Day 1: Old Town & Wawel

Start in Rynek Główny — Europe's largest medieval market square. The Cloth Hall (Sukiennice) has been a trading hall since the 1300s — the ground floor still sells souvenirs (mostly amber and wood carvings). The upstairs Gallery of 19th-Century Polish Art (20 PLN/£4) is excellent and uncrowded.

Visit St. Mary's Basilica (entrance 15 PLN/£3). Every hour, a trumpeter plays the Hejnał Mariacki from the highest tower — a melody that stops abruptly mid-note, commemorating a 13th-century watchman shot through the throat by a Tatar arrow. Listen for it from the square.

Lunch: Przystanek Pierogarnia (Grodzka 39) — a tiny pierogi specialist. A plate of 10 ruskie (potato and cheese, 25 PLN/£5) is heaven. Add a side of fried onions. The queue wraps around the block in summer but moves fast.

Afternoon: Wawel Castle & Cathedral — the spiritual heart of Poland. The State Rooms (30 PLN/£6) and Crown Treasury (25 PLN/£5) are the highlights. The cathedral (free, tower climb 15 PLN) houses the tombs of Polish kings. Book online — timed tickets, and they sell out on busy days.

Walk along the Vistula River embankment at sunset. In summer, locals gather on the grass with beer and music — Kraków's most relaxed social scene.

Evening: Dinner at Starka (Józefa 14, Kazimierz) — a candlelit restaurant in a 15th-century cellar. Duck with cranberry sauce (48 PLN/£10), paired with their house-infused flavoured vodkas (horseradish, cherry, quince). A three-course dinner with drinks is about 120 PLN/£24. Remarkable value.

Day 2: Kazimierz & Food

Morning in Kazimierz — Kraków's Jewish Quarter. This neighbourhood, once home to 65,000 Jewish residents before WWII, is now the city's most vibrant cultural area.

Visit the Old Synagogue (15 PLN) and Remuh Synagogue & Cemetery (15 PLN) — the cemetery dates to 1533, with headstones restored from fragments found after the war. Walk to Plac Nowy — the heart of Kazimierz. The round market building in the centre sells zapiekanki — baguette-length toasted open sandwiches loaded with mushrooms, cheese and garlic sauce (12-18 PLN/£2.50-3.50). The best street food in Kraków.

Lunch: Hamsa (Plac Nowy) — modern Israeli-Palestinian cuisine in the Jewish Quarter. Hummus with lamb (38 PLN), shakshuka (32 PLN). Beautifully decorated.

Afternoon: Cross to Podgórze — the area of the former Jewish ghetto. The Ghetto Heroes' Square has a powerful memorial of 68 oversized bronze chairs. Walk to Schindler's Factory (28 PLN, book online) — now a superb museum about Kraków under Nazi occupation. It's not about the film — it's about the city's experience. Allow 2 hours. One of the best museums in Europe.

Evening: Back in Kazimierz for bar-hopping. Alchemia (Estery 5) — a candle-filled bar that's been Kazimierz's living room for 20 years. Live jazz in the basement most nights (free). Then Kolory (Estery 10) — art exhibitions, DJs, and creative cocktails in a former pharmacy.

Day 3: Wieliczka Salt Mine & Polish Feast

Morning: Wieliczka Salt Mine (94 PLN/£19, book online, 30 mins by bus or train from Kraków). A UNESCO site 135 metres underground — you descend 378 steps into a labyrinth of chambers, chapels and lakes carved entirely from salt over 700 years. The Chapel of St. Kinga — a full cathedral carved from salt, including chandeliers — is genuinely jaw-dropping. The guided tour takes 3 hours. Wear warm layers (14°C underground year-round).

Lunch: Back in Kraków, Milkbar Tomasza (Tomasza 24) — a traditional Polish milk bar (bar mleczny). These communist-era subsidised canteens still serve incredibly cheap home-style Polish food. Żurek (sour rye soup with sausage and egg, 14 PLN/£2.80) and kotlet schabowy (breaded pork cutlet, 18 PLN/£3.60). No frills, incredible value. An absolute Kraków must.

Afternoon: Planty Park — the green ring encircling the Old Town where the city walls once stood. A perfect afternoon walk. Or visit the Czartoryski Museum (reopened after renovation) to see Leonardo da Vinci's Lady with an Ermine — one of only four surviving Leonardo portraits. 30 PLN/£6.

Final dinner: Pod Aniołami (Grodzka 35) — "Under the Angels," in a Gothic cellar. Traditional Polish cuisine elevated: roast duck with apples (68 PLN/£14), wild boar stew (58 PLN/£12). A proper Polish farewell. Book ahead.

Budget Breakdown

  • Flights: Search flights to Kraków — £20-50 return (Ryanair/Wizz Air direct)
  • Accommodation: £20-40/night (Kraków is incredibly cheap — Greg & Tom Hostel dorms from 60 PLN/£12)
  • Food: £10-18/day (milk bars + pierogi + one restaurant dinner)
  • Attractions: ~£35 (Wieliczka + Schindler's + Wawel)
  • Total 3 days: £120-250 per person

Kraków might be the best-value city break in Europe. You can eat like royalty for the price of a London sandwich.