Krakow May Get New Tourist Routes
Krakow City Council is proposing a collection of new tourist routes throughout the city. “Visitors to Krakow have ever higher expectations, though they don’t always have time to search by themselves for what they haven’t yet seen, or for what’s worth seeing,” says Katarzyna Gadek, director of the Council’s tourism office. Amongst the latest routes on offer are Krakow on a Fork, Green Krakow and Krakow’s Top 10.
Up to now Krakow has had nine regular tourist trails, which are sign-posted at street level and described in written guides and on the Internet. There are the Royal, the Jewish Heritage and the Footsteps of John Paul II routes, to name a few.
For the first time there is a guide to Krakow’s parks and gardens – Green Krakow. This route includes the Botanical Gardens, Wawel Hill, the Planty and others. A map which shows how to get to them all is included.
Members of royal dynasties, the Wawel Dragon, the Lajkonik and John Paul II are amongst those on the route dedicated to famous Krakow inhabitants and characters. Krakow’s Socialist Realism is a trail for those specifically interested in the former Communist era, as it takes in Nowa Huta Steelworks Administration Centre, housing estates in the Nowa Huta district, the monastery in Mogila, the Laznia Nowa Theatre and more.
The Krakow Artists Trail provides the opportunity to see places and objects associated with artists such as Jan Matejko, Tadeusz Kantor and Jozef Mehoffer, whereas Krakow on a Fork 2008 is devoted to the 99 restaurants which found themselves on the City Council’s “Recommended Krakow Restaurants” list.
Krakow’s Top 10 is a four-day trail from the Royal Route, through Wieliczka, Kazimierz and Tyniec. The idea was born at a meeting between representatives of the tourist industry, guides and hoteliers who suggested what would interest tourists. “This is the first such list,” says Katarzyna Gadek, “and it was compiled after a heated discussion. The Top 10 list is only valid for this year, some of the items on it won’t change, though some will because Krakow has lots of contenders for its Top 10.”
The Council’s tourism office is working on more proposals for tourist routes. They include trails through Krakow museums, each one having a different theme, entertainment and routes for children and teenagers. These are expected sometime during the autumn.