More about: Wieliczka Salt Mines Tickets and Tours
Visiting the Wieliczka Salt Mine and venturing underground to a depth of over 100 metres is a unique experience that you simply must have at least once in your life. What better time than during your trip to Kraków? This was one of the first sites to be designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
In this post, you’ll find very useful information on the price of tickets to the Wieliczka Salt Mine and how to buy them. Don’t miss it!
Wieliczka Salt Mine Day Trip from Krakow
Visit the Wieliczka Salt Mine on a day trip with transport included from Kraków
The best way to explore Poland’s stunning salt mines without queuing, thanks to the tickets included in this package with a professional guide
Visiting the Salt Mines is one of the must-do activities you should add to your itinerary for your trip to Kraków. The best way to avoid the hassle of sorting out transport, tickets and so on is to book a tour that includes transfers from Kraków, entry to the complex and a 4-hour guided tour so you can learn the stories of this underground city, unique in the world.
Enjoy this experience 135 metres underground, where you’ll see underground lakes, galleries, decorated chambers and even a giant chapel. A UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1978, these mines have been in operation since the Middle Ages and are perfectly preserved. So, if you get the chance, visiting the Wieliczka Salt Mines could transform your experience of travelling in Poland.
Recommended if... You want to avoid the long queues at the ticket offices at the Mines and get there in the most comfortable and economical way possible.
Auschwitz and Wieliczka Salt Mine Day Trip from Krakow
Visit the Wieliczka Salt Mine and Auschwitz in a single day
Visit both of these iconic sites from Polish history on a single day trip from Kraków. Gain an in-depth understanding of each place with the help of a professional guide who will accompany you throughout the tour.
This tour will take almost the whole day, but it’s well worth it if you want to make the most of your stay in Kraków by visiting two of the most important sites Poland has to offer its visitors.
Your first stop will be the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum, home to what was once the most notorious concentration camp in history. There, you can explore every corner that shaped the history of the Jewish people during the Nazi era, as well as pay tribute to those who lost their lives there. Please note that you must bring identification and, generally speaking, photography is permitted, with a few exceptions.
The tour will then take you to the Wieliczka Salt Mine, where you can see statues, chapels and carved works that make this underground complex a true wonder.
The great thing about booking this combined tour is that it also includes transfers between the sites as well as return transport to Kraków. You’ll always be accompanied by an expert guide, and admission to both sites is included.
Recommended if... you have a free day to get out of the city and visit these impressive, exciting and history-steeped sites. You won’t have to worry about the logistics of anything and will be able to enjoy the experience to the full.
How to buy tickets to visit the Wieliczka Salt Mines?
The Wieliczka Salt Mines are one of the most popular tourist attractions in Kraków; in fact, they are the second most visited in Poland.
There are several ways to get tickets for the Wieliczka Salt Mines. If you want to visit them independently, you can buy tickets at the site’s ticket office for tours in Polish and English, but if you wish to avoid the huge queues and take a guided tour in your own language, then you can book this excursion to the Wieliczka Salt Mines from Kraków online.
Whichever place you choose to buy tickets for the Wieliczka Salt Mines, make sure you check the opening times first and book well in advance of your travel date, as it is a very popular attraction and tours in other languages are limited but in high demand. Tickets sell out fast!
Ticket prices for the Wieliczka Salt Mine
You can buy tickets for the Wieliczka Salt Mine yourself if you want to save as much as possible on your visit. The ticket prices at the ticket office for tours in languages other than Polish are as follows:
- Standard single ticket: 100 PLN (21.59 euros)
- Discounted single ticket for children and young people: 80 PLN (17.27 euros)
- Discounted individual ticket for students and senior citizens: 90 PLN (19.43 euros)
- Family ticket (2 adults + 2 children aged 4–16): 280 PLN (60.45 euros)
- Children up to 4 years old: free
However, if you buy your tickets at the ticket office, you’ll face the inconvenience of having to queue for a long time at the entrance. So it doesn’t always pay to save a bit of money if you’d rather make the most of your time on your trip to Kraków.
The cost of an activity is a key factor when planning the budget you’ll allocate to an activity during a trip. If you’d like to know more details, I recommend you also read the post ‘How much does it cost to visit the Salt Mines?’.
Is there free or discounted access to the Wieliczka Salt Mines?
No, generally speaking, it is not possible to enter the Wieliczka Salt Mines for free; only children aged 4 and under can do so. All other visitors must purchase a ticket to see the entire site.
However, to attend the mass held every Sunday at 7.30 am in the magnificent St Kinga’s Chapel, entry is free, but only on this occasion and for the purpose of attending the service.
As for discounts or promotions, there are none as such, but there are reduced rates at the ticket office for certain groups such as children, students, young people and pensioners.
How much does the tour of the Wieliczka Salt Mines cost?
If you’re the sort of person who, when travelling, prefers not to complicate things by dealing with a foreign language, sorting out transport, tickets or guide services, my advice is to opt for an organised tour to the Wieliczka Salt Mines from Kraków to discover this beautiful World Heritage Site.
If you book through Hellotickets, there are several options for an organised trip to the Wieliczka Salt Mines, depending on whether, for example, you’re interested in a private tour (€126), an all-inclusive tour (€44) or just the transfer with a guided tour (€43), although with the latter option, tickets are at your own expense and aren’t included in the tour price.
That is why, when booking your tickets, I advise you to read carefully what the tour includes and what it does not, so that you can choose the one that best suits your needs and preferences.
What organised tours usually include
- Return transport by air-conditioned coach
- Professional guide
- Tickets to the Wieliczka Salt Mines
What tours do not usually include
- Tips
- Food and drink
- The tour does not include the lift to the bottom of the mine
Do children pay an entrance fee at the Wieliczka Salt Mines?
At first glance, a mine might not seem like the ideal place for a family outing. But because it’s such an unusual and unique place, a visit to the Wieliczka Salt Mines is something they’ll remember forever. It’s not every day you get the chance to venture deep into the Earth!
What’s more, children of all ages can take part in the guided tour of the Wieliczka Salt Mines, and entry is free for children under 4. All other children must have their own ticket.
They’ll have a brilliant time exploring the interior of an ancient medieval mine and listening to all the legends surrounding it. They’ll see loads of underground chambers and galleries, curious rock formations, beautiful salt lakes, amazing sculptures, and learn all about the miners’ hard work.
If you’d like to find out more about visiting this special monument with the family, I recommend reading the post ‘Visiting the Salt Mines with Children’.
How much does transport to the Wieliczka Salt Mines cost from Kraków
As it is such a popular tourist destination and close to Kraków, the Wieliczka Salt Mines are very well connected to the city, and there are various transport options available if you wish to get there on your own, rather than opting for an organised tour of the Wieliczka Salt Mines with transport included.
When planning your budget for a visit to the Wieliczka Salt Mines, transport is also something that requires particular attention.
Fortunately, transport in Kraków isn’t very expensive, and you can find affordable ways to get to the site without spending a fortune. In this regard, the best options are the train and the bus, two fast and cheap modes of transport that will take you to the site in around 30 minutes.
A bus ticket to the Wieliczka Salt Mines from Kraków costs around 4 PLN each way (approximately €1), whilst you’ll need to check the price of a train ticket online or at the station ticket office.
However, in the post How to get to the Wieliczka Salt Mines from Kraków, I’ll give you more details on this.