Lublin walking tour & city guide

The old town

The Krakowska Gate leads into the old town, centered on the Crown Tribunal building. Narrow streets and passages are full of cafés.

The castle

Lublin Castle houses the Chapel of the Holy Trinity, with unique Byzantine-Ruthenian frescoes. Majdanek, a former concentration camp, is a memorial on the edge of the city.

A day in Lublin

Enter the old town through the Kraków Gate and wander its narrow streets and squares, then visit the castle, whose Chapel of the Holy Trinity has Byzantine-style frescoes. The underground route under the old town tells the city's history.

In the evening, the cafés around the Market Square are lively with students.

Good to know

Lublin is a major university city in eastern Poland. The Majdanek memorial is on the edge of the city.

Try cebularz, a flat bread topped with onion and poppy seeds.

Why it is worth the trip

Lublin's old town is one of the most charming in Poland but sees far fewer visitors than Kraków, which makes it relaxed and affordable. Its history reflects a meeting point of cultures: the 1569 Union of Lublin joined Poland and Lithuania, and for centuries the city had a large Jewish community, remembered at the Grodzka Gate theater center.

In summer, festivals like the Carnival of Sorcerers fill the old town with street performers, jugglers and tightrope walkers. The castle's chapel frescoes, painted in 1418 in Byzantine-Ruthenian style, are a unique blend of Eastern and Western art and one of the treasures of Polish heritage.