This post was originally published on March 12th 2022. It has been updated on March 17th 2024 with 6 new photo spots (the first 6 spots of this post).
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10 Days in Dubai - The Best Things To Do on a Girls Trip
5 Beach Clubs to Visit in Dubai
Drift Beach is one of the most beautiful beach clubs in Dubai. The interior (or actually exterior) of Drift Beach is beautifully designed and there are multiple spots that are worth taking photos at. Even the entrance is Instagrammable. The best time to take photos is sunset, when the sun covers Dubai in a golden veil. Luckily, the dressing room and shower area in Drift Beach is very comfortable, so you can properly refresh yourself after a day of swimming and sweating in the sun. What I particularly love about Drift Beach, besides the design of the club itself, is the skyline backdrop of Dubai Marina which is perfect for photos. I’d recommend walking around the club for the best spots as there are many, and you can probably find a few more than the spots I chose.
The Burj Khalifa Lake is the perfect spot for a photo, with the lake and the majestic Burj Khalifa in the background. Especially at night, the entire area is magical with the twinkling light shows on the Burj Khalifa and the fountain show that takes place every 30 minutes. The area is home to a lot of good restaurants, some of them overlooking the fountain show and/or the Burj Khalifa. Don’t forget to spend some time in Dubai Mall though if you feel like shopping, because it’s a shopper’s paradise.
Summersalt is in my top 2 of favorite beach clubs in Dubai (and it’s not 2 😜). It’s a stunning and relaxing beach club, right across the Burj Al Arab. There are multiple photo spots in the club itself, as well as on the private beach in front of the beach club with the Burj Al Arab in the background and the Dubai skyline. Make sure to walk around and keep your eyes peeled for photo spots. But also make sure to spend a good amount of time on the sun loungers, as those are more comfortable than most beds. I’d highly recommend staying until sunset, as it’s simply magical to watch the sun set into the sea.
The 305 is one of the newest beach clubs in Dubai, with a Miami-inspired design and lots of pink hues, which is exactly to my taste. Unfortunately, we were unable to visit this beach club, as they had no beds available on the morning we showed up. Luckily, we were able to take a few photos at their pretty bar area. Make sure to show up early in the morning to grab a sun lounger as it’s not possible to make a reservation in advance, and the loungers are available on a first come, first serve basis. Alternatively, you can have a drink or bite in their restaurant area, which is a lot less crowded than the pool area.
The pretty beach club White Beach is located on the grounds of the Atlantis resort on the Palm. What I love most about White Beach is the view of Atlantis the Royal in the background, which looks like a pink castle and is exactly what I like to look at all day. The beach club itself is beautifully designed too with lots of beige tones and bohemian vibes. There are multiple photo spots in White Beach, either with a backdrop of Atlantis the Royal or the skyline of Dubai. Maybe you can find even more pretty spots to take photos of at White Beach.
Kyma Beach is a lovely beach club located at West Palm Beach, which is actually a great area with a boulevard to stroll on. The beach club itself is beautiful with lots of beige tones. (I want those beige and white striped towels myself too.) The club isn’t very large, which means there aren’t many spots to take photos from. However, you can always take a photo of the pool and the sun loungers. Kyma Beach looks out on the beach and the Dubai Marina skyline, which is always a nice backdrop too. The restaurant area is pretty as well, so maybe you can find a nice spot to take a photo there too.
Five Palm Jumeirah is a beautiful hotel located right next to the beach with private beach access and a huge pool. As we were a bit too late for sun beds, we enjoyed some cocktails in their restaurant right on the beach. When you’re not staying at the hotel, you can buy a day pass for sun beds. The architecture of the hotel is amazing and perfect for a photo backdrop. Don’t forget to shoot the skyscrapers of Dubai Marina from the beach while you’re here!
Beach by Five is a seperate beach area of the Five Palm Jumeirah. You always have to pay for sun beds in this beach area, even if you’re staying at their hotel. There’s a beach party every Friday here, which is a lot of fun. While we were at the beach party, I just had to take a few photos in their Instagrammable pool.
Cove Beach is a beach club located on the peninsula of the Ain Dubai (the ferris wheel). The Beach Club has multiple pools and private beach access. The beautiful designs of the pool together with the Ain Dubai make a perfect backdrop for photos. After taking your desired Instagram photos, you can enjoy a relaxing day at the beach while taking a dip in the water whenever you want.
On our last day in Dubai, right before heading to the airport, we had breakfast at beach club Bla Bla Dubai. Unfortunately, we didn’t have time to lay down at the beach, but I couldn’t resist taking a photo, even though it was before opening hours. The beds looked so relaxing and I would have loved staying the afternoon there (especially instead of flying home).
Of course I also had to take a photo at the pool of the hotel we were staying at. If you’re not staying here, I wouldn’t recommend going for the day as there are better beach clubs to spend your time. But I haven’t seen a pool in Dubai that I didn’t like, so chances are great that the pool at your hotel is a great photo opportunity as well.
Restaurant 1Oak has a cool photo spot beneath the neon sign saying “I ended up at 1Oak”. Besides this, 1Oak has a few more Instagram-worthy spots. The food was yum, so I can definitely recommend going here for a nice evening while taking some photos for the gram!
I couldn’t leave Amazónico without taking a photo with their stunning stairs. Besides this pretty Instagram spot, Amazónico is a must-visit restaurant. Their food is amazing (I’m still dreaming about the cheese bread) and they have a great selection of cocktails. Absolutely a guaranteed fun night out!
The rooftop bar of CÉ LA VI undoubtedly offers the best view in Dubai. They have this super pretty golden swing with red flowers that’s a hit on Instagram. Can recommend going there for lunch, as they offer a delicious set menu. You might have to wait in line before taking a photo with the golden swing, so be aware of that. The earlier you get there, the shorter the line probably will be. When you’ve finished taking photos with the swing, hop in front of one of the windows for a different photo spot with the Burj Khalifa in the background.
The Dior pop-up store is one of the prettiest Instagrammable spots in Dubai. Especially during golden hour. You might have to fight with some other girls over a good spot though, so be aware of that.😋 We had lunch at Nammos and were able to pop outside for a few photos. I don’t think it’s possible to take photos here if you’re not having drinks or food at the restaurant or rented a sun bed at the beach. The food at Nammos is amazing though, so definitely not a bad idea to eat there.
Pier 7 is an eight-storey building along the canal in Dubai Marina. Most of the restaurants at Pier 7 are insanely popular because of their amazing views of the Marina and it’s hard to get a (last-minute) reservation. The Scene is located on the 4th floor of the building and serves British pub food. The restaurant is a bit fancier than a regular British pub, but not as fancy as other restaurants in Dubai. The best thing about The Scene is that it’s not as popular as the other restaurants here and you can easily get a last-minute reservation. The views from the terrace are amazing. There are pretty much no crowds at this Instagrammable spot and the food was delicious too. Isn’t this a win-win situation!?
Getting up the tallest building in the world is of course a must-do in Dubai. While you’re up there, make sure to take a photo of you sitting next to the window admiring the unique view of the fountain, the rest of Dubai and the desert. When getting inside, make sure to take a photo with these cute wings as well.
Palace Downtown is a hotel located nearby Burj Khalifa in the Downtown district of Dubai. Right in front of the hotel, there’s this pond aligned with palm trees which is beautifully lit up at night. Make sure to bring a wide-angle lens or put your phone in wide-angle mode so you can fit all of the Burj Khalifa in your frame.
Dubai Miracle Garden is Instagram heaven. The garden is filled with structures made by colorful, fresh flowers. While wandering around the garden, there are so many Instagrammable spots. You probably can’t stop taking photos. My favorites are the heart arches and the flower castle.
If you need to spice up your Instagram game, it’s not a bad idea to book a trip to Dubai. With so many Instagrammable places to choose from, you can fill up your feed for months.
We hope we’ve inspired you to visit Dubai with these Instagrammable places. Have you ever been to Dubai or is it still on your list? Let us know in the comments below!
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10 Days in Dubai - The Best Things To Do on a Girls Trip 5 Beach Clubs to Visit in Dubai
]]>Don’t forget to check out this blog post, in which I share my 10-day itinerary from my previous visit to Dubai in 2021.
Drift Beach was my favorite beach club this time in Dubai. The reason why is because the entire area is absolutely stunning. From the front entrance to the pool and all the areas surrounding it, everywhere you look it’s absolutely beautiful. The service is good and we never had to wait too long to find a waiter to order drinks and/or food. I also loved the facilities. The toilets were clean the entire day and there were plenty of toilets and showers so you never had to wait. There were lots of lockers too, but we didn’t use them. The changing area was nice with a huge mirror, hair dryers and plenty of outlets so you could get ready comfortably if you were headed straight to dinner after spending a day in the pool.
I’d highly recommend staying until sunset as it’s absolutely worth it. From Drift Beach, you can actually see the sun set into the ocean. The golden light on the skyscrapers in Dubai Marina is a view I could never get enough of. If you’re looking for some photos for your Instagram feed, Drift Beach is a must-visit as there are countless photo spots. Make sure you have enough space left on your phone when visiting Drift Beach as you’re going to take a lot of photos here!
A sun lounger at Drift Beach is 150 AED (around €37) per person on weekdays and 200 AED (around €50) per person on Saturday and Sunday and includes a bottle of water. I’d recommend making a reservation at least two weeks in advance if you want to visit on the weekend and at least one week in advance if you want to visit on a weekday. Drift offers different kinds of promotions, such as Chic Wednesdays, which grants you a sun lounger for free when having breakfast at the restaurant on Wednesdays from 09:00 until 11:00. Every Tuesday on Ladies Day, a sun lounger is 75 AED for ladies and includes a glass of Drift’s signature cocktail. Check their website for more information on their events and to make a reservation.
A very close runner-up, maybe even a shared first place, is Summersalt, a beach club located on the grounds of the Jumeirah Al Naseem Hotel. The beach club is beautiful and since it’s located right in front of the Burj Al Arab, the views are amazing too. The sun loungers at Summersalt are the most comfortable I’ve ever been on. They’re just as comfortable as a bed and each of them comes with a full size bed pillow. Most of the sun loungers are located on the beach, but there are also a few sun loungers surrounding the pool. The service and food was really good and we loved that every hour they came by with a free snack such as sweet nuts, popsicles or a smoothie shot. A tiny downside is that there are only two toilets and two showers available for the entire beach club. Luckily, they didn’t run at full capacity so it wasn’t a problem, but I can imagine wait times adding up when all the sun loungers are occupied.
Staying at Summersalt until sunset is very much worth it, as you have a direct view of the sun setting into the ocean. Furthermore, the golden tones against the skyscrapers in the background and the Burj Al Arab right in front of the beach is just magical.
The access to Summersalt is through the grounds of Jumeirah Al Naseem Hotel. As the grounds are huge, prepare to walk for about 10 minutes from the hotel reception until you reach the beach club. There are also golf carts available if you don’t want to walk.
A Summersalt day pass includes a sun lounger per person and grants access to the pool and beach areas. Even though it’s not explicitly stated on their website, we enjoyed free bottles of still water throughout the day. Summersalt offers two kinds of day passes: a day pass for 500 AED (around €125) per person non-redeemable and a day pass for 800 AED (around €200) per person with 400 AED redeemable for food and beverages. Every Wednesday, you can get a wellness day pass for 500 AED per person, including day pass access, yoga class and a healthy snack after the class from the wellness menu. I’d recommend making a reservation a week in advance to avoid disappointments. Check their website for more information and to make a reservation.
White Beach is a beach club located on the grounds of the Atlantis resort. White Beach features two large pools with sun loungers surrounding the pool. The beach club is beautifully decorated in boho chic style. Besides being a beautifully decorated beach club, my favorite thing about White Beach was the view of Atlantis the Palm, which looks just like a pink castle and pink castles are exactly my taste.
Even though White Beach is very beautiful, I found the music too loud. It was so loud that my ears hurt when we left. I get that they try to turn it into a pool party, but all the guests were just relaxing. I’m not sure whether it’s always like that as I visited on Ladies Day, so it could be a Ladies Day thing. Nevertheless, I really enjoyed the beautiful surroundings and the service was very good too. I would still recommend White Beach, but I think next time I won’t come back on Ladies Day as I prefer a more relaxing environment.
There’s no direct view of the sunset at White Beach, but seeing the sky turn into a pastel palette is of course always very beautiful. Therefore, it wouldn’t hurt to stay until sunset.
A sun lounger at White Beach is 200 AED (around €50) per person on weekdays and 250 AED (around €62) per person on Saturday and Sunday, both prices are non-redeemable for food and drinks. Every Tuesday is Ladies Day at White Beach. For 200 AED ladies can enjoy unlimited selected drinks and a special discounted menu from 12:00 until 16:00. The Ladies Day drink menu includes cocktails and mocktails, no sodas or water. I’d highly recommend making a reservation about a week in advance, or two weeks in advance if you want to go on Ladies Day. You can check their website for more information and to make a reservation.
Kyma Beach is located on West Palm Beach, which is actually such a nice area for strolls on the beach boulevard. Kyma Beach isn’t very large, but it features a big enough pool and access to the sea. I loved the white and beige color scheme and they serve Greek food, which is one of my favorite cuisines. There’s a relaxing atmosphere with fitting house music.
Sun loungers at Kyma Beach are 200 AED per person on weekdays and 250 AED per person on Saturday and Sunday. The prices are non-redeemable for foods and drinks. I couldn’t find any information on their website about specific events such as Ladies Days, so I guess they don’t offer that. We didn’t make a reservation for Kyma Beach in advance as we actually planned on going somewhere else which ended up being full. Even though there aren’t that many sun loungers, there were plenty available when we showed up around 11:30. I guess it’s not necessary to make a reservation, but I’d still recommend doing so to avoid disappointments. You can check their website for more information and to make a reservation.
Barasti Beach was my least favorite beach club that we visited in Dubai. Barasti offers a large pool with beach access and there are a lot of sun loungers, and seating areas. Even though there wasn’t really a party when I was there, it felt like they tried too hard to turn it into a party (with no success). It might also have been because of the day we visited, but there was hardly any service. We had to ask multiple times for towels and eventually just grabbed them from other beds that weren’t used yet. Food and drinks were self-service too, but I guess that was because of the event we visited.
We visited the Bubbles & Bikinis event which is every Saturday and Sunday from 13:00 until 16:00 and includes unlimited drinks and one food item for 229 AED for ladies and 269 AED for men. There’s an event almost every day at Barasti Beach, so make sure to check their Instagram page and plan accordingly to save some money. On Mondays and Tuesdays it’s Ladies Day, which is the best offer for girls: 5 drinks and 50% off food for 99 AED. You can make reservations through WhatsApp and you can find their WhatsApp number on their Instagram page.
I’ve been to Dubai twice, both times at the end of November and I think it’s a great time to visit Dubai. With temperatures between 27 and 30 °C during the day, I never felt too hot. At night, the temperatures drop to around 22 °C, which is a nice temperature to wear a bare legged dress with covered arms without breaking a sweat or being too cold. Temperatures drop a little bit more in December, January and February and can get down to 22 °C, which would be too cold for my taste. Temperatures in March are comparable to November. I would avoid summers in Dubai at all costs as temperatures are 40 °C on average, which is way too hot if you ask me.
Except for Summersalt, all of these beach clubs are located on or very close to the Palm. If you’re planning on visiting these beach clubs, staying on the Palm is actually not a bad idea. I especially love the Palm West Beach area as there’s a European-like promenade allowing you to walk along the beach. Palm West Beach is lined with lots of restaurants, beach clubs and hotels, so you won’t easily get bored. It’s also near the View at the Palm, a place that’s still on my bucket list, and the Nakheel Mall, which is perfect for shopping. There’s no need to get bored at night either, as Soho Garden Palm Jumeirah is located in the Nakheel Mall, which is a great place for drinks at night as well as a night club on Fridays and Saturdays.
Click here for accommodations on the Palm in Dubai.
However, we didn’t stay on the Palm, but in an apartment in Sonder Downtown Towers. We actually loved the location as it was very close to the Dubai Mall and we could see the Burj Khalifa from our apartment which was amazing. After spending the day at a beach club, we loved going to Dubai Mall to have dinner there and watched the fountain show (which we did multiple times). The apartment in Sonder Towers was perfect for us four girls, as it was a huge apartment and there were three bathrooms and somehow we always all end up having to wash our hair on the same day. I can highly recommend staying in Sonder Towers as the apartment was perfect. The only downside is that there was a huge traffic jam every night on the streets near the apartment, which mostly was a hassle on our way from the beach clubs to the apartment. Unfortunately, Dubai is very car-minded with daily traffic jams from 17:00 until 20:00. Part of the problem is that public transportation can’t get you everywhere, which is also the reason we had to travel by Uber all the time. By choosing a specific area in Dubai you want to explore and choosing your accommodation there, you can avoid being stuck in a car all the time.
Click here to book a room in Sonder Downtown Towers.
I hope this blog post made it easier for you to choose which beach club to visit in Dubai. Have you been to Dubai or is it still on your travel bucket list? Let us know in the comments below!
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Sevilla, the capital city of Andalusia, is one of the most beautiful cities in the South of Spain. Sevilla was founded by the Romans at the end of the 3rd century BC. In 711 (AD), Sevilla was conquered by the Moors, until the Reconquista, a centuries-long campaign to reconquer Spain from Muslim rule, reached Seville in 1248. Due to Sevilla’s rich history, the city is filled with historical architecture and sightseeing spots that are worth visiting. From the magnificent Real Alcázar to the grand Cathedral and the iconic Plaza de España, Sevilla is a fascinating city that won’t easily bore you. In this blog post, we’re sharing the best things to do in Sevilla in just 3 days. We’re not only covering the iconic sightseeing spots we mentioned before but also the lesser known spots such as Plaza del Cabildo, Palacio de las Dueñas and Torre Sevilla.
Plaza de España is definitely the most beautiful square in Sevilla and maybe even the most beautiful one in the world (but we leave that up to you to decide). The square was built for the Ibero-American Exposition of 1929 and the architecture, a mix of Art Deco, Spanish Renaissance Revival, Spanish Baroque Revival and Neo-Mudéjar styles, is breathtaking. The semi-circular building is decorated with nooks and colorful tiles that each represent a different province of Spain.
It’s a little walk from the city center (20 minutes from the cathedral), but it’s absolutely worth visiting. You’ll probably spend a few hours on the square captivated by its beauty. If you want to take photos at Plaza de España, we’d recommend getting there early in the morning to avoid the crowds. However, we visited the square during sunset in January and the crowds weren’t bad at all. The soft sunset light made the square even more magical. So sunset is a great time of the day to visit Plaza de España too.
Fun fact: Plaza de España has been used as a decor in multiple movies and series, such as The Dictator (2012) and Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones (2002).
Since Plaza de España is a public space, there is no entrance fee. The opening hours of the square are daily from 08:00 until 22:00.
Real Alcázar is a historic royal palace and, if you ask us, it’s a must-visit in Sevilla. The origins of the Alcázar trace back to the 10th century when it served as the site of the Islamic-era citadel in the city. Over the centuries, the Abbadid dynasty (11th century) and the Almohads (12th to early 13th centuries) expanded and transformed it into a grand palace complex. Following the Castilian conquest of Seville in 1248, the site underwent a gradual process of reconstruction and renewal. Palaces and gardens were built, replacing the original Islamic structures. One of the most notable additions is the lavishly adorned Mudéjar-style palace constructed by Pedro I during the 1360s. Some of the most beautiful areas in the palace are the Courtyard of the Maidens, or Patio de las Doncellas, and the Hall of the Ambassadors, or Salon de los Embajadores.
The gardens of the Alcázar are huge and very beautiful. Strolling through them is well worth it. We actually went straight to the gardens when we entered the Alcázar in the morning so we could enjoy them without the crowds for a while, which was very nice.
We would highly recommend buying tickets online at least a few days in advance as the Alcázar is one of the most popular sightseeing spots in Sevilla. You can buy tickets for a time slot through this website. A ticket is €14,50 per person. Entrance to the Alcázar is through the Lion Gate and you’re allowed to enter 15 minutes before the start of your time slot until 30 minutes after. We would advise you to be there in time, around 30 minutes before the start of your time slot, as the line to enter with tickets is always very long (even though everyone in line has a ticket).
Opening hours
Daily from 09:30 until 19:45 in Summer (from April to September)
Daily from 09:30 until 17:45 in Winter (from October to March)
The Seville Cathedral was built to replace the mosque that once stood there. Construction started in the 15th century and took more than a 100 years. From the 16th until the 17th century, it was the largest cathedral in the world. Until this date, the Seville Cathedral still has the longest nave of any cathedral in Spain and when you’re in the cathedral you can really tell that it’s huge.
The Giralda is the bell tower of the cathedral and used to be the minaret of the mosque that once stood at the same place as the cathedral. The 104,5 meter tall tower dates back to 1184 and was designed to mirror the minaret of the Koutoubia Mosque in Marrakech.
We were very excited to climb up the Giralda Tower and see the city from above, but unfortunately the view from the top of the bell tower is completely covered by a fence. It was also very crowded at the time we were at the top, making it very cramped. The only advantage of the Giralda Tower is that there aren’t any stairs in the tower but slopes, which makes it way more comfortable to get up. Because of the fence we wouldn’t necessarily recommend going up the Giralda Tower, but a visit up the tower is always included in the entrance ticket to the cathedral.
Along the way up, there are small openings through which you can look through that offer a better view without the fence.
We’d recommend buying tickets for the Cathedral and the Giralda Tower at least one day ahead. It is what we did and we had plenty of time slots to choose from. You can buy tickets online through the official website. The cheapest tickets (without (audio)guide) are €12 per person.
Opening hours of the Cathedral and Giralda Tower
Monday until Saturday from 10:45 until 17:00
Sunday from 14:30 until 18:00
Plaza del Cabildo is a square surrounded by white semicircular buildings that are beautifully decorated with orange and golden details. Despite its location in the heart of the city center, the square is an oasis of tranquility. You can access the square through Calle Almirantazgo, Calle Arfe or Avenida de la Constitución. Every Sunday morning there’s a collector’s market on the square with collectors gathering to sell items such as coins, stamps, banknotes, small antiques, postcards, etc.
Palacio de las Dueñas is a palace built in the late 15th century. The palace consists of a few buildings designed with a mix of Gothic, Moorish and Renaissance architectural styles. There are multiple beautifully designed patios and gardens that you can walk through. The palace currently belongs to the Duke of Alba.
One of the main reasons we wanted to visit Palacio de las Dueñas is because of the impressive bougainvillea facade of the main building. As we were in Sevilla in January, we thought we wouldn’t see any of the bougainvillea blooming, but luckily for us, there were still some bright pink flowers between the green leaves. However, if you visit Palacio de las Dueñas in spring, the bougainvillea facade would be more impressive.
As a visitor, you’re allowed to visit many of the lavishly decorated rooms inside the palace buildings. There’s an audio tour included with the entrance ticket so you can learn more about the palace, the gardens and the specific rooms.
An entrance ticket to Palacio de las Dueñas is €12 and you can scan a QR code at the entrance for the audio guide. Don’t forget to bring (wireless) earphones so you can comfortably listen to the audio guide. You can buy tickets online in advance, but when we visited in January there was plenty of availability and we just bought tickets at the ticket office. This could be different when you’re visiting in a more popular season, so we’d recommend checking the availability of tickets a few days in advance.
Opening hours of Palacio de las Dueñas
Summer (April to September) from 10:00 until 20:00
Winter (October to March) from 10:00 until 18:00
Metropol Parasol, nicknamed Setas de Sevilla which means Mushrooms of Sevilla, is one of the newest additions to Sevilla dating back to 2011. It’s a wooden structure that indeed looks a bit like mushrooms. The structure consists of six parasols and is said to be inspired by the vaults of the Sevilla Cathedral and the ficus trees in the nearby Plaza de Cristo de Burgos. You can walk on top of the wooden structure and admire the city from a bit higher up. However, tickets for this skywalk are €15 per person, which we thought was a bit too expensive. Access to the square underneath the parasols is free of charge from where you can admire the unique structure as well.
A fun way to explore Sevilla is from the water. Sightseeing boat rides typically sail from Puente de San Telmo to Puente de Isabel II and back. Unfortunately, it’s not possible to do a round trip, so you’ll see everything twice. The advantage of this is that you have two times to take the photo you want. After all the sightseeing on foot we loved to sit back, relax and watch the sights along the river pass by. The main sightseeing points along the river are Torre del Oro, Torre Sevilla and the colorful houses in the Triana neighborhood.
We did a sightseeing boat tour with Guadaluxe, which was a comfortable and pleasant experience. We booked tickets on their website a few hours in advance. We can highly recommend doing the boat tour during golden hour as everything simply looks a bit more magical with a sparkle of golden hour sun.
Torre Sevilla, with its 180,5 meters and 40 floors, is, as you can easily tell, the tallest building in Sevilla. It’s mostly an office building but it also houses the Eurostars Torre Sevilla hotel. The top floor of the tower has a rooftop bar called Atalaya Terrace and offers incredible views of the city. Access to the rooftop bar is €8 per person. If you’re staying in the Eurostarts Torre Sevilla hotel, access to the rooftop bar is free of charge. It’s an amazing place for drinks and to soak up the views. There’s also a huge mall next to the tower, which is great if you’re in the mood for shopping.
We stayed in Sevilla for 3 days over the weekend, but wished we had stayed longer. In 3 days you can see most of the highlights of the city, however, we still had a lot of things on our list left which we wanted to see, such as exploring more of the Triana neighborhood, exploring more of Maria Luisa Park and Plaza de América, Casa de Pilatos and Museo de Bellas Artes de Sevilla. In the 3 days we were in Sevilla, our days were jam-packed and we felt a little rushed to see it all. So if you can, we’d recommend staying in Sevilla for 5 to 7 days.
We visited Sevilla in January and for us it was perfect. The weather was very nice with sunny days and temperatures around 15 degrees Celsius. January is supposed to be the least crowded month, but Sevilla literally was packed during our visit. Maybe it was because we were on a weekend which could mean there were a lot of Spanish tourists visiting the city. Otherwise, if that’s what low season in Sevilla looks like, we can’t imagine what high season is like. If you can, it’s best to avoid the summer months of July and August as it gets very hot in Sevilla with temperatures rising above 35 degrees Celsius regularly, which isn’t a great temperature for sightseeing if you ask us. Other than that, Sevilla is a great city to visit all year round, but we can highly recommend visiting in winter, especially if you’re looking for an escape from places with dark and gloomy winter weather (such as the Netherlands in our case).
We stayed in an apartment that we booked through Booking called RD APARCAMIENTO INCLUIDO TRIANA. It was a nicely decorated apartment with two bedrooms, two bathrooms and a living room with kitchen. The apartment offered plenty of space to comfortably stay with 4 adults. The only downside of the apartment was that one shower only had hot water every 5 minutes (so 5 minutes of hot water, then 5 minutes of cold water, and so on). The other shower also didn’t have hot water all the time, which made it uncomfortable to shower. Parking was included with the apartment, which was great as we were traveling by car. The parking garage was very small so keep this in mind if you have a bigger car. We loved that our apartment was located in the Triana neighborhood, which was a very pretty area to walk through. Unfortunately, we had too little time to properly explore the Triana neighborhood, but we were at least able to get a glimpse of it. From the apartment, it’s only a pleasantly 20-minute walk to the Cathedral. All in all, it’s not a bad place to stay if you can take quick showers.
Click here to book RD APARCAMIENTO INCLUIDO TRIANA.
Click here for more accommodations options in Sevilla.
We hope you’ve enjoyed our 3-day itinerary of Sevilla and that our blog post inspired you to visit this beautiful capital city of Andalusia. Have you been to Sevilla or is it still on your travel bucket list? Let us know in the comments below!
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]]>On this loop walk through Ronda, you can watch the city from different perspectives, as well as visiting some of Ronda’s best tourist attractions. It’s a great way to see everything Ronda has to offer in a short period of time. The walk is only 1,2 km and takes around 20 minutes without stops, but you’re going to want to stop a few times so prepare for at least a one-hour walk or even more if you want to visit all the attractions.
The loop walk starts at Puente Nuevo, one of the main sightseeing spots of Ronda. As you can tell by its name (New Bridge), it’s the newest of the three bridges that cross the Guadalevín River that runs through the over 100-meter deep El Tajo canyon. Puente Nuevo dates back to 1973, so it isn’t really new anymore. When standing on the bridge, you can’t admire the amazing arches of the bridge that carve deep into the canyon, but during the loop walk there are plenty of spots from where you can admire the bridge in all its glory.
From Puente Nuevo, walk north and take a right turn into Calle Rosario. Take the first two rights until you reach Jardines de Cuenca. Jardines de Cuenca are gardens made of different level terraces and offer views of the canyon and, of course, Puente Nuevo. In spring and summer, you can find all different kinds of flowers blooming in the gardens. However when we were in Ronda, the gardens unfortunately were closed due to bad weather (rain and heavy winds). There’s no entrance fee.
After admiring the views in Jardines de Cuenca, continue on Calle Escolleras to Puente Viejo. When crossing Puente Viejo, you’re greeted with beautiful views of Puente Romano, the canyon and the surrounding countryside.
After crossing Puente Viejo, you can either visit the Arab Baths or take the path up to Arco de Felipe V, which used to be part of Ronda’s city walls. The Arab Baths (Los baños árabes de Ronda) date back to the 13th and 14th century and are one of the best preserved Arab Baths in Spain. You can visit the Arab Baths for €4,50 per person. Check this website for the opening hours.
When continuing the path uphill to the Arco de Felipe V, you can admire the canyon and the countryside from a different perspective, as well as viewing Puente Viejo from above. You’ll walk past the Casa del Rey Moro, which is an 18th century villa that’s open to visitors. The villa itself is currently under construction, but you can visit the gardens and the water mine. Despite its name, it was never the home of the Moorish King. The water mine dates back to the 14th century. With the Water Mine, water could be drawn from the river safely during a siege, as the water supply was the first thing the attackers destroyed during sieges. In our opinion, the entrance fee of €10 per person is a bit high when the villa itself is under construction and no garden looks its best in January. Therefore, we decided to skip this sightseeing spot. If you consider visiting Casa del Rey Moro, you can check this website for the current opening hours.
Continuing on Calle Santo Domingo, you’ll eventually get back to Puente Nuevo. Just before the bridge, there’s a viewing platform on your right that offers a great view of the bridge. The viewing platform is called Mirador de Aldehuela. Make sure to check out the views as they are amazing.
Even though the loop walk ends at Puente Nuevo, we’d recommend to walk a little bit further after crossing the bridge and head to the left to Alameda del Tajo, a park on top of a cliff overlooking the countryside and mountains. You can walk along the cliff to Balcón del Coño while admiring the view.
Plaza de Toros de Ronda is located next to Alameda del Tajo and Balcón del Coño. This bullring dates back to 1785 and, with a diameter of 66 meters, it’s the largest bullring in Spain. There’s a museum dedicated to the activities in the bullring. We wouldn’t recommend visiting the bullring because of the animal abuse that is associated with bullfighting.
Aside from the viewpoints of Puente Nuevo that you’ve witnessed on the loop walk, there are more viewpoints in the valley west of the bridge that are worth visiting. Southwest of the bridge is a hiking path that goes all the way down to the countryside. After a short hike on this path, there’s some kind of plateau offering an obstructed view of the Puente Nuevo. We thought that this might be the best viewpoint of the bridge, but unfortunately for us, the hiking path was under maintenance when we were in Ronda (the downside of traveling in low season). On Google Maps, the viewpoint is called Mirador Puente Nuevo de Ronda. Make sure to check it out during your visit in Ronda, and let us know in the comments below whether you think it’s the best view point of Puente Nuevo!
A viewpoint that we were able to get to in low season is Mirador la Hoya del Tajo. This viewpoint is a little further away from the city and is along the hiking path continuing from Mirador Puente Nuevo de Ronda. From the bridge it takes around 20 minutes by foot to get there. You can also get to this viewpoint by car, which we did, and takes only around 7 minutes. Be aware that the road to the viewpoint is very narrow. It’s a two-way road but most of the time there’s only enough space for one car. We’d recommend accessing the viewpoint by car coming from the south, because this road is shorter and less narrow than the road from the north.
When you’re done with all the sightseeing in Ronda, make sure to walk through the city center. Carrera Espinel is Ronda’s main shopping street and is lined with all different kinds of stores, such as clothing stores, souvenirs stores, gift stores, as well as plenty of cafés and restaurants.
If you’re looking for a place to eat, we can highly recommend Las Maravillas. They serve typical Spanish tapas and plates for a decent price. We’d recommend getting there a bit early (around 19:00) to secure a spot for dinner as the restaurant is fully packed every night from 20:00 onwards.
There are a few white villages within a one-hour drive from Ronda that are very much worth visiting. During our stay in Ronda, we visited Villaluenga del Rosario, Setenil de las Bodegas and Olvera. For these day trips outside of Ronda, we’d recommend going by car as we couldn’t find any connections with public transport.
Villaluenga del Rosario is a tiny village in the mountains, a 45-minute drive from Ronda. This beautiful village filled with white houses is located 858 meters above sea level and has less than 450 inhabitants, making it the highest and at the same time the smallest village in the province of Cádiz. After parking the car at the public park, we strolled through the streets without a fixed plan.
Because of the small size of the village, you can’t get lost. In less than an hour, you’ve seen every corner of the village. A spot that you can’t miss is Mirador Villaluenga del Rosario, which is a small observation platform up a few stairs and is the best place to admire the white-washed houses.
On the west end of the village, there’s a unique cemetery located in a ruined church, Cementerio. It’s a very interesting sight.
Despite its small size, there even is a Plaza de Toros in the village, which is the oldest bullring in the province Cadíz. The bullring is unique as the shape is not round, but octagonal. When we walked past it, we could take a peek inside.
Setenil de las Bodegas is a very unique village mostly known for its cave houses. With around 3000 inhabitants, it’s significantly larger than Villaluenga del Rosario, and it’s only a 20-minute drive from Ronda. We parked our car in the paid underground parking garage Parking Los Caños and headed to Calle Cabrerizas. If you want to take photos, Calle Cabrerizas is perfect for this as it’s a quiet street with an overhanging rock and the typical cave houses carved into the rock.
There are two restaurants in this street too where you can enjoy a bite. We had lunch at Bajo la Roca, which was a unique experience to eat in a cave house.
After lunch, we strolled through the village for a bit. We walked up to Castillo de Setenil de las Bodegas, which wasn’t open during our visit, but Calle Vila just south of the castle, offered amazing views of the village. From up here, Setenil de las Bodegas doesn’t really look like a cave house village anymore, but more like a hill-top village. Nevertheless, the view is mesmerizing and we could watch it for hours.
When you’re done admiring the views, you could continue walking to Calle Cuevas del Sol, which is the main cave house street that you’ll recognize from the photos. However, we decided to go back in the car to visit our next destination.
Olvera is a 30-minute drive from Setenil de las Bodegas or a 45-minute drive from Ronda. When driving towards Olvera, you can recognize the town from afar, due to the church towering on top of a hill above the town. With around 9000 inhabitants, Olvera is the largest of these three places near Ronda that we’ve visited. We’d recommend limiting your visit in Olvera to the Barrio de la Villa, the neighborhood surrounding the church Iglesia Mayor Parroquial. We parked our car at Parking Plaza Matadero, a free parking place, and walked uphill to Barrio de la Villa. We’d highly recommend stopping by Calle Mayén as it’s the most picturesque street of the town. This small street is decorated with lots of potted plants and flowers. Even in January, which is the worst month for flowers and plants, the street looked so pretty. There were signs on the facades of the houses stating that prices had been won for the decorations.
Another must-visit in Olvera is Plaza de la Iglesia. The square was under maintenance when we were there, but we could still access the observation platform in front of the church offering incredible views of Olvera, the countryside and the mountains.
Close to the church, there’s a castle in ruins on top of a hill: Castillo de Olvera. The castle dates back to the 12the century and was part of the town’s defense system. The castle is open to visitors. When we visited in January, it was only open until the beginning of the afternoon, and as we were in Olvera at the end of the afternoon, it was already closed.
We stayed in Ronda for three nights, which was perfect to see Ronda and to visit the nearby white villages and towns. If you only want to visit Ronda, it’s more than enough to stay one night or even visit Ronda on a day trip from a nearby city such as Malaga. Ronda isn’t a big city and one day is enough to see it all.
In our opinion, you could visit Ronda any time of the year. However, we would recommend avoiding the summer months of July and August because of the high temperatures in the South of Spain. Especially in the last few years, it’s not uncommon that temperatures can reach highs of 35 degrees Celsius or more, which is way too high for sightseeing in our opinion. Furthermore, July and August are the most crowded months due to summer vacations in Europe. We visited Ronda in January. In general during our two week stay in the South of Spain, we had great weather with mild temperatures (17 to 22 degrees Celsius) and lots of sun, but in Ronda we had a bit of bad luck with the weather. On two of the three days in Ronda it rained a lot with lots of heavy winds. With temperatures around 13 degrees Celsius, it was reasonable for January but the wind made it feel cold. Furthermore, there was a lot of maintenance work in sightseeing spots or hiking paths, so we couldn’t always visit all the places we wanted to. This is something to keep in mind if you’re visiting Ronda in January. Also keep in mind that even though January is considered the less crowded month in terms of tourists, we thought there were still a lot of tourists. We can imagine there to be even more in other months though.
We stayed in an apartment that we booked through Booking called Apartamento Artesanos Ronda, and it wasn’t great. The apartment was large with three bedrooms, two bathrooms, a separate kitchen and living room. However, it was outdated, there was no central heating and somehow it was colder inside than it was outside, which I can imagine is great in summer, but not so much in winter. As we were traveling with four adults, we specifically booked this apartment because of the two bathrooms. However, one of the two bathrooms didn’t get any hot water at all in the shower and the other bathroom constantly ran out of hot water, making it near-impossible to shower. There’s a parking garage in the building, however, the owner didn’t let us use it. Parking on the street is free of charge, but the spots are very small and to avoid any parking damage made by others, we ended up parking in a paid parking place. The location was good with just a 10-minute walk to the city center. Don’t let this hold you back from visiting Ronda though, as there are plenty of places to stay in the city with good reviews. Just avoid the apartment we stayed at. 🙂
Click here to find a nice accommodation in Ronda.
We hope you’ve enjoyed our guide to the best things to do in and near Ronda and that our blog post inspired you to visit this beautiful city in the South of Spain. Have you been to Ronda or is it still on your travel bucket list? Let us know in the comments below!
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]]>A visit to Gibraltar isn’t complete without a visit to its iconic Rock. The Rock of Gibraltar is a limestone rock formation with a distinctive shape. The upper part of The Rock is a nature reserve and is home to around 300 Barbary macaques. There are multiple sightseeing spots in the Rock’s nature reserve, such as the Moorish Castle, Saint Michael’s Cave, a network of underground tunnels, and of course lots of viewpoints overlooking the Strait of Gibraltar, the Mediterranean Sea, Morocco and Spain.
The easiest way to reach the top of The Rock is by Cable Car. From the Cable Car top station you can access the Nature Reserve. You need to buy a separate ticket for the Cable Car as well as the Nature Reserve. The Nature Reserve ticket grants access to the Skywalk, Windsor Suspension Bridge, St. Michael’s Cave, Great Siege Tunnels, World War II Tunnels, O’Hara’s Battery, and the Moorish Castle. It’s also possible to hike up The Rock, but be aware that the hike is around 2 km long and the path gets quite steep. It will save you the cost of a cable car ticket though. Prepare to walk a bit even when you take the Cable Car up The Rock. The Nature Reserve is quite large and getting from one attraction to the other involves a bit of hiking and going up and down stairs.
Opening hours of the Cable Car
Summer (April - October): daily from 09:30 until 19:15
Winter (November - March): daily from 09:30 until 17:15
Cable Car return ticket: £19
Check this website for current opening hours of the Cable Car and to buy tickets online.
The opening hours of the Nature Reserve differ per attraction. You can check the current opening hours of each attraction on this website.
Nature Reserve ticket: £18
We planned on taking the Cable Car, but unfortunately, the Cable Car was closed for maintenance when we were in Gibraltar in January 2024 (one of the down-sides of traveling in low-season). A third option to get up The Rock is by going on a guided tour, which is what we eventually decided on doing. For £25 per person, a guide takes you to three viewpoints, two of which are filled with macaques. The tour is by minivan that seats eight people. The guide will tell you a bit about The Rock and about Gibraltar. Going with a tour guide is the best option if you don’t want to walk too much and/or if you’re short on time. We found our tour guide next to the entrance of Trafalgar Cemetery. We also saw guides offering tours on Cathedral Square, next to the Main Street. Be aware that you won’t enter the Nature Reserve on this tour, so you aren’t able to visit the attractions in the Nature Reserve.
The first stop of the tour was at Queens Balcony, offering beautiful views of the town of Gibraltar, as well as the Bay of Gibraltar and Spain.
The second stop of the tour is at the feeding place of the macaques. Since the macaques roam freely around the Nature Reserve, you never exactly know when you will run into one. At the feeding place, however, there are always plenty of macaques, especially right after feeding time. Watching the macaques roaming around, eating the potatoes or just simply relaxing is actually a lot of fun. We prepared for the worst behavior of the macaques, but they were actually very friendly. There were some guides that lured the macaques on tourists’ heads with food for photos, but we didn’t notice any aggression or macaques trying to steal sunglasses etc. There was one cheeky macaque that opened a tour guide’s minivan door, stole candy from the dashboard and then closed the door again. At least it was mannered enough to close the car door itself. However, when it finished the packet of candy, it threw the wrapper on the ground. So there is still some need for improvement in that behavior, haha.
The last stop of the tour is at the Military Heritage Center. From here you have a view of Gibraltar’s airport and Spain. We saw a few macaques here as well. We decided to walk back to the town from here, as it was only a 20-minute walk downhill, but you can also go back down in the minivan if you wish. The Military Heritage Center is near the Moorish Castle so you would have the opportunity to visit the castle if you’d opt to walk.
Gibraltar’s Main Street runs all the way from Grand Casemates Square and ends at Trafalgar Cemetery on Trafalgar Road. As Gibraltar is known for duty-free shopping, the Main Street, which is lined with shops, is a must-visit when in Gibraltar. You don’t have to do anything to be eligible for duty-free shopping. Since there’s no VAT on goods in Gibraltar, shopping in Gibraltar is duty-free for everyone, not only for those outside of the UK. To be fair, when we hear about duty-free shopping we’re usually very skeptical as it’s often not actually cheaper than shopping with duties. However, when we checked out a perfume shop in Gibraltar we noticed that the prices of the perfumes were way less than what we would pay back home in the Netherlands. For instance, we paid £57 (around €67) for a 60ml Dior Sauvage parfum, which would have been around €110 in the Netherlands. We guess duty-free shopping in Gibraltar really is worth it.
The Main Street isn’t only lined with shops, but also with plenty of restaurants, making it a great place to look for lunch or dinner. Grand Casemates Square is also full of restaurants, so if you don’t see anything you like on the Main Street, there are more options there.
Catalan Bay is a picturesque fishing village along the eastern coast of Gibraltar. The small bay is filled with colorful houses, making it a perfect photo spot. We loved spending some time in this bay and taking a leisurely stroll on the beach. As we were visiting in January, there wasn’t much to do on the beach, but Catalan Bay is definitely a feast to the eyes. We can imagine that Catalan Bay is filled with people sunbathing during summer. The Bay is a 30-minute walk from Grand Casemates Square. If you have a car in Gibraltar, you can also drive to Catalan Bay, which is only a 5-minute drive from the city center. Parking at Catalan Bay is free.
Another sightseeing spot worth visiting is Europa Point. Europa Point is the southernmost point of Gibraltar. It’s not the southernmost point of the Iberian Peninsula though, that is Tarifa Point in Cádiz. On a clear day, you can see Morocco across the Strait of Gibraltar, as well as Spain across the Bay of Gibraltar. Europa Point is also home to the 19 meter tall Europa Point Lighthouse. It’s a beautiful place to soak in the surrounding views, especially during sunset. You can reach Europa Point in 10 minutes by car from the city center. The car park at Europa Point is free. Europa Point is a 50-minute walk from Trafalgar Cemetery, which is quite long. Alternatively, you can take the bus route 2 from Trafalgar Cemetery which ends at Europa Point. A bus ticket is £1,60/€2,40 for a single ride and £2,40/€3,60 for a return ticket. You can only purchase bus tickets from the bus driver with cash, in either GBP or euros. Check this website for more information about bus route 2 and the timetable.
Gibraltar has its own airport with daily direct flights from the UK, which is the best way to get to Gibraltar from the UK. For anyone else, the best way to get to Gibraltar is through Spain. La Linea is the closest town to the border, only taking about 15 minutes to walk. Algeciras is another town that’s close to Gibraltar with bus routes driving all the way to the border, which takes around 45 minutes. Other cities on the Spanish coast that are close are Marbella (1 hour by car), Cádiz (1,5 hour by car) and Malaga (1 hour and 45 minutes by car). If you’re coming by car, you can either leave the car at the border (which is cheaper) or drive into Gibraltar. You don’t necessarily need a car in Gibraltar, but it could be useful if you want to drive to Catalan Bay and Europa Point without being dependent on bus schedules.
After crossing the border in Gibraltar, you can take the bus to continue your journey or go by foot. It’s a 20-minute walk from the border to the city center of Gibraltar. Please note that the walking route Google Maps indicates isn’t the right one. When walking into Gibraltar you’re crossing the runway, instead of walking around it as Google Maps suggests. This saves a lot of time and is a fun experience too! When a plane arrives or departs, the runway crossing for pedestrians is closed for a moment.
If you’re coming into Gibraltar by car and you’re visiting the city center, you have to park the car in one of Gibraltar’s car parks. The two central car parks are ICC Car Park and Midtown Car Park. With £23 for an entire day, ICC Car Park is a little cheaper. However, we read a lot of bad reviews about the payment situation as you can only pay with cash and if you pay in euros, the change is given in pounds. As we prefer payment by card and didn’t want to change our euros to pounds, we opted for Midtown Car Park, which is a bit more expensive with rates going up to £30 for an entire day. For us it was well worth it to avoid the hassle.
You can easily visit Gibraltar on a day trip from Spain and see all the highlights. If you want to explore the Nature Reserve and all of its attractions, you have to make an early start as the Nature Reserve is huge and you can easily spend five hours there. Make sure to start early if you’re visiting on a day trip. Alternatively, you can stay the night in Gibraltar to have a bit more time. We actually stayed two nights in Gibraltar, which was too long to be honest. It’s nice to see everything at a leisurely place but Gibraltar at night isn’t very lively. Lots of restaurants close before dinner and the restaurants that are open are mostly empty. It’s a huge contrast to Spain, where everyone seems to live outside, especially in the evenings and even on weekdays in January. We’d recommend staying for a maximum of one night or to just visit Gibraltar on a day trip from Spain.
Since most people visit Gibraltar on a day trip, there aren’t many accommodation options in Gibraltar. As we were traveling with 4 adults, we opted for an apartment in the city center called Stunning Penthouse - City Centre Skyline Balcony, just off Main Street. It was a nice two bedroom apartment with one bathroom, a living room and a small balcony. The apartment was small but had everything we needed for a short stay. There were closets to store our clothes, there was a Nespresso machine for coffee and a fully equipped kitchen (which we didn’t use). It’s a self check-in process which we prefer. During our stay in the South of Spain we weren’t always lucky with the bathroom in terms of warm water, but luckily the shower in Gibraltar had plenty of warm water. We didn’t have any problems showering with 4 adults (1 at a time 🙂). We can highly recommend staying in this apartment. We noticed that in the same building, Grand Central House, there are more apartments that you can book through Booking.com.
Click here to book Stunning Penthouse - City Centre Skyline Balcony.
Click here for more accommodation options in Gibraltar.
Don’t forget to bring a UK travel adapter when staying in Gibraltar!
We hope you’ve enjoyed our guide to the best things to do in Gibraltar and that our blog post inspired you to visit this fascinating British Overseas Territory. Have you been to Gibraltar or is it still on your travel bucket list? Let us know in the comments below!
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]]>Read more:
The Best Places to Visit in the Moselle Valley
During our stay in the Moselle Valley, we spent most of the time in the charming town of Cochem. As it’s one of the most popular towns in the Moselle Valley, we’d recommend either getting up early or visiting the town at the end of the afternoon and the beginning of the evening to skip the crowds. Most people visit Cochem on a day trip or for a few hours in the afternoon when on a multiple-day river cruise. This means that most of the crowds are in Cochem between 11:00 and 16:00. We can highly recommend staying in Cochem until sunset as the golden light makes the town look even more magical. One of the best places to catch the sunset is from Uferstraße across the river, looking out on the half-timbered houses along the river and the Reichsburg Castle.
Another beautiful photo spot in Cochem is along the Moselpromenade on the center’s side of the river with an amazing view of the Reichsburg Castle. We can’t get enough of this view.
When wandering through the cobblestone streets of Cochem, the Marktplatz is a must-visit. This old market square is surrounded by medieval half-timbered houses. We loved the view of the Martin’s Fountain with the Town Hall building and the tower of the Saint Martin Kirche in the background. If you want to take photos here, we’d advise going there in the morning as it gets crowded once the shops and restaurants on the square open.
The castle perched on top of the hill, Reichsburg Castle, is a must-visit when in Cochem. It’s actually one of the few castles in the Moselle Valley (if not the only one) that isn’t a ruin. You can only visit the castle with a guided tour, which we loved as the tour guide tells you all about the history of the castle, the former owners and the rooms you’re visiting. During the tour, we loved taking photos in the courtyard as it offers a great photo backdrop.
Something else that’s fun to do in Cochem is taking the Sesselbahn, or chairlift, up the hill for an amazing view of Cochem and its surroundings. There’s a nice viewpoint near the top station of the Sesselbahn with hardly anyone around, which makes it a great spot to take photos. When getting off the chairlift take the path up until the first bend to the left. When at the bend, there’s an unpaved path that you can take in between the trees to your right. Take the path and very soon you’re greeted with a beautiful view of Cochem and the Moselle River.
Alternatively (or additionally), you can also check out the more well-known viewpoint called Pinnerkreuz, which is easily recognizable because of the large cross. From the chairlift top station, it’s a small walk downhill to the Pinnerkreuz viewpoint. However, this viewpoint is less suitable for taking photos as it’s so crowded.
There’s a café next to the top station of the Sesselbahn, Sesselbahn-Terrassen-Café where you can have a cup of coffee or something else to drink and/or eat. If you can get a table near the edge of the cliff, you’re guaranteed to have the best views of the town.
Beilstein was our favorite place in the Moselle Valley as it’s such a charming place but isn’t too touristy. When you first get to Beilstein, you immediately notice the colored buildings along the river and the ruined Burg Metternich on the hill looking out over the village. We loved taking a photo from the Moselstraße as the backdrop looks like it’s from a storybook.
We enjoyed wandering through the village and exploring the narrow streets while admiring the well-preserved medieval buildings. Don’t forget to visit the ruined castle Burg Metternich for amazing views of Beilstein and the surroundings. When making your way up to the castle, it’s worth stopping by the Marktplatz, a small square surrounded by beautiful buildings that mostly house restaurants and shops. If the weather allows for it, it’s a great spot to have a drink in one of the outdoor seating areas here.
Last but definitely not least, our favorite photo spot in Beilstein is from the Klostertreppe a tall flight of stairs going up diagonally and being surrounded by half-timbered houses and lush greenery. How can you not fall in love with a place like this?
When we spent the morning in Bernkastel-Kues, we loved the Marktplatz that’s surrounded by the half-timbered, medieval houses that are typical for the Moselle Valley. In our opinion, you can’t miss taking a photo at this iconic spot. We’d highly recommend coming to Bernkastel-Kues early in the morning as it’s, just like Cochem, one of the most popular places to visit in the Moselle Valley and it gets very crowded during the day. When you’re in Bernkastel-Kues and you’re done taking photos at the Marktplatz, don’t forget to hike up to the town’s ruined castle called Burg Landshut for amazing views of the town and the surroundings.
We loved spending an afternoon wandering through the peaceful town of Traben-Trarbach. Unlike the other places in the Moselle Valley, Traben-Trarbach has a lot of buildings (mostly villas) built in the Art Nouveau architecture style. Even the lettering of many signs are in an Art Nouveau font. Even though we visited Traben-Trarbach in the middle of the afternoon, it never felt too crowded, which we think is perfect. We mostly enjoyed walking peacefully along the banks of both sides of the river enjoying the views. Our favorite photo spot is from the path along the street An der Mosel which offers a beautiful view of the river and the villas on the Trarbach side of the town.
Just a 10-minute drive from Traben-Trarbach, you can find this beautiful viewpoint overlooking the Moselle River, the surrounding hills and the nearby village Wolf. We parked the car at the visitors parking of the nearby Landal holiday park Mont Royal and walked to the viewpoint from there. We saw a lot of signs for hikes when we were there, so we bet it’s also a great starting point for some hikes in the area.
Even though Burg Eltz isn’t actually located in the Moselle Valley, it’s only a 30-minute drive from Cochem so visiting this magical castle is well worth it when in the area. If you want to take photos at Burg Eltz, we’d recommend going to Burg Eltz outside of the opening hours, which is either before 09:30 or after 17:30, because it’s such a popular tourist attraction. Burg Eltz typically closes for visitors in winter, so if you’re visiting the Moselle Valley during winter (which we wouldn’t necessarily recommend as everything is closed), you can go to Burg Eltz at any time of the day to take photos. The area surrounding Burg Eltz is publicly accessible even when the castle is closed for visitors. Check out our complete guide to visiting and photographing Burg Eltz for more detailed information.
To reach the castle from the parking lot on top of the hill, you can either take the hiking path or the asphalted path. We’d recommend taking the asphalted path as it has the best views along the way and leads a beautiful photo spot along the last stretch of the path. You can sit down on the edge here with the castle and the surrounding nature in the background.
Another amazing photo spot of Burg Eltz is right in front of the castle. To take photos right in front of the castle, it’s a must to visit the castle outside of the opening hours, otherwise there would be a line of people in your photos waiting to enter the castle. Unfortunately for us, there were renovations going on when we visited in April 2023, which we didn’t know in advance and also couldn’t find any information about online.
Another place that’s technically not located in the Moselle Valley, but is only a 30-minute drive from Cochem, is Monreal. This tiny village is filled with half-timbered, medieval houses and not one, but two, ruined castles. It’s one of the most charming places we’ve been to during our trip in the Moselle Valley, and we can highly recommend going here when you’re in the area. It also wasn’t crowded at all with tourists which we loved. It looks like it’s still somewhat of a hidden gem.
A great photo spot in Monreal is on the patch of grass along the Elzbach River with the half-timbered houses in the background and the Löwenburg ruin perched on top of the hill.
From the stone bridge Johannesbrücke, you have a beautiful view of the church Pfarrkirche Heiligste Dreifaltigkeit and the charming half-timbered houses that you can find everywhere in the village’s center. In our opinion, this scene offers a beautiful backdrop for a photo.
From the village’s center, it’s only a short, but steep, hike up to Löwenburg, one of the ruined castles. From the castle, you have a beautiful view of the village and the surrounding nature, overlooking the rolling hills in the distance. We loved this spot to take photos. Once you’re done taking photos here, don’t forget to walk to Philippsburg, the other ruined castle in Monreal for more views of the area.
We hope we’ve inspired you to visit the Moselle Valley with these Instagrammable places. Have you been to the Moselle Valley or is it still on your travel bucket list? Let us know in the comments below!
Be sure to check out:
The Best Places to Visit in the Moselle Valley
The Best Things To Do in Cochem
A Complete Guide to Visiting and Photographing Burg Eltz
]]>Nestled within the embrace of rolling vineyards and framed by the meandering Moselle River, the romantic Moselle Valley has a lot to offer. From charming medieval villages with its, often ruined, castles to beautiful viewpoints overlooking the river, you can definitely see why this area of Germany has inspired poets and artists for centuries. Beyond the more famous towns along the river, such as Cochem and Bernkastel-Kues, we’ve also visited the lesser-known towns such as Beilstein and Traben-Trarbach. We even made a trip to the nearby, but not located along the river, Burg Eltz and Monreal, places we can highly recommend visiting. In this blog post, we’re sharing our 3-day itinerary in the Moselle Valley, so you’re fully prepared for your visit to this area.
Cochem is one of the larger and best known towns along the Moselle River. With Cochem Castle perched atop a hill, cobblestone streets, and the colorful half-timbered buildings, Cochem looks like a town coming straight from a fairy-tale. You basically can’t miss visiting Cochem when you’re in the Moselle Valley.
Of course, a visit to Cochem Castle is a must in Cochem. Cochem Castle is unique in the Moselle Valley, as it’s one of the few castles (if not the only one) that isn’t a ruin. You can only visit the castle on a guided tour. The tour guide shares the history of the castle and shows you around a few rooms, such as the dining hall, the weapon room and the balcony.
When you’re done visiting Cochem Castle, head back down to Marktplatz (Market Square) in the historic town center. Marktplatz is surrounded by charming half-timbered houses. The fountain and statue in the middle of Marktplatz, Martinsbrunnen, depicts the image of Saint Martin sharing his cloak with a beggar while being on the back of a horse. The large building on the north side of the square is the Rathaus (Town Hall), dating back to 1739.
Don’t forget to stroll along the banks of the river and cross the Skagerak-Brücke for the best view of Cochem from across the water. This view is especially beautiful during golden hour.
Another fun thing to do in Cochem is going up the Sesselbahn (chairlift). The top station of the chairlift offers incredible views of Cochem and the surrounding. There’s also a café where you can have a drink or small bite while looking at the view.
Make sure to check out our sightseeing guide of Cochem, for more in-depth information about the best things to do in this enchanting town.
Burg Eltz actually isn’t located along the Moselle River, but with only a 30-minute drive from Cochem, it’s very nearby. Burg Eltz was one of those places that was high on our bucket list for a long time and we were glad we could finally visit this magical castle. Since Burg Eltz is a very popular tourist attraction, we’d recommend visiting the castle in the morning to avoid long waiting times at the ticket office. You can only visit Burg Eltz with a tour guide and you aren’t allowed to roam around the castle by yourself. An entrance ticket is €14 per person and includes a tour through the castle and a visit to the treasury. Tours are offered in English and German.
In this blog post we’re sharing everything you need to know about visiting and taking photos of Burg Eltz, so be sure to read it if you’re planning on visiting!
Opening hours
Daily from 09:30 until 18:00
Burg Eltz is open from April 1st until November 1st.
While Burg Eltz is close enough to the Moselle River that it could be considered part of the Moselle Valley, Monreal absolutely isn’t. Despite that, it’s only a 30-minute drive from Cochem so you could easily visit the village when staying in the Moselle Valley. The tiny village of Monreal is located along the Elzbach River and has less than 800 inhabitants. Despite the small size of the village, Monreal is full of charm. The village is filled with well-preserved medieval half-timbered houses. We’d recommend wandering through the small cobblestone street and admire all the surrounding beauty. Don’t forget to stop at the Johannesbrücke for a beautiful view of Elzbach surrounded by the charming houses. As it’s such a small village, you only need a few hours to explore every inch of it.
Despite its small size, Monreal has two ruined hill castles: Löwenburg and Philippsburg. Both castles date back to the 13th century. In 1632, the castles were heavily damaged by the Swedish troops and in 1689, they were completely destroyed by the French. Both ruins are open to visitors. As both castles are built on top of a hill, the view from up there is amazing. You can even climb the tower of Löwenburg for an even better view of the surroundings. There’s no entrance fee to the ruins and you can visit them at any time of the day. You can reach the ruins after a short, but steep, hike from the village’s center.
You can access Philippsburg and Löwenburg 24 hours a day and there’s no entrance fee.
In our opinion, Beilstein is the most charming town along the Moselle River. The buildings are well-preserved and it’s not too touristy. There are also plenty of restaurants with outdoor seating areas that look very nice. Unfortunately, we thought it was way too cold to sit outside when we were in Beilstein. But we bet it’s very nice when the temperatures are above 15 degrees Celsius. Nevertheless whether it’s cold or warm outside, we think you can’t miss visiting Beilstein when in the Moselle Valley.
Beilstein is home to Burg Metternich, a ruined castle from the Middle Ages. Burg Metternich was first mentioned in 1268, but historians think the castle was already built in 1129. During the Nine Years’ War, the French troops destroyed Burg Metternich and it hasn’t been rebuilt since. It’s possible to visit the ruined castle and walk around the grounds. There’s a restaurant in Burg Metternich with an outdoor seating area that offers amazing views of the surroundings. As mentioned before, we thought it was way too cold to sit outside when we were there, so we just enjoyed the views while walking around.
Opening hours of Burg Metternich
Daily from 10:00 until 18:00
Closed from November until March
The entrance fee is €3.
Just like Cochem, Bernkastel-Kues is one of the most popular places to visit in the Moselle Valley. In Bernkastel-Kues you can find colorful half-timbered medieval buildings in the architecture style that’s typical for the Moselle Valley. There are plenty of restaurants, cafés and (souvenir) shops in town. Since there’s a river cruise dock in Bernkastel-Kues, the town gets very crowded during the day with cruise tourists, as well as day trip tourists. Therefore, we’d recommend Bernkastel-Kues early in the morning.
When roaming through the town, you can’t miss paying a visit to the iconic Marktplatz. This former marketplace is surrounded by the typical half-timbered houses that date back to the 17th century. In the center of the Marktplatz stands the Michaelsbrunnen, a fountain dating back to 1606. South-east of the square you can find the Old Town Hall (Rathaus) which dates back to 1608 and nowadays houses a restaurant.
The pink building on the south end of the square got our (read: Mika’s) attention. It happened to be a konditorei (pastry shop) with a seating area in the back. We decided to head in for a second breakfast consisting of coffee and cake.
Of course, a town in the Moselle Valley isn’t complete without a (ruined) castle on top of the nearest hill. The castle in Bernkastel-Kues is called Burg Landshut. The oldest fortifications on the site on which Burg Landshut stands today date back to the 4th century. The current hilltop castle was built at the end of the 13th century. Burg Landshut was destroyed by a fire in 1692 and was never rebuilt. Nowadays, there’s a restaurant inside the ruins with large windows overlooking the Moselle River. Because of the beautiful views, it’s a popular restaurant. We’d recommend making a reservation in advance, especially if you want to sit right next to the window. Unfortunately, we didn’t make a reservation and were unable to get a table next to the window during lunch time.
Opening hours of Burg Landshut
Daily from 11:00 until 21:00
Closed on Wednesdays
There is no entrance fee.
Traben, north of the river, and Trarbach, south of the river, used to be two separate towns divided by the Moselle River. In 1898, the first bridge was built between the two towns. It was also the first bridge in the area between the banks of the river. The next bridges in the Moselle Valley were only built in 1924 (in Cochem) and between 1951 and 1953 (in Zell). The late 19th and early 20th centuries marked a period of prosperity for Traben-Trarbach. The town embraced Jugendstil, the German Art Nouveau movement, resulting in an architectural landscape adorned with ornate facades, wrought-iron balconies, and beautiful details. When wandering around the town, you’ll stumble upon many buildings with Art Nouveau facades. Even the lettering on most buildings is in an Art Nouveau font. Traben-Trarbach is a peaceful town and we loved strolling through its streets and along the banks of the Moselle River.
Grevenburg is the ruined castle of Traben-Trarbach, located in the Trarbach part of town. The castle was built in 1350 and was destroyed and rebuilt several times. In 1734, the French destroyed the castle for the last time and it hasn’t been rebuilt since then. Only one outer wall remains standing today. You can walk up the ruins from the town and overlook Traben-Trarbach and the surroundings from above. We didn’t do the hike up the hill as it looked quite steep and by the time we were in Traben-Trarbach, our legs were so sore from climbing up to all the castles all weekend.
You can access Grevenburg 24 hours a day and there’s no entrance fee.
Along the Moselle River, you can find multiple viewpoints overlooking the river and the landscape. One of these viewpoints is just a 10-minute drive from Traben-Trarbach. We especially loved this viewpoint as the river meanders into a horseshoe bend. We parked the car at the visitors parking of the nearby Landal holiday park Mont Royal and walked to the viewpoint from there. If you have some more time, it’s also a great starting point for some hikes in the area.
Zell is mostly known for its wine and is the biggest winegrowing center in the Moselle Valley. There are 331 hectares of vineyards, mostly growing the Riesling grape. On the small market square in Zell, you’ll notice a fountain with a spitting cat on top of a wine barrel. According to the legend of the Zeller Schwarze Katz, two wine merchants in 1863 tried different barrels of wine but couldn’t decide which wine they wanted to buy. Eventually, they thought about putting off the decisions as they were pretty drunk, but then a black cat leaped onto one of the barrels and spat at anyone that came closer. The merchants decided to buy the entire stock of this wine. This story made Zell and its wine renowned around the world.
To be honest, Zell was our least favorite place along the Moselle River. For us, it felt like Zell didn’t have much charm, but we had been so spoiled already with all the other well-preserved medieval towns and villages. We did enjoy a nice affogato in an Eis Café. There are actually so many ice cafés in the Moselle Valley and they all have a very extensive ice cream menu. Especially spaghetti ice cream seems to be a favorite in this part of Germany. In the ice cream café we visited in Zell, they had a dedicated menu for spaghetti ice cream. So if you’re into spaghetti ice cream, we guess Zell is a must-visit. If you’re not and you’re short on time during your visit in the Moselle Valley, we’d say you could skip Zell. Unless you’re a wine-lover and you’re visiting the region for its wines. In that case we could understand that Zell is a must-visit. We wouldn’t know however, as we don’t really like wine.
We chose Cochem as our base to explore the above-listed town, because it’s one of the bigger towns along the river and therefore has enough diversity of restaurants, compared to the smaller towns that only have a handful of restaurants and often require reservations on the weekend. Unlike smaller places along the Moselle River, Cochem also has restaurants with different cuisines other than German. As we’re not the biggest fans of German cuisine, this was great for us. Cochem is also centrally located among the places we visited.
We booked a room in Gartenstudio Anila through booking. The room we booked was reasonably priced with parking included and you only had to cross the bridge to get to the center of Cochem. Unfortunately, the host had to cancel our booking on the day we arrived due to water damage. Fortunately, the host arranged a room for us in Pension Dapper, also with parking included as well as breakfast. The room in Pension Dapper was large with a private bathroom and had everything we needed for our stay over the weekend. We could park the car right in front of the pension, which was perfect. It was a pleasant 10-minute walk along the river to Cochem’s Marktplatz, right in the heart of the town’s center. We had a great stay at Pension Dapper and appreciated how prompt and well the host of Gartenstudio Anila arranged accommodation for us.
If you’re not traveling by car, consider staying right inside the town center. Most of the hotels in Cochem are located along the river and offer river views. However, Cochem is very small so even if you’re staying outside of the town center, it’s still probably less than a 10-minute walk to get into town. Staying in Cochem allowed us to explore the historic town early in the morning before the tourists flooded in.
Click here for more accommodation options in Cochem.
Getting around the Moselle Valley by public transport is possible, but not ideal. Many of the towns along the river have a train station and/or bus station, but getting from one point to another by public transport can take a long time. For instance, it takes 2,5-hours to get to Monreal by public transport from Cochem, whereas it’s just a 30-minute drive. It simply takes (a lot) longer, so take this into consideration. Keep in mind that many of the bus lines don’t run between November and March. If you’re planning on getting around by public transport, it’s best to avoid those months.
The most convenient way of getting around the Moselle Valley is by car. With a car you’re able to visit any place and town along the river at any time you like. This way you’re completely independent. Parking can be an issue though, as the towns are small and there aren’t always lots of parking places available. When we were in the Moselle Valley during the Easter weekend of 2023, we didn’t run into any parking issues. In our experience, it’s always possible to find a parking spot. Worst case scenario, you have to walk a little further to the town’s center. Keep in mind that it’s paid parking everywhere. If you’re traveling by car we’d recommend looking for a hotel or Airbnb with private parking so you can always park nearby the place you’re staying at.
Another means of transport to explore the Moselle Valley is by river cruise. There are a few river cruise companies offering multiple-day cruises along the Moselle River. A typical river cruise lasts 8 days and stops in Cochem, Trier, Bernkastel and Koblenz. Most of the time you’re staying less than a day in each town, so it’s just a quick visit to see the town’s highlights. Since the towns aren’t big, this isn’t a problem. However, most river cruises skip the smaller towns, such as Beilstein and Traben-Trarbach. It’s also not possible to visit Burg Eltz and Monreal during a river cruise as these places aren’t located along the river. Nevertheless, we bet it’s a fun experience.
We stayed in the Moselle Valley for three nights and we were able to visit all of the places listed before. All of these places are less than an hour drive from Cochem, where we stayed. Even though we were able to visit all the places we wanted to see, our days were filled with at least three different locations a day, which was quite exhausting. It wouldn’t be a bad idea to stay a few days longer so you don’t need to rush that much.
Many sightseeing spots and restaurants are closed between November and March, so we’d recommend visiting the Moselle Valley between April and October. Because of summer vacations in Europe, the summer months July and August will be more crowded than the shoulder months in Spring and Autumn. We visited the Moselle Valley on the Easter weekend in April 2023. Because it was a holiday weekend, we suspected that it was more crowded than usual. It wasn’t too crowded for our taste (maybe because of the cold weather), but we explored the most crowded places like Bernkastel-Kues and Cochem in the morning, which helped. Unfortunately, the weather wasn’t really cooperating for us. With temperatures around 10 degrees Celsius it was way colder than it usually would be in April.
We hope you’ve enjoyed our guide to the best places to visit in the Moselle Valley and that our blog post inspired you to visit this beautiful area in Germany. Have you been to the Moselle Valley or is it still on your travel bucket list? Let us know in the comments below!
Be sure to check out:
The Best Things To Do in Cochem
A Complete Guide to Visiting and Photographing Burg Eltz
Where to Find the Best Cherry Blossom Spots in Hamburg
]]>Kraków, the former capital of Poland, offers plenty of things to do with its rich history and beautiful architecture. From the narrow streets and medieval buildings in the old town, to the royal Wawel Castle and the nearby historical Kazimierz district, you won’t get bored in Kraków. When you’re done exploring the sightseeing spots, you can take a leisurely stroll along the Wisła River and enjoy the delicious Polish foods. In this blog post, we’re sharing the best things to do, ensuring that you can make the most out of your trip to Kraków.
The need for stronger fortifications led to the creation of the Barbakan in 1498, which served as an additional defensive structure for the city. In the past, the Gothic style Barbakan played a crucial role in the city’s defense system, protecting Kraków against potential invasions. The circular shape and the arrangement of turrets allowed defenders to cover all angles and repel attacks effectively. Today, the Barbakan is a well-preserved monument, offering visitors a glimpse into Kraków’s medieval defensive structures. Usually, you can explore the Barbakan, which now houses a museum showcasing historical weaponry and exhibits related to the city’s fortifications. Unfortunately, the Barbakan is temporarily closed at this moment. We couldn’t find any information on when the Barbakan would open its doors again for visitors. We still think it’s worth checking out this historical building that in our opinion kind of looks like a castle with its Gothic towers. We’d recommend checking this website for updated information on whether the Barbakan is open or not.
Planty Park was established in the early 19th century, replacing the city’s medieval defensive walls and fortifications. The decision to dismantle the fortifications was made in the 19th century to provide a more open, recreational space for residents. The circular layout of the park mirrors the location of the former city walls. A network of walking paths crisscrosses Planty, offering a pleasant route for leisurely strolls. We actually loved wandering through the paths of Planty a lot. It provides a peaceful setting for relaxation, picnics, or simply unwinding amidst nature. There are Benches scattered throughout, so you can take a break and enjoy the green surroundings whenever you want. We were very lucky to see the park covered in a layer of snow. However, we can imagine that Planty is beautiful in any season.
The Juliusz Słowacki Theater is located in Planty, near the Barbakan. Its construction ended in 1893, and it was designed in the eclectic style, modeled after the Palais Garnier in Paris. The theater is named after Juliusz Słowacki, one of Poland’s greatest poets. The Juliusz Słowacki Theater has played a significant role in Kraków’s cultural life for over a century. It has been a venue for a wide range of performances, including dramas, operas, and ballet. Unfortunately, the front facade was under renovation during our stay in Kraków, but the side facade of the building looked beautiful too. It might be fun to experience a performance in the theater someday too!
Rynek Główny, or the Main Market Square, is the central square of Kraków and one of the largest medieval town squares in Europe. Rynek Główny dates back to the 13th century, making it also one of the oldest market squares in Europe. Back in the day, the square served as a bustling center for trade and commerce. Merchants from various parts of Europe gathered here to exchange goods, and the square quickly became the economic heart of the city. Since 1978, Rynek Główny has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The square is surrounded by lots of cafés and restaurants, most of which have outdoor seating areas. Even in the winter months, the outdoor seating areas are fully encompassed by glass and provided with heaters, making it possible to sit outside when the temperatures are low. It’s a perfect place for people-watching and to enjoy a cup of coffee or a meal while surrounded by centuries of history.
There are a few historically important buildings at Rynek Główny. The Sukiennice, or the Cloth Hall is the building in the center of Rynek Główny. During Kraków’s golden age in the 15th century, the Sukiennice was a major center of international trade. Textiles, spices, and other goods were traded within its walls, contributing to the economic prosperity of Kraków. The ground floor of the Sukiennice is characterized by beautiful arcades, providing shelter for market stalls and creating a covered marketplace. The open structure allowed for commerce while protecting traders from the elements. Currently, there are still shops in the stalls inside the building, selling traditional Polish arts and crafts, such as jewelry, textiles, and souvenirs. The upper floor of the Sukiennice has been converted into the Gallery of 19th-Century Polish Art, a branch of the National Museum in Kraków. The museum houses a collection of Polish paintings and sculptures from the 19th century.
You can’t miss the Bazylika Mariacka, or Saint Mary’s Basilica, when at Rynek Główny as it’s one of Kraków’s most recognizable buildings. The construction of Bazylika Mariacka spanned several centuries, with various elements added and modified over time. The main body of the church was constructed in the 14th century, while the towers and other elements were added in the following centuries. The basilica is renowned for its two towers of different heights. Legend has it that two brothers were hired to build the towers of Bazylika Mariacka. The elder sibling undertook the construction of the south tower, while the younger brother was assigned the north tower. Initially, the construction progressed smoothly, and both brothers worked at a similar pace. However, at some point it turned out that the south tower, built by the older brother, would be taller than the north tower. Driven by jealousy, the younger brother took the life of his elder sibling and commanded that the incomplete south tower be capped with a cupola. He then continued with the construction of his now elevated north tower as originally planned. The younger brother, however, was consumed by guilt. On the day of the towers’ consecration, he climbed to the top of his tower. While holding the knife he used to murder his brother, he publicly confessed the murder and jumped. Until this day, the murderer’s knife is showcased in the gate of the Sukiennice as a reminder to these tragic events.
The Bazylika Mariacka is open to visitors daily from 11:30 until 18:00. Check this website for more information.
Another building worth mentioning at Rynek Główny is the Town Hall Tower that stands next to the Sukiennice. The tower is the only remaining part of the old Kraków Town Hall, which was demolished in 1820. The 70 meters tall Gothic tower dates back to the 13th century. There used to be a prison in the cellars with a Medieval torture chamber. There’s an observation deck on the top floor of the tower which is usually open to visitors. Unfortunately, it was temporarily closed when we were in Kraków. We couldn’t find any information on when the observation deck of the Town Hall Tower would be open to visitors again. We’d recommend checking this website for updated information on whether the Town Hall Tower is open or not.
Wawel Castle is a magnificent complex perched atop Wawel Hill that holds centuries of history and cultural significance. The first fortified structures on Wawel Hill date back to the 10th century. The early wooden and stone constructions served as a seat for Polish kings and rulers. Wawel Castle as it stands today was established on the orders of King Casimir III the Great in the 13th century and enlarged over the following centuries. It reflects various architectural styles, including Romanesque, Gothic, Renaissance, and Baroque. In the late 18th century, the castle fell into disrepair, but from the 20th century, extensive restoration work took place to restore Wawel Castle to its former glory. It’s a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1978.
Wawel Castle is now a museum complex, showcasing collections of art, historical artifacts, and royal chambers. When visiting Wawel Castle, you can choose from multiple exhibitions: the Crown Treasury, the Armoury, the State Rooms, Art of the Orient, the Lost Wawel and the Lapidarium. Besides these permanent exhibitions, there are also temporary exhibitions as well as visits with a tour guide. We visited the State Rooms and opted for an audio guide. It was very interesting to see the State Rooms which were used for senate sessions, royal audiences, wedding receptions and balls. Various paintings, furniture and tapestries are showcased in the rooms. We’d recommend getting an audio tour because otherwise you don’t really know what you’re looking at as there aren’t any information signs. If you want to visit any of the exhibitions in Wawel Castle, we’d recommend buying a ticket online in advance. We bought ours two days in advance, which is enough if you’re visiting on a weekday. If you’re visiting on the weekend we’d recommend getting a ticket a week ahead. Ticket prices vary depending on which exhibitions you want to visit. Click here to buy tickets online.
Opening hours of Wawel Castle
January - March: 09:30 until 17:00
April - June & September - December: 09:00 until 17:00
July & August: 09:00 until 18:00
Closed on Mondays, 18th until 22nd of March, 1st of april, 1st & 11th of November and 45th & 25th of December.
Check this website for the most recent opening hours.
Wawel Cathedral is considered part of the Wawel Castle complex. The cathedral dates back to the 14th century and it replaced a church that was destroyed in a fire. Over the centuries, the cathedral was expanded and the cathedral reflects various architectural styles, such as Romanesque, Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque, Neoclassical and Neogothic. You can visit the Wawel Cathedral too, the admission is 23 złoty (around €5,30) per person.
Opening hours of Wawel Cathedral
April - October
Monday until Saturday: from 09:00 until 17:00
Sunday: from 12:30 until 17:00
November - March
Monday until Saturday: from 09:00 until 16:00
Sunday: from 12:30 until 16:00
Closed on Good Friday, Holy Saturday, Easter Sunday, Christmas Eve (24th of December) and Christmas Day (25th of December). Check this website for the most recent opening hours.
The town of Kazimierz was founded in 1335 by King Casimir III the Great, hence its name, which is derived from the king’s name. It was initially an independent town located just south of Kraków. In 1494, there was a conflict between Jewish and Christian merchants about the right to trade at the Kraków market. Therefore in 1495, the Jewish district was created in the northeastern part of Kazimierz where the Jewish people in Kraków had to live. Until 1800, the Jewish district was separated by fences and a stone wall. When Kazimierz became part of the city of Kraków, most of the Jewish people stayed in this district. However, because of World War II, which heavily affected the Jewish community in Poland, there aren’t many Jewish people living here anymore. Kazimierz is nowadays known for its lively streets filled with eclectic cafes, restaurants, and galleries. It has become a center for alternative culture, attracting artists, students, and those seeking a vibrant atmosphere. You can still find remnants of the Jewish history, such as synagogues, a Jewish cemetery and historical buildings.
Saint Joseph’s Church is an impressive cathedral built in the style of Gothic Revival. The cathedral was built between 1905 and 1909. You can find the cathedral just south of the Wisła River in the Podgórze district. It’s a beautiful cathedral to admire and well worth the 35-minute pleasant walk from the old town center. We also loved wandering around the Pódgorze district and along the Wisła River. We can recommend walking from the Podgórze district along the river towards Wawel Castle. It’s such a nice walk with beautiful views. If you’re walking on the south/west bank of the river, you can hop on to the ferris wheel too if you feel like it and enjoy the views of Kraków from above.
It’s a must to indulge in the delicious Polish food when in Kraków. Our favorite foods we tried were pierogi, bigos and oscypek. Pierogi are perhaps the most iconic Polish dish. These dumplings are typically filled with a variety of ingredients such as potato and cheese, meat, and even fruit. Usually, they are boiled, but they can also be baked or fried and typically served with pickled onions. Bigos is known as hunter’s stew and is a hearty and flavorful dish made with sauerkraut, various meats (such as pork, beef, and sausage), mushrooms, and spices. We’d recommend looking for a place where they serve bigos in a bread bowl. It’s very nice with bread and it looks cool. Oscypek is a traditional Polish cheese made from salted sheep’s milk. This smoked cheese has a distinctive spindle shape and is best when it’s grilled. We can highly recommend having oscypek as a snack. We got ours at the Christmas Market, but we also saw a stand in the Galeria Krakowska mall near the entrance to the train station. Make sure to read our blog post in which we share 10 amazing places to eat and drink in Kraków for all our recommendations!
We were in Kraków for three full days and we think it’s the perfect amount of time to take it slow or if you want to go on a day trip to, for instance, Auschwitz. Otherwise, two full days is plenty to see all Kraków’s highlights that we’ve listed before.
The optimal location for accommodation in Kraków would be within the former city walls. However, it’s worth noting that this area is not only the most centrally located but also the priciest and most bustling. If you choose to stay within the old city walls, it’s advisable to do some research. There are several nightclubs and bars that are open late into the night, even on weekdays. In case you’re staying near a nightclub, you might be disturbed in the middle of the night by people leaving the club. It’s something to keep in mind before booking a place in the old town.
We decided to stay at Ibis Budget Stare Miasto, located just outside the historic city walls. The location turned out to be great as the hotel was right next to the main train station, offering direct train connections to the airport, and the Galeria Krakowska mall. It was only a 15-minute walk to Kraków’s main square Rynek Główny. We love Ibis hotels for their great price-quality ratio, and this one didn’t disappoint. The rooms are basic and small, but have everything you need for a short stay. There’s also a “normal” Ibis hotel next to the Budget one. As with many other Ibis hotels, there’s a car park available with reasonable rates, although we didn’t require it this time since we weren’t traveling by car. Click here to book a room at the Ibis Budget Kraków Stare Miasto or the “normal” Ibis Kraków Stare Miasto.
Click here for more accommodation options in Kraków.
We hope you’ve enjoyed our guide to the best things to do in this beautiful city and that our blog post inspired you to visit Kraków. Have you been to Kraków or is it still on your travel bucket list? Let us know in the comments below!
Be sure to check out:
Visiting the Christmas Market in Kraków
]]>Read more:
Visiting the Christmas Market in Kraków
Metrum Restobistro feels like a hidden gem, despite the fact that it’s actually featured in most blog posts about Kraków. It’s a simple café that’s open during the day where you can enjoy breakfast, lunch and drinks. As it’s a self-service place, you have to order at the counter to get your drinks and a timer for the food. The prices are great. We indulged in a big breakfast with two coffees, two scrambled eggs and a chocolate croissant for just €12,50 in total. The food and coffees were really good, but the views are what make Metrum an amazing place. Metrum is located on the sixth floor of a building near Kraków’s main square. Since all buildings in Kraków’s old town are relatively low, you look out on the roofs and churches near you, such as Basylika Mariacka on Rynek Główny and Wawel Castle. There’s an outdoor seating area as well, but since it was cold and covered in snow it was closed during our visit. We can imagine that it’s a perfect spot when the temperatures are nicer. In our opinion, you can’t miss this place when in Kraków.
Even though Fresh Café is worth the same hype as Metrum Restobistro, we accidentally stumbled upon Fresh Café and hadn’t read about it anywhere. Fresh Café is located along the Wisła River at the top floor of the building called Cricoteka, which houses a museum. With floor to ceiling windows, Fresh Café offers beautiful views of the river and the surroundings. It’s also a self-service restaurant serving Italian inspired food for reasonable prices. We enjoyed a focaccia and a hearty winter soup, which were delicious and the huge portions kept us full the entire afternoon. As the sun sets very early in Poland in December, we enjoyed golden hour during lunch time at 14:00 which was very beautiful. Even though Fresh Café is a 30-minute walk from Rynek Główny, it’s very worth the pleasant walk.
Charlotte is a café that serves French breakfast all day, from early in the morning until midnight. As French breakfast is our favorite kind of breakfast, we had to check it out. For less than €6 per person you each get a basket with bread, a croissant, spreads, butter, an egg and coffee or tea. This is less than half the price of a comparable breakfast in France. Besides the affordable price, it was also very delicious. The pieces of bread and croissants tasted just like they do in France. We love that they serve breakfast all day as we could eat a French breakfast any time of the day. They also serve non-breakfast foods such as salads, sandwiches and different kinds of cakes. Charlotte has two locations in Kraków, one in the old town and one in the Kazimierz district. We went to the one in the Kazimierz district as we hoped it wouldn’t be so crowded, and luckily it wasn’t. The location in the old town is often more crowded, especially during lunch time so you might have to wait a bit to catch a table. All in all, we can highly recommend getting a French breakfast at Charlotte.
Camelot Café is a cute place serving a wide variety of food. It was actually hard to choose from their menu. We opted for an omelet and a carrot soup with ginger which were great choices. We really enjoyed the food. Besides great food, we also liked their tea a lot. They serve some kind of winter tea with ginger, orange slices and cardamom and it was so delicious. We’re definitely going to try to get that at home. Since the café isn’t that big, we were lucky to get a table during prime lunch time. They don’t do queues, so if there’s no free table available they send you away. The location of Camelot is very central near Rynek Główny. We loved that the place was decorated for Christmas and there were a few Christmas trees in front of the door which looked so nice. We only have positive things to say about Camelot Café and it’s a no-brainer for food and drinks.
Even though Europejska Café is located right on Rynek Główny, we only discovered it on our second day in Kraków. When walking past this corner of the main square, the Art Nouveau facade drew our attention. Peeking inside, we noticed that it wasn’t only the facade that’s in Art Nouveau style, but the interior is too. As we were on our way to get dinner, we decided to come back the next day for drinks. If you love Art Nouveau, Europejska Café is a must-visit. Be aware that the prices are a lot higher than most places in Kraków. We paid €10 for two teas. If you don’t feel like spending too much but still want to enjoy the ambiance, we’d recommend going there just for drinks.
Hevre is a restaurant in the Kazimierz district. The restaurant is in an old synagogue and the decorations are great with a lot of chandeliers, run down walls (but in a good way!) and carpets. We thought the interior of Hevre looked so cool. We only went there for drinks so we don’t know whether the food is good. At least for drinks it’s a great place to stop by.
When we were exploring the Kazimierz district we walked past Finca Coffee, a small coffee shop and decided to warm up with some tea here. They serve coffee, tea and cakes/cookies. We’re not sure whether they serve food too. We appreciated the Christmas decorations as it added to that festive feel we love in December. All in all, we loved Finca for a coffee or tea break.
Of course we had to try the delicious Polish cuisine while we were in Kraków. Pierogarnia Domowa is a self-service restaurant serving lots of different kinds of Polish dumplings called pierogi, and that is exactly what we had. We had a hard time choosing between all the fillings, but eventually we went for 3 plates of pierogi. One filled with mint, potato and cottage cheese, another filled with spinach and feta cheese, and the last one filled with meat. They were all very good but the filling with mint, potato and cottage cheese was our favorite. Besides pierogi, they serve other typical Polish foods as well, such as bigos (hunter’s stew) and żurek (sour rye soup). In our opinion, Pierogarnia Domowa is a great place to try pierogi. Be aware that it’s like a fast-food kind of restaurant, so don’t expect anything fancy. Pierogarnia Domowa is very centrally located near the main square.
Just like Pierogarnia Domowa, Pierogarnia Krakowiacy is a self-service fast food restaurant serving pierogi and other typical Polish food. Even the interior of Pierogarnia Krakowiacy looks similar to that of Pierogarnia Domowa. A huge difference is that Pierogarnia Krakowiacy has lots of different locations scattered throughout the city, whereas there’s only one Pierogarnia Domowa. The prices are also slightly higher at Pierogarnia Krakowiacy. Here we went with bigos and wild mushroom soup. Both dishes were served in a bread bowl, which we really loved as it’s such a unique way to serve food. The bread bowl, however, was huge so we couldn’t finish it all. Both dishes were delicious and we can highly recommend stopping by Pierogarnia Krakowiacy to try it. Since there are so many locations of Pierogarnia Krakowiacy, there’s always a place near you.
Last but definitely not least, we had dinner at Pod Wawalem. The restaurant is located near Wawel Castle and it drew our attention because of the interior. Even though the place is quite big inside, you might have to wait for a table on the weekends. When we visited on a Tuesday evening we were able to immediately get a table. They have a huge menu serving different kinds of food from the region and a lot of meat. There are some options for vegetarians though. The service is very fast. We went for a wiener schnitzel (which is obviously not Polish) and a potato pancake with wild mushrooms. Unfortunately, the wiener schnitzel was a bit dry, but the potato pancake was heavenly. The portions here are huge. We could barely finish our food and when we looked around we noticed that a lot of people had even bigger plates of food. They can wrap up your leftovers in a takeaway bag so you don’t have to spoil the food in case you can’t eat it all. We would recommend this place, mostly for its delicious potato pancakes.
We hope we made choosing a place to eat or drink in Kraków a bit easier for you with this blog post. Have you been to Kraków or is it still on your travel bucket list? Let us know in the comments below!
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Visiting the Christmas Market in Kraków
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Visiting the Christmas Market in Kraków
As mentioned before, Rynek Główny is Kraków’s main square and is located in the heart of the old town. There are multiple sightseeing spots on Rynek Główny, such as the Bazylika Mariacka, or Saint Mary’s Basilica. This church with its two asymmetrical towers is a true eye-catcher on the square. The church dates back to the 14th century and is built in Polish Gothic architectural style. In December, there’s a Christmas tree in front of the Saint Mary’s Basilica, so you can take a festive photo.
The building of the Sukiennice, or Cloth Hall in English, stands in the heart of the main square and is a historical market building dating back to the 15th century. During Kraków’s golden age in the 15th century, the Sukiennice was a major center of international trade. The market building is surrounded by an arch gallery which is a perfect spot for taking photos. Currently, there are still shops in the stalls inside the building, mostly selling souvenirs for tourists. Don’t forget to take a peek inside once you’re done taking photos.
You can also frame the arches of the gallery of the Cloth Hall around the Saint Mary’s Basilica church, creating an interesting depth of field.
From the end of November until the new year, there’s a Christmas Market at Rynek Główny. It’s the biggest Christmas Market in Kraków and you can find a large variety of stalls selling different kinds of goods, such as Christmas ornaments, souvenirs, toys, candy and Polish foods. We can highly recommend doing some souvenir shopping here for friends and family as well as trying delicious Polish food, such as pierogi (Polish dumplings), oscypek (grilled sheep’s cheese) and bigos (hunter’s stew). Besides being a fun place to stroll around, the Christmas Market stalls also offer a great backdrop for a photo!
The Barbakan is one of the few remaining defensive barriers that once encircled the royal city of Kraków. The Barbakan is built in Gothic style and dates back to 1498. It was once linked to the nearby city walls. Usually, you can go inside the Barbakan and tour the premises but unfortunately for us, the Barbakan was closed when we were in Kraków. We think it’s a great spot for a photo as it looks a bit like a castle with the Gothic towers.
The old town of Kraków used to be surrounded by city walls. Unfortunately, large parts of the city walls aren’t there anymore. Nowadays, the old town of Kraków is surrounded by a peaceful and beautifully landscaped park called Planty. We actually enjoyed strolling through Planty a lot. It was especially beautiful to see the park covered in a layer of snow. However, we can imagine that it’s a beautiful park in any season. You can find plenty of beautiful spots in Planty to take photos. We found this spot next to the pond across the Barbakan. However, because of the snow you can’t really tell it’s a pond.
Kazimierz is a district in Kraków, just south of the old town. The northeastern part of Kazimierz used to be a Jewish district from 1495 until 1800 and was separated by fences and a stone wall from the rest of Kazimierz. Because of WWII there aren’t many Jewish people living in Kazimierz anymore. Currently, Kazimierz is a trendy district with an urban feel, but you can still find some remnants of the Jewish history, such as synagogues and Jewish restaurants. We think the vintage signs in front of the Holcer bar are a perfect backdrop for a photo.
Sanktuarium Świętego Józefa, or Saint Joseph’s Church, is located just south of the Wisla River. This huge cathedral is built in the style of Gothic Revival and dates back to the beginning of the 20th century. It’s a 35-minute walk from Rynek Główny to get to this cathedral or 15 minutes from Kazimierz. We think it’s very much worth the pleasant walk as it’s such a beautiful cathedral and a beautiful spot for photos.
The square in front of the Saint Joseph’s Church is called Rynek Podgórski. We don’t think there usually is anything special about this square, except for the cathedral. However, in December, there are a few light installations and there’s a Christmas tree on the square. We just love taking photos with beautifully decorated Christmas trees as they are a must on your Instagram feed in December. So, if you’re in Kraków in December and you’re making your way to the Saint Joseph’s Church, make sure to take a photo of the Christmas tree and the light installations too!
We hope we’ve inspired you to visit Kraków with these Instagrammable places. Have you been to Kraków or is it still on your travel bucket list? Let us know in the comments below!
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Visiting the Christmas Market in Kraków
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