48 Hours in Krakow, Here's What You Should Do
10 Things to do in Krakow with limited time. Places to go, food to eat, and activities to do, to make sure you experience Krakow in all it's glory.
Krakow, Poland is one of the top places to visit in Europe when it comes to culture, cuisine, things to do, and most importantly, traveling on a budget. Krakow prices will run you as much as Bangkok in terms of accommodation and food - but with a whole lot of European history.
Krakow has a beautiful city center with heritage sites everywhere, markets to explore, a vibrant nightlife, restaurants serving authentic polish cuisine, and unique day trips that you wouldn't be able to do from anywhere else; the Auschwitz concentration camp, remnants of Nazi Germany, is a day trip away.
Krakow has more than enough things to do within the town, and day trips out of the town that you couldn't possibly do them all in 2 days, but you can definitely try. Here's some things to do, hopefully you get a good idea of what's available after reading 😎
Things to do in Krakow
Here's a list of the must-do activities, places to visit, and food to try in Krakow. With a few gems scattered here and there as well.
1. Go try some Pierogi at Przystanek Pierogarnia - It's Polish/Eastern European style dumpling, and they're delicious. That particular restaurant does multiple different versions including vegetarian, and super cheap.
2. Visit Rynek Glowny, the medieval town square - Beautiful 13th century architecture with surrounding restaurants, shops and popular museums like The Cloth Hall and Podziemia Rynku (subterranean history museum).
3. Attend the Krawl Through Krakow pub crawl - Every night at 9 pm a crowd of tourists, backpackers, party goers and other interesting characters meet at Adam Mickiewicz Monument to get their tickets and head off on tour through the pubs and clubs of Krakow, the first place has an hour of unlimited drinks 🍷
4. Walk along the river and watch Smok Wawelski - It's a fire breathing dragon statue, yes you read that right 🔥 It's a homage to old folklore from the area.
5. Visit and take a look inside Klasztor i Bazylika Franciszkanów - Absolutely stunning views from within and out of the cathedral. The stained glass is really something else - this place is near the fire breathing drag statue.
6. Take a day trip to witness Auschwitz - Powerful historic significance for the Polish people and the world. Explore the massive grounds and see what life was like in such a place - there are multiple travel agencies, hostels and hotels that offer tours. But you can use public transport to get there as well, you'll just need to get to the nearby town, Oswiecim and go from there.
7. Walk through the Jewish Square - Old buildings, parks, museums, and street art - the whole suburb of Kazimierz has a number of cool streets, stores, and cafes to explore.
8. Have dinner at Restauracja U Babci Maliny - Amazing authentic Polish and Eastern European food. Hearty, filling, delicious, with a great atmosphere in the restaurant. Try the Polish Rye Soup, served in bread called Zurek.
9. Explore Galeria Krakowska Shopping Mall - It's a very large shopping mall and has 250 stores in there. Restaurants and takeaway food scattered all over the place as well - there're many other malls in the surrounding areas as well.
10. Head for a day trip to Wieliczka Salt Mine - Many guides are offered from Krakow including transport. The mines deepest point is 160 meters down with multiple tunnels and structures built inside - it can definitely get busy though.
There're many more things to do, places to explore, and food to eat in Krakow and surrounding towns. But that's going to more than enough to cover you for 2 days. Just doing the 2 day trips would be 2 day's in itself. So if you've got one thing for Krakow, it's options 👌👍
Enjoy your trip! If you want more 48 Hour Guides, check them out below.
Sah Kilic 19 Jan 2020 • 3 min read