Warsaw is Poland's capital... an amazingly friendly blend of Soviet and European with easily the best food anywhere on the continent (Italy can keep its pasta and pesto etc, it doesn't compare to a good portion of periogi). Getting around is easy as well. If you're a student or have an ISIC card the metro, trams and buses cost about 8p (UK)!
Kraków … Krakow was not the best place we visited on our three-week trip. We found the people unfriendly for the most part, and only found one nice looking area of the city.
Kraków … It's a great place -- very picturesque, good opportunities for day trips to other nearby places and cheap restaurants, accommodation, bars and clubs. Get the Krakow "in your pocket" guide (available at Empik department store on main square). It's updated every two months and is crammed with details on the best bars, clubs, restaurants, day trips, and sightseeing with detailed maps.
Kraków … Krakow is nice but far too touristy, ignore the hoards of tourists and head for Warsaw.
Kraków … Krakow is my favourite place to go in the summer! If you have never been to Krakow in the summer you should go this year! The atmosphere is great in the main square in the evenings and the clubs are the best!!
Kraków … Visit Krakow in December and you will miss the tourists and get to see the real city. It is beautiful, most days were clear, and you can walk or take the tram everywhere if you are close to Rynek Glowny. Go see the Zoo (outside of town), hike -- there are maps of hiking trails available at any tourist center, go to Wawel Castle and the Krakow National Museum (they have a Rembrandt and a da Vinci as well as tons of other amazing art), and get to know the tiny little shops. If you try to learn any Polish at all -- prosze, dzienkuje, dobranoc, etc. -- people will help you and won't treat you any differently than the locals (for the most part =) ). I cannot recommend Krakow and Poland itself more highly.
Kraków … I did visit Krakow in December and I was freezing. However, even so it was a very nice experience. Covered by snow, Krakow looks very beautiful and classy. Wawel Castle was free when I visited there (maybe because it was near Christmas?). The best experience in December is the Christmas Market at Rynek Glowny (Main Market Square). The stands (that are in the shape of wine barrels) sell quite nice mulled wine.
Kraków … Krakow is pleasant and I found the people to be friendly. The market square (Rynek) and the Castle (Wawel) are beautiful places to see. There is an English pub called The John Bull near the Rynek and many other places for travellers, but check the clientele before you commit to buying a drink or staying, some places are where locals go to enjoy themselves and you may get a frosty reception.
Kraków … Krakow is a wonderful and magical city, especially at night in the summer. Food is cheap, fresh, and good quality, and people are friendly (except for bank staff). For a solid evening meal, check out Me Kong restaurant just off the north side of the main square.
An interesting city, more than in any other place I've been to are eastern and western European influences exactly in balance here. Particularly peculiar are the one truly tall skyscraper of the city (a greyish brown monster that was donated to the country by Soviet dictator Stalin out of gratitude for Poland's resistance against his Austro-German colleague Hitler), and the "Old City" of Warsaw, which actually isn't old at all. It was built after WW II, when the centre of the city had been destroyed almost entirely, and it was decided that constructing an exact copy of the city centre as it was before the war, rather than getting creative and designing something new, was the most honourable thing to do. The result is an "Old City" with a highly surreal atmosphere. It's fake, but then again, it's not. The reconstruction was VERY well done, but when you look carefully, you miss the wear & tear, the colouring of moss and other tiny growths that you will invariably find on buildings that…
Kraków … Krakow itself deserves almost two full days to be enjoyed at its best. The main market square is wonderful, especially magic in the evening. During the day, there's a great market where you can find local cheap handicrafts. In the centre of the square there is also a covered gallery with a large choice of amber jewelry. You should use Krakow as a base to visit Oswiecim (Auschwitz) in one hour and a half of train journey -- one of the top spots of our European trip.
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