When I first visited Wroclaw in 2018 I knew nothing about the city, and nothing about travel blogging. Some of my content from back then is, well, of it’s time-and honestly I’m working through it to bring it up to the quality of work I produce now, so that it’s actually useful for you as a reader. Some of my Wroclaw content, written back then and live at the time of writing this, is hilariously bad, and the post I’d previously written about Wroclaw’s dwarves basically said ‘hey, Wroclaw has dwarves, here’s some photos’.
Now that I am a travel blogger who takes this seriously, writing content I’m proud of about the city (such as my complete guide to Wroclaw) and other cities I’ve visited, I wanted to cover Wroclaw’s dwarves properly. When I visited again with J in April 2026, I updated my photos, my research and now, as a result, I’m rewriting this post. So, what are Wroclaw’s dwarves, why are they important and why should you care about them?
Why does Wroclaw have dwarves?
They’re actually a tribute to the Orange Alternative, a 1980s anti communist group founded in Wroclaw. The Orange Alternative used graffiti of dwarves to cover over slogans that had been painted over by police, in an attempt to poke fun at them. They basically used laughter to help to overthrow the Soviet Regime. Wroclaw has the dwarves to celebrate and honour the Orange Alternative and their work.
When did the dwarves arrive?
The first, Papa Dwarf, was placed in 2021 on Świdnicka Street. Since then, others are added regularly.
Where can I find the dwarves?
They are absolutely everywhere in the city, mostly on the ground but some are on lamp posts, windowsills or above doorways too. Some places have loads, like the main square, Rynek, whereas other times you don’t see them for blocks and blocks and then one pops up. But it’s always worth keeping your eyes open to see how many you can spot.
How many dwarves are there in Wroclaw?
This changes all the time as new ones are added. Businesses can pay a fee to the city to have a related dwarf put outside, and many choose to do so. At the time of writing this post, in April 2026, our tour guide told us there are 1198, but I’d guess that this number is already out of date!
Can I keep track of the dwarves I’ve seen?
Yes! Someone very clever created an app, Wroclaw Dwarves. The free version lets you see the location of all the dwarves, and submit photos when you’ve seen them to earn points. It’s sort of like Pokemon Go but for dwarves. Or, you can buy dwarf maps from tourist information.
Does anyone really care about these dwarves?
Yes! You’ll see both children and adults looking out for these little guys, taking photos of them or with them and ticking them off their maps. They’re such a big deal for Wroclaw, and one of the most famous Wroclaw things to do.
How many have you seen, Laura?
I don’t actually know! I think I saw about 40 in 2018 and I’ve got photos of 46 from this trip, some I didn’t recognise. But I am a million miles away from seeing even 10% of them. I need to make sure I’ve downloaded the app when I visit Wroclaw again in the future.
Is it worth spending time searching for dwarves?
It is, but honestly you also don’t need to. You’ll spot them when you’re exploring the city anyway-all of the photos in this post I just walked past on my way to other places.
Can we see a few more for good luck?
Ha ha-okay so I just added this section because I’ve nearly shared each dwarf I saw. There’s the last few below this section and then you’ve seen every dwarf I did.
If you’ve not seen enough dwarves by the time you leave, don’t miss this giant one in Wroclaw airport’s departure lounge. I love this shot.
I really liked seeing the sculptures from your other post about Wroclaw – it seems as though the city has a penchant for statues, sculptures and figures.I enjoyed learning about the history of these dwarves, particularly their role as a tribute to the politically humorous Orange Alternative.We’d most certainly make a point of looking out for them when visiting the city. And good to know there’s an app for spotting them – gotta catch ’em all?
A city dotted with tiny dwarf statues that actually have meaning and history behind them and turns sightseeing into a game? Great! Keep the dwarves coming, and Snow White can stay where she needs to be—in front of the magic mirror #
I’ll admit I was intrigued by the dwarves after reading your last post and even though I knew that Wroclaw was famed for them, I had no idea why so it’s really interesting to understand the deeper meaning. Almost 1200 dwarf statues though, that’s an insane amount, I can’t believe it. Definitely no chance of seeing them all, but it would be fun to give it a go at seeing even a fraction.
I knew from your last post that I would go on a dwarf quest on a trip to Wroclaw but this post seals it. I am absolutely delighted with your photos and the variety of dwarves I might encounter. It was interesting to learn how they came to be. I am glad you warned us how many there are and that there is an app. Very useful information for those on the look-out!
What a fascinating item to see around the city. 1198 is a crazy number and great to see that it has an app to support it. Definetly something unusual and little quirky. I’ll be sure to have a look out for them when I visit the city. Interesting about their history and when they first arrived. Not an area of history I know much about so is good learn and understand why there here.
Those dwarfs are such a funny gimmick for Wroclaw and so unique. I think i already told you that there are some drwarfes in Dresden too which is the the twin city. Was not aware that Wroclaw has already over 1000 of these bronze sculptures, so you will definitely run into them on a visit even if you aren’t looking actively for them. You got some good ones in your collection, the ice cream and book drwaf are particularly charming.
Carolin | Solo Travel Story
I love this so much. All I knew about Wroclaw before your last post was the dwarves so it’s great that you have a whole post on them. I had no idea there were so many though. I thought there were maybe a few dozen so it’d be easy to have a dwarf spotting weekend but, yeah, 1198 may take a bit longer!! I love that there’s a Pokémon Go style app to track all your dwarves. I really need to go to Wroclaw!!
In Wroclaw right now. We had lots of fun searching for the dwarves, we ysed both the app and the map with stickers from the tourist office.