Krakow is one of the most interesting destinations in Central Europe! It is an amazingly beautiful city with splendid Old Town, wonderful Wawel Castle in the town centre, amazing food scene and plenty of great things to do. Let’s explore your options if you’re spending One Day in Krakow!
In this article you’ll find:
- One Day in Krakow Itinerary
- Places to eat and drink
- General tips for visiting the city
What to see
Morning
First thing’s first head to beautiful Krakow Market Square! There are many sights to make your morning interesting and unforgettable.
Krakow Market Square is the largest market square in Poland and one of the largest medieval squares in whole Europe
It is a heart of the city with many sights standing compactly. That makes it more comfortable to explore local sights.
– Start exploring from the magnificent St. Mary’s Basilica
It is considered to be one of the most beautiful churches in Poland! What makes this church a national and world treasure is the largest Gothic altar in the world – Veit Stoss altarpiece.
HERE you can find the rules of admission as well as about the tickets to the Church.
You can spend hours just admiring different architectural details of the St. Mary’s Basilica. Being one of the most important churches in Poland, it is a must-see sight!
– Your next sight is situated right in the middle of the Market Square. It is the Krakow Cloth Hall – a beautiful Renaissance building that once was a centre of international trade of the city.
Stroll along the market, check out some local goods.
On the second floor of the Cloth Hall, you can find an amazing Sukiennice Museum – Gallery of 19th-Century Polish Art.
Information about the museum as well as admission can be found HERE
– For one of the best and most interesting museums in Krakow head to Rynek Underground
It is a very informative and interactive museum of the history of the city set in the underground passages under the Market Square. Through different cool exhibitions, you discover how the city lived and traded in medieval times. Top choice for all the history lovers as well as for travellers with children!
It is time for a lunch, isn’t it?
For high quality and affordable places that serve Polish cuisine I would recommend checking:
In both places, you have a magical thing called “zestaw obiadowy” which stands for lunch
Afternoon
Now it is time to explore one of the most fascinating and important sights in Poland.
– It is a magnificent Wawel Castle
As it has a great historical prominence you can spend a whole day here. If you have less time, it is still a Krakow must-see.
With beautiful Cathedral that is a burial place of the Polish kings, amazing architecture of the Renaissance courtyard and splendid views over the Old Town and Vistula river, Wawel is a place to be for every curious traveller coming to Krakow!
Information about visiting Wawel can be found HERE
– If you still have time in the afternoon you can head to one of the oldest university buildings in Europe – Collegium Maius of the Jagiellonian University of Krakow dating to the 14th century.
It is a beautiful example of late-Gothic architecture and a great place to explore in Krakow.
Evening
If you are not tired and you’re ready for more exploration – go to one of the coolest neighbourhoods in Krakow, Kazimierz.
Why is Kazimierz a unique place? In the past times, Kazimierz was a separate city. That’s why you can find its very own Market Square, a Main Church as well as the City Hall.
Also, it used to be a place of coexistence of Polish and Jewish nations as the district was divided on the community basis. That’s why here you can find beautiful Synagogues neighbouring Catholic churches, traditional Jewish backyards that lead to streets dating back to the Austro-Hungarian times.
It was here, in Kazimierz, that the famous American director Steven Spielberg shot his Schindler’s List
Also, in recent years Kazimierz has become a food scene and nightlife hotspot. Its atmosphere resembles one in another cool European city district – Kreuzberg in Berlin.
For a great Kazimierz bar check Alchemia
Don’t forget to eat traditional Polish zapiekanka snack from one of the windows on Plac Nowy!
Check out more INFO about Krakow on the Official City Page
Thank you for reading!
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Pavlo is an experienced travel writer published by CNN, BBC, The Guardian, The Independent, The Irish Times, Time Out, DK Eyewitness and Lonely Planet. He’s been writing about Poland for 9+ years.