Why Krakow is Europe's of the most interesting city - facts

Barcelona, Amsterdam, London, Berlin and Paris. But also Krakow, the second city in Poland but the first when it comes to attractions, history, monuments and the former capital of the country.

It is easy to fall in love with its atmosphere and charming streets. Krakow looks like a city straight out of a film. Cobbled streets lined with horse-drawn carriages, beautiful squares, gothic buildings and churches, and a huge castle that rivals many European castles.

The wonders of the Old Town, such as the Main Square - the largest medieval square in Europe - and the Wawel Royal Castle have already captivated many.

The former Jewish quarter of Kazimierz, with the largest set of synagogues in Europe that survived the Second World War, has a bohemian atmosphere.

Oskar Schindler's factory - the one featured in the film Schindler's List with Liam Neeson - is now a museum open to the public and provides an interesting insight into life in Krakow during the Second World War.

You can also take a tour of industrial Nowa Huta in an authentic communist-era car. It shows the grey reality of Poland under communism, stopping off at communist-style museums and restaurants to provide an experience you are unlikely to find in many other places in this part of Europe.

Nearby is the Wieliczka Salt Mine. This medieval labyrinth, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is full of cavernous rooms filled with intricate salt sculptures, including a great hall with a giant replica of da Vinci's Last Supper on the walls.

Just outside Krakow lies Auschwitz, the infamous site of one of the greatest tragedies in history. The tours are respectful, emotional and well-informed and are likely to be something you will never forget.

Famous people such as Nobel Prize winners Wisława Szymborska and Czesław Miłosz, astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus, well-known film directors Roman Polański and Andrzej Wajda, and novelist Stanisław Lem, composer Krzysztof Penderecki, and pope John Paul II are associated with Krakow.

The Project is financed by the Polish National Agency for Academic Exchange under the SPINAKER Programme.