Echoes of History: A Journey Through Krakow and Warsaw

Pass through the gates of the Remuh synagogue to find Krakow's most historic cemetery.

The Old Jewish Cemetery contains the graves of many famous Polish Jews, who were buried there from the 1500 to 1800's. The cemetery was largely destroyed by the Nazis, but many of the tombstones have been returned to the site. The entrance is hidden just off of Szeroka Street. Look for the gate across from the green space at the north end of the square. Once inside the courtyard, look for an entrance door on the wall to the right.

Hit the spot with a tasty "zapiekanka" before exploring Kazimierz's nightlife.

Once the main square and kosher marketplace of the Jewish community, Plac Nowy's roundhouse of former butcher stands is now occupied by stands selling a special Krakow delicacy known as zapiekanka. Consisting of a toasted piece of baguette loaded with cheese and other toppings of your choosing, no trip to Krakow is complete without trying one. It's a good place to start exploring the nightlife of Kazimierz, Krakow’s youngest and coolest district. You will discover a lively scene on almost any evening.

Venture off the beaten path to discover one of Krakow's most impressive churches.

Kazimierz has always possessed a Christian population as well, and some of Krakow’s prettiest churches are located there, such as the breathtaking Corpus Christi Basilica, with its gothic architecture and soaring baroque altars. Just a few steps from the church you'll find Kazimierz’s largest square, the plac Wolnica. Its neo-Renaissance town hall contains one of the city’s best-hidden finds – the Ethnographic Museum. You will find recreations of life in the Polish countryside, with recreated cottage interiors, school rooms, farming implements, painted eggs, costumes, and much more.

Jewish Quarter

The district of Kazimierz was once home to one of Europe's largest and most influential Jewish communities. This tiny area became the cultural center of European Jewry, drawing immigrants from around Europe. It was filled with synagogues, Jewish schools, and printers, and was home to famous scholars such as Rabbi Moses ben Isserles. While most of its residents were tragically killed in the Holocaust, they left behind a rich and fascinating historical legacy to explore.

Visit the historic street that was the center of Kazimierz's Jewish community.

This wide street (Szeroka actually means wide) acted as a sort of square and marketplace for the community. While today well-maintained buildings line it, in the 19th century it would have been better described as "bustling" than "quaint". You can find all the major Jewish heritage sites nearby, including Krakow's oldest synagoague, the fortress-like Old Synagogue, which sits on the southern end of the street. Today it houses a museum of Jewish heritage.

Enjoy the splendor of this 19th-century synagogue with an opulate Moorish interior.

Unlike the older synagogues, which sometimes appeared more like fortresses than places of worship, the Tempel Synagogue is an architectural gem that represents a period of new-found confidence and comfort within the surrounding society. It proclaimed Jewish integration into modern society, while also representing its continued faith.

Take home something special from a vast market hall built in the 14th century, which is surrounded by arcaded passageways and topped with rows of gargoyles.

The covered market continues a centuries-old tradition with an eclectic range of goods of sale – you might be most interested in the amber jewelry or the handicraft items from the Podhale region. On the upper floor, you will find the 19th Century Polish Art Museum which features truly beautiful and under-appreciated artwork that packs a mighty patriotic punch.

Krakow Guided Walk

On this three-hour guided walking tour, you will discover the history and legends of old Krakow and gain an excellent overview of the city. The many layers of the city will be revealed to you as your guide points out medieval, Renaissance, and Baroque architecture. You will learn about not only Krakow's glory days many centuries past but also about its more recent struggles during Nazism and Communism oppression.

Excursion to Auschwitz w/ Private Transfer

There is no shortage of cruelty and evil to be found in human history, but the Holocaust stands out as perhaps the greatest of these evils, in both scale and conception. The Holocaust's most significant historical sites, the concentration camp of Auschwitz and its auxiliary camp of Birkenau, are located a little over an hour from Krakow. This guided tour includes private transfers to and from Auschwitz but a group tour around the camp.

Excursion to Auschwitz w/ Private Transfer

There is no shortage of cruelty and evil to be found in human history, but the Holocaust stands out as perhaps the greatest of these evils, in both scale and conception. The Holocaust's most significant historical sites, the concentration camp of Auschwitz and its auxiliary camp of Birkenau, are located a little over an hour from Krakow. This guided tour includes private transfers to and from Auschwitz but a group tour around the camp.

Excursion to Auschwitz w/ Private Transfer

There is no shortage of cruelty and evil to be found in human history, but the Holocaust stands out as perhaps the greatest of these evils, in both scale and conception. The Holocaust's most significant historical sites, the concentration camp of Auschwitz and its auxiliary camp of Birkenau, are located a little over an hour from Krakow. This guided tour includes private transfers to and from Auschwitz but a group tour around the camp.

Excursion to Auschwitz w/ Private Transfer

There is no shortage of cruelty and evil to be found in human history, but the Holocaust stands out as perhaps the greatest of these evils, in both scale and conception. The Holocaust's most significant historical sites, the concentration camp of Auschwitz and its auxiliary camp of Birkenau, are located a little over an hour from Krakow. This guided tour includes private transfers to and from Auschwitz but a group tour around the camp.

Guided Walk, Jewish Quarter

On this three-hour guided walking tour, you will discover what was once home to one of Europe's largest and most influential Jewish communities - numbering over 60,000 residents at its height. While most of its residents were tragically killed in the Holocaust, they left behind a rich historical legacy, including numerous beautiful synagogues now open for visitors.

Visit the historic street that was the center of Kazimierz's Jewish community.

This wide street (Szeroka actually means wide) acted as a sort of square and marketplace for the community. While today well-maintained buildings line it, in the 19th century it would have been better described as "bustling" than "quaint". You can find all the major Jewish heritage sites nearby, including Krakow's oldest synagoague, the fortress-like Old Synagogue, which sits on the southern end of the street. Today it houses a museum of Jewish heritage.

Guided Walk, Jewish Quarter

On this three-hour guided walking tour, you will discover what was once home to one of Europe's largest and most influential Jewish communities - numbering over 60,000 residents at its height. While most of its residents were tragically killed in the Holocaust, they left behind a rich historical legacy, including numerous beautiful synagogues now open for visitors.

Visit the historic street that was the center of Kazimierz's Jewish community.

This wide street (Szeroka actually means wide) acted as a sort of square and marketplace for the community. While today well-maintained buildings line it, in the 19th century it would have been better described as "bustling" than "quaint". You can find all the major Jewish heritage sites nearby, including Krakow's oldest synagoague, the fortress-like Old Synagogue, which sits on the southern end of the street. Today it houses a museum of Jewish heritage.

Warsaw Mermaid (Warszawska Syrenka) is the official symbol of Warsaw.

On the square, Syrenka appeared in the 19th century. According to the legend, she is the sister of Copenhagen Mermaid.

Tour the impressive Royal Castle for an entertaining crash course in Warsaw and Polish history.

Like everything else in central Warsaw, the Royal Castle was heavily damaged during the German bombing campaign that sparked WWII in September 1939 and was then completely and literally reduced to smoldering dust in 1944 in revenge for the failed Warsaw Uprising. What you see today is a carbon copy built in the 1970s when the Communist authorities became desperate to position themselves as 'socialist patriots' following decades of delay in the building schedule. Opened to the public in 1984, the Castle today is filled with period furniture and works of art. Highlights of the castle tour include the Great Apartment and its magnificent Great Assembly Hall, which has been restored to its 18th-century decor of dazzling gilded stucco and golden columns. The neighboring National Hall was conceived as a national pantheon; the six huge canvases (surviving originals) depict pivotal scenes from Polish history. Further on from the National Hall is the lavishly decorated Throne Room. Connected by a short corridor is the King’s Apartment, the highlight of which is the Canaletto Room at the far end. An impressive array of 23 paintings by Bernardo Bellotto, better known in Poland as Canaletto, captures Warsaw's mid-18th-century heyday in great detail. The works were of immense help in reconstructing the city’s historic facades.

Old Town Walking Tour, Guided

On this 2.5-hour walking tour, you will be shown around Warsaw's UNESCO-listed Old Town, including the old market square and the famous Mermaid Monument in the middle of it. You will be taken along the beautifully recreated cobbled streets around the square while your guide recounts the stories of the historic building lining them, as well as the story of their post-WWII reconstruction.

Warsaw Mermaid (Warszawska Syrenka) is the official symbol of Warsaw.

On the square, Syrenka appeared in the 19th century. According to the legend, she is the sister of Copenhagen Mermaid.

Jewish Museum

Winner of the 2016 'Oscar' for museum design, the POLIN museum is a brilliant example of the new generation of multi-media narrative history museums, and demonstrates Poland's determination to re-tell its history after decades of suppression under the former Communist regime. Built on a former Jewish Ghetto site in front of the Ghetto Heroes Monument, which memorializes the 1943 uprising within the Warsaw ghetto, the museum's core exhibition occupies more than 4,000 square meters (43,000 sq ft) of space. It consists of eight galleries that document and celebrate the thousand-year history of the Jewish community in Poland – once the largest Jewish community in the world – that was almost entirely obliterated during the Holocaust.  The Holocaust fills only one of the eight galleries, and thus does not overshadow the long and rich history that preceded it. Highlights include early Jewish manuscripts, re-creations of 18th century Jewish town life (including a scale replica of the Gwozdziec synagogue with its colorful painted interior), a religious school and a busy Warsaw street from the early 20th century. All this is done using sound effects and modern projection techniques, vintage photographs and films, histories of Polish-born movements from Hasidism to Zionism, and a vast multimedia network encompassing more than 250 computer terminals. This is a museum full of noise and color; with echoes of centuries of Yiddish chatter and the soulful sounds of klezmer music. No visitor will leave unmoved.

Jewish Museum

Winner of the 2016 'Oscar' for museum design, the POLIN museum is a brilliant example of the new generation of multi-media narrative history museums, and demonstrates Poland's determination to re-tell its history after decades of suppression under the former Communist regime. Built on a former Jewish Ghetto site in front of the Ghetto Heroes Monument, which memorializes the 1943 uprising within the Warsaw ghetto, the museum's core exhibition occupies more than 4,000 square meters (43,000 sq ft) of space. It consists of eight galleries that document and celebrate the thousand-year history of the Jewish community in Poland – once the largest Jewish community in the world – that was almost entirely obliterated during the Holocaust.  The Holocaust fills only one of the eight galleries, and thus does not overshadow the long and rich history that preceded it. Highlights include early Jewish manuscripts, re-creations of 18th century Jewish town life (including a scale replica of the Gwozdziec synagogue with its colorful painted interior), a religious school and a busy Warsaw street from the early 20th century. All this is done using sound effects and modern projection techniques, vintage photographs and films, histories of Polish-born movements from Hasidism to Zionism, and a vast multimedia network encompassing more than 250 computer terminals. This is a museum full of noise and color; with echoes of centuries of Yiddish chatter and the soulful sounds of klezmer music. No visitor will leave unmoved.

Jewish Museum

Winner of the 2016 'Oscar' for museum design, the POLIN museum is a brilliant example of the new generation of multi-media narrative history museums, and demonstrates Poland's determination to re-tell its history after decades of suppression under the former Communist regime. Built on a former Jewish Ghetto site in front of the Ghetto Heroes Monument, which memorializes the 1943 uprising within the Warsaw ghetto, the museum's core exhibition occupies more than 4,000 square meters (43,000 sq ft) of space. It consists of eight galleries that document and celebrate the thousand-year history of the Jewish community in Poland – once the largest Jewish community in the world – that was almost entirely obliterated during the Holocaust.  The Holocaust fills only one of the eight galleries, and thus does not overshadow the long and rich history that preceded it. Highlights include early Jewish manuscripts, re-creations of 18th century Jewish town life (including a scale replica of the Gwozdziec synagogue with its colorful painted interior), a religious school and a busy Warsaw street from the early 20th century. All this is done using sound effects and modern projection techniques, vintage photographs and films, histories of Polish-born movements from Hasidism to Zionism, and a vast multimedia network encompassing more than 250 computer terminals. This is a museum full of noise and color; with echoes of centuries of Yiddish chatter and the soulful sounds of klezmer music. No visitor will leave unmoved.

Jewish Museum

Winner of the 2016 'Oscar' for museum design, the POLIN museum is a brilliant example of the new generation of multi-media narrative history museums, and demonstrates Poland's determination to re-tell its history after decades of suppression under the former Communist regime. Built on a former Jewish Ghetto site in front of the Ghetto Heroes Monument, which memorializes the 1943 uprising within the Warsaw ghetto, the museum's core exhibition occupies more than 4,000 square meters (43,000 sq ft) of space. It consists of eight galleries that document and celebrate the thousand-year history of the Jewish community in Poland – once the largest Jewish community in the world – that was almost entirely obliterated during the Holocaust.  The Holocaust fills only one of the eight galleries, and thus does not overshadow the long and rich history that preceded it. Highlights include early Jewish manuscripts, re-creations of 18th century Jewish town life (including a scale replica of the Gwozdziec synagogue with its colorful painted interior), a religious school and a busy Warsaw street from the early 20th century. All this is done using sound effects and modern projection techniques, vintage photographs and films, histories of Polish-born movements from Hasidism to Zionism, and a vast multimedia network encompassing more than 250 computer terminals. This is a museum full of noise and color; with echoes of centuries of Yiddish chatter and the soulful sounds of klezmer music. No visitor will leave unmoved.

Enjoy the exquisite setting of this palace on a small island amidst the park's lake.

Located in the middle of the park lake is the Neoclassical Łazienkowski Palace - the best memorial to Stanisław August, the country's last and most cultured monarch. It was built on the site of a bathhouse erected for another member of royalty, hence the name "Łazienki" meaning simply "baths". Often referred to as the Palace on the Isle (Pałac Na Wyspie) due to its location, it is connected to the surrounding park by two collonaded bridges, creating a remarkably romantic setting. It is the smallest of Warsaw's royal palaces, and it can be visited without a guided tour. The ornately decorated interiors of the palace are well worth seeing. The palace Picture Gallery contains works by Rubens and Rembrandt, and one of the most attractive theaters in Warsaw can be found within it as well. The highlight though may be the colorful Solomon Room, with its walls covered in paintings depicting the History of Solomon. In addition to the palace itself, a large terrace with a fountain also sits on the island. Steps lead down into the water where small boats wait for passengers. You'll probably want to take lots of photos, as well as take some time to just sit on the steps of terrace and watch the swans float by. Within sight of the palace is another interesting little island, which serves as the stage for a small classical style theater sitting on the shore of the lake.

Take a break from nature to check out some contemporary art.

Ujazdowski Palace was once inhabited by King Stanisław August's Italian-born mother. These days it's home to the Contemporary Art Centre, the city's leading venue for modern art shows.

Łazienki Park

The old royal parks south of the city center are one of Warsaw's best features. Indeed, these beautiful parks are some of the most attractive in all of Europe. The most luxuriant of the parks, Łazienki Park, was once a hunting ground which was later transformed into an English-style park with formal gardens and the exquisite"Palace on the Isle" built across the park lake. A large statue of Chopin near the palace is a favorite venue for summer concerts, while another nearby attraction is the Belvedere, the official residence of Polish heads of state from the end to World War I until 1995 when Lech Wałęsa moved it to the current Presidential Palace near the Royal Castle. But there's no need to worry about hitting all the attractions in the park; just being in such a peaceful and pretty setting is the main objective. Lovely in all four seasons, you can simply stroll the oak-lined promenades and pathways and watch the park's resident fauna, including peacocks, squirrels, and mandarin ducks. It's also a great place to rent a bicycle or boat, go for a jog, or have a picnic amongst the locals who are enjoying the same experiences.

Catch a free outdoor concert at the Chopin Monument.

Just inside the park near the Łazienki Królewskie bus stop, you can find a statue of Poland's greatest composer Frederic Chopin. This is the setting for regular free Chopin recitals that take place here every Sunday between 12pm-4pm, from mid-May to late September. To find out what the programme is for each individual Sunday, go to www.lazienki-krolewskie.pl/en/.