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Caves in Krakow and around Krakow

The area around Krakow is rich in caves, grottos, and rocky hideouts. Some of them can be visited with a guide and are commercial, but there are quite a few "open" and publicly accessible grottos. When going on a trip through the rocky labyrinths, it's always a good idea to bring a reliable flashlight, suitable shoes (it might be wet and slippery), and clothing (warm and something you don't mind getting dirty).

Table of Contents

Dragon's Den under Wawel Castle
Twardowski's Cave
Bat Cave
Wierzchowska Cave
Łabajowa Cave
Mamutowa Cave
Łokietek's Grotto
Dark Cave in Ojców
Dragon's Den in the Tatra Mountains
Mroźna Cave above Kościeliska Valley
Cave Exhibition at AGH Krakow

Dragon's Den under Wawel Castle

This cave is located in the heart of Krakow. According to ancient legends, a fire-breathing dragon once lived here, causing sleepless nights for the city's old inhabitants. The Wawel Dragon's cave is a place every young tourist will want to visit! To see it, you need to go up Wawel Hill. The exit from the cave leads to the Vistula River boulevards, right under the dragon statue.

Entrance fee required, self-guided tour.

Dragon's Den

Exploring the Dragon's DenThe Dragon's Den is a must-visit attraction on Wawel Hill, especially if you are here ...

Twardowski's Cave

Located in the Twardowski Rocks Reserve, this cave is wild and unfortunately sometimes littered. It's a pity because it's one of the longer caves in the Krakow-Czestochowa Upland. If you want to see the cave, strong headlamps are necessary.

Free entry, self-guided tour.

Twardowski Rocks Wilderness

Twardowski Rocks Wilderness When entering the Twardowski Rocks Wilderness from Tyniecka Street (at the Skały Twardowskiego ...

Bat Cave

Bat Cave is the longest cave in the Krakow-Czestochowa Upland, located in the village of Jerzmanowice, about 6 km from Ojców, past the Będkowska Valley. An interesting fact about this cave is the stories of prehistoric animals that once lived here.

Entrance fee required, guided tour.

Nietoperzowa (Bat) Cave - Where Bats Hang!

Nietoperzowa Cave is one of the largest caves in the Kraków-Częstochowa Upland, located in the village of Jerzmanowice near Ojców. ...

Wierzchowska Cave

Wierzchowska Cave has the longest tourist route of all caves in Poland! A big advantage of Wierzchowska Cave is its relatively low popularity: it's a bit off the beaten path, making it more intimate and less crowded.

Entrance fee required, guided tour.

Wierzchowska Cave

Getting to and Accessing the Cave The cave is located on the route from Krakow to Olkusz. When driving towards Olkusz, in the village of Bi ...

Łabajowa Cave

This is a spacious rocky grotto located about a 10-minute walk from Bat Cave. The cave is open, and you can enter it on your own. It's a good idea to bring a flashlight!

Free entry, self-guided tour.

Labajowa Cave and Labajowa Rock

Labajowa Cave is a spacious rock cave located about a 5-minute walk from Bat Cave. The entrance pr ...

Mamutowa Cave

Located right next to Wierzchowska Cave, this is an open cave. Its main attraction is a large rock arch.

Free entry, self-guided tour.

Mammoth Cave

This is an open cave with a fairly large chamber, unmarked. Its decoration is an open rock arch. It is located right next to ...

Łokietek's Grotto

Famous for the legend of King Władysław Łokietek hiding here. The cave is located in Ojców National Park, near the popular Prądnik Valley - it can get really crowded here on weekends and during school trip seasons.

Entrance fee required, guided tour.

Łokietka Cave

The Łokietka Cave is famous for the legend of King Władysław Łokietek hiding inside. Getting to the Łokietka Cave: We can ...

Dark Cave in Ojców

Also located in Ojców National Park is another cave open for visitors: Dark Cave. It's a bit smaller than Łokietek's Grotto and doesn't have a royal legend, but it's one of the most valuable archaeological sites in Poland! Besides visiting the cave, you can see a reconstruction of a Neanderthal camp here.

Entrance fee required, guided tour.

Ciemna Cave in Ojcow

Ciemna Cave is the second longest cave in Ojcow National Park (209 meters). It is famous for its valuable archaeological finds (Neanderthal tooth), and an additional attraction is the reconstructed Neanderthal camp next to the cave. ...

Reconstruction of a Neanderthal camp and viewing platform at Dark Cave

Dragon's Den in the Tatra Mountains

For older kids, entering the Dragon's Den in the Tatra Mountains' Kościeliska Valley is a big attraction and challenge. It's a small rock tunnel that takes about 2-3 minutes to pass through. The cave is open for self-guided tours, but it's challenging and requires some agility. It's a good idea to have a headlamp, as the cave is short but long enough to become completely dark in the middle.

Free entry, self-guided tour.

Difficult

Krakow Gorge and Dragon's Lair Cave in Kościeliska Valley

Mroźna Cave above Kościeliska Valley

Also in the Tatra Mountains, above the same Kościeliska Valley as Dragon's Den, is the famous Mroźna Cave. After the last renovation, the electric lighting was removed, and the cave is visited with your own light source. Note! Passing through the cave takes about 20-30 minutes and requires not only courage but also good agility: there are not only rocky stairs to climb but also very tight, narrow, and low passages!

Entrance fee required, self-guided tour.

Mroźna Cave in the Tatra Mountains

Mroźna Cave above Kościeliska Valley is the most popular cave open to tourists in the Polish Tatra Mountains. Note: currently, you need to bring your own flashlights to visit the cave! ...

Mroźna Cave - crawling on all fours over a metal walkway above water in a low and narrow corridor

Cave Exhibition at AGH Krakow

An interesting exhibition about karst processes, which involve the dissolution of rocks by water containing carbon dioxide (this is how most caves around Krakow were formed), is located on the ground floor of the main building of AGH in Krakow at Mickiewicza Avenue 30 and is available for free during university opening hours.

At the exhibition, you can see cave pearls and look inside stalactites and stalagmites. A growing stalactite has the shape of a thin, hollow tube, with water flowing through its center. Minerals precipitate around the falling drop, gradually growing the stalactite. On the cross-sections at the exhibition, you can see its individual layers, and such a cave stalactite grows by 1mm every 25 years! The exhibition also includes cross-sections of stalactites blackened by campfire smoke, which may indicate that our ancestors lived in the cave.