Krakow does the weekend reunion at half the price of most of Europe. The Old Town is compact, Kazimierz is one of the best neighborhoods in Europe to spend an evening, and the side trips - Wieliczka, Auschwitz - are the kind of thing you do once and remember always.
Day One: Old Town and Kazimierz
Lunch at Pod Aniolami for traditional Polish. Walk the Main Square at golden hour. Dinner in Kazimierz at Hamsa or Klezmer-Hois. After dinner, vodka tasting at Wodka Cafe Bar. We don't recommend more than four shots, but we are not the police.
Stay in Kazimierz if you can - the morning walk back across the river to the Wawel is the best free thing the city offers.
Day Two: Auschwitz Morning
This is a hard day, plan it as one. Pre-book tickets to Auschwitz-Birkenau - they are released a few months in advance and sell out. Take an early bus or guided minivan. Allow 4 hours. Come back in silence. Eat lunch quietly somewhere simple - the soft Polish food at Milkbar Tomasza is right for this afternoon.
Evening: rest. Maybe just beers and conversation at a Kazimierz bar like Alchemia.
Day Three: Wieliczka Or Just Walking
Wieliczka Salt Mine is touristy and still worth it. Half-day tour, then late lunch at Pod Wawelem. Or skip the mine and spend the day walking Nowa Huta's communist-era architecture for a different Krakow.
Dinner at Pierogarnia Krakowiacy. Late drinks at Mercy Brown. Sunday morning slow breakfast at Charlotte before flights home.
Practical Notes
- Budget per person
- 250-400 EUR
- Stay area
- Kazimierz
- Recommended stay
- 3 nights
