Spotlight on Kraków
Find out why the cultural heart of Poland is easy to fall in love with. With a great atmosphere, a beautiful setting on the river, outstanding restaurants and cafés, Kraków is worth a visit.
Kraków (or Cracow), considered by many to be the cultural and intellectual
heart of Poland, is an exciting and vibrant city, well worth visiting for
business or, if possible, for pleasure. Such is its cultural heritage that
in 1978 Kraków was made a World Heritage Site by UNESCO, and named European
City of Culture in 2000. Set on the river Vistula, this beautiful city has
a fascinating, though sometimes traumatic, past (events occurring in the
Jewish ghetto and nearby concentration camp Auschwitz were portrayed in
the book Schindler's Ark, made into the film Schindler's List) and, with
its burgeoning 170-thousand student population, exciting prospects for the
future. The construction of the country's largest steel mill in the suburb/satellite
town of Nowa Huta by the communist regime after the Second World War, with
the intention of diminishing Kraków's cultural power has not succeeded in
the long term. However the physical effects can still be felt when the wind
blows the wrong way and smog descends on the city.
Getting there and getting around
Kraków boasts the second busiest airport in Poland, the John Paul II International
Airport of Balice. The airport, which is serviced by most major European
and North American cities, is conveniently situated on the outskirts of
the city, just a 15 km taxi or bus ride (lines 192, 208 plus the nightly
602) from its centre. As well as this the new budget airline, Wizz Air,
flies to Katowitz Airport and provides a connecting coach service to Kraków's
main bus station. If you need to fly on a budget then this is a good option.
However Katowitz isn't particularly close to Kraków and the connecting coach
service takes around about 2 hours. A flight to Katowitz or Kraków itself
takes approximately the same time.
So, you've arrived...
One of the great things about Kraków is the fact that the city centre is
quite compact - and this is despite the fact that the main square is the
largest in Europe. Many important institutions, including a number of university
sites, are situated in the old town surrounding the square, along with a
great number of outstanding art galleries, theatres, restaurants, bars and
clubs. Then surrounding all of this, and ringing around the whole of the
city centre, is a narrow park, itself overlooked by the impressive Wawel
castle high on the bank of the river. However, as many of the narrow streets
between the park and square run in concentric circles it's quite easy to
lose your bearings. Much of this central area has been pedestrianised and
so walking is a great way of getting around here. However, if you don't
fancy walking, or have somewhere to get to in a hurry then Kraków has Poland's
oldest electric tram system, which runs smoothly and reliably through the
city. Taxis, too, are reasonably priced. As Kraków is a popular tourist
destination (though not yet, fortunately, as commercialised as Prague) there
are a great many hotels to choose from at all price ranges. The Polish zloty
goes a long way if you're on a budget, which makes Kraków an ideal city
to stay in.
Eating out
Polish food is known for being good but in Kraków it is generally outstanding. The central old town is packed full of wonderful restaurants and cafes, offering both Polish and international cuisine. Polish cuisine is most definitely worth sampling (for example Pierogi (dumplings) filled with Sauerkraut and Mushrooms), and some restaurants play live music too. Kraków can also boast sample top quality Jewish, Japanese, Italian, Hungarian, Spanish and French fare.