To ask you what I should do in Kraków?

[chilimartini]

I'm off to Kraków for a wedding but have extended my stay for an extra 3 days...any tips on places to visit / how to get there / places to stay /restaurants / cafes would be hugely appreciated...thank you

The salt mines are amazingly beautiful. A must see. They include an underground full size church in the mine. www.wieliczka-saltmine.com/
I don't remember how we travelled there.

Went from 27-30th December. We stayed in a hotel called 'home'. Great position, only 5 mins to main square and 5 mins other direction to Jewish quarter.
Deffo try the free walking tours. We did Jewish quarter and old Kraków both were brilliant and you give the volunteer at the end what you think is fair. Both 2.5 hour walking tours.
We loved Schindler's factory and paid for a guide to take us round. Definitely worth it!

Also did the salt mines and agree with the above poster, great place to visit. Of course there is also Auschwitz 😢

Day trip to Auschwitz, if you haven't been before. Not fun, but necessary.

Definitely agree with the salt mines. They are spectacular.

The cathedral is also stunning to visit.

Although not the cheeriest to visit, Auschwitz - Birkenau is not that far away and given the current climate, is thought provoking, and recommended. Schindler's factory in Krakow is also fascinating,

We did an Auschwitz bus tour with Visit Cracow which was really brilliant. Wawel Castle was nice and took a good chunk of time. The best restaurant was called the The Golden Carp (zlotyem carpiem?) down an alley. Easily as good as some Michelin places I have been and less than £40 per person.

Nowa Huta is fascinating if you’re interested in the communist years.

We (me and 2 teenage DS) did a "communist tour" including Nowa Huta. Did it with Crazy Guides in a Trabant and we absolutely loved it - the guide gave his personal experience (they employ people from Krakow) and it was really interesting and entertaining. website

Also go to the main square and take a horse/carriage ride :)

The walking tour I did was fantastic.

The salt mines are just jaw dropping.

Eat at Spaghetti!

You can get the train to the salt mine. Do a food tour, I think that was the best thing I did. Don’t miss the castle.

We did a "Crazy Tour" of Nowa Huta. Our guide was a student whose parents grew up under the communist regime. He was a fascinating as was the tour. We were driven around in a Trabant and we taken to a "restaurant". Google "Crazy Guides"

There’s a museum called Rynek under the cloth hall in the main square. It’s well worth a visit. Wawel Castle is also nice.

The free walking tour was excellent.

Auschwitz is horrible of course but definitely worth visiting. I did a day trip with Auschwitz in the morning then salt mines in the afternoon; TBH I wasn't that fussed about the salt mines (apart from the cathedral which was beautiful) but it was nice to do something happy after being so sad in the morning.

The Jewish Quarter has some lovely restaurants and cocktail bars.

Schindlers Factory is also good as is a walk around Ghetto Heroes Square. It’s heart breaking but we were glad we saw both. We absolutely love Krakow.

Oh, and be careful about which airport you fly into! We ended up flying somewhere that's about 1.5 hours away from the town by mini bus. It was fine, and the minibus was pretty cheap, but it was a bit of a shock when we got there!

Auschwitz, salt mines (you can catch the bus to these), the castle, schindlers factory, a walk around the Jewish quarter, climb the tower in the main square, visit the cloth market. There’s lots to do 😊

I’d eat at the pierogi bars and places down the side streets if you want authentic food. (Pierogi, bigos and golabki are all must try’s)

Another recommendation for the free walking tour and as others have said Auschwitz isn't pleasant but everyone should go.

I agree with a ove poster, eat at spaghetti. We had an amazing three course meal and plenty of drinks and it was so amazing (and cheap)

Take a walking tour.

There is a church at one side of the main square. It might be called St Mary's - have a look inside it, its stunning!

I visited this October and stayed at the city of the kings - Asja Apartment, it was a 10 minute walk to the square. We hired scooters using the bird app on our phones. Really enjoyed the wodka bar, Black Duck, Restauracja Pod Baranem and Molam Thai canteen and bar.

I wouldn't recommend doing Auschwitz and the salt mines on the same day.

Use the trams to get around and always punch your ticket when you enter the carriage

Definitely try the hot chocolate! Saw them in slushy type machines in the windows of bakeries and patisseries in the old town. Bought one just to warm up after a day walking around in the cold. OMG! Utterly divine!

I lived in Poland in communist times and wonder what a “communist experience” tour would involve. Queuing at a meat shop for hours, getting to the front of the queue and finding that they have run out? Giving Polish lessons to foreigners, getting paid in dollars and being found out by the SB? Wiping your arse with grey toilet paper made from newspaper, and being able to read some of it?