Krakow is Poland’s great surviving medieval city — one of the few major Polish cities that escaped World War II’s destruction largely intact — and its Royal Road from the Barbican through Europe’s largest medieval market square to Wawel Castle is one of the finest urban walks in Central Europe. This post accompanies the YouTube walking tour “Poland — KRAKOW Walking Tour | Exploring Wawel Castle & Old Town | 4K,” which covers this iconic route in immersive 4K. It is the companion to your krakow walking tour.
About This Walking Tour
This 4K walking tour explores Wawel Castle and the Krakow Old Town in detail, showing both the grandeur of the castle hilltop and the character of the medieval market square below. The video covers the approach to the castle along the Vistula bank — the same approach used by Polish kings and their royal processions for five centuries — and the castle complex itself, which contains the Royal Chambers, the Cathedral (where Polish monarchs were crowned and buried for 400 years), and a Renaissance courtyard considered one of the finest in Central Europe. The walk also covers the Main Market Square (Rynek Główny), at 200 metres by 200 metres the largest medieval market square in Europe, dominated by the twin spires of St Mary’s Basilica.
The video also ventures into the Kazimierz Jewish Quarter, a neighbourhood that was the centre of Jewish life in Poland for centuries before World War II and has been undergoing a remarkable cultural revival since the 1990s, partly triggered by the filming of Steven Spielberg’s Schindler’s List here in 1993.
Highlights of Krakow
The Main Market Square (Rynek Główny) was laid out in 1257 and remains one of the finest medieval urban spaces in Europe. At its centre stands the Cloth Hall (Sukiennice, 1555), a Renaissance arcade that replaced the original medieval market building. The hourly bugle call (Hejnał mariacki) is broadcast live from the taller tower of St Mary’s Basilica every hour, breaking off mid-phrase to commemorate a medieval trumpeter shot by an arrow while raising the alarm against a Mongol attack. St Mary’s Basilica, built in its current form between 1347 and 1397, contains the Gothic polyptych altarpiece carved by Veit Stoss between 1477 and 1489 — at 13 metres high and 11 metres wide when open, it is the largest Gothic altarpiece in the world. Wawel Castle on its limestone hill above the Vistula served as the royal residence and seat of Polish government from 1038 to 1596; Wawel Cathedral on the same hilltop was the coronation church and royal necropolis of Polish kings from 1320 to 1734. The legend of the Dragon of Wawel — the fire-breathing beast slain by the cobbler Krak who founded the city — is associated with a cave at the base of the castle rock.
A Brief History of Krakow
Krakow’s origins as a settlement on the Vistula date to the Neolithic period; a fortified settlement on Wawel Hill existed by the 8th century AD. It became the capital of the Polish Kingdom and the seat of a bishopric in the 11th century. The Mongol invasions of 1241 and 1259 destroyed the city but it was rebuilt in stone following a new royal charter of 1257. Krakow reached its medieval peak under the Jagiellonian dynasty (1386–1572), when it was one of the most important cities in Central Europe. The capital was moved to Warsaw in 1596. Unlike Warsaw, Krakow escaped systematic Nazi destruction — the city was taken by Soviet forces in January 1945 before German demolition teams could carry out Hitler’s order to raze it. Krakow’s Old Town was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1978 as one of the first twelve sites on the original list.
Practical Tips
Krakow is in the Central European Time zone (UTC+1, summer UTC+2). The currency is the Polish zloty (PLN), not the euro. Polish is the language; English is widely spoken, especially by younger residents. The Old Town is compact and best explored entirely on foot; the centre is pedestrianised. Wawel Castle charges admission for the State Rooms and Cathedral; book in advance in summer. The Kazimierz Jewish Quarter is about 15 minutes’ walk south of the Main Square. Train from Warsaw takes approximately 2.5 hours.
Watch & Explore More
The 4K video above is an excellent guide to both Wawel Castle and the Old Town — watch it to understand the route before your visit. More walks at @walkingtoursvideoscom. Related guides: Warsaw: Old Town to Praga and Budapest: Buda Castle to Pest.