Everyone told us about the Wieliczka salt mine, as one of the best experiences in Poland. So, inevitably, it aroused our curiosity.

Part 1: Travel Diary
Part 2: Practical Tips

Part 1: Travel Diary

2 buses, 45 minutes for 5 zloty per person (1,2€) later we arrive in Wieliczka. We have lunch at the first restaurant found on our way (and about well rated on Google). It will be the first pierogi and the last of our life, it’s so inedible 😀

5 minutes walk later we arrive at the salt mine. We already like the outside, there are lawns everywhere, many people take a nap there, there is even a care center next door for people with respiratory problems. They come here to spend several hours a day in the mine, and apparently that’s enough to cure them.



We took a guided tour in French (84 zloty/person). We are about twenty per group. The guide gives us each one a device with earphones, so we can all hear the guide without her having to shout.

The tour begins with a descent on foot of more than 360 steps non-stop.

Then we visit about twenty different rooms, with sculptures made of salt, the tile on the floor is made of salt too, but it looks like marble. Here, the salt isn’t pure and white like the one we see in the salt desert of Uyuni, but a little grey. The ancient miners were very religious and built chapels next to their work.



Thus, there is a small underground town, with sculptures made by miners, or self-taught artists, chapels everywhere… Previously, the mine had big problems related to methane gas and important fire risks. Now, with the mechanical ventilation in place in the mine, there is no longer any risk (well, that’s what our guide says :D)

Today, the mine is no longer in operation, but a small portion of the salt is still produced. This would come from the water recovered in the mine (water from humidity), this water is very salty (we could taste it, I tasted a drop of water, I had to drink a whole bottle afterwards to remove this unpleasant bitter salty taste) and it is used to produce salt sold in the souvenir stores of the mine.



The room that impresses me the most (and that’s the case for everyone, not just me) is the big chapel, high and spacious, with many sculptures. My favorite is the Last Supper carved in salt. Ohlalala, it’s really beautiful!



We also have the salt version of “John Paul II”, the Poles are very proud of him and you can find his statues everywhere. Anecdote: John Paul II visited this mine when he was a child. His visit to the place as Pope was cancelled due to health concerns.

There are also some artificial lakes, where the water is completely saturated with salt. To be able to dive to the bottom of one of these lakes, divers had to come with 40kg of extra weight. In a small but cute lake, there were 2 boat accidents. For the 1st accident, people (drunk) died suffocated, because a boat overturned on them and they were not able to “dive” (they were drunk and the water was very salty) to get out of it. What a tragic (and ridiculous) accident!

The air in the mine is surprisingly pleasant and as I told you, good is for health. The horses working in the mine were healthier than those working on the surface. It’s super well ventilated, there were even chambers created especially to limit drafts.



Many things have been done to entertain visitors, for example statues in the shape of dwarves to remind the 7 dwarves of Snow White, or a mini sound and light show on an artificial lake where Chopin is listened to (he too is a Polish pride, along with John Paul II). Bof bof, but we forgive them, because the rest is really good.

The guide encourages us, in a very (too) repetitive way, to lick (for free) the walls of the mine to taste the salt. According to her, it’s not that disgusting since salt kills bacteria… it’s safer to lick, rather than scratch the wall with our hands and taste the salt, since our hands are dirtier than the walls ! In reality, nobody wants to do it 😀

After 2H of visit, we didn’t even make the 1% of the mine!

In all, we will have passed 800 steps (downhill only). After the visit, we are left in a very high room (where a hot-air balloon established a world record by making an underground flight). We walk 1 or 2 km to the elevator and in a few seconds we reach the surface and rediscover the sun.

Conclusion: if one were to compare the Uyuni salt desert in Bolivia to the Wieliczka salt mine, clearly, the salt desert wins hands down! But if we had to compare this visit to the one JB endured at the bottom of the dusty mine in Potosi (Bolivia), it would almost make you want to work in a salt mine !

In any case, this visit was very interesting, not tiring at all despite many walks, because the guide did everything to make us forget our sporting efforts and mine of nothing … the air of the mine seems to be really good for health 😀

On your way out, don’t miss these XXXL Italian ice creams !

Part 2: Practical Tips

How to get there

By city train from the central station (Krakow Glowny) to Wieliczka Rynek Kopalnia (approx. 9 zloty/person)
or Bus 304 (5 zloty)

More info here

Budget

• Transportation: 5 zloty/person (we preferred the bus)
• Visit: 84 zloty/person
• Lunch: 25 zloty/person

Tips

• I recommend that you do the tour yourself rather than going through the tour operators because, as with Auschwitz, it is very easy to get there by yourself
• However, if you prefer to go with an organization, you can find out more about Civitatis’ excursions to Krakow here
• Come with a small jacket because it is always a little cold in the mine (14°C)
• We bought the tickets in advance on the official website, but you can buy the tickets on site. Avoid as the number of seats is limited.
• Elderly or disabled people can ask to follow another route, where they go down via elevator and only take paths accessible to the disabled