Money
The official Polish currency is Polish Zloty (PLN), divided into 100 groszy. The approximate exchange rates are as follows:
1 EURO = 4,03 PLN
1 USD (U.S. Dollar) = 2,79 PLN
1 GBP (British Pound) = 4,56 PLN
1 CHF (Swiss Franc) = 2,73 PLN
You can check current exchange rates e.g. at http://waluty.onet.pl/ or www.nbp.pl. Money can be exchanged at many banks. There are, however, numerous exchange bureaus (Polish: Kantor) that charge no commission and offer better rates, especially those situated in the city centre.
Travel to Cracow
You are responsible for your own travel arrangements. The following information may be helpful in planning your trip to Cracow.
By plane
It is now possible to reach Cracow at bargain fares (starting at 20 euros for a one-way ticket) with the low-cost airlines. Of course you have to book very early for the best fares, but even if you book just a few weeks in advance you can usually find a very reasonable fare. The following low-cost airlines offer direct flights to Krakow:
Aerlingus
Airberlin
Brussels Airlines
Easyjet
Germanwings
Iberia
JetAir
Norwegian
Ryanair
Transavia
In addition direct flights to Polnisch in Krakow are offered by the following regular airlines:
Austrian Airlines
British Airways
CSA Czech Airlines
LOT Polish Airlines
Lufthansa
More details is available on Kraków-Balice airport webpage.
Another low-cost airline, WIZZAIR (www.wizzair.com) offers flights to Katowice (100 km from Cracow) and Warsaw (300 km from Cracow).
From Katowice-Pyrzowice airport you can take a direct bus to Cracow. The travel is organized by Matuszek travel office and it takes about 1.5-2 hours.
More details is available on Katowice-Pyrzowice airport webpage (only in Polish).
By train
If you are traveling via Warsaw, you can take advantage of the convenient express or InterCity train connection to Cracow. Trains run every 1-2 hours and take about two hours and forty minutes; tickets (second class) are 87 Polish Zloty (express train) or 102 Polish Zloty (InterCity). Schedules are at www.intercity.pl (InterCity and express trains only) or www.rozklad.pkp.pl. (Warsaw's main railway station is called "Warszawa Centralna" and Cracow's main railway station is "Kraków Główny").
You can also travel to Cracow directly from the following European cities: Berlin, Hamburg, Budapest, Vienna, Prague, Lviv (Lemberg).
By bus
There are also a number of inexpensive bus connections coming from as far as London, Paris, Madrid, Barcelona, Rome, Geneva, Zurich, Vienna, and from many German cities (e.g. Aachen, Berlin, Bonn, Cologne, Dortmund, Frankfurt/Main, Hamburg, Hannover, Koblenz, Mannheim, Munich, Stuttgart, Ulm).
For additional trips from Cracow, look for bus connections at www.rda.krakow.pl.
By car
The A4 expressway from Poland's western border with Germany to Cracow has recently been extended through the densely populated area of Upper Silesia. Two thirds of the distance between the western border and Cracow is now traversed by a modern expressway (from Wroclaw to Cracow), reducing travel time for the more than 400 km to 4-5 hours.
On this motorway a toll of 13 Zloty for a car is charged. Please note that you can pay it only in cash in euros, dollars or Polish.
Expressways and other four-lane highways also connect Cracow to Vienna (400 km) and Prague (550 km), with border crossing at Cieszyn. Travel time is about 5 hours from Vienna and 6-7 hours from Prague.
After arriving in Cracow
As the railway and bus stations are situated in the city center, you can easily take a bus or tram from there to your lodgings. Detailed information about public transport in Cracow (unfortunately in Polish only) is at www.mpk.krakow.pl.
If you arrive in Cracow by air, the airport in Krakow-Balice www.lotnisko-balice.pl is 11 km away from the city center. You can take bus no. 208 or 292. These buses go to the city center, are relatively convenient and quite inexpensive. Tickets are about 3 Polish Zloty, but you have to buy two of them, one for you and one for your luggage. Buy tickets from the driver, then stamp them in the ticket automat in the bus.
Since May 2006 there is a train connecting the Cracow airport with the city centre. A train station at the airport is situated about 200 m from the main terminal. It's easily accessible on foot ot with a free bus. A non stop train ride from the airport to the main railway station lasts 15 minutes. Tickets cost 8 zloty and are sold by a driver.
If you prefer to take a taxi, we recommend RADIO TAXI cabs (these are cabs marked RADIO TAXI or a symbol of the taxi company and their telephone number). RADIO TAXI cabs are usually less expensive than others. If there is no RADIO TAXI available at the taxi rank, please wait a few minutes until one arrives.
The fare from the airport to the city center may be up to 50 Polish Zloty Monday through Saturday 6 a.m. until 10 p.m., and up to 80 Polish Zloty on Sundays and holidays as well as every day after 10 p.m. Short distances
(2-4 km) within the city limits are about 10-15 Polish Zloty Monday through Saturday until 10 p.m.
