Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links, which means I make a small commission at no extra cost to you if you kindly choose to book via my links.
Wroclaw (pronounced vrot-shaf) might not be the most famous city in Poland but, having recently spent a weekend there, I think it’s one that’s definitely worth visiting on a European city break. With gorgeous old buildings, independent shops and cafes, and a walkable city centre, there’s plenty to see and do.
Wrocław’s a great place for a budget weekend away in Europe as it’s cheap to get there, cheap to stay and you don’t need much spending money once you get there. One of the things that I liked best about Wroclaw was that it wasn’t overrun with English tourists which made it feel a little more undiscovered.
Read on for my recommendations for things to do in Wroclaw.
How to get to Wroclaw
Most major UK airports fly to the city with cheap flights to Wroclaw available from budget airlines.
Cheap flights are the reason we ended up in Wroclaw in the first place. We had just bought our campervan but it was still too cold to stay in it in the UK and we still wanted to go somewhere for my birthday so we just looked for the cheapest flights from East Midlands Airport and ended up in Wroclaw! We flew from East Midlands Airport with Ryanair and it was a quick flight off just over two hours.
Once you get to Wroclaw, getting around is easy. Uber and Bolt are both available. We took an Uber from the airport which was very reasonably priced.
Most of the city is walkable and if you need to go further afield you can hop on one of the trams.
Where to stay in Wroclaw
We stayed at the Hotel Dikul Market Square Wroclaw during our stay in the city. The hotel was ideally located, within a five minute walk of the old town, bars and restaurants. We had a double room which was very spacious, clean and modern.
We also ate breakfast in the hotel on one of the days. The breakfast was a good selection of continental items and was very reasonably priced.
One of the best things about the hotel was the price. We paid around £100 for three nights. If you’re looking for somewhere on a budget that does the job, then this hotel is perfect.
Book Hotel Dikul Market Square Wroclaw
How long should I stay in Wroclaw?
There’s plenty to keep you occupied in Wroclaw but on a short break you’ll be able to see most of the sights. Two or three nights is a good length of time.
We stayed for three nights, arriving in the afternoon on the first day and flying home in the morning on the last day and I think this is a good amount of time.
Things to do in Wroclaw
Like other Central European cities that I’ve visited, Wroclaw is a very pretty city and you can spend ages just wandering round and checking out the colourful buildings and amazing architecture. There are plenty of things to see and to do.
Take a free walking tour
We planned to do a free walking tour on our first day in Wroclaw, however it got cancelled as we travelled in March and there weren’t enough people booked on to it. A free walking tour is a great way to get to know a city and find out more about its history.
Theses guided tours of Wroclaw guides you through the religious and cultural history of the city and takes you around some of its most important buildings.
Book a free walking tour of Wroclaw
Find the dwarfs
Throughout Wroclaw you’ll find little bronze statues of dwarfs. Some are easy to spot and some are more difficult but it’s a fun activity to see how many you can find during your trip.
There are said to be over 600 dwarfs in the city and it’s a bit of a mystery how they came to be there.
They are an extension of the anti-communist protests of the 1980s, the “Orange Alternative”. As it was dangerous to express these views in public, the dwarfs were a way of doing so.
We managed to spot over 50 of them in various places throughout the city. Some of our favourites were a pair of valentines on a bench and a tipsy dwarf with a drink in hand.
Old Town Hall & Astronomical Clock
One of the most photographed spots and popular tourist attractions in Wroclaw in the Old Town Hall and its Astronomical Clock. This Gothic building was first started in the 13th century and took over 250 years to finish.
The Astronomical Clock in its centre shows the time and the phases of the moon. It’s beautifully designed and a must-visit in the city.
Watch the lamplighter at Cathedral Island
This was my favourite thing that we did in Wroclaw, it felt so magical and special. Don’t miss it when you visit the city.
At dusk, head to the Cathedral Island part of the city. Every day a lamplighter dressed in traditional clothes lights the 100 lamps around the area.
I loved the anticipation of waiting for them to arrive and watching them light the lamps. There’s just one other European city, Zagreb, that has a lamplighter so it’s a really unique experience.
Visit Stare Jatki
Stare Jatki is one of the oldest preserved street in Wroclaw and it’s full of character with its medieval wooden beams and cobbles. Some elements date back to the 13th century.
The street was primarily home to butcher shops but the timber lined shops here now are really arty selling crafts, paintings and souvenirs. You can see bronze statues of farm animals in the street as a testament to its past.
If you’re a souvenir collector be sure to head to the oldest part of the city. I picked up a fridge magnet for my mum.
Raclawice Panorama
The Raclawice Panorama is a panorama painting inside a rotunda roof depicting the Battle of Raclawice in Wroclaw. It shows the victory of Poland against the Russian army and came to Wroclaw after World War II.
At the time, Poland was under Soviet Union rule so the painting had to stay hidden and it went on display in the 1980s. The painting is really impressive and we enjoyed our visit learning more about the history of Wroclaw.
Be sure to get the audio guide which is in English and included in the ticket price. Even if you decide not to go in, the building is really interesting from the outside.
There are also some ruins in the park just across the road from here so be sure to check those out too.
Bridge of Penitents
The Bridge of Penitents, also called the Witches’ Bridge, runs between the two towers of St Mary Magdalene’s Church about 45 metres high and offers fantastic views over the city. In the 15th – 17th century, women who were accused of being witches were tested by having to walk across the bridge, which is where the name comes from.
Sadly lots of women fell to their deaths and if they didn’t it was thought that they had help from the devil and were burned at the stake – a lose-lose situation. There is a bronze dwarf statue on the side of the bridge with witches on it.
See the neon signs at Ruska 46C Street
Don’t go out of your way to see this as it was pretty underwhelming if I’m honest, but if you’re walking past it’s worth having a look.
Ruska 46C Street is a little courtyard which is full of around 30 brightly lit neon signs from shops, cinemas, bars, and other companies. Unfortunately some of the bulbs were out when we visited but it was still a cool sight.
It’s situated on the site of the old Reklama Enterprise which produced neon signs.
Christmas markets
Like other European cities, Wroclaw has some great Christmas markets each December. Taking place in Market Square, Salt Square, Swidnicka Street, and Olawska Street, the market has traditional wooden stalls, fairground rides, and festive food and drinks.
Places to eat in Wroclaw
There are some fantastic places to eat in Wroclaw and we had some really good meals during our stay in the city.
I’m not usually a fan of Central European food like goulash and stews so the places we visited were not traditional at all!
Iggy Pizza
Pizza is my favourite food and when I was researching the trip beforehand, every blog post I read mentioned Iggy Pizza and so I knew I had to visit. First of all, the restaurant is super Instagrammable with bright pink neon signs, subway tiles and plants hanging from the ceiling.
The kitchen is open with a large pizza oven taking centre stage. Now let’s talk about the main event.
The pizza was some of the best I’ve ever eaten, outside of Italy.
Cooked to perfection with the freshest ingredients, it was just delicious. I could have eaten two!
Vinyl Cafe
The Vinyl Cafe is a cute little cafe where you can grab a coffee or an alcoholic drink. They also serve some light food and cakes.
Inside it’s a bit like stepping into someone’s living room – it’s small and cosy and vinyl records are playing. There’s also a selection of vinyl for you to look through.
Panczo Wita Stwosza
This is a Mexican restaurant serving tacos and margaritas. It’s super cute inside with a relaxed atmosphere.
You just order at the bar and you get an alert to let you know when your food is ready. I had enchiladas which were absolutely delicious and, of course, a margarita.
My favourite thing here was that the menu was in Polish and they didn’t have an English one so we had to do a bit of guess work when ordering. No using Google Translate, it ruins the fun!
Central Cafe
A good place for a light breakfast, Central Cafe specialises in bagels. They are delicious but quite small – although this is good if you’re planning to have lunch too.
And I recommend that you do, because there are lots of different places to try in Wroclaw! It’s a nice little cafe which serves good coffee too.
Butchery & Grill
We had one of the more expensive meals of our weekend in Wroclaw at Butchery & Grill. As the name suggests, the menu is very meat-based, and we went for steaks and burgers.
The food was good, the wine was good and it was a nice atmosphere, if you’re wanting to splash out a little during your trip.
Doctor’s Bar
On our last night we ate at Doctor’s Bar. This is a cool bar with reasonably priced food, great cocktails and a fun, friendly atmosphere.
We had burgers and pulled pork dirty fries here which were great. They also had a speciality cocktail for International Women’s Day and so I sampled two of them – yummy!
