After a lovely visit with family, we were excited to explore Kraków for our last 2 days in Poland. We rented a car in Rzeszów that we had until we arrived in Kraków. Kraków has many things to do including shopping, sightseeing and dining. Similar to Warsaw, Kraków is known for it’s old world architecture and colorful buildings. It felt larger than Warsaw and was our favorite between the two cities. Of course this makes sense, as it used to be the capital of Poland. We liked exploring the Old Town and Kazimierz neighborhoods for some nightlife.
Where We Stayed:
We stayed at the Holiday Inn Krakow City Center. This hotel was in a central location to the main attractions, sightseeing and nightlife that we explored while in Kraków and everything was within walking distance.
Adventure:
Auschwitz – Birkenau State Museum (about 1.5 hours away from Kraków)
On our way from Rzeszów to Kraków we stopped at the Auschwitz – Birkenau State Museum for a tour. We recommend booking in advance because it does get crowded with lots of tourists. The 4 hour guided tour was truly amazing and eye-opening. Our tour guide did a fantastic job explaining the history and showing us around Auschwitz I (main camp) as well as Auschwitz II (second camp). When we got to Auschwitz II, we went into the gift shop and to our surprise, we were able to meet an Auschwitz survivor, Eva Mozes Kor. She was at the gift shop signing her book about her experiences surviving Auschwitz. We bought a copy and read it while we were still on our trip in Poland. It was a moving story to read from the perspective of a survivor. Eva happened to be a twin and twins got special treatment in the Auschwitz camp from doctors who were doing studies. Lauren connected to Eva with this because she is also a twin. We were humbled by our experience visiting this concentration camp – it is something that we feel everyone should do at least once in their life!
Wawel Castle
We walked to Wawel Castle, which is located right in the heart of Kraków. This was high on Lauren’s list to do because she loves visiting castles! It is one of Poland’s largest castles built with a wide variety of European architectural styles. You can make reservations in advance or you can get there early to book time slots. There are time slots allotted for visiting certain parts of the castle to help manage the crowds. We enjoyed a mid-day break eating lunch at the restaurant on property. Our favorite tours were the Wawel Architectural & Gardens Tour as well as the climb up the Sandomierska Watch Tower.
Old Town Kraków
Old Town Kraków is one of the most famous historical districts in Poland. There is much to see and explore here. We loved the Main Market Square and enjoyed walking through each side street. There were many beautiful churches and buildings in such a small area that we appreciated. We found a really cute Polish pottery store DekorArt where we were able to buy memorable souvenirs. Polish made pottery is a popular art that is decorative and practical to use. While strolling around you will come across many local vendors – our favorite was a band that was playing underneath a bridge near the city wall protecting the Old Town.
Nightlife in Kazimierz
We went to dinner in the Kazimierz neighborhood and as we were leaving we heard loud music. It turns out, there was a benefit concert going on right in the neighborhood. We loved dancing and listening to the music with hundreds of locals on the street in this small neighborhood. There were food trucks and bar carts available for people to buy dinner or a snack. We had a beer with a touch of raspberry sauce in it. Turns out, this is a popular drink, especially on a warm night in the summertime! Definitely a must try on your visit to Poland!
Culture & Food:
Restaurant Near Auschwitz Museum
We found a traditional Polish/ folk style restaurant about 10 minutes away from Auschwitz called Chata Na Zaborskiej. There was a nice beer garden outside underneath a tent for folks who would like to sit and relax outdoors. Inside there was a traditional, cozy atmosphere that made us feel like we were at home. The food was delicious. We sampled a few different traditional dishes: starting with a potato pancake appetizer, kielbasa and their version of a baked pierogi (it reminded us of a pierogi calzone hybrid). The food was fantastic and affordable. This is a must do if you are near the Auschwitz Museum or heading towards Kraków.
Kazimierz Neighborhood
We heard a lot of great things about the restaurants in the Kazimierz neighborhood. Unfortunately, the first restaurant we tried to go to was booked for the evening. This was a reminder about the importance of planning in advance (which we usually are very good at)! It turned out to work in our favor because we were able to find Trezo. This was a Polish style restaurant with a Mediterranean flair and the food was our best meal in Kraków! It was on the higher end price range compared to what we paid elsewhere in Poland. Regardless, this is a restaurant that we would highly recommend you visit and make reservations for. We did have to wait when we first got there. They gave us a complimentary appetizer and our entrees were both so fresh and tasty. Since it was our last night in Poland, we decided to splurge and get the cheesecake. We are so glad we did!
Read on to find out about our travels from the next country we visited in Europe, Italy.