Touring the Old Town on Wheels.
Krakow’s landmarks are situated mostly within easy
walking
distance from one another and the bulk of
the city’s
historical area
has been turned into a pedestrian precinct (click to see
map). But you can roam the Old Town district
driven in a horse cab, an electric cart or a cycle rickshaw. One
may also traverse it in an old-fashioned horse-drawn omnibus
which runs down the Royal
Road, with stops marked with yellow
posts (see the picture). And some opt for freedom a rented
bicycle allows.
Museums
on Wheels.
An
old streetcar, turned into a mobile cafe,
cruises Krakow's historic city center. From
time to time other vintage trams run round the Old Town
historical district.
Also, there are organized rail journeys
in period trains pulled by a steam engine between Krakow and
the Railroad Museum Park in Chabowka, some sixty km
south.
Sailing
through Krakow.
Wisla
(Vistula) river is Krakow’s sole waterway. Spring through
autumn pleasure boats navigate it upstream through
picturesque landscape to Bielany and
Tyniec. Other affordable
option is a river bus ('tramwaj wodny") that takes just several
passengers.
Horse
Cabs.
Day
and evening, open carriages await passengers at Krakow’s
central Rynek Glowny grand
square, practically all the year
round. They queue alongside the square’s northern edge. The
fare is around an equivalent of euro 30-40 per hour (half the
amount for a half hour) and you may bargain. Customer
determines the route.
Electric
carts.
Electric
carts are available early spring through late autumn. They are
parked on the corner of Plac Mariacki and Florianska street by
the basilica of the Virgin
Mary (Kosciol Mariacki) at Krakow’s central Rynek Glowny
grand square. Taped guided tours are most popular with
customers but you may also hire a cart and ask the driver to
follow your own route. One may circle the Rynek Glowny square
for an equivalent of roughly 1.25 euro. A half-hour ride costs an
equivalent of some euro 7.5, while an hour’s one is 12.5
euro or so.
Krakow's
Horse-drawn Omnibus.
The
high-deck, burgundy-painted 'omnibus', i.e. a charabanc, departs from a stop by
Krakow’s Barbican
(Barbakan) behind the Florianska Gate
(Brama Florianska) at the end of Florianska Street, the Old Town’s
busiest pedestrian thoroughfare. It runs down the Royal Road
to the foot of the Wawel Royal Castle and back. Morning tours
involve visits to three sites en route, which takes over three
hours. Single ticket costs an equivalent of 20 euro to 30 euro
or so.
Pleasure
Boat.
May
through September small double-deck pleasure boats leave
from landings on the Wisla river bank near the Wawel Royal
Castle. Between 9:30 a.m. and
5:30 p.m. on weekdays, and from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. on
weekends, the vessels take passengers for an hour-long
excursion upstream by the St. Norbert’s Convent towards the
Tyniec Abbey and the Bielany Monastery atop hills on opposite
banks of the Wisla river. And occasionally a jazz band may
entertain those onboard with New Orleans’ standards.
Krakow
Afoot
Travel
to Krakow
Over four million visitors show up
in Krakow every year. Many arrive by air, but
most take advantage of the fact that Krakow lies
at a major European road and rail junction.
Driving
Car in Krakow
Parking zones and parking lots in
the city center.
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