A Miracle from the Rubble: Warsaw Old Town Walking Tour
Buy for a Group
Reviews
About the Tour
About the Tour
Warsaw’s magnificent Old Town has a turbulent and colourful history. Its beautiful buildings and atmospheric lanes were nearly lost forever when the city was reduced to rubble during World War II. On this walking tour I’ll bring the past back to life, much like the area’s inhabitants did as, piece by piece and stone by stone, they combed through the rubble to salvage what they could so Poland could miraculously replicate the Old Town using old photographs, original building plans, and even paintings of Warsaw street scenes by the famous Italian artist, Canaletto.
Our tour begins in the often-lively Castle Square, in front of its imposing Royal Castle. From there, I’ll show you some of the Old Town fortifications. You’ll hear how this renowned part of the city, with its regal elegance, was repeatedly threatened by jealous rival powers that coveted Poland’s wealth. I’ll show you statues of Jan Kiliński, a shoemaker who opposed the Russian invasion in the second half of the 1700s, and Mały Powstaniec (the Little Insurgent), which honours child soldiers who resisted Nazi occupation. You’ll also hear about the darkest period of the Old Town’s history, when Nazi Germany systematically demolished its infrastructure as the Germans tried to eliminate the Polish nation.
We’ll enter the Old Town through its imposing Barbican gate and weave through its lanes and squares. Inside, I won’t just show you the most obvious sites. You’ll go down back lanes and check out corners where you’ll hear the stories and see the sites which visitors can all too easily miss. These include:
- The building known as Dom Kata, where the city executioner once lived before it was ironically repurposed as a doctor’s residence
- Szeroki Dunaj Street, named after the Danube stream (Warsaw’s smaller version of the greater European river) and housed a heaving market
- The legend of a heartbroken prince trapped inside the statue of a bear
- St Martin’s Church, where a hunger strike against Communist oppression inspired Lech Wałęsa to form the Polish Solidarity Trade Union movement
- Beer street, or Ulica Piwna, where one woman melted a war-torn nation’s heart through her love for the Old Town’s birds
Along the way, you’ll get answers to questions like:
- Which parts of St Anna House – an Old Town building that has remained intact for more than 600 years – have been renovated?
- What was the gruesome fate suffered by Michał Piekarski after he tried to assassinate King Sigismund III?
- Where can you find the caterpillar tread of a tank that once burst through a cathedral's wall, a motif of a lion, and other colourful, quirky details that most people would miss?
- How can the bell in Kanonia Lane make your wishes come true?
On this 75-minute stroll, I’ll share the dramatic tale of how the Old Town has repeatedly flourished and fallen as it encountered dukes, kings, warriors, Nazis and Communists in its long history. It has always fought back and today stands more beautiful than ever, a time capsule filled with history, legends and inspiring artefacts.
Tour Producer
Tour Producer
James Cowan
I love creating audio tours of cities which lie close to my heart in the hope that others will share my love and passion.
I wrote my first audio tour of Cardiff, Wales in 2018. I grew up with Cardiff on my doorstep and lived there most of my adult life. Discovering its incredible but still largely unknown history became an ever-growing passion. This led me to develop walking tours and telling people the history, legends and ghost stories of Cardiff and Wales – tales of Kings, Princes, and a one-time tiny town on the Taff that overnight become the world’s biggest coal port, from which emerged the grand domes, towers and columns of its beautiful civic centre….and all the time, in its woodlands and castles lurk ancient legends and tales of ghosts!
I am delighted that, thanks to VoiceMap, I have been able to convert some of these tours into self-guided audio tours.
Since 2019 I have had a new home, Copenhagen, and I have fallen in love with this city. Discovering its history, its character, and its characters past and present, has been an all-consuming pleasure, always full of surprises. In 2021 I was delighted to offer my first Copenhagen audio tour, which was a labour of love to research and develop, as a prelude to more Copenhagen tours following in 2022 and 2023.
In 2023 I was very excited to introduce my first ever audio tour in Poland, of Warsaw’s beautiful Old Town. I have been fascinated and deeply moved by Polish history since childhood, and as an adult I have been spellbound by the beauty of its cities, and awe struck by the resilience and determination of the Polish character despite everything the country has experienced.
In 2025 I published a series of audio tours of Łódź! I hope that my tours of Łódź shed new light on this striking, exciting, and much underrated city! Moreover, I hope that my audiotour of the site of the Łódź Ghetto serves as a powerful informational and educational tool, shedding light on the city's darkest chapter. Indeed, I hope all my Polish audio tours convey my admiration and respect for the country's history and culture.
Preview Location
Preview Location
Location 21
Castle Square and The Royal Castle
If you are here on a sunny day, a weekend, or a holiday, it is almost certainly filled with activity: crowds, buskers, maybe a protest here or there, and the inevitable balloon seller!
Th... Read More
View locations and route
How VoiceMap Works
Major Landmarks
Major Landmarks
-
plac Zamkowy
-
The Royal Castle in Warsaw
-
Jan Kiliński Monument
-
Sigismund's Clock
-
Mały Powstaniec
-
Warsaw Barbican
-
Zabytkowy zdrój
-
Under St. Anna Tenement House
-
Museum of Warsaw
-
Pomnik Syrenki
-
Rynek Starego Miasta
-
Adam Mickiewicz Museum of Literature
-
Kamienica Pod Lwem
-
jezuicki niedźwiedź przy kościele MB Łaskawej
-
Archcathedral Basilica of St. John the Baptist
-
St Martin's Church
-
The Wishing Bell
-
Dung Hill Lookout Point
Getting There
Getting There
Route Overview
-
Start locationplac Zamkowy 4, 00-277 Warszawa, Poland
-
Total distance1km
-
Final locationbulwar Karskiego, Warszawa, Poland
-
Distance back to start location261.44m
Directions to Starting Point
The tour begins right in front of the Royal Castle, in Castle Square, Warsaw.
The Old Town is such an important attraction in Warsaw that there are many routes and ways to get there, depending on where in the city you are starting from.
From Warsaw Central Railway Station it takes approximately 40 minutes to walk to the tour starting point by walking along the main roads of al. Jerozolimskie, Marszałkowska, through the Saxon Garden (Ogród Saski) and finally Krakowskie Przedmieście (the “royal route” which brings you right into Castle Square).
If using public transport from the Central Station then the easiest option is to take the tram line 4 which goes direct to the Old Town. Leave the Central Station via the main front entrance and walk straight ahead for about 5 minutes until you arrive at the large roundabout connecting the major roads al. Jerozolimskie and Marszałkowska. You will need the tram 4 service which terminates at “Żerań Wschodni“ and which runs from right to left along Marszałkowska as you approach it from the station. You need to get off after 4 stops, at the stop called “Stare Miasto” (Old Town).
Show Directions
Tips
Tips
Places to stop along the way
There are lots of cafes and bars throughout the Old Town where you can find lots of choices to eat and drink to suit your tastes and budget. If you want to try something a little special, and traditionally Polish, then I highly recommend U Fukiera
in the Market Square (address: Rynek Starego Miasta 27). It is an award winning restaurant serving lunch and dinner, with beautifully atmospheric decoration, excellent attention to service, while being delightfully relaxed and informal. It has strong links with Poland's celebrity chef Magda Gessler, and has been visited by royalty and celebrities. It was featured in the BBC series Great Continental Railway Journeys
. You can eat either indoors or outdoors, on the square.
Muzeum Warszawy is an excellent complement to this tour. It takes up an entire row of buildings on the Market Square and has many exhibitions detailing the history of the city of Warsaw, with a particular focus on the Old Town as you wander along a marked route. There is an admission charge. Please note that it is closed Mondays.
Another excellent complement to this tour is the special permanent exhibition on the restoration of the Old Town. It contains good visual displays. Address: 11/13 Brzozowa Street. There is a small admission charge. Please note that it is closed Mondays.
The three religious sites we stop at (The Jesuit Church, The Archcathedral, and St Martin's Church) on the tour are free to enter during the daytime, when there is not a service taking place.
The Royal Castle is highly recommended. It's interiors are beautiful and as you wander around you learn about how it was restored, as well as about its long history.
Best time of day
The tour can be done at any time of day as the lanes and squares are always open. However, at peak holiday times, or weekends, the lanes can get quite crowded. Therefore, a mid-morning start is recommended, which should mean you finish at around lunchtime, in good time to enjoy a snack or lunch at one of the many cafes, restaurants or bars dotted throughout the Old Town, as well as in its heart, of Market Square.
Please note that the two museums referred to on the tour are closed on Mondays.
Regretfully, the nature of the old town route and its cobbled surface mean that this route is not wheelchair accessible.
Precautions
Warsaw, and The Old Town, are generally safe places to wander. However, as with all crowded tourist venues, common sense should be used to look after wallets, purses, handbags etc. and to guard against pick pockets. In the summer months the Old Town is popular in the evening which might make for a pleasant experience if you take the tour at this time. However, it is not recommended that you take the tour late at night, as the route involves some quiet lanes and alleyways which may feel unsafe even if there is no actual danger. Besides most restaurants and cafes will be closed at this time, although bars and clubs will be open. It is reported that crime in Warsaw is generally low and not aimed at tourists.
Get The App
Get The App
Last Updated
Last Updated
Questions and Reviews
Questions and Reviews
