Interested in communist history or architecture?  Take a ride out to the former home of what was considered a communist utopia in Krakow.  The Nowa Huta district was completely empty before Poland fell behind the Iron Curtain and was forced under communist rule after WWII, so it was a clean slate to build upon.

Most people go to Nowa Huta expecting a dark and desolate place filled with uniform buildings, all in block shapes, but you will be surprised by the many green spaces, and touches of renaissance architecture throughout.  There are several points in the district that are worth a look, and several maps around the area will help you discover them all.  We usually take visitors to the famous Steel Works Factory, and start our tour from there. To get there, take a bus to the stop Kombinat, many buses reach it, and walk right out onto the entrance of the factory. Or head to the tram stop Plac Centralny im. R. Reagana and be in the heart of the district.

Since writing this article many years ago, they have redone the entire avenue of the roses- check out what it looks like now here!

At the main entrance of the factory (which only workers are actually allowed to enter) you will find a map of the district.  There are around twelve different sights to see including traditional communist architecture, modern churches (one of which looks like a honeycomb), and even some churches from the Wooden Architecture Route (pick up a guide of all the buildings on the wooden architecture route at any Info Krakow point).

And don’t forget if you have any questions, comments, or want us to make you a custom made list or itinerary, you can always email us at emilysguidetokrakow@gmail.com