Can you imagine a church where the floor, the altar, the reliefs and even the chandeliers are made of salt? It exists, about 101 m underground, in the Wieliczka Salt Mine, a short trip south-east of Kraków. The tourist route takes you down to 135 m.
Wieliczka is one of the best-known places in Poland, and for good reason. Salt was mined here for centuries, and together with the mine in Bochnia it is on the UNESCO World Heritage List as the Royal Salt Mines in Wieliczka and Bochnia.
St Kinga’s Chapel
The highlight of the visit is the Chapel of St Kinga (kaplica św. Kingi). It is a huge underground hall, and almost everything you see in it was carved in rock salt by miners: the altar, the figures, the reliefs on the walls and the floor that looks like stone tiles.
The crystal chandeliers hanging from the ceiling are also made of salt crystals. When you walk in from a narrow corridor, the size of the chapel really surprises you.
Look closely at the reliefs on the walls. One of the best known is the Last Supper, carved in salt with a lot of detail.
The legend of St Kinga’s ring
The chapel is named after St Kinga, the Hungarian princess who married the Polish prince Bolesław the Chaste. Legend says that before she left Hungary, she threw her engagement ring into a salt mine there. Later, miners near Kraków found the ring in the first block of salt they dug out. That is how the legend explains where the salt of Małopolska came from. Bochnia tells the same story about its own mine, which you can read about in my Bochnia Salt Mine guide.
What the visit looks like
- You go down wooden stairs at the start, quite a lot of them, and come back up by lift.
- The tourist route leads through chambers, corridors and underground lakes, down to 135 m.
- The temperature underground is cool all year, so bring a light jacket or jumper, even in summer.
- Visits are with a guide, in groups, and tours in English run every day.
My tip: wear comfortable shoes with a good grip, and book your tickets online, especially in summer and at weekends, when the mine is very busy.
Practical info
- Where: Wieliczka, a town just south-east of Kraków. You can get there by train from Kraków Główny to Wieliczka Rynek-Kopalnia.
- Depth: St Kinga’s Chapel about 101 m underground; the tourist route goes down to 135 m.
- Visiting: guided tours, including in English. Tickets, prices and tour times on the official website of the Wieliczka Salt Mine.
- Bring: a warm layer and comfortable shoes.
- Also near Kraków: the Bochnia Salt Mine, the oldest salt mine in Poland.
Checked November 2026. Opening times and prices change, so please check before your visit.
More guides: Kraków & Małopolska in English.
Łukasz, Niezwykła Małopolska