Krakow Travel Guide

The southern Polish city of Krakow is one of the country’s oldest and most beautiful cities. As the former capital, the entirety of Krakow Old Town is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and its Main Market Square (Rynek Glowny)—Europe’s largest medieval square—contains well-preserved Romanesque, Gothic, and baroque buildings. In or near the history-steeped quarter are star attractions including Cloth Hall, Wawel Royal Castle (Zamek Wawelski), and the elegant streets of the former Jewish quarter, Kazimierz. Guided tours ensure that travelers cover the city’s signature sights with ease, usually by combining coach or bus transfers with guided walks. After taking in its top attractions, many visitors use Krakow as a convenient launchpad for visiting the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum, along with other destinations such as the Wieliczka Salt Mine. You’ll find all this and more in our Krakow travel guide.

Main Market Square (Rynek Glowny)

As the jewel of city, we being our Krakow travel guide with the Main Market Square. This huge square offers architectural highlights including the Renaissance-style Cloth Hall and St. Mary’s Basilica (Mariacki). The square is a fixture on all Old Town tours, which usually run for half a day and span  treasures such as Wawel Castle and the Jewish quarter. Tours offer detailed accounts of the square’s history and often incorporate guided walks through the cobblestone streets. Segway and electric car tours allow access to areas closed to regular vehicular traffic.

Kazimierz (Jewish District)

The hub of Krakow’s Jewish community from medieval times, Kazimierz boasts mansions, squares, synagogues, and memorials reflective of its rich and often tragic history. Taking guided walks—rather than random strolls—is important to unlocking the area’s past and appreciating its resurgence as one of Krakow’s trendiest areas. Exploration is best done on foot, with private or group tours of sites such as Oskar Schindler’s Factory, Podgorze, and movie locations from Steven Spielberg’s Schindler’s List. In our Krakow travel guide, we’ve made sure to include a mix of walking and segway tours. 

Walking Tour of Krakow’s Jewish District Kazimierz: Retracing the Locations in Schindler’s List

This tour takes guests on a stroll around Kazimierz to see locations used in Schindler’s List and also visits Oskar Schindler’s Factory museum, making for a well-rounded look at the neighborhood.

Private Tour of Kazimierz Jewish District and Podgorze District

For a closer exploration of Jewish history, this private half-day tour visits Kazimierz, the former Jewish ghetto of Podgorze, and the site of the now-destroyed Plaszow concentration camp site.

Private Krakow Kazimierz Jewish Quarter Tour on Segway

Taking this Segway tour around Kazimierz lets travelers see city sights more quickly than if on foot— and with the bonus of personalized commentary from a private guide.

Krakow Evening Food Walking Tour

A fun foodie twist on a traditional sightseeing tour, this evening excursion includes time in Kazimierz to explore and sample an assortment of Jewish delicacies.

Auschwitz-Birkenau

Located west of Krakow, the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum stands on what was World War II’s largest Nazi concentration camp. The complex incorporates the two main camps— Auschwitz I and Auschwitz II-Birkenau—and encourages visitors to reflect on the horrors that occurred here. Guided tours are recommended for gaining a clear understanding of its history, and most tours cover both sites’ museums, memorials, and remnants of the prison blocks and gas chambers. Tours are sometimes paired with a visit to the nearby Wieliczka Salt Mine.