What do I need to know if I’m visiting Wroclaw?
Every since seeing my friend Kirsty’s posting Wroclaw photographs on her Instagram in 2017, I’ve been curious about the beautiful Polish city. I’d never heard of it until I saw her photos, then I started reading travel blogs but I still didn’t know a huge amount about Poland as a country. Spending 48 hours in Wroclaw felt like enough to get a good feel for the city, but I wasn’t sure when I’d manage to get there.
When I moved from full time freelancing back to a 9-5 in 2018, I realised I’d have very limited holiday. I knew I’d need to be clever about how I booked my travel so I could fit more in. When bank holiday weekend came around I searched for flights that allowed me three days at my destination without any time off work. I was so pleased when I found out I could fly with Wizz Air to Wroclaw, and finally spending 48 hours in Wroclaw. Since then I’ve been back, in April 2026, with J. I loved the city just as much, if not more, the second time around. Spending 48 hours in Wroclaw is something I’d recommend to anyone.
Poland, whilst not being English speaking, understands English pretty well, so you shouldn’t have language difficulties. Google translate is always helpful if necessary but I’ve not needed it in Wroclaw. As of April 2026, I paid by card everywhere, using my Monzo, which is fee free abroad. J uses his Currensea which is also fee free, and links to his main bank account, meaning there’s no need for him to move money around.
Wroclaw’s public transport is reliable, cheap and easy to navigate. It’s also a very walkable city, with lots of the things to do being close enough to stroll between.
Saturday
After a bit of a lie in, I was out of my hotel room later than I’d hoped. I spent the morning exploring Rynek/Market Square, grabbing some food at McDonalds and hand feeding a sparrow (because this city is like a fairytale land, of course I had the fairytale creature experience to go with it) and taking lots of photos. Then I walked as far as I could be bothered (not far, it turns out) and found the very lovely Park Staromiejski, where there’s the Carousel, a lovely old fashioned Merry Go Round. I then went back to Market Square and had a browse around some shops before heading back to my hotel for a rest, and to write up a couple of blog posts. At 4pm I went out again, walking along the river to Wroclaw University and having a look around the outside of the buildings. I crossed the bridge over to one of the small islands and had a sit down there, watching the world go by, before jumping onto a boat for a river cruise (25 Zloty-around £5, for an hour) The cruise helped me to spot some things I really wanted to visit the next day, as well as some street art that I went to photograph after the cruise.
Once I’d walked back down the river towards my hotel and Market Square I realised how hungry I was and went to Whiskey In The Jar for tea. I made the mistake of drinking three cocktails with my tea and as they were pretty strong that meant game over for me. I headed the long way back to my hotel to do some work and have a decent nights sleep, as Friday had taken its toll on me (I worked all day then went to the airport for a 10:15pm flight, getting into bed at 3am-no wonder I was tired!) On the walk I passed the Shambles (Jatki) and saw the brass farm animals there.
Sunday
I woke up at 8am feeling refreshed and well rested, and decided that 8am was probably too early to go out. So I wrote for an hour, then got ready and left at about 9:45. This time I walked further down the river to Ostrow Tumski, seeing the Tumski Bridge (Lovelock Bridge), and heading to Cathedral Island, where I had a look at Cathedral of St John The Baptist. I happened to catch a parade that felt very much like the Princess Mia in Genovia parades, so took lots of photos there, as well as of the Cathedral in general. Sadly I couldn’t go inside as there were services going on but I did get to have a quick look through the door to see how stunning they are. I stopped for a drink and a cake at a little cafe there before setting off to look for Sephora-I always like to do a bit of makeup shopping (although, miraculously, I didn’t buy anything this time)
After shopping I realised I was really tired and walked back to my hotel for a nap. I slept and then worked for a few hours before going out for some tea, but before I did I decided to head to Mary Magdalene Church and climb the steps in the tower so I could take photos from the balcony. That was incredibly scary, as half way up the steps change from stone steps to metal grates you can see through, and I am not good with those. I’m glad I did it, though, even though I did need a long sit down at the Football Fountain afterwards!
Monday
As Monday was my last day I slept late and then spent some time packing, before going out for brunch. Once I’d eaten I set off to see the famous Multimedia Fountain, which puts on a show to music every hour. I timed my visit so that I saw two shows, a pop music one at 1pm and a classical at 2pm, before heading back into the city. The shows were amazing, well worth the trip, though I tried to walk back and quickly regretted it as, even though I knew the way, it was a stupidly long walk. So I jumped onto a tram back to Market Square. The fountain is in Szczytnicki Park, near the Centinial Hall (which I also saw) and it’s also close to the Japanese Garden and Wroclaw Zoo, both of which I want to see next time. I had a walk around the park and a drink and cake at the cafe before I went back, and when I’m in Wroclaw next time I’ll make sure to catch an evening show at the fountain.
Sadly I didn’t get chance to do much more when I was in the city. I decided that down time was as important as exploring and, lets face it, it’s just a good excuse to go back to do the things I didn’t do this time.
Have you ever been to Wroclaw before?
Leave a Reply