The 40 best things to do in Wroclaw!

Let us start with one of the most obvious things to do in Wroclaw! After that, we work our way further down through some main sights and most important, we will also introduce you to some things to see in Wroclaw which are actually not too well known!

You can‘t miss our beautiful and historic Old Town of Wroclaw, it is the heart of the city centre and surrounded by a ring road and the city moat (we will get to that later!). We used to have city walls around the old town, but Napoleon took most of them away when he came for a visit 🙂

We also have plenty of colourful old tenement houses, gothic and baroque style buildings and churches. You might be surprised to not find too many large retail chains – much of the city centre is gastronomy. We love to spend time in the city outdoors and enjoying the life, for shopping we have more than enough of shopping malls 😉

The Market Square in Wroclaw is actually one of the largest in Europe! According to most sources with its dimensions of 205 x 175 meters, only the squares in Krakow and Olecko are larger.

Obviously it is impossible to visit Wroclaw without stopping by at the Market Square as one of the main things to see in Wroclaw!

Because of its size and many things to tell about it, we have created an overview with 30 interesting things to know about the Market Square in Wroclaw here.

Just next to the main Market Square you run into a smaller, but definitely not less charming little square – the Salt Market Square in Wroclaw!

There is one thing in particular, that is very unique for this place. Every time, you will visit it, you will notice that the flower stalls are open and waiting for you to buy beautiful flowers. Indeed, you can try it on holidays or at 5am in the morning, they will be waiting for you.

In the polish culture, flowers are important, and for the citizens of Wroclaw, this is their 24/7 flower source for all occasions.

And as we mentioned before, around the Market Square it is sometimes tricky to not run into a very touristic restaurant. Here at the Salt Market Square you find one of our favourite restaurants for a fine dining experience in Wroclaw: Młoda Polska.

One of the most popular things to see in Wroclaw for kids, but likewise for adults, are the dwarfs in Wroclaw. They are the symbol of Wroclaw and there is a growing population of them, especially in the old town.

The history of the dwarfs started in the 80’s. The Polish anti-communist underground movement (“Orange Alternative”) decided to fight with the government by painting graffiti of little dwarfs on city walls.

However, the first monument of a dwarf was only placed in 2003 and now after over 20 years we have hundreds of them – most recent maps show as many as 800 (!).

Each dwarf has its own character, outfit and profession. For example, you can find couch potato dwarf, musician dwarf and even a prisoner, just to name a few. 

Dwarf hunting is certainly one of the favourite things to do in Wroclaw for tourists and locals – you will see it for yourself!

Actually we should have started with Cathedral Island as the first thing to see in Wroclaw! Simply because it is the oldest part of the city and Wroclaw has expanded from here continuously over the past 1000 years.

Funny enough – if you look at the map, you might realise that the Cathedral Island actually is no longer an island. That is true, but doesn‘t stop us from calling it Cathedral Island – or in Polish: Ostrów Tumski.

Wroclaw Cathedral of St. John the Baptist

Most of it belongs to the church today and is closed for regular car traffic – you will find a lot of beautiful old churches with the main highlight being obviously the Cathedral of Wroclaw (Cathedral of St. John the Baptist) with its 98 meters of height.

Yes, you can get up the Cathedral and there is even an elevator to reach this beautiful viewpoint. We have more details about it when you scroll further down in the section where we compare all different viewpoints in Wroclaw for you.

The cobble stones and the illumination at night are just beautiful – it makes it a great place to stay as well if you like quiet and beautiful areas.

An affordable luxury stay at the Cathedral Island

In the recent years, the five-star luxury hotel „The Bridge“ became the number one choice for visitors staying in this district of Wroclaw. No surprise as despite the five stars ranking you can get rooms for very affordable rates, often less than 100 Euros per night. It is part of our hotel recommendations for Wroclaw.

The Cathedral Bridge

When you walk towards Cathedral Island, you will be naturally crossing the Cathedral Bridge (Most Tumski) – a beautiful pedestrian bridge closed for traffic.

It marked the beginning of the jurisdiction from the church authorities. Back in the times, some city criminals made use of that by escaping from the city towards the Cathedral Island. Once they made it to the bridge, the regular city authorities could not prosecute them anymore and they were only responsible to god…

In many outdated articles around the web you will see plenty of love locks, please be aware that these have been removed already in 2019. Now a sign is warning you to not put up any new ones.

What happened to the love locks?

Well, as we introduced you to the dwarfs already before, you can see in this picture that obviously we also have a „love lock dwarf“ doing his job.

Judging his actions here, it seems he broke all of the locks. We hope that the relationships are still alive today despite the love lock removal! And honestly, we personally don‘t understand why people see a lock as symbol of love anyway 😉

You might have noticed the gas lanterns around Cathedral Island already, but maybe you have not seen our local superhero with his cape yet.

We indeed have a lamplighter in Wroclaw who every evening is lighting all 102 gas lanterns on Cathedral Island in Wroclaw manually with his butane pole.

The only other place in the European Union where this happens is Zagreb, and we are proud enough to say that this is a very unique and special tradition to observe in Wroclaw!

The spectacle is magical and simple at the same time, we definitely suggest you to watch it for yourselves.

Of course, especially among kids, our lamplighter is very popular and the whole experience is definitely one of the best things to do Wroclaw!

When you want to explore Wroclaw with real local vibes, we can highly recommend you to have a beer at Słodowa Island (Wyspa Słodowa).

When the weather is getting a bit more sunny (typically from late April), plenty of people are coming out to enjoy the sun, see their friends, drink and have a good time. Especially the first days of May, with public holidays on the 1st and 3rd May (Majówka), are marking the beginning of the outdoor season.

Another reason for it to become so busy: As you probably know, alcohol in public is prohibited in Poland. Słodowa Island is the only place in Wroclaw where drinking is tolerated and you won‘t get in any troubles.

Słodowa Island is quite popular, especially for the younger generation, so be prepared for crowds. We love to see the sunset from there!

It is hard to believe that in a relatively small area you can find four different religions living peacefully together. This is where the name “Four Temple District” comes from, and often it is also described as “District of mutual respect” or “Four Denomination District”.

You will find these four religious sites providing the name of the district:

• The Orthodox Cathedral of the Nativity of the Most Holy Mother of God
• The Roman Catholic Church of St. Anthony of Padua 
• The Augsburg Evangelical Church of Divine Providence
• The White Stork Synagogue

If you want to see these, and learn more about them, we have a full dedicated blog post about the Four Temple District in Wroclaw.

The Crystal Planet sculpture is located at the entrance it and a popular meeting point. We believe that it is a beautiful and meaningful symbol of unity in a multicultural world!

In case you did not know: Wroclaw became European Capital of Culture in 2016 and still hosts countless cultural events all the time.

In the Four Temple District, for cinema lovers the New Horizons Cinema (Kino Nowe Horyzonty) is a must visit thing to see in Wroclaw! This cinema organises many festivals such as the American Film Festival or German movie week. Most of the movies are screened in original languages or with English subtitles.

The New Horizons Cinema is located at Kazimierza Wielkiego 19a/21, here you will find their homepage with latest program and events.

However, the district is not as saint as you might think… You can actually have a lot of fun there, as this is also one of the main areas where locals head out into the nightlife of Wroclaw!

Many of our recommendations for food and drinks are actually in this area.

Some of our all-time-favourites here are Bułka z Masłem (Breakfast, but also dinner and cocktails with a beautiful beer garden), Solleim (Korean Fried Chicken), Mleczarnia (Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, one of the most cozy pubs ever), Cocofli (Coffee, Winebar and Bookshop), Alebrowar (Craftbeer), OTO Coffee Bar (Amazing coffee and cakes!).

• Find our full culinary recommendations for food, drinks, nightlife and coffee here

If you would like to find out more about the Four Temple District, here is our dedicated blog post with all details you need to know about the Four Denomination District in Wroclaw.

One of the more alternative things to do in Wroclaw is visiting the Neon Side Gallery. In the backyard at Ruska 46c you can find an unique collection of old neon signs.

Many years ago they were everywhere in the city. The Neon Side Gallery was recently renovated.

We love to see that something from the past century resonates so well with the younger generation – it has become a very popular picture spot.

Read more about it in our post about the Alternative and Hipster Scene in Wroclaw.

The main building of the Wroclaw University at pl. Uniwersytecki 1 is one of the things to do in Wroclaw which nobody should miss!

It is one of the most beautiful examples of baroque style in Poland and even has one of the longest baroque facades in the world. It is decorated by multiple sculptures and amazingly illuminated at night.

Inside you find a museum, after getting a ticket you will be able to access the Mathematical Tower for a nice panoramic view. We have details on that further down when we compare all viewing points for you!

When you get a ticket for the museum, apart from the access to the roof top viewing point (Mathematical Tower), you will be able to enter two of the most beautiful baroque halls too.

In this picture you see the Oratorium Marianum where we really love the paintings under the ceiling. Be sure to check it out, it is our little sistine chapel of Wroclaw 😉

But visitors come mostly for the Aula Leopoldina which recently got renovated and is open again now.

If you like museums in general, here are the best museums in Wroclaw which we recommend!

For latest updates on entrance fees, here is the official page of the Museum of the University in Wroclaw.

The Door of the University

But even without entering the University and getting a ticket, you will be able to make amazing pictures in one of the most popular spots in Wroclaw – the door of the University!

This is the place where students are taking proud pictures with their final thesis after their graduation! But not only that, most tourists are stopping by for a portrait photo with this beautiful background.

In case you want to find some really nice picture spots, we also have prepared a blog post with 60 amazing Instagram spots in Wroclaw here.

Visiting the Market Hall in Wroclaw (Hala Targowa) is again one of the best things to do in Wroclaw that you simply cannot miss at all.

Once you enter it, you will get surrounded immediately by a lot of colourful fresh vegetables and fruits. Of course, a lot of other grocery products like meat, teas, regional specialities are traded here.

But it is a one-stop-shop and you can also get flowers, souvenirs, get t-shirts printed, a key copied, find a pet shop, a craft beer pub and even two coffee places. The owner from one of them, Cafe Targowa, got even the World Aeropress Champion Award in 2016. Read more about them here in our Wroclaw café recommendations.

If you like tea, you can’t miss the Herbaciarnia Targowa – a beautiful old-style tea house with hundreds of different teas and unique vibes.

There are many great museums in Wroclaw with amazing collections but if can see only one museum, take this one. Why? It has only one painting!

You might notice that the building has a nicely rounded shape, and there is a good reason for that. This painting is filling up all that wall space.

Inside you will be able to admire this cycloramic painting which is showing the Battle of Racławice. It makes you feel that you are truly in the middle of the real battlefield.  

In this little street in the historical old town of Wroclaw you can find a lot of small artists ateliers to buy some souvenirs today.

This medieval street used to be occupied by butchers that were processing their meat here. There is an interesting memory of these old times, which shows a different perspective:

The “Monument to the slaughtered animals” has quite a twist as the artist decided to dedicate his work to the animals. The small commemoration sign reads “In honour of the slaughtered animals” and it is signed by “the consumers”.

That is quite thought-provoking, isn’t it?

But this is not the only bizarre thing you can find in Wroclaw, we also have the potato vending machine, the titanic building and much more… Here we wrote about the most bizarre things to find in Wroclaw.

Our fairytale Christmas Market in Wroclaw is certainly one of the top reasons why people from all over Europe are visiting Wroclaw in Winter.

That does not come as a surprise – the Christmas Market in Wroclaw is considered to be one of the most beautiful Christmas Markets in Europe as many rankings have proven. 

The whole Market Square and surrounding areas are turned into a winter wonderland every year starting mid-November till end of December.

More details about the Christmas Market are available in our dedicated post here.

A Christmas Market in Summer?

Yeah, we really do like the Christmas Market as much, that we have it twice per year 😉

Every spring from mid-May to end of June the same stalls are places around the Market Square for the St. John’s Market – sometimes also called midsummer market. That is pretty similar, except for the mulled wine and Christmas vibes missing.

Same goes here, we have much more details available in our Wroclaw Christmas Market post here.

Apart from the historic old town in Wroclaw and the vibrant four temple district, there is another part of Wroclaw, which in our humble opinion, deserves a lot of attention.

Nadodrze (literally translated as above the Oder River) used to be a quite shady area, with plenty of pre-war tenement houses in poor condition and not much to do.

This has changed significantly over the past years! No matter if you like street art, small individual art galleries and stores, now Nadodrze is going through probably the same development that Berlin-Kreuzberg already went through.

Proudly we name it the “alternative district of Wroclaw” and yet it is far away from being the typical place where hipsters turn something old into a new and fancy place.

German Traces in Wroclaw

Well, before Wroclaw became a Polish city again after World War II, it used to be the German city of Breslau (read more about the history of Wroclaw here).

And to make a very long story short here in this overview: All the German signs and heritage was to be removed and destroyed with the city changing the rulers. And of course, on the buildings you simply paint over the advertisements from former German shops and institutions.

However, over time, the paint started to crumble and the old signs are become visible again, after so many decades the German past is kind of catching up and saying “hi”. Want to see it in real? We have a free self-guided walking tour prepared for it 🙂

• Find out more about the German traces in Nadodrze with our self-guided walking tour here

Of course, in any list of best things to see in Wroclaw, the world-famous Wroclaw Zoo cannot be missing! 

It is the largest zoo in Poland, but also the 4th largest in Europe when it comes to the numbers of different species that you will be able to meet here.

When we went the last time with friends and kids, one full day gives you a good impression and overview, but you still have plenty of reasons to get back again.

One of the highlights is the „Afrykarium“, which takes you into the African world of nature, animals and wildlife. Most popular is the tunnel where you literally walk through the aquarium.

• If you want to know more about the Wroclaw Zoo, here we have more details prepared for your visit, including the secret entrance, but also things you better avoid

How could we not mention the Centennial Hall in Wroclaw as one of the best things to see in Wroclaw? Well, we are very proud of our UNESCO World Heritage Site in Wroclaw!

Actually it was supposed to collapse just a few minutes after the completion, but no worries, even after more than 100 years it is still standing.

Find out more about the museum inside, the latest events and concerts taking place, and of course more details about the whole story and construction!

Read all information about the Centennial Hall (Hala Stulecia) in Wroclaw here.

We are staying in the same area for the next couple of recommendations and continue with the Multimedia Fountain.

Located just behind the Centennial Hall, this is an amazing combination of water, light and sound – but the best part is that of course all the shows are free! Around 800 light sources, 300 water jets and even three fire jets, it is the largest fountain of its kind in Poland.

You might arrive too early for the Multimedia Fountain, but that is no problem. Strolling around Pergola is the perfect thing to do while waiting for the shows to start.

Pergola is a shady colonnade with a planted roof that has a total of 750 columns along its 640 meters. It has the shape of a semicircle and leads around the fountain.

Of course, this is a popular scene for beautiful portrait photo shoots, and in particular on the weekends you will meet a lot of wedding couples that are creating nice memories for eternity here.

Almost needless to say, that especially in autumn when the leaves are turning into colourful red-brown-yellow, it is one of the best seasons!

We are still in the same area behind the Centennial Hall, where also the Japanese Garden is located. Initially it goes back to the early 20th century when it was founded for the Centennial Exhibition around 1909-1912.

However, the real reconstruction happened only in 1995, then in 1997 the flood came, and all had to be restarted again. Today, it is a great place to take some rest, be mindful (avoid times when school classes are coming though) and enjoy beautiful surroundings.

• Read more about the current entry fees and more on their official homepage here

Did you see our hotel recommendations?

If you plan to stay in Wroclaw soon, we wrote an extensive post with personal hotel recommendations in Wroclaw – for city breaks, wellness trips, romantic hotels, budget options and more.

• Check our recommendations for Hotels in Wroclaw here
• Or alternatively our recommendations for holiday apartments

We have tried it already, and what we can say for sure is that we have more than hundred bridges in Wroclaw. The precise amount really depends on how you define “Wroclaw” and its boundaries – so we will refrain here from telling you one single number.

What we can tell you though: Many of our bridges are very beautiful and worth a visit – here are just two examples from our favourites for you.

The Grunwaldzki Bridge

It is the longest suspension bridge in Poland, you won’t find any pillars underneath this massive bridge spanning over the Oder River.

Back in the German times of Wroclaw, when it got completed (1910), it was a true novelty of engineering. A special construction absorbs fluctuations with steel strips running over some rollers.

The Pomorski Bridge

After around three years of intense renovation works, we finally have our shortcut between the Nadodrze District and the historic old town back!

Some people phrased it as “Charles Bridge” of Wroclaw, and indeed the result is very nicely to look at and walk on.

Pay attention to the little details like the small corner houses, the dragon rain pipes on them, and the gargoyles. It is a great selfie spot to have the University background as well.

Just finished in 2023, the Old Town Boulevard Wroclaw (Bulwar Staromiejski) got renovated after many many years of construction.

It is a recreational area where you can find old parts of the city wall, parts of a castle that never got built, and many historic buildings from an old German hospital (All Saints Hospital, or Allerheiligenhospital in German).

Many signs tell the stories about the buildings and the area in both Polish and English language, and the first restaurants, cafés and wine bars are just opening here.

We recommend it as starting point to have a nice walk around the city moat.

Talking about the city moat of Wroclaw (Podwale) which is marking a circle around the historical old town of Wroclaw…

It is a great walk to take (suitable for running too, as the full circle is adding up to pretty much around 5km) on a Sunday afternoon or any other day.

Some floating restaurants and cafés are on it, and you will pass many interesting sights, like the National Forum of Music, the Four Denomination District, or the Partisan Hill.

During sunset hours, take a bite away stick with you (we love it) as the still waters attract mosquitoes.

You have chosen summer for your travel to Wroclaw? Congratulations – this will enable you to get on the Oder River and see Wroclaw from a completely different perspective!

From April to September we have the busy river season with all the boats and kayaks on the Oder River. During that time, getting on the river (no matter how) is an absolute must thing to do in Wroclaw!

Wait a moment, Wroclaw is the city of bridges, there are more than hundred of them – and then still a cable car on top? Yes, that is absolutely correct!

While students somehow were the most impacted group who got stuck in traffic on the Grunwaldzki Bridge, the decision was made to establish a cable car which connects two faculties of the Wroclaw University of Science and Technology.

The Hydropolis

We are moving on more towards traditional museums, the Hydropolis is one of them.

Often it is described as one of the “must see in Wroclaw” attractions for kids and families in Wroclaw. We can absolutely second that!

Here you will find out everything about the elements water, the different states of it, where it comes from, and most surprising what happened to 28.800 rubber ducks which were washed into the ocean…

Underwater worlds are inviting you to a submarine trip, and you will learn how closely life is connected with water.

Read more about it in our post about the best museums in Wroclaw here.

As we told you before, Wroclaw is a city of Islands, Bridges and the Oder River. But would you imagine that we also have plenty of beach bars?

Each has their own vibe, some are more family-friendly, while others invite to you play volleyball, take yoga classes, or dance to funky DJ sounds.

The Beach Bar season in Wroclaw typically starts mid to end of April and ends in late September to early October.

To make sure you find the right beach bar for your personal taste, we took our time to write a little beach bar guide to Wroclaw with all our favourite spots. Actually we update it every year!

• Find the best beach bars in Wroclaw here

Wroclaw is a young city in terms of population, we have more than 100.000 students – and guess what they need? Exactly – good coffee!

Actually we stopped counting the speciality coffee shops in Wroclaw after probably the 25th new one has opened in the past years…

But seriously, we have so many really great coffee shops that we would love to spend more time in all of them! And not only that, we also have quite unusual ones. Think about our flower café, a movie café, the parrot café, cat café, a houseboat café, a vinyl café and many more with their individual charm.

Make sure to plan enough time in Wroclaw to visit all of our 30+ recommendations 😉

• Here we made a compilation of our favourite coffee places in Wroclaw
• And this way for the list of most unusual cafés in Wroclaw

Looking for a romantic spot in Wroclaw to see the sunset? Well, you should be – as our sunsets can be very beautiful.

The sky fully turning orange-red, the reflections on the water, the light bulbs from rooftop and beach bars… You name it!

We have our favourite spots to fall in love with the sunset in Wroclaw:

1. The Concordia Design roof top bar (you see it in the picture) – with an open roof, a cocktail bar, and great views on the water
2. The Xawery Dunikowski Boulevard – walking along the promenade shortly after the Market Hall, you get to long stairs with plants in the middle. The view onto the riverside and the Cathedral Island on the other side is magic!
3. Słodowa Island – we talked about it before, but the colour of the University and the reflections of it during sunset, you have to see it for yourself!
4. Beach Bars – pretty much all of them are definitely a great spot!

You want to listen to interesting local stories from Wroclaw while having a walk with other fellow travellers? Then the obvious choice is a free walking tour in Wroclaw (this link takes you to our overview of options).

Usually when we are travelling around the world we always join free walking tours. In our opinion, following passionate people who are locals is a perfect opportunity to get a new perspective. We are convinced it will also help you to learn more about Wroclaw.

So if you don’t have any friends living in Wroclaw, participating in a free walking tour is the right thing to do. The tours operate in multiple languages, most popular are Polish, English, German and Spanish.

Here you can book the Free Walking Tours in Wroclaw online and check available dates – this is required due to limited slots available.

We have two Jewish Cemeteries in Wroclaw, and the Old Jewish Cemetery is the mostly known and visited, so let us start with that.

Since its opening in 1856, around 12.500 people have been buried here. After the World War II, it was left to itself for many years and only in 1984 maintenance and restorations began. Today it officially is a museum, so you will need to buy a ticket (Thursdays free entrance!).

A visit really feels like time has stood still there. Bullet holes in the walls are still visible and it really is a remarkable place to visit in Wroclaw.

Lesser known and only accessible with organised tours is the New Jewish Cemetery in Wroclaw – which is also worth to see when you have the time and the date is suitable. It was opened in 1902 and consistently in use since then, even throughout the war.

How can you explore a culture in the best possible and most pleasant way? Correct, let us talk about Polish food!

Pierogi

Pierogi are filled dumplings and definitely the symbol of Polish cuisine. And there is a reason for that – because there are simply delicious!

The traditional option is pierogi ruskie, filled with mashed potatoes and cottage cheese. And to clean up with one common mistake: No, ruskie does not mean Russian here, these are not Russian dumplings. And yet, many places have “neutralised” the name in the past months.

There are many places where you can try them but our all-time favourite is the Bar Pierożek (Księcia Józefa Poniatowskiego 3). Read more about it in our Wroclaw street food post here.

Did you know that already before Russias full invasion of Ukraine in 2022, we had remarkable 10% of Ukrainian citizens in Wroclaw? Now, depending on the sources even 20-30% of residents are Ukrainian (read some notes on the war and the impact in Wroclaw here).

Therefore you can also experience a lot of Ukrainian culture, food and events nowadays.

Another (probably more surprising) group which is growing over the past years is the South Korean community.

Due to large corporations and manufacturing plants like LG in Wroclaw, we have amazing Korean bakeries, restaurants and street food in Wroclaw! We love the Korean BBQ at the Restaurant GALBI or Korill180.

Well, this point is certainly for the visitors that already have come many times to Wroclaw, explored all the Polish culture and now want to get to know another new layer of the city!

With more than 100.000 students in Wroclaw, you can imagine there we have a great nightlife scene. That is absolutely true and once you are in Wroclaw, you should definitely spend a night out.

As this topic would probably double our overview post with the best things to do in Wroclaw in size, we have our own posts with recommendations for the nightlife in Wroclaw:

• Find the best bars and pubs in Wroclaw here
• For beer lovers, this way to find the best craft beer pubs in Wroclaw
• You prefer wine? Here is our list with the best wine bars in Wroclaw!

Unfortunately, we both have never experienced the vibes of Wroclaw around 20 years ago and only know from friends how much the city has changed.

Nevertheless, there are some places, where the time has stood still – more or less. We are talking about the two flea markets of Targowisko na Świebodzkim and Targowisko MŁYN.

Trust us, in these places, Wroclaw has not changed much, and if you want to have an out-of-regular-tourist experience, we highly recommend you to visit one of them on Sunday mornings.

• Here we have more details on the flea markets in Wroclaw, and on other markets like design markets, food markets, etc.

You can’t have it all? Well, in terms of the architecture of Wroclaw, you definitely can!

We have beautiful buildings from pretty much all styles you can imagine over the past 1000 years. That was a good reason for us to write a list of the 25 most impressive buildings in Wroclaw here.

Some buildings, like our beautiful baroque university, one of the most impressive water towers in the world, or the largest gothic tower in Poland, will certainly make everyone’s eyes glow.

The WuWa district (a building exhibition from 1929) can’t be missed by architecture fans either.

But of course, after the war, buildings got more functional to address the urgent housing need and you will see a lot of “blocks” too.

And we then have some great examples of post-modernism like you see in this picture 😉 And one of the more bizarre buildings in Wroclaw is the titanic building or the igloo house.

• If you are really into architecture, we recommend this dedicated architectural guidebook for Wroclaw

The Penitents Bridge

The first viewpoint is already very special, as we are taking you to a church – well, a little foot bridge which connects two towers.

While you are heading upstairs, you will find out more about the story which has happened here. All we can tell for now: It involves a girl that did not want to marry, quite the opposite of what her parents had in mind for her. And she ended up with a curse…

The height is 45 meters, and you will have to take the stairs, no elevator is available. During summer season, it is open from 10am to 8pm, make sure to check the latest hours before you go.

Concordia Design

Yeah, we already mentioned this as one of our favourite sunset places in Wroclaw – and likewise during the day you can catch a really nice perspective!

Enjoy a drink from what we call rooftop terrace in Wroclaw – the fifth floor 😉

There is an elevator available and you do not have to pay entrance fees, just get a drink and you are good to go.

The Cathedral

The tower of the Wroclaw Cathedral is 97 meters high and also functions as a viewing point! From here, you have a great view on the Cathedral Island, but also of the Oder River and up to the Centennial Hall.

Elevator available, but a couple of stairs still have to be taken by yourself, be mindful of that. Regular opening hours 10am to 5pm but again, be sure to check before you go.

St. Elizabeth Church

And we got just another church for you – the tallest gothic tower in Poland with almost 92 meters! Just across the Market Square, it is hard to miss.

But the staircase is really narrow and the 300+ steps are really steep (no elevator), just that you don’t say we have not warned you.

However, the reward is amazing, one of the best view on the Market Square, the historic old town and the surrounding Oder River – this is our favourite together with the mathematical tower!

Typically it is open from 10am to 5pm.

Sky Tower

The tallest building in Wroclaw with 212 meters of height must have a viewing platform too!

Take the elevator and in a few seconds you are up in the sky. The truth though is – yes, you get a quite extensive view, but mostly over residential blocks and new office buildings.

Opening hours are from 9am to 9pm (10pm on weekends). Decide for yourself if it is worth the price of around 30 PLN…

The Mathematical Tower

As part of the University museum, you can get up to the certainly most pretty viewing spot – and apart from Concordia Design most spacious too.

The views from this 42 meters high platform are similar like from the St. Elizabeth Church and we love them – of course also because we can wave to ourselves and can see our apartment 🙂

No elevator available, and open from 10am to 5pm, but closed on Wednesdays.

If you decide to stay a for a week or longer in Wroclaw, we definitely recommend you to explore the surrounding areas too!

You can discover the Valley of Castles in Lower Silesia, head out for some lakes, explore other great cities, visit the Peace Churches which are UNESCO World Heritage sites or do wine tastings in wineries around Wroclaw. Maybe a day trip to the mountains in the south is what you want to do?

Everything is pretty close and there are plenty of possibilities.

• Here is our personal and extensive list of the best day trips from Wroclaw

Of course, our city blog actually has all the information you need to have a great time in Wroclaw!

However, if you would like to have a guide who will show you the best things to see in Wroclaw on the spot, this is a great idea. As there are plenty of options (walking tours, golf cart tours, boat tours, bike tours, evening walks, etc.) we also made a compilation for you here:

• Our overview of the 15 best guided tours in Wroclaw is available here
• Check the most popular electric car city tour of Wroclaw here

Wroclaw has many great spots where you as a visitor will make pictures naturally, at the main attractions, the riverside, historic buildings and others.

Nevertheless – what about things to see in Wroclaw which are a bit less obvious and slightly hidden?

For example we have a beautiful maze that not even all residents are fully aware of – the dream for every drone photographer, and also a great place to have fun with family and kids in Wroclaw.

Hidden Staircases and Backyards

However, there is much more to that. In quite a few buildings we have such beautiful staircases that you would not expect when looking on the outside!

We have featured a couple of staircases in Wroclaw in our alternative list here.

Even better, if you are a professional or hobby photographer is our compilation of 60 great instagram spots in Wroclaw here.

The only downside for that is, that you will need much longer than a weekend in Wroclaw to see all of them – but surely we have plenty of reasons to come back 😉

Well, we wrote a lot about things to do in Wroclaw, but now it is time for some serious talks! Like in every city and every country in the world, there are a couple of things you better do not do.

Just as an example, we have quite aggressive people who want to put roses into your hands, and then they ask for ridiculous amounts of money and won’t take it back.

Or the “volunteers” collecting money, where an organised scheme is actually behind. And obviously, changing money from your home currency is also a sensitive topic.

Therefore we recommend you to get familiar with the most common tourist traps in Poland here. In that blog post we have consolidated all the scams and other things to be aware of, so you will be able to fully enjoy your time in Wroclaw!

There is a great way to support our work and get something for yourself at the same time – check out our alternative guidebook for Wroclaw which we ship across the globe, wherever you are!

We have filled it with 100 extraordinary places to see in Wroclaw and since early 2023 we finally do have the English edition available as well!

• Read the free preview of our alternative guide to Wroclaw here and see more details

If you want to have a city map of Wroclaw with you, there are different options. First of all, we have created an interactive Google Map with all our favourite spots. These are the ones recommended in our blog, but also additional places for which we did not have time to write about (yet).

It is available as “thank you” gift when you subscribe to our newsletter.

• Here you can get more information on our city map and also other local maps

Apart from our own recommendations which we made available on Google Maps, there are also two other options which we really like!

The first one is a USE-IT map of Wroclaw, made by locals for young travellers. You will see that many recommendations are overlapping with ours, the reason is simply that it is a great map 🙂

The second option are neighborhood maps which were created by a city project and introduce you to more local districts, away from the historic old town.

For all of these maps we have consolidated the information and download links available in our City Map of Wroclaw page.

P.S. We do not recommend the free “In Your Pocket” Maps as they have mostly sponsored content where places paid for to be part of it. This won’t happen with ours or the other maps recommended.