Kraków

Kraków's glory is its Rynek Główny, the Main Market Square — at 200 metres square, the largest medieval town square in Europe and one of the most beautiful, a vast cobbled expanse ringed by elegant townhouses, churches and pavement cafés, alive with flower sellers, horse-drawn carriages and street performers. At its centre stands the long Renaissance Cloth Hall (Sukiennice), a covered market arcade since the Middle Ages, still selling crafts and amber, with the Gallery of 19th-century Polish Art upstairs; beside it rises the magnificent Gothic St Mary's Basilica, home to a breathtaking carved wooden altarpiece by Veit Stoss, and the source of the hourly hejnał trumpet call from its taller tower. The surrounding UNESCO-listed Old Town, ringed by the green Planty gardens that replaced the city walls, preserves the medieval street plan, the remaining Barbican fortress and St Florian's Gate, the venerable Jagiellonian University (where Copernicus studied), and a wealth of churches and palaces — all easily and delightfully explored on foot.

Crowning a limestone hill above the Vistula, Wawel is the symbolic heart of Poland — the royal castle and cathedral where the country's monarchs were crowned and laid to rest for centuries. The Wawel Royal Castle, rebuilt in elegant Renaissance style around a beautiful arcaded courtyard, holds richly furnished state rooms, a famous collection of Flemish tapestries and the crown treasury and armoury, telling the story of Poland's golden age. Beside it, Wawel Cathedral is a layered masterpiece of chapels and royal tombs, including the gilded Sigismund Chapel — a jewel of the Renaissance — and the great Sigismund Bell that you can climb to see. Beneath the hill, by the river, the Dragon's Den cave recalls the legend of the Wawel Dragon, marked by a fire-breathing bronze dragon statue beloved of children. The views from the castle walls over the Vistula and the city are lovely, and a visit to Wawel is essential to understanding Kraków's royal past and Polish national identity.

South of the Old Town, Kazimierz — for centuries the heart of Jewish Kraków — has become the city's most atmospheric and creative quarter. Its historic synagogues, old cemetery and squares preserve a poignant heritage and tell an important story, while the once-faded streets have been reborn as a bohemian hub of vintage shops, galleries, courtyards, and some of the city's best bars, cafés and street food (the legendary zapiekanka open-face baguettes at the Plac Nowy round kiosk are an institution). Kraków's food and nightlife are a highlight throughout: hearty Polish cooking — pierogi (dumplings), żurek soup, bigos and grilled meats — served in milk bars and cellar restaurants, and a famous bar scene of candle-lit vaulted cellars, craft-beer pubs and clubs, all wonderfully affordable. The blend of moving history and vibrant present makes Kazimierz one of the most rewarding districts to explore and to spend an evening in, and a counterpoint to the grandeur of the Old Town and Wawel.

Two of the most significant excursions in Poland lie within easy reach of Kraków. The Wieliczka Salt Mine, just outside the city and a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is an astonishing underground world descended over centuries of mining — a labyrinth of tunnels, chambers and underground lakes carved entirely from rock salt, culminating in the breathtaking Chapel of St Kinga, a vast church complete with salt chandeliers, altars and sculptures, all hewn from salt; guided tours descend through this surreal, beautiful place. The other major site is the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum, about 90 minutes west — the preserved former concentration and extermination camp, now a memorial and place of remembrance for the victims of the Holocaust, and one of the most important and sobering sites in Europe, visited with respect on guided tours. Closer to the city, the Zakopane mountain resort in the Tatra Mountains offers hiking and skiing, and the Ojców National Park its limestone valleys. These add depth and reflection to a Kraków visit, alongside the city's own beauty.