I have been twice, but not been as inspired by this city as any of the other places in Poland I have been to date. I am not sure why, but I did manage to get a lot of sightseeing done. When I arrived in the city of Krakow in Poland, it was time to delve into some Jewish history. Yes, I have spent a hat-trick of weeks backpacking through Israel and Palestine , I even once stayed in a Kibbutz , but here, Jewish history is a huge thing, for sad reasons.
Krakow has always had a large Jewish population and a Jewish neighbourhood. While the situation here has changed down the years, notoriously and notably during German Nazi rule, modern day Krakow is an easy backpacking city for any new explorer. Try not to slip in and out of the city without at least a visit to the Jewish Quarter in the city, which is so stand out and quirky, it often feels like you have moved cities. When you travel to a city as popular as Krakow, you cannot really avoid other tourists, I was there in December and even then it was really busy.
The local airport has flights to Krakow from all over Europe to places like Dublin, Copenhagen, Paris, Madrid and so on. I booked myself into the popular Mosquito Hostel in the city and there are plenty of hotels in Krakow Jewish Quarter too.
Remum Synagogue — a Synagogue in Jewish Krakow. On this recent trip to Poland, as well as touring Auschwitz and Birkenau, I decided primarily to tour the Jewish part of Krakow. Every day there is a free walking tour of the Jewish Quarter and it starts at 2pm.
Aside from that, it makes for a fascinating place to get to grips with the German invasion of Poland and the destruction of humanity that these Nazis caused on innocent people. Here are my top 5 sights in Jewish parts of Krakow, spanning from the Jewish Quarter across the river to where the Jewish Ghetto was. Not just in Jewish Krakow, or even Krakow, but it is a key sight for Polish and German people the world over. It is really insightful. The Old Synagogue has actually now been converted into a museum — well worth a look, even if the outside looks a bit run down.
