Krakow, Auschwitz and Zalipie in 4 days

Poland is a beautiful country full of history that is definitely worth adding to your bucket list. Have a look at the itinerary I have created for my own trip to Poland where I’ve also visited Auschwitz concentration camp (life changing experience by the way) and the little colourful village of Zalipie.

To save for later: The national currency in Poland is Slotz - 100 PLN are about 18,00£

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Day 1 - Krakow Old Town, Cloth Hall and Municipal Tower

Start the day with a nice walk around Krakow old town. You can’t miss the main church of the square, the Basilica of S. Maria. After visiting the Basilica and its tower, go and do some souvenir shopping around the Cloth Hall and end the day with a nice meal in one of the many restaurants around the square.

Bonus point: For Museum and fortress lovers, make sure you add Kopiec Kościuszki Museum to your itinerary, one of the oldest surviving elements of the Kraków Fortress. Ideally, visit the Museum before the Old Town as it closes at 16:00 so go in the morning and enjoy the city centre in the afternoon if you are interested in it. More info on the Museum can be found here.

Day 2 - Wawel Castle and the Jewish Quarters

Visit Wawel Castle, sitting on Wawel Hill the Castle has some beautiful views of the city and was once the residence of the Polish Royal Family and (according to the legend) also home to the Wawel Dragon, a beast who lived in the den of Wawel Hill during the reign of King Krak. If you are curious, have a look in here to find out more about the legend.
During the afternoon visit the Schindlers Factory Museum and the Jewish Quarters for a little history lesson, before ending the day with a nice River Cruise on the Vistula River, if you manage for sunset then even better!
For places to visit around the Jewish Quarters have a look at the official Krakov guide here.

Entrance to Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration Camp

Day 3 - Auschwitz

You can’t go to Poland without experiencing what was one of the harshest and most cruel concentration camps of Nazi Germany during WWII. Visiting Auschwitz is truly eye opening and a once in a lifetime experience. I was lucky enough to meet one of the survivors around the camp, listening to his family story was very emotional. The rest of the group and I were literally in tears. You are standing there, listening to what his family went through while looking at the cold and dark barracks and empty camps, picturing everything we have seen about how life in Auschwitz was in movies, documentaries and in schoolbooks, and all of a sudden you truly understand the atrocity the Nazis were capable of. A part of our history that shall NEVER be repeated again and NEVER be forgotten!

Getting to Auschwitz will take about 1 hour and 30 min from Krakov. You can simply take a bus to Auschwitz/Oswiecim from Dworzec MDA (MDA Station), which is situated in Bosacka street, just behind the Main Railway Station of Krakow. The price is about 10,00-12,00 PLN for a one-way ticket. More info can be found here.
However, make sure to book your entry ticket to the concentration camp in advance on the official website here. The tours have specific timings and include a guide, starting prices are about 90,00 PLN per person. To be honest our guide went around the camp super quickly and we basically had to run after him the all-time, so I hope you don't have the same experience. One good thing is that but once the tour finishes you can stay around the camp as much as you like, so make sure you take your time and go and see everything by yourself and maybe you’ll be as lucky as I was and meet one of the survivors too.

Day 4 - Zalipie Village and Wieliczka Salt Mine

For your last day, if you can, I would recommend renting a car and visit the little village of Zalipie in the morning and the Wieliczka Salt Mine in the afternoon. However, if you are not able to rent a car there are some guided tour options for both of the location departing from Krakov that you can find here.
Zalipie is a tiny rural village in south-eastern Poland, about 1 hour and 15 min driving from Krakov. It has recently gained popularity thanks to a common habit by its residents to paint everything with colourful flowers and decorative patterns. This little village is truly beautiful and in my opinion a must do when visiting Krakov.
In the afternoon, off to another stunning place, the Wieliczka Salt Mine. It will take about 3 hours to visit and the entry fee is about 116 PLN but you need to pay an extra fee to take photos and video in the mine. There are about 800 steps down (the first 350 will take you to the main part) but don’t worry because you will get back up with a very interesting miners lift! Also, don’t forget to bring some warm clothing as the temperature in the mine is about 14C to 16C max. There are 20 chambers to visit, and the Chapel of St. Kinga is the most stunning of them all.