Poland Travel Photos

Old Krakow

Krakow's well-preserved "Stare Miasto," or "Old Town" district dates back to the early 13th century, when the medieval city was surrounded by 2 miles of defensive walls, ramparts, and watchtowers.

Old Krakow

Rynek Glowny Market Square

Rynek Glowny is the main hub of Old Krakow's Stare Miasto district, and a center of activity, and picturesque focal point of daily life in this southern Polish city.

Rynek Glowny Market Square

St Mary's Basilica

Located on Old Krakow's Main Market Square, Bazylika Mariacka, also known as St. Mary's Basilica, began construction in 1222, under the leadership of the Bishop of Cracow, Iwo Odrowaz. St. Mary's was build prior to the development of the town of Cracow, which officially began in 1257, as the town sprang up around the church.

St Mary's Basilica

Wawel Castle

Krakow's Wawel Castle (Zamek Wawelski) is situated atop the Wawel Hill promontory, overlooking the surrounding Stare Miasto district. Remodeled and rebuilt several times, the original Castle dates back to the 10th century.

Wawel Castle

Chocholow

The picturesque village of Chocholow is a window into Poland's rural past, and the historic town's preserved wooden dwellings are one of the most complete surviving representations of traditional gorale village architecture.

Chocholow

Czestochowa

For several centuries, the Our Lady of Czestochowa monastery has served as a pilgrimage destination for thousands of devout Catholics, with its most important touchstone being the Black Madonna; a portrait of the Virgin Mary holding the the Christ Child.

Czestochowa

Zakopane

The picturesque village of Zakopane is nestled into a bucolic valley at the base of the Tatra mountains, in the Podhale region of south-western Poland. Zakopane is a center for traditional folk arts and crafts.

Zakopane

Wieliczka Salt Mine

Salt is inextricably linked to the Polish culture, and the Wieliczka Salt Mine has been the epicenter of Polish salt production since the 13th century. Wieliczka reaches a depth of 327 meters, and is over 300 km long, creating a vast underground network of chambers, tunnels, shafts, and underground lakes.

Wieliczka Salt Mine

Southern Polish Countryside

The countryside of southern Poland is a land of rolling hills covered by intense green foliage, that is dotted with bucolic wooden villages, stone church steeples, and punctuated with the jagged peaks of the Tatra Mountains. Southern Poland's Podhale country of is a picturesque wonderland that harkens back to a simpler time.

Southern Poland's Countryside

Traditional Polish Cuisine

Both traditional, and contemporary Polish cuisine are far more interesting and creative than one would imagine, although the staple of the Polish diet includes large amounts of meat, and the ubiquitous lard-based spread known as Smalec.

Traditional Polish Cuisine

Traditional Polish Vodka

No Polish meal would be complete without a generous helping of traditional Polish vodka, which is traditionally flavored with wild grasses, flowers, or various root vegetables that are similar to horseradish. The traditional Polish toast is "nostrovia," or "good health."

Traditional Polish Vodka