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ul. Zamkowa 2, Niepołomice
The castle in Niepołomice is sometimes called a second Wawel, and that is no exaggeration – it is one of the finest Renaissance residences in Poland. It was raised in the times of Casimir the Great as a Gothic building and thoroughly remodelled in the Renaissance spirit in the following centuries. It stands in the very centre of the town, next to the market square and the historic promenade, a dozen or so kilometres from Cracow.
For centuries the castle served as a royal leisure residence and a hunting base, used by rulers of the Piast and Jagiellonian dynasties and later by the elective kings. The proximity of the vast Niepołomice Forest made it a natural place for courtly hunts. The Renaissance shape of the complex is owed to Tomasz Grzymała and the Italian sculptor Santi Gucci.
The building was laid out on a quadrangular plan, with a spacious, almost square courtyard surrounded by arcaded cloisters – the most spectacular part of the complex. Inside is the Niepołomice Museum with a rich hunting collection, the works of Włodzimierz Puchalski and deposits from the National Museum. A boutique hotel and a conference centre also operate within the castle walls.
Recitals, concerts, theatre performances and knightly shows are held in the courtyard and the castle halls, so a visit may well coincide with an event. The site is adapted for wheelchair users, and a walk around the area is worth extending towards the Niepołomice Forest.
