Wieliczka Salt Mine Guide
Brief History
The Wieliczka Salt Mine was built back in the 13th century, continuing table salt production right up until 2007, making it one of the world’s oldest operating salt mines. Commercial mining was discontinued back in 1996 though, due to poor profits with low salt prices and the impact of the mine flooding.
It also has a significant wartime past, with parts of the mine used during WWII by German occupants for war planning and related activities. During this time in the 1940s, several thousand Jewish prisoners were transported to Wieliczka from forced labour camps to work in the Krakow salt mines. It was during this time that the entire Jewish population of the Wieliczka community, which were half the cities overall population (around 4000 people) were exterminated. So incredibly sad!
Learn more about the Wieliczka Salt Mine WW2 history and the salt mines entire timeline.
Wieliczka Salt Mine is one of Poland’s National Historic Monuments, and was placed on the UNESCO World Heritage Site list back in 1978. Due to its lengthy history, dating back through the ages, the Krakow salt mine is one of Poland’s most popular tourist attractions. And for good reason!
Inside the Salt Mine
Wieliczka Salt Mines Krakow is massive. It has a depth of 337 metres and more than 287 kilometres long. It is difficult to even comprehend the size until you visit, and even then a salt mine tour only takes in a small fraction of the mine’s area.
During the Wieliczka tour, you only see 2% of the mines total passages. A crazy thought as it is quite a lengthy tour, passing so many different passage entrances along the way. It also makes you wonder how easy it would be to get lost, so if you are visiting with children, make sure they do not wander off.
Within the mine are many attractions carved from rock salt. This includes statues and sculptures, depicting various scenes and icons, but even more impressive is the fact that it also contains four chapels carved from the rock salt by miners.
The sculptures within the Polish salt mine have been created both by historic and contemporary artists. Although nothing is quite as impressive as the Chapel of St Kinga, which needs to be seen to be truly appreciated.
By far the stand out from the salt mine Krakow was the mammoth Chapel of St Kinga. Words cannot describe how impressed and overwhelmed you feel first setting your eyes on this enormous area. There is so much detail, from the salt sculpted chandeliers to the traditional chapel style decor, all underground, within the heart of the Poland salt mines.
The Chapel is a popular venue for concerts, and they demonstrate the acoustics during the tour by playing music and setting off a bit of a light show. Just WOW! The large cavern creates a unique acoustic experience and it would be incredible to attend a special event within the chapel area.
We just thought we would mention that the salt mine is suitable for kids and strollers!
How to get there
Wieliczka Salt Mine is located in Wieliczka, in southern Poland, within the greater Krakow metropolitan area. If you are wondering how to get to salt mines Krakow easily, there are quite a few options available, either directly from Krakow to Wieliczka or options from elsewhere in Poland.
There are train and bus services travelling between Krakow and Wieliczka at regular intervals throughout the day. Alternatively you can take a cab, minivan or private transport, or consider a guided bus tour such as the one we did, incorporating other Krakow attractions.
Tours are conducted on a daily basis, with several different tour types to choose from. We did the Tourist Route, which is the most popular, however there is also the Miners’ Route and the Pilgrims Route, each targeting different interests and taking you through some different areas of the mine.
Our Wieliczka tour took approximately 3 hours and requires a reasonable level of fitness, however there is a wheelchair alternative that needs to be booked in advance.
It is also quite cold within the saltmines, as you can expect for a place that doesn’t get sunlight.
Book Your Tour
The best way to visit the Salt Mine is to book a guided tour. This includes pick-up and drop-off from your hotel, plus you avoid all the crowds waiting to buy a ticket.
For up to date tour prices, check the Salt mine website. To give you a rough guide, here are the prices for 2020. Children under 4 are free.
Wieliczka Salt Mine tourist route ticket price
Adult 93 PLN / £17 / $23
Child (4+) 73 PLN / £13 / $17
Family (2 + 2) 259 PLN / £48 / $66
Wieliczka Salt Mine miners’ route ticket price
Adult 93 PLN / £17 / $23
Child (4+) 73 PLN / £13 / $17
Family (2 + 2) 259 PLN / £48 / $66
Book our recommended tour below:
Additional Information
There are toilets in the mine on the tourist route, but you will have to wait until the ‘rest point’ which is a little over halfway so make sure to go before you start the tour. There is a cafe at this point too and a small gift shop and free wifi (there’s no phone signal in the mine).
At the end of the tour (still down in the mines) there is a large cafeteria and toilets. There are no facilities on the miners’ route.
We hope you enjoyed this guide to Wieliczka Salt Mine. Feel free to leave comments below or to ask us any questions.
Be sure to check out our other exciting guides related to Poland:
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