Explore Krakow in a Day: Private Full-Day Walking Tour
Previously Poland’s capital, Krakow is one of Europe’s hubs for history and culture. On this full-day highlights tour, you will dig up that history as you explore the best of Krakow, including the Old Town and the Jewish Quarter.
On your private tour, you will:
- Have the personal attention of a private, licensed tour guide accompanying you throughout your day;
- Visit Wawel Castle, which was the first UNESCO World Heritage Site in the world (tickets included);
- Admire the rich decoration of the State Rooms, the medieval residence of Polish kings;
- See the Wawel Cathedral, Poland's national sanctuary and former coronation site (tickets included);
- Tour Krakow’s Old Town, where you will see many of its highlights, including the Royal Road, the Church of Saints Peter and Paul and St Andrew’s Church among others;
- Wander around Market Square, and admire the Cloth Hall, the Town Hall Tower and other medieval monuments;
- Visit St. Mary's Basilica with tickets included, and like in the old days, you may hear the legendary St Mary’s Trumpet Call played from its towers;
- Enjoy a lunch break in the Old Town at a café recommended by your guide (Lunch not included);
- In the afternoon, visit the courtyards of the Jagiellonian University, one of the world’s oldest universities whose alumni include the Renaissance polymath Nicolaus Copernicus;
- Explore Kazimierz, the Jewish Quarter while learning about the Jewish history in Poland;
- Enter the Old Synagogue, one of the oldest surviving synagogues in Europe, built in the 15th century (tickets included);
- Walk through several of the filming sites used in Spielberg’s Schindler's List, including the iconic passageway;
- Finish your tour at a café, where your guide will happily share recommendations for you on how to best spend the rest of your time in Poland.
Your full-day tour is the perfect way to see the city in a day, where you will learn about the country’s medieval history and Jewish history, see all of its highlights, and visit several historic sites, including Wawel Castle, the Old Synagogue, and Jagiellonian University. Your tour begins at one of Krakow's most renowned locations: Wawel Castle, the massive structure sits upon Wawel Hill, overlooking the Vistula River.
The castle served as the royal and political centre of Krakow for centuries, dating back to the eleventh century. Before becoming a museum in 1930, the castle was also a hospital, a military barracks, and a governmental residence.
After your tour of the castle, follow in the footsteps of the kings of Poland as you explore the famous Royal Route from Wawel Hill to the Old Town. Here at Market Square, you will see some of the finest examples of medieval architecture now filled full of shops, bars, and cafes.
Then your guide will take you into St Mary’s Basilica, where you’ll see one of the finest examples of Polish Gothic architecture and see the spectacularly ornate, multicolour altarpiece which dominates the front of the church. Next, enjoy a lunch break in the Market Square, at a local establishment recommended by your expert local guide.
After lunch, pass by the Jagiellonian University, one of the world’s oldest universities, which has been operating since the eleventh century. Then, your private guide will take you to the Jewish District, where you will walk through Schindler’s Passage and visit the Old Synagogue—now a museum, which is the oldest still standing in Poland, having been built in the 15th century. While there, your guide will share with you the Jewish experience after the German invasion of 1939, and what the synagogue now means to Jewish people in Poland.
Your tour ends at a traditional Jewish café, where your guide will give you recommendations about the best local bites before departing with you.
