A Weekend In Krakow
a weekend in krakow
In my experience, there are a few staple ingredients that make up the perfect weekend city break. A short flight, so you can maximise your time at your destination. A great choice of reasonably priced, stylish hotels, so you can rest your head in comfort after a long day of exploring. A well established food scene is essential, and if the beer is cheap, all the better. And finally, there needs to be plenty to see and do, ideally with the option to explore as much as possible on foot.
I was absolutely delighted to discover this weekend that Krakow offers all of that and more. We visited the city for 3 nights with Jet2CityBreaks and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves! The city was beautiful, the people were friendly, and we managed to squeeze so much into our short break - it was one of those trips that reminded me why I really love travelling to new destinations.
A Weekend In Krakow
GETTING THERE
a weekend in krakow
Our trip started last Friday morning at the Jet2 check in desk at Leeds Bradford airport. What I love about the Jet2CityBreaks is that they take all of the stress out of a weekend away - you get a baggage allowance included in the cost of the break, the flights are always pleasant (no scrapping to get on board like you get with some other airlines…) and your transfer is included. We had a private transfer for this trip, which meant that we were at our hotel a mere 4 hours after take off - impressive!
STAY
a weekend in krakow inx design hotel
a weekend in krakow inx design hotel
We stayed at the beautiful INX Design Hotel in Kazimierz, the Jewish Quarter of Krakow, and I couldn’t recommend it more. Our room was stylish and comfortable, the staff were super friendly, and most importantly for my husband, the breakfast buffet was great! It was also in the perfect location for exploring the city - nothing was more than a 20 minute walk away, and all of the bars and restaurants that had been recommended to us were nearby.
SEE & DO
There’s no shortage of things to see and do during a weekend in Krakow - it’s a really interesting city, with plenty of culture and heritage. Plus, there are some great day trips you can take outside of the city too.
Main Square
a weekend in krakow
The Main Square is really the heart of Krakow, and you should see it at least once on your trip. It’s surrounded by shops, bars and restaurants, as well as being home to a market, some great sculptures and the beautiful St Mary’s Basilica.
St Mary’s Basilica
a weekend in krakow
This beautiful church is a must visit - it’s been standing since the 14th century, and I’m not exaggerating when I say that it has the most impressive ceiling I’ve ever seen! You have to pay extra to take photos inside, but believe me, you’ll want to.
Wawel Castle
a weekend in krakow
Wawel Castle is located on top of Wawel Hill in the centre of the city, and offers the most beautiful views over the river and beyond. The castle itself is a UNESCO World Heritage Site almost looks like it’s been built by joining lots of different buildings together. It’s beautiful, and well worth a visit.
Wawel Dragon
a weekend in krakow wawel dragon
If you head down to the bottom of Wawel Hill and towards the river, you’ll come across the Wawel Dragon sculpture, which stands proudly in front of the castle’s dragons den. The dragon even breaths fire every few minutes, much to the awe of nearby children (and my husband…).
Plac Nowy
a weekend in krakow place nowy
Plac Nowy is a big square located in the heart of the Jewish Quarter. They have a flea market on most days which is worth checking out, and there are loads of great bars and restaurants on the outskirts of the square.
Auschwitz-Birkenau
We ummed and ahhed about whether we wanted to visit the Auschwitz concentration camp during our weekend in Krakow, but I’m really glad we did go. It’s an incredibly sobering and difficult experience, but I think it’s so important that we remember what happened there and show respect to the millions of people who were murdered during the Second World War. Our guide was incredibly knowledgeable, and we learned so much.
Auschwitz is about an hour and a half away from Krakow, and we booked a tour with Krakow Discovery that allowed us to visit the camps in the morning, before heading to the Salt Mines in the afternoon. I would really recommend the company we used, and although it was a long day, it was great to be able to squeeze both into our trip.
Wieliczka Salt Mine
a weekend in krakow
I didn’t really know what to expect from the Salt Mine tour, but it was genuinely fascinating! The mine itself is huge, and is complete with the most ornate salt sculptures, chandeliers and chapels.
Ghetto Heroes Square
Stara Zajezdnia This former tram depot turned bar in the Jewish Quarter is another great place to grab a beer - it’s actually the largest brewery in Krakow.
Located just south of the river, Ghetto Heroes Square is Krakow’s holocaust memorial. There are 33 sculptures of empty chairs in the square, to mark the lives of the Polish Jews who were killed during the Second World War.
FOOD & DRINKS
Pimiento
a weekend in krakow
This steak restaurant based in the Jewish Quarter is a little pricier than most places in Krakow, but still very reasonable compared to the UK. We ate some of the most delicious steak we’ve ever had, and washed it down with some complimentary lemon vodka aperitifs.
Pizzeria 00
We headed here for some delicious Neopolitan style pizza in a lovely relaxed setting, and were blown away by how delicious (and cheap!) it was.
Hamsa
a weekend in krakow
The lovely Sophie recommended this Israeli style restaurant to us, and as it was located so close to our hotel, we decided to give it a try. The food was gorgeous, the atmosphere was buzzy, and the interiors were really cool.
Pierogarnia Krakowiacy
Stara Zajezdnia This former tram depot turned bar in the Jewish Quarter is another great place to grab a beer - it’s actually the largest brewery in Krakow.
You can’t go to Krakow and not try pierogi, the delicious stuffed dumplings that are one of the national dishes of Poland. We tried a few while we were there, but this place seemed the most authentic and delicious.
Karma
If you’re looking for a great coffee, this is your place! They also serve hot food and cakes in this pretty cafe.
Domówka Cafe
A microbrewery based in the heart of Kazimierz, serving up more craft beers than you can manage to drink in one evening! We loved this cosy spot so much, and ended up visiting a few times on our trip.
Tytano
If you want to do a bit of bar and restaurant hopping, head to Tytano. This former tobacco factory has been turned into an urban lifestyle complex, and houses a brewery, art spaces, hip bars and plenty of restaurants.
Stara Zajezdnia
This former tram depot turned bar in the Jewish Quarter is another great place to grab a beer - it’s actually the largest brewery in Krakow.
OTHER THINGS WORTH KNOWING
It’s really cheap to eat, drink and get around in Krakow. During 3 nights and 4 days in the city, we spent £200 each - that included our day trip out to Auschwitz and the Salt Mines (which cost £60 each), at least 2 meals a day, as much beer as we could drink and a couple of souvenirs too!
Tipping culture is similar to that in the UK - around 10% is standard.
We found a lot of the shops and supermarkets to be closed on a Sunday, so worth stocking up if there’s anything you need or want to buy.
A few of the restaurants we had on our list to try were fully booked for the weekend we were there, so if there’s anywhere you really want to go, I’d recommend making a reservation.
It can get really cold there in the winter, so take your layers! We travelled there in mid-November and needed our thermals, a thick coat, a hat and gloves to feel comfortable.
a weekend in krakow
I honestly couldn’t recommend a weekend in Krakow more - we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves, and as I mentioned above, it really made me remember why I fell in love with city breaks in the first place. I’m sure I’ll be back some time, and I’ll definitely be making an effort to visit other Polish cities soon. Have you ever been to Krakow?
*Our flights, accommodation and transfers were provided by Jet2CityBreaks in exchange for an honest review in this blog post. As always, all thoughts and opinions are my own, and I genuinely couldn’t recommend Jet2CityBreaks more - they really do make these weekend city breaks a lot easier and more stress free.
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a weekend in krakow