Tarnów
Tarnów is a historic town in southern Poland in the Lesser Poland Voivodeship, situated southeast of Kraków. The city has about 100,000 inhabitants and is the second largest city in the Lesser Poland voivodeship. Thanks to its rich cultural heritage it usually serves as a grateful day-trip from Kraków.
Get in
By train
The 🌍 Tarnów Railway Station is located southwest of the city centre.
By bus
Buses from Kraków leave from Regional Bus Station in Kraków (MDA - Małopolski Dworzec Autobusowy) really often. Price and time of travel is similar to trains. The 🌍 Bus Station in Tarnów is located very near to the train station.
By car
Route 4/E40 or A4 motorway.
Get around
There is public transportation with around 30 bus lines, but most attractions are in the historic centre so you'll manage on foot.
See
- Medieval urban layout of Old Town with tenement houses and the Main Square with 14th century Gothic/Renaissance City Hall in the middle.
- Remains of the defensive walls and two fortified towers
- 🌍
Bimah. Remains of the old synagogue
- 🌍
Tarnów Cathedral, plac Katedralny. From the 14th century.
- 🌍
Holy Trinity Church (Kościół Trójcy Przenajświętszej), Tuchowska 5. This late Gothic wooden church dates back to the 16th century. Now it is somehow hidden between railway tracks.
- complex of a Bernadine Abbey.
- 🌍
Tarnów Railway station. Built in 1906 based on the design of E. Baudisch, the station was the site of Tarnów rail station bomb attack which was carried out by a Polish-German agent on August 28, 1939, just days before the German invasion of Poland.
- 🌍
Tarnowski Castle ruins. Located on nearby St. Martin's Hill, the 12th century fortification towered over the city until it fell into utter disrepair and was eventually dismantled and used in the construction of Bernardine church and monastery. Parts of the stonework are said to have been fitted to various buildings surrounding the town square. What remained of the castle was largely covered during construction of a mound which was never completed. Today the ruins are frequented by the residents of Tarnów and surrounding villages, as they provide a picturesque view of the city.
- World War I cemeteries. The Gorlice–Tarnów Offensive cost 300,000 men their lives. Many of them have never been identified and today they rest in war cemeteries, often marked with commemorative statues, in towns surrounding Tarnów.
Museums
- 🌍 Regional Museum in Tarnów. Three buildings in the city: the Town Hall, the house at Rynek 20-21 and Ethnography Museum at ul. Krakowska 10.
Sightseeing locations
Although Tarnów has been scarred with communist tower blocks, the Town Square and the area surrounding it provide a spectacular view.
- 🌍
St. Martin's Hill. The location of the Tarnów Castle ruins (see above), provides an excellent view of the old town.
- Town Hall Tower. There are additional artifacts, including local mammoth tusks, on the way to the tower; visitors will also be able to see the fully functional mechanical clockwork of the town hall clock. The ticket costs 10 PLN.
- Tower of the Tarnów Cathedral. No service is available to the public. However, it has been said that one can talk to the rector about accompanying the janitor to the tower.
Do
There are several parks and two cinemas.
Buy
- Town Hall, there are many souvenirs, pictures, postcards, and books about Tarnów available at the front desk. One of the noteworthy items is an album containing old photos of Tarnów, it includes rare photos of Gorlice-Tarnów offensive during the First World War, and the aftermath of the Tarnów rail station bomb attack (see above).
Eat
Most restaurants are on ul. Krakowska and in the Old Town.
Drink
A lot of cafes and pubs it the Old Town.
Sleep
Go next
Head east to Rzeszów and Przemyśl or west to Bochnia and Kraków. Possibly south to Nowy Sącz.