This past December, Matt and I set out on our ten-day, three-country Christmas Market tour of Eastern Europe. Our first stop was Wrocław, Poland — a city I visited for the first time on a solo trip back in March 2019. It was really exciting to be back there, especially in such a different situation than the first time.
I obviously enjoyed the city enough to come back, so I wanted to share more about what it’s like to visit. Here’s everything you need to know about Wroclaw, Poland.
About Wrocław
First things first: Let’s talk about the word “Wrocław.” We English speakers might pronounce this something like “Roe-claw.” Right? Well, apparently that’s not anywhere near how it’s actually pronounced. The “w”s make a “v” sound, and that L with a line through it makes our “w” sound. Oh, and the “c” makes a “tz” sound. So I think we’re left with something sounding like “Vrotzwav.”
Not to be confused with Warsaw or Bratislava or other similar-sounding Eastern European cities. 😉
So, Wroclaw is the fourth-largest city in Poland after Warsaw, Krakow, and Łódź. (And it’s still the only Polish city I’ve ever been to.) Located in the country’s southwest, it’s Wroclaw is the capital of the Lower Silesia province. Fun fact: While Wroclaw’s history dates back at least 1,000 years, it’s only officially been part of Poland as we know it today since 1945. Previously, it’s been part of the Kingdom of Poland, the Kingdom of Bohemia, the Kingdom of Hungary, the Austrian Habsburg monarchy, and the Kingdom of Prussia and Germany.
Wroclaw is also a university city, which makes it one of the most “youth-oriented” cities in all of Poland. And you also will have no problem finding people in Wroclaw who speak English, so no need to worry about that.
How Many Days Do You Need in Wroclaw?
I think two days in Wroclaw would be enough to see everything, but I’d recommend three days so you’re not too rushed. It’s not a huge city, but we loved how the pace of life was slower than in many other cities in Europe. So we were happy to take our time enjoying the sights and the food!
(Especially if you’re visiting in summer. My two winter visits limited some of my activity options, but in the summer there’d be so much more to do.)
Things To Do in Wroclaw
So, this is (in my opinion) the most unique thing about Wroclaw, and it gives you an idea of the city’s vibes as well as its history. The Wroclaw Dwarves or Wroclaw Gnomes are miniature statues hidden all over the city — while the first one was placed in 2005 as part of an anti-communist movement, there are now more than 800! I feel like we saw about 50 over our three days, and it felt like a lot, so I can’t imagine finding all 800.
In the center of the city, you’ll find Rynek Square (also known as Market Square) which is one of Wroclaw’s most iconic sites. Thhis is also where the Wroclaw Christmas Market takes place. While Rynek Square’s grand architecture reminded me of Grand Place in Brussels, Wroclaw totally different — you won’t find dark, muted tones or elaborate ornamentation dripping with gold accents.
Instead, all the buildings in the main square are painted in bright colors of the rainbow! In fact, this is a trend that extends elsewhere throughout the city. This is one reason I was initially inspired to visit Wroclaw over other cities in Poland. There’s a vibrance about Wroclaw that I didn’t see in photos of Warsaw and Krakow.
Besides Rynek Square, my next favorite part of Wroclaw is called Cathedral Island or Ostrów Tumski. After walking across a pedestrian bridge, you’ll reach Cathedral Island — which isn’t an island anymore. (Not to be confused with the six current islands in the river.) Cathedral Island is the oldest part of the city, dating back to the 10th century. Following the cobblestone Cathedral Road, you’ll come across a picturesque view of Saint John the Baptist church, also known as the Wroclaw Cathedral.
Also on Cathedral Island, you can take part in one of Wroclaw’s most unique traditions — something that only happens in one other city in Europe (Zagreb). Each night around sunset, the Wroclaw Lamplighter descends upon the streets of Cathedral Island to light the 103 gas lanterns with his lighting pole. Since we were there just before Christmas, when the sun was setting super early, we had to be out on the streets around 4 p.m. to catch him. But all the Christmas charm made the lamplighting experience extra magical! This was something I didn’t know about on my first visit, so I’m glad I got to experience it this time.
Now, back to the six other islands in the Oder River, which runs through the center of Wroclaw: Wyspa Słodowa, Wyspa Bielarska, Wyspa Młyńska, Wyspa Piasek, Wyspa Daliowa, and Tamka. While there really isn’t much going on in the winter, apparently summer is a whole different story. For example, public drinking is banned in Poland, though Wyspa Słodowa is an exception — as of 2018, it’s the only place in Wroclaw city center where it is not illegal. So in the spring and summer, you’re certain to find students and other Wroclaw residents taking full advantage.
Wroclaw’s islands are home to bars, restaurants, parks, playgrounds, businesses, art exhibits, bridges, churches, and more. And it doesn’t take too long to walk between them. But in the winter, there was absolutely nothing going on. I think I need a summer visit to Wroclaw.
Just across the river from Wyspa Piasek, you’ll find the Hala Targowa, or Market Hall. This is a multi-level, local market selling produce, spices, meats, seafood, flowers, and Eastern European specialties, among other things. We love checking out local markets and wandering through all the stalls, so we couldn’t miss this one. I dare you to go in without buying something to eat. 😋
And speaking of food… this might seem like it belongs in the food section below, but let me assure you: eating pierogies is a specific activity in Poland. I made it my personal goal to eat them every day we were in Wroclaw. For those who aren’t familiar, pierogies are like dumplings, typically filled with potato or cheese, and cooked by boiling, baking, or frying. They’re considered by some to be the national dish of Poland, so I highly recommend you try as many different kinds as you can! (Keep reading for my top pierogi restaurant recommendation.)
How Expensive Is Wroclaw?
So, I hate to break it to you — but Poland doesn’t use euros, despite having been a member of the EU since 2004. Instead, they use the Polish złoty. For us, the conversion between złoty and U.S. dollars wasn’t too difficult: $1 USD = about 4 zł. Also, pretty much everywhere (except some stalls at the Wroclaw Christmas Market) seemed to accept credit cards, so we didn’t need to take much cash out of the ATM.
Compared to many other cities you might visit in Europe, like London, Paris, or Stockholm, Wroclaw is much less expensive. I first noticed it when we grabbed the bus from the airport to the city center and it cost less than $1 USD. In so many cities, airport buses are extra expensive. For example, in Alicante, Spain — where we live now — it costs the equivalent of $4.70 to take the bus to or from the airport. And Alicante isn’t even a big or expensive city.
Typically, in Wroclaw, we spent about $20 USD for breakfast or lunch for two people, and about $30 for dinner. We were even splurging a bit because it was my birthday weekend! And on my birthday, we had two pints of beer (Matt) and two cocktails (me) at a hotel bar that seemed way too fancy for us, and it was still only about $30.
You’ll want to keep the conversion of złoty to your local currency in mind, but Wroclaw likely won’t break the bank.
Where We Ate
Pierogarnia Ze Smakiem: If you eat pierogies anywhere in Wroclaw, it has to be here. And if you’re trying to go in the evening, you’ll probably want to make a reservation. Because it only has three tables! Matt made a reservation here for my birthday dinner, and they were the best pierogies ever. Not only did they have the classic cheese and potato versions, but so many mouthwatering combinations: duck and cranberry, pumpkin and ricotta, salmon and feta, and so much more. Plus, they even had sweet dessert pierogies which was definitely a first for me. We ordered so many plates and everything was absolutely amazing.
Pierogarnia Ze Smakiem
Świętego Mikołaja 32/33
50-043 Wrocław
Chatka przy Jatkach: This is a great option for other classic Polish food. (It’s funny because we came here for our first meal in Wroclaw and I instantly remembered eating here on my first visit, too!) They had a huge pierogi platter that we ordered this time, and while it was good, it was a little bit too much for two people — and the other place’s pierogies can’t be beat. So I suggest trying something else from the menu. A lot of it looked really good!
Chatka pryz Jatkach
Odrzańska 7
50-113 Wrocław
Paloma Coffee & Roasters: We had brunch here on my birthday, and it was the perfect places to start the day. A lot of other breakfast/brunch spots had lines out the door, but we lucked out with Paloma Coffee and found a seat in the cozy cafe right away. Not only did they have great coffee, but they also had a really tasty brunch menu that included things like shakshuka and specialty toasts.
Paloma Coffee & Roasters
Plac Solny 8/9
50-061 Wrocław
Gorąca Pączkarnia: There’s one more thing you should eat before leaving Wroclaw: pączkis, which are similar to donuts, filled with jelly or cream. In Poland, pączkis are most commonly eaten on Fat Thursday, which is the week before Fat Tuesday. Funny enough, the first time I visited Wroclaw, it was Fat Thursday, and the lines out the doors of the pączkarnias stretched down the block. This time, it was easy enough to walk up to the window and order one as breakfast to-go.
Gorąca Pączkarnia
Oławska 4/1b
50-123 Wrocław
Where We Stayed
Most of the time when we travel, we stay in hotels that we book using a combination of points and money, thanks to our Chase Sapphire Preferred and/or CapitalOne VentureX credit cards.
This time, we stayed at B&B Hotel Wrocław Centrum, which was an absolutely amazing location, only about a 7-minute walk from Rynek Square and the Christmas market. It was super convenient for going back and forth between the city center and the hotel when we needed to rest or warm up.
The only thing I didn’t really like about it was that the pillows were super flat — and when I asked the front desk one night if I could have an extra, they said no. 😂 The next morning I asked again and someone nicer helped me out. So I’ll assume someone was just having a bad night, lol.
How To Get to Wroclaw from the Airport
Since we always prefer to take public transportation when possible, we decided to try to figure out the bus system upon arriving in Wroclaw. Unfortunately, my favorite travel app, Citymapper, does not operate in Wroclaw, so we had to use Google Maps (which is fine but I don’t trust it as much). Matt bought an Airalo e-SIM card per usual, so we didn’t have any problem loading the map and the route we needed to take.
To get to our hotel, we needed to take the 106 bus from the airport to the city center. I actually think this is the most common bus that people take from the airport, just because it takes you all the way downtown, but it depends on where you’re staying. We went outside to find the bus stop, which wasn’t a long walk from the airport exit. (If you’re lost, you can always ask an information worker for help — they all speak really good English!)
Here’s a super important note that I hope can help you, because we did it the wrong way: You can buy your bus ticket with a credit card on board the bus. Meanwhile, we waited in a long line in the freezing cold to use one of the two machines in the bus shelter, which were not very user-friendly and were pretty confusing for the people in front of us, which made it take even longer. Instead, we could have just boarded the bus and tapped the card readers with our phones or a credit card, instead of waiting.
The bus comes about every 15 minutes, which was a really long time to wait when it was that cold, and the bus was so full that we couldn’t get on after finally buying our ticket. But luckily, we were pretty much the first ones on the next bus that came. I say we were lucky because it’s a pretty long bus ride from the airport to Wroclaw city center — it takes about 45 minutes to the first stop in downtown Wroclaw. So being able to sit down with our bags was nice.
Then, we still had a 12-minute walk to our hotel.
Is Wroclaw Worth Visiting?
Wroclaw is such a cute and vibrant city, so I would 100% recommend! Even though we were there in December, for its famous Christmas market, we really didn’t hear too much English — which makes me feel like we found a real hidden gem. The city is small, but it’s cozy and has a lot of character, so we enjoyed it a lot.
Like I said… I’m all ready to plan my next trip, preferably for the summer this time. 😅
Plan Your Wroclaw Trip
Book the Best Wroclaw Hotels: Wroclaw Poland Hotels
Things To Do in Wroclaw Poland: Wroclaw Private Old Town Guided Walking Tour // Wroclaw Small Group Guided eCar Tour // Wroclaw to Rock City in Adrspach Tour
Have you ever visited Wroclaw, or are you planning a trip? What do you want to know? Let me know in the comments!
-Cathy
This site contains affiliate links. I may receive a commission for purchases made through these links at no additional cost to you.
Leave a Reply