A mini city break to Krakow...
Last month I went to Krakow for three nights with my sister, we arrived late Saturday evening and had almost a full three days there as our flight back wasn't until late Tuesday afternoon! It was a super spontaneous break abroad, I was randomly looking for flights one evening and came across some at £40 return each on the app Hitlist. The flights were with Ryanair and it's quite easy to bag some cheap flights with them anyway, it didn't come with any luggage but it was another £15 for both of us to have hand luggage there and back. Absolute bargain if you ask me! Poland is generally quite cheap anyway so booking an Airbnb was mega affordable, I found one for £66 for 3 nights so the trip in total came to less than £200 for two people. Who can say no to that? I absolutely loved Krakow, and not only was it so cheap there for food, drink, transport, accommodation, everything - it was one of the most beautiful places I've ever been. Highly recommend a visit if you're itching to get away but you're on a budget. Anyway, this post is super photo heavy (it's me, hello) so buckle up, grab your cuppa and let's find out what I got up to whilst I was there...
Where We Stayed
We stayed in this little apartment (sign up with my link for £25 off your first stay using Airbnb!) I didn't take many photos of where we stayed as it was literally just one room with a sofa bed, little dining table and a kitchen area all in one and then a bathroom. The main room was quite large with a tv and wardrobe in also, it was just like a bit of a one bed studio flat kinda thing. It was perfect for two for a three night stay, especially with us spending most of our time out and about exploring. We spent a bit more time there on our second day as the weather got colder and it was chucking it down quite early on. The heating in the place was lovely though, it was super cosy and warm and we just ordered a Chinese (Uber eats is fab for a takeaway there) and spent an evening chilling! There was a washing machine in the kitchen area too, although the kitchen cupboards could have done with a clear out as there was a lot of crap that other people had left behind. Apart from that it was a well equipped kitchen and even the bathroom had a few things in there like sanitary towels, cotton pads, makeup wipes and body wash. The only negative things I have to say about the apartment is that the lock was a bit dodgy and at one point we literally couldn't get into it and thought we were locked out, the fridge was very noisy at night (with it being a studio and sleeping in the same room as the kitchen, it woke me up a couple of times) and the shower worked okay but didn't get very hot! For the money it was pretty decent and homely, and these are things you can definitely cope with for just a short stay. Also the host was super lovely and communication was so quick with her, she spoke full English. I never met her but she sent her mum (who was so sweet but didn't speak much english) to meet us on arrival and we didn't get there until very late at night so it was nice of her to wait up.
What We Did
We stayed right in the centre and it was only a 20 minute train journey from the airport. The train station is literally right outside the airport too, the only downside was that we had an hour wait as we'd just missed the train before when we landed and they're about an hour apart. We didn't really use any transport once there as everything was in a half hour walking distance and I like to get out and explore. We did use uber two or three times as it started to rain on the second day there and we just didn't fancy getting soaked. Ubers were an absolute bargain in Krakow too, you could get a 20 minute car journey for £3!!! It would cost you about £30 where I live. We were so blessed with the weather on our first day though, it was forecast rain for the entire period we were there and the first day was super hot and quite sunny for the most part! We spent most of the first day just walking around and taking in the city. We did stumble across the Galeria Krakowska (a big shopping centre) on the walk from our apartment into the centre so we nipped in and had an obligatory foreign McDonalds. Their maccy D's is amazing compared to ours!! Not only was it cheaper but the menu had so much more choice and they even offered things like yogurt and granola and chocolate puddings. Goals. UK, you can do better.
I took so many photos of the beautiful buildings because it was just so dreamy! You go to cities in the UK where they have the nice areas but in Krakow they were just around every single corner. Instagram content heaven, I tell ya. Also they sold a drink called lemon mirinda and it was the cheapest drink ever and tasted just like lemon fanta. Would definitely have brought a few bottles back with me had I not had just hand luggage, it was the best.
I asked for breakfast recommendations on Instagram and we headed to somewhere that was recommended a few times, however it ended up being closed so we went to the next nearest spot as we were starving. It was little cafe/bar called Tajeminiczy Ogrod and it was super cheap and delicious. I had a cappuccino which was one of the best coffees I've ever had and I had a salmon omelette that came with a bit of salad and some bread. I don't know what my sister had, something like fried eggs on some bread with a salad also. We both got fresh orange juices and they were freshly squeezed juices which were the bomb. We got some fries to share too as it was more of a brunch than a breakfast - I was stuffed afterwards! So good and I think it came to £16 for both of us, how cheap is that?! Highly recommend stopping off here for some brunch if you go.
We came across the cutest little cafe ever called Cupcake Corner Bakery, and I fell in love with the decor and the gorgeous lighting inside. It sold lots of bakery treats, coffee and juices. I got myself a cookie latte as I fancied something sweet and it turned out to be a peanut butter cookie latte so it was veryyyy peanut-y. Thankfully I love reeses and it tasted just like those, very sickly but delish! My sister got the same as well as an oreo cupcake which looked super yum.
We spent a lot of time walking through the centre where all the little shops were. We came across a sweet shop called The Sweet Factory on Grodzka Street near the catholic church, and it sold the cutest little sweets, so of course we had to get a pot to share! I did a typical tourist thing and went into a little souvenir shop to pick up Reuben a little something, I ended up getting him this gorgeous little Krakow globe. Grodzka Street is quite close to the main square where we also spent a lot of time. It's so beautiful! It's a massive open space that's surrounded by gorgeous buildings and places to eat. It's the perfect spot to go and chill and do some people watching. There's loads of horses and carriages lined up in the main square to take you on tours, the horses are beautiful but it was ridiculously expensive for a very short ride.
Of course we had to visit Wawel Castle, what a beautiful place! There wasn't a whole lot to do there, it was more just a tourist spot to have a walk around - but it was gorgeous and I got some beaut pics. It had a steep walk up to it and there was little spot at the top where you could look over part of Krakow from above which was lovely! You can get some of the best krakow tours via krakowbooking.com.
We spent most of our time just wandering around the gorgeous streets of Krakow, occasionally stopping by some of the big tourist spots. I could just walk around taking photos of it all day, there's just so much beautiful architecture! The colours of the buildings were so pretty too, if only it looked that gorgeous where I live!
We spent quite a bit of time around the main square like I said before, where there's so many options for food! I was starving and we walked past La Terrazza which had an outside eating area that was super empty, so thought it would be fast service (which it was!) and also a good spot to do a bit of people watching. We just got a margherita pizza and a homemade lemonade but both were so good, and the waiter was pretty alright himself actually ha. He actually came and asked us if we wanted strawberry margarita's and I had to say we meant the pizza not the drink lol!
Our last day was just spent mostly at the Galeria Krakowska (shopping centre) as it was right next to the main train station to get back to the airport for our afternoon flight. As we'd had to check out the apartment and had our luggage with us, I used up the extra room in my bag to pick up a few bits! I got some clothes for Reuben, and a dress for me from Pull & Bear which I'd seen in the UK but it was a bit cheaper over in Poland. I also picked up an Origins face mask for around £18 and it's usually £22 over here so I saved a few quid on that. If you do go to Krakow and want to shop, I'd definitely recommend it as everything seems to have a few pounds off the price over there.
Please tell me I'm not the only one that takes a gazillion photos when they go away?! I definitely think I overdo it but I just like to have pictures of every beautiful little corner and memory! I'm so glad I decided to spontaneously book that visit to Krakow, I think we could have easily done two days instead of three as our last day was a bit slow and it started raining really heavily so we ended up spending most of the day sat in the airport having felt like we'd seen everything the city had to offer (plus your feet ache don't they after two full days of exploring!)
Have you ever visited Krakow or do you have any plans to go?
