie. Let me take this opportunity to mention the difference in price between this cafe and the one at which I lunched, just by using the Tyskie as my example. For lunch, I paid $2.60 (10 Zloty) for the beer, and for dinner, I paid almost double at the price of $4.60 (18 Zloty). Now, in the grand scheme of things, both prices for a 16oz beer are definitely cheaper than anything you will find in the States, but I did just want to distinguish the difference in price between a centrally-located eatery versus one that is located on the outskirts.

Evening – I capped off the evening by watching traditional Polish dancing take place in the Square, followed by a stroll around the Old Town before meandering my way back to the hotel. I wanted to soak it all in as much as I could because I already knew that I probably would not have time to go back there.

Day Two: Podgorze and Food Tour

Brunch – Let’s call this meal brunch because I had a later start to my day. I missed the hotel breakfast, but, luckily, my meal was located all of 150 steps from my bedroom door, if that. I walked right into the little market square that is located directly in front of Hotel Eden, and grabbed myself a hot cinnamon “chimney cake” and paired it with an iced coffee. This chimney cake pastry is very common throughout Eastern Europe, and I highly recommend giving it a try.

Afternoon – The Podgorze District, though located about twenty minutes from my hotel in Kazimierz, is located on the south side of the Wista River, and has more of an industrial feel in terms of its surroundings. This neighborhood is home to the former Factory of Oskar Schindler (you may recognize his name from the Steven Spielberg movie, Schindler’s List), which has now been turned into a museum that recounts the history of Krakow leading up to and during WWII. I would highly recommend a visit there. After touring the museum, I walked over to Krakus Mound, after a short climb of which you are welcomed with a splendid panoramic view of Kraków. I stayed up there for a few short minutes because it was then time to cross town and join my group for a food tour of Kraków!

Evening – Delicious Poland Food Tour of Krakow. Wow. Amazing. All-around a wonderful experience with incredible, authentic Polish food, an extremely knowledgeable and personable tour guide, and a great group of visitors. Our tour consisted of five stops, primarily within the Kazimierz district. Our first stop was Przystanek Pierogarnia, where we tried four different types of pierogis. We then walked to Zalewajka, where we tasted two different types of soups: the first which also is named Zalewajka, and is essentially a sourdough soup, while the second was Barszcz (pronounced Barscht, similar to Russian Borscht) and consisted of a beet broth with two pierogis inside. Our third stop was at Krakoska, where we tried some Polish “tapas,” accompanied with two types of Polish vodka – one, a traditional vodka, and the other, a digestif. For our fourth stop, we ventured to Ursa Maior to sample some local craft ales, before heading over to our fifth and final stop at Kuchnia u Doroty, one of the best restaurants in town for some traditional Polish cuisine. We sampled some potato pancakes, which were other-worldly in comparison to those which I had tasted the other day in the main square of the Old City, and then had a delicious apple fritter for dessert. I left the food tour feeling more than satisfied, and I shared the experience with some wonderful people.

Day Three: Auschwitz

I thought that I had well-prepared myself for this day, having previously visited other attractions that memorialize the Holocaust experience, including the Anne Frank House, the National Holocaust Museum, the Terezin Ghetto, and the Nazi Documentation Center. Well, I was wrong. There is nothing that can prepare you to walk the harrowed paths that led millions of innocent lives to their deaths. 

I'll speak of the tour briefly, but I do not want to give away too much information because I honestly believe that it is a place that everyone should visit. The tour lasts about two and half hours, includes a visit at both the Auschwitz I and Birkenau (Auschwitz II) camps, and takes visitors through living barracks, work sites, train platforms, and other important sites. 

Logistically speaking, it is to your benefit to prebook a tour online to avoid waiting in a long queue upon arrival. I attempted to visit the grounds as an individual, without a tour, but it is pretty difficult. Individuals are permitted to enter the premises only before 9AM or after 5PM, and the visit is limited only to Birkenau (Auschwitz II), as Auschwitz I must be visited with a guide. This is the link for the official Auschwitz website, where you can find more information about visiting. You could also book a tour through a third-party site, but I felt better about having all of my money go directly to the Auschwitz camps, rather than a percentage. Though I was reluctant to have a guided tour, I really did appreciate it in the end. My guide was from the town of Oswiecim (Polish for Auschwitz), and she had a wealth of knowledge to share that could not be learned just by reading the exhibit panels. Her passion for communicating the significance of the Holocaust and the role that Auschwitz played was vividly evident; I would highly recommend taking a guided tour. 

Day Four

Breakfast – Urban Coffee and More. Following the food tour, our guide provided us with a map of Kraków and a number of establishments that they recommend, that were grouped by category. Considering that this was likely going to be my last meal in Poland, I decided to make it count, so I skipped the hotel breakfast and headed to this cafe instead. Turns out I made a great decision, because my pancakes with Nutella, topped with fresh fruits were delicious.

Morning: Until this point, I had never really walked around the Kazimierz District to take in all of the sights, but luckily I had plenty of time to do just that on this last morning. I wandered through all of the squares and side streets before arriving at the Galicia Jewish Museum, which had on display a photo exhibition that told the stories of different families who once lived in Kazimierz. It’s a very small museum – I think I spent about a half-hour in there, total, so I would say that it is worth the quick visit.

Afternoon: I spent the last few hours of my time in Kraków at the Galeria Krakowska, the mall located above the Central Station. What I love about European malls is that there are many which are centrally located, and they are built as if they are bringing a public square from the outside, inside. Meaning that there is about a 65% emphasis on retail, and a 35% emphasis on dining (cafes, restaurants, food court, etc.) versus American malls which seem to place the majority of the focus on the shopping experience, and minimal on dining. At the very least, I would argue that there are not enough seating spaces to accompany certain dining establishments in American malls, particularly those that do not belong to the food court. Europe, in general, highly regards the social sphere within the public realm, and this cultural difference is even apparent in the way that their malls are set up. So, in the end, I feel like I could easily spend hours at a European mall and not be bored, so I had no problem passing time at the mall before heading to the airport.

If I had more time…

There are probably two other major attractions that people consider when planning a trip to Kraków that, unfortunately, I did not have time to fit in. 

1. The Wieliczka Salt Mine - A UNESCO World Heritage Site, these salt mines are some of the world's oldest. Passengers are led through shafts and a labyrinth of passageways before coming across an underground lake and multiple underground chapels, among other stunning attractions. 

2. Tatra National Park - Located at about a two-hour drive from Krakow, the Tatra National Park is home to the Tatra Mountains. According to CNN, it is one of the world's 30 recommended national parks. I think a day trip from Kraków would be possible, but it would be a long one. Perhaps considering an overnight stay to really take advantage would be worth it. 

In all, Kraków was so much more than I was expecting. I was saddened to leave but was so happy that I chose it as one of my destinations.