Krakow was not worth the trip for me, but there are a dozen buses to Zakopane a day! Take one! It's a town about a two hour ride away, and it's got lots of shopping, beautiful mountains, and a few restuarants and hotels if you'll be there for awhile! Check it out!

My tip: When visiting Poland, don´t forget to visit Krakow! I have been there just one evening and I have to say "I love it". I hope I will visit Krakow soon again. My advantage is neighbourhood to my country and it is close to border with my next favourite place - High Tatras. Krakow has its own atmosphere, especialy in the evening. When you walk along historical centre and look at that great old buildings, walls, squares and streets you must feel the breath of history.

Kraków is the city of Pubs, everyday is opened one pub and all are full of people. Most of the clients are students and ex-students, polish and foreigners, and it makes the atmosphere special!!! It's a cold city with a hot heart!!! My favourite pub in Kraków is "Black Gallery", is very nice and has a cool terrace for summer evenings. The atmosphere there is pretty nice and most of the clients are students... and the most important thing, there you can taste the best "Kamikadze" in the city.

Kraków, Poland As we walked toward the city center of Kraków, Poland, we heard the famous Kraków bugle call from the tower of the Church of St. Mary. During a war with the Tartars (from western Asia) in 1297, while the Polish bugler was sounding a call, an arrow was shot through his throat, stopping the call in mid-note. In a few moments another soldier picked up the horn, and continued the call, and that is what you hear today - a bugle call, an interruption, then the bugle call continues. Hourly they reenact the call, high in the tower of St. Mary's, and at noon on Saturday the bugle call is sounded over radio stations in Poland. One year as we sailed the Atlantic from Rotterdam to Montreal on the SS Stefan Batory, at noon on Saturday, the bugle call sounded over the ship's PA System. Kraków is one of the few cities in Poland that escaped from World War II without too much physical damage. Stare Miasto, or Kraków's Old Town, is surrounded by a park and a portion of the old city wall. And on a hill south of Stare Miasto, stands Zamek Wawelski (Wawel Castle). The Market Place in the center of Kraków's Old Town, Rynek Glówny, is surrounded by stores and restaurants, and tourists may enjoy a ride in a horse-drawn carriage. Located in the middle of the market square, there stands a beautiful building called Sukiennice (The Cloth Hall), built in the 1300s, burned in 1555, restored and renovated over the years. This market building contains many shops that sell art, clothes, jewelry, and items of interest to a tourist. Kraków's Rynek Glówny is the only place in Europe we have seen sweet corn, cooked and sold at an outdoor food stand. We couldn't believe the amount of salt one man poured on his ear of corn! In 1985, the roadside fruit and vegetable stands between Kraków and Warsaw, contained a few pieces of poor quality produce, often displayed in a cardboard box. In 1991, after the Berlin Wall fell, at about the same time of the year, road-side farm wagons were loaded with an excellent harvest. In 1985 we were just barely making it from day to day, so heartfelt was our angst, and so sorry did we feel for Polish people unfortunate enough to live under this Government. Finally, after a good night's sleep, Emmy said, "I feel like a new woman," and Jim said, "Goodness knows I need one."

Talking about clubs, I can surely advise you to go to Jazz Rock Cafe (Slawkowska Street), Kulturalny Club (Szewska Str.) and Miasto Krakoff, to name but a few. These are quite alternative locals in cellars (as mostly all of bars in the centre of Cracow). If you want to get acquainted with special ambience of old Cracow of Jewish times, ask about Singer or Alchemia (don't remember names of the streets). And if you want just something nice and cosy, but still "feeling Polish", go to Prowincja near Market Square. To mention food places - if you want to get decent food for very little money, go to Rozowy Slon (with a sign of a pink elephant on the windows) in Sienna Street.

I was in Krakow last year by Easter time and I really have a good time.It's worth seeing the castle, the rynek place and I really enjoyed to visit wielicka cave which is absolutely superb,amazing.Food is cheap and good and there is a special bread sold in the streets which is very tasty,delicious and cheap.I strongly recommend a visit there. And don't forget to buy a smok (dragon) and ask someone to tell you the legend about krakow's smok who drown in the river!!!!

If you want to be able to eat out 3 times a day while you're in Cracow, then it stays very affordable if you frequent the Bar Mlechny, or milk bars. These are small cafes cum restaurants, which serve very cheap, tasty and filling food. Soups cost between 2ZL and 3.50Zl, full meals from 4-8Zl. Try "nalesniki", sweet or savoury pancakes, with a huge variety of fillings. milk bars can be found on most streets, a bit cheaper the further out from the city centre you go.

I had expected worse, but I was very impressed with Cracow's public transport system after two weeks there. The trams and buses are very regular and puctual. Most parts of the city are reachable by public transport. The weekly ticket costs only 22Zl. (No student reductions for foreign students). A single ticket costs 2.20Zl, an hour ticket costs 2.80Zl, and a day-ticket costs, I think, 8Zl. Most trams run until 22.45/23hr. Don't miss the last one! Most lines have a night tram/bus most nights at about 2hr, but check first!