One traveled Frenchman
observed in the 18th century that Krakow's Wieliczka salt mine
was no less magnificent than the
Egyptian pyramids. Millions of visitors, the crowned heads and
such celebrities as Goethe and Sarah Bemhardt among them, have
appeared to share his enthusiasm when exploring the
subterranean world of labyrinthine passages, giant caverns,
underground lakes and chapels with sculptures in the
crystalline salt and rich ornamentation carved in the salt
rock. They have also marveled at the ingenuity of the ancient
mining equipment in the Wieliczka salt mine. And the unique acoustics of the place have
made hearing music here an exceptional experience.
The
Wieliczka Salt Mine, nowadays practically on the southeast outskirts of
Krakow, has been worked for 900 years. It used to be one of
the world's biggest and most profitable industrial
establishments when common salt was commercially a medieval
equivalent of today's oil. Always a magnet, since the mid-18th
century Krakow's Wieliczka salt mine has become increasingly a tourist
attraction in the first place. Today visitors walk underground
for about 2,000 m in the oldest part of the salt mine and see
its subterranean museum, which takes three hours or so.
Nine
centuries of mining in Wieliczka produced a total of some 200
kilometers of passages as well as 2,040 caverns of varied
size. The tourist route starts 64 m deep, includes twenty
chambers, and ends 135 m below
the earth surface, where the world's biggest museum of mining
is located with the unique centuries-old equipment among its
exhibits.
Occasionally
concerts and other events take place in the Wieliczka mine’s biggest
chambers.
There is a sanatorium
for those suffering from asthma and allergy situated 135 meters
deep underground in the Wieliczka Salt Mine.
UNESCO
has entered the Wieliczka Salt Mine in its World Heritage
Register.
 |
Chapel of Saint Kinga,
the
largest among underground chapels
in the Wieliczka Salt mine, is actually a
sizable
subterranean church carved in rock salt and
embellished with salty sculptures and
bas-reliefs. |
Wieliczka Salt Mine is accessible all year round.
Except
it's closed on January 1, Easter Sunday, November 1, and Christmastide (i.e. December
24-25). April
through October visitors may see the Wieliczka Salt Mine
between 7:30 a.m. and 7:30 p.m., and November through March
from 8 a.m. till 5 p.m. All visitors need to join a guided
tour. Groups should book the tour in advance by phone at (+48)
122787302 or fax at (+48) 122787333 or email at turystyka@kopalnia.pl
English
tours for individual visitors take place every thirty
minutes between 8:30 a.m. and 6 p.m. In June and in September
they start at 9 a.m., 10 a.m., 11:30 a.m., half past noon,
1:45 p.m., 3 p.m., 4 p.m., and 5 p.m. In October through May
the English tours are available at 10 a.m., 11 a.m., 11:30
a.m., half past noon, 1:45 p.m., 3 p.m., and 5 p.m.
German
tours for individual visitors start
in July through September at 10:45 a.m.,
2:15 p.m., and 4 p.m. In October through June the German tours
take place at 10:45 a.m. and 4 p.m.
Nightly
tours take roughly 1h30, and they
are available via advance booking by phone at (+48) 122787302
Note:
Temperature in the Wieliczka Salt Mine stays uniform 15
degrees Celsius, i.e. 59 Fahrenheit, round the year.
Travel
Salt
Mine in Wieliczka is situated some ten kilometers from the
center of Krakow. One may get there easily by car or taxi.
Also, you can take a commuter train from the city's central
Krakow Glowny rail station, a bus, or one of numerous minibuses that
cruise Krakow's streets.
Note:
Bus 304 from Krakow to Wieliczka leaves
from Dworzec Glowny Zachod stop by Galeria Krakowska shopping
mall at Pawia street. Visitors to the salt mine
should get off at Wieliczka Kopalnia stop. Yellow buses
operated by Mobilis company run every 20 minutes or so. The
fare is an equivalent of under one euro.
Tickets
to the Wieliczka Salt Mine are available at the entrance in
the Szyb Danilowicza pithead building at 10 Danilowicza street.
Regular
ticket for Polish tour costs 48 zlotys.
Reduced-rate ticket for Polish tour (e.g. schoolchildren) costs
33 zlotys.
Family ticket for Polish tour (2 adults plus 2 minors) costs
129 zlotys.
Regular ticket for a guided tour in a foreign language costs
64 zloties.
Reduced-rate ticket for a guided tour in a foreign language
costs 49 zlotys.
Family ticket for English or German tour (2 adults plus 2 minors) costs
177 zloties.
Tours of the Wieliczka Salt Mine for
the disabled.
The handicapped in wheelchairs can tour the most popular parts
of the Wieliczka Salt Mine, in that number two of its
subterranean lakes, underground churches of St. Kunegunde’s
and of the Cross, the Dwarfs’ Cave, etc. It's advisable to
arrange
the visit in advance through a phone call put at (+48)
122787302 or fax at (+48) 122787333.
Other
UNESCO World Heritage sites in Krakow and the Malopolska Province
Krakow's
Old Town historic district
Auschwitz
concentration camp
The
Calvary sanctuary of Kalwaria Zebrzydowska
Malopolska's
wooden churches
