Wieliczka Travel Guide

If you like to get away from the traditional urban rush, polution and noises, but you like sightseeing and a bit extraordinary places too, the town of Wieliczka is a place that you just have to see. The town itself is rather small but because of that it has this special charm, so characteristic for the small towns. However, it is by no means boring. Wieliczka is well known for an extraordinary tourist attraction which is a salt mine which is, if I'm not mistaken, the biggest salt mine in the whole Europe (the mine is divided into two parts one for tourist and one industrial, where the salt is being drilled). The salt mine includes hiking underground, climbing on the stairs and even swimming in a boat around underground lakes. The salt mine in Wieliczka also has a party hall (!) underground and a souvenir shops, both above the ground and inside the mine.

Visit the Salt Mines (World culture heritage of UNESCO) located dead right in the town center. The town was built around the mines. According to a legend the salt mines were found by Queen Kinga of Poland but archeology found evidence of salt mining dating back to 3500 b.c. Especially impressing is the chapel of Queen Kinga which is built entirely of stone salt. There are guided tours in Polish (evidently), English, German, French and Russian. Homepage (multilangual).

A COOL place, in the very sense of the word as well ! You have to dig deep to see what this place has to offer, and I mean it!
A former salt mine, now part museum, part recreational facility, has wonderful sculptures and even a whole church carved out of rock salt, deep down in the heart of the earth. An otherwordly trip, but well worth it! And you don't have to lick the walls and statues all the time to believe, it is all SALT!!! :-)