Lesser Poland is the South of Poland and it has the Tatra
Mountains in its areas hence why it is the perfect destination for a winter
getaway as snow can be mostly guaranteed!
We spent days in December just before Christmas Day
and stayed both in Krakow (2nights) and Zakopane(3days)! We only did things we
wanted to do so not done any usual museums or attractions like Wavel Castle. It
is quite a budget friendly place but some main attractions such as Schindler's
museum and Salt Mine can be quite expensive. I will advice to book tickets for
famous attractions in advance and through their main websites! Weather wise,
the fog was a big concern. It was quite thick and quite cold so please wrap up
warm especially in the mountains, as expected! I found the people could be
quite rude though so do beware. The food was mazing. We tried most of the
Polish dishes and really enjoyed it! Public transport was outstanding, easy to
navigate and ridiculously cheap. The train tickets in Krakow can be bought on
the train itself and the machine is found in the first carriage. Intercity
trains were really good. All were running on time. We also used Flixbus to
travel which was very efficient!
Here is our itinerary:
·
Krakow - I explored the Jewish Ghetto
with the Eagle's Pharmacy, Hero's Square and Schindler's Museum. I will advice
you to book Schindler's museum tickets in advance as the queues to buy on door
tickets can be quite long. I had booked a guided tour which was quite good but
you can easily do it by yourself and in your own pace. The tour takes 1.5hours.
Schindler's museum was mostly about
Krakow's history especially during WW2 and little bit about Schindler. Only
towards the end of the museum, does it have his office and other bits and bobs.
A good museum with so much information and historic videos and documents! A few
towns away from Krakow was Plaszow concentration camp which not people know
about. It is now mainly a memorial site where everything is destroyed except
the Grey House which was the commander's house! It has a lot of information
plaques and quite eery! The camp was established in late 1942,
initially as a forced-labor camp for Jews from the liquidated Kraków Ghetto and
surrounding areas. It was built on the grounds of two Jewish cemeteries. In
January 1944, it was converted into a full concentration camp. In the evening,
we visited Krakow Old Town and Christmas Market in Rynek Główny Market Square which
was cute surrounded by restaurants!
·
Wieliczka Salt Mine – The salt mine is a unique
attraction with just a short train ride away from Krakow! It is one of UNESCO
World Heritage’s sites. In the 13th century it was known as the largest
source of salt in Poland, and over the years it became crucial for the
country’s economy. Do bear in mind that only guided tours are available and you
won’t see all the chambers as there are about 245 km
Galleries.
The tour takes about 2-3 hours if you do see the museum which is optional! You
go quite deep down and has many levels. There are 2 routes – the tourist route
which is the one I went one and as the name suggests is a great overview of the
mines. The miner’s route is a more adventurous routes used by miners. The mines
are still in use but not the ones open to the public. I really enjoyed the tour
and especially how everything is sculpted in salt and stone. The main Chapel
was absolutely stunning, and Mass still happens there on Sundays. The museum
was cute as you get to see unseen galleries! The way into the mine is by stairs
and there’s quite a lot of stairs! Way out is by lift however, if you are
claustrophobicdo beware that there are no lights and depending on how busy it
is, you will be squashed with other people like sardines in a tin! It is very unique
place of marvel and should definitely be on your list if you are in Krakow!
·
Auschwitz and Birkenau – you cannot miss
visiting Auschwitz concentration camps while in Lesser Poland! There are many
ways to get tickets. The earlier the better though whether you book directly or
through other operators. As mentioned, you can book guided tours through the
main website which comes with a price much cheaper than booking through
operators. Operators can take you on tours and can be quite expensive depending
on how close you book to your ideal date. However, I have read stories where
the operators couldn’t secure tickets and hence doing very early morning pick
ups such as 2am to queue and try and get tickets which cannot be guaranteed.
We have done self-guided tour which is
free. The self-guided tours start at 1pm and because we went during winter, the
closing times were 3.30pm which doesn’t leave much time therefore we done
Auschwitz camp on 1 day and Birkenau on the 2nd day so we didn’t rush
and explored both camps thoroughly. With the use of ChatGPT, I was a
self-appointed guides to my kids and was very good, if I say so myself! You
will need your passport to go through security. There are toilet inside the
camp in Auschwitz but not Birkenau! There
is luggage storage too and restaurants outside the camp. Auchwitz had more
blocks and exhibitions. You can also enter an actual gas chamber. The amount of
details and objects you see can be quite overwhelming as expected! It was a
very sombre experience. It is adviced that children under 14 are not to visit
any of these camps. On the 2nd day, we went to Birkenau using the
free shuttle just outside the Auschwitz
which comes every 10-15minutes. Birkenau was more overwhelming and the vastness
and stillness of it was quite bone chilling. You get to enter actual bunkers,
the infamous railway track and ruins of gas chambers and crematoriums. I cannot
believe that nobody learns from history and horrors like what happened in these
camps, still happening! Laksha always wanted to go to these camps and it really
hit her quite hard! I have no idea how we are still allowing such levels on
human suffering still today! You can
reach the camps by car with plenty of parking available on site, by taxi, Auschwitz
train station is a 20minuteswalk or you can get flixbus!
·
Zakopane - Zakopane is Poland's premier
mountain resort town, nestled at the foot of the Tatra Mountains, known as the
"winter capital" for skiing and snowboarding, but also a vibrant hub
for summer hiking, mountaineering, and exploring unique highland culture and
"Zakopane Style" wooden architecture. We visited the very famous
Krupowski street with its vibrant atmosphere!
We also saw the wooden church and wanted to see the cheese museum but it
was only opened during certain days! You can get to the famous furnicular ride
which takes you to Gubalowka Hill from the bottom of the hill. We couldn’t go
to the hill as the only evening we were free, the cable car closed earlier than
expected. You couldn’t hike during the dark hours. It wasn’t clear if we could
go by taxi so left it! At the top of the hill ,there are eateries, snowtubing
and ski slopes! The town was so picturesque especially in snow and surrounded
by mountains! Sunsets were just stunning!
·
Chochołów - Chochołów is a historic,
picturesque wooden village in the Polish Tatra Mountains, famous for its
beautifully preserved 18th-19th century highlander cottages and local
traditions like smoked cheese, ostapek. I went on a little adventure. The kids
didn’t want to do it so it was just me for the day! I booked a quad biking and
thermal spa experience through GetYourGuide. The quad biking was so good and
lasted for 1 hour. The scenery through the
snowy valleys were mind-blowing! We then headed to a shepherd’s hut to have sausage
cooked over a fire and smoked cheese which was very filling! We then headed to
the biggest thermal spa in Poland, Chochołowskie Termy. It was packed! It has 30 pools with 2 outdoor pools but the fog
blocked the mountain views. There were slides, plenty of jacuzzis and sulphur
water, sauna! The outdoor pools had volleyball nets, basketball hoops and a
rope structure! We spent 3hours and that was plenty of time!
·
Moskie Oko – this was the highlight of my whole
trip! The national park was 30-40minutes from Zakopane bus station. The bus costs
15 zloty per person. The entry free to the park was 11 zloty. There are many
hikes in the national park but the most famous one is Morskie Oko which is a
4hour roundtrip hike along a very long asphalt road so this hike is completely
accessible! However, if you cannot walk that long, there are horse carriages
which will take you about an hour and 150 zloty per person one way. The day I
went was snow free but there was ice. The shortcuts were full of ice so was a
tad challenging! But the views along the way were beautiful and the Morskie Oko
was just wow! Absolutely jaw dropping! The lake was completely frozen and I
walked on it which was a new experience for me and I cannot tell enough how
beautiful it is. There’s a café and toilet as well but take time to admire the
views! I mean, once in a lifetime experience.
·
Kuznice – Kuznice is a small village near Zakopane
and the bus costs us 5 zloty per person. Kuznice is famous for the famous
Kasprowy Weirch mountain. It is one of Poland's main winter ski areas. Its
dominant southern crests mark the border with Slovakia. It is accessible in
most conditions by foot and daily by cablecar. The cable car takes about 15mins
and we booked our tickets in advance as we didn’t know how busy it will be.
However, we picked the wrong day as it was very foggy and snow so we couldn’t
do any hikes. You have 1hr40 at the summit! There is a restaurant as well! We nevertheless
enjoyed the mountains! It was like in the movies and the first Christmas Eve we
spent in snowy environments!
Overall, we enjoyed Poland. We will return to explore other
areas! Poland, you did not disappoint!
