Description: Wawel is a fascinating area of Krakow and you may get lost amongst all the kings, wars and borders, but its majesty and beauty speak for itself. You can just take a stroll or look at all the exhibits which could easily take up to 4 hours.
One attraction I really recommend is Smocza Jama or otherwise known as the Dragon's Den. If you walk between Baszta Zlodziejska (Thieves Tower) and the Austro Hungarian hospital which has been turned into a very posh restaurant, you come to a triangular platform, overlooking the River Wisla. At its point is a bartizan over a dried up well. In high season (May to October), you are allowed to descend by stairs inside the well into the Dragon's Den.
There are 135 steps winding down from the level of Wawel Castle Courtyard, but the exit is near the river. I recommend you save this site until the end of a visit to Wawel unless you intend to climb back up the hill.
Although the 50 metre tourist track through this small hole in the limestone cave is well lit and the path is smooth, the most interesting features are unmarked. Near the beginning, a grille set into the right hand wall stops tourists from wandering another 80 metres into the hill, since the cave is underwater in places.
Further along, a mysterious human burial from the 17th century was discovered. At that time the cave served as a wine cellar for a boisterous bordello and it is possible that the body was buried here to avoid inconvenient and awkward questions from the authorities after a brawl.
The final section of the cave shows the 18th century brickwork of the fortifications designed by Kosciuszko. Just outside the den is the dragon himself in the form of a sculpture by Bronislaw Chromy (1963). In the summer months, a gas jet inside the dragon's mouth bursts into a deep orange flame once every minute.
Opening times: Beginning of May to the end of October, daily from 10am until 5pm.
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