Tarnow: what to see, where to stay and how to get around

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Tarnów belonged to the Tarnowski family, and in the 16th century Hetman Jan Tarnowski, the greatest Polish general of his day, turned it into an Italian-style town with Italian artists to match. That is why it is called the Pearl of the Renaissance. The old town sits on a ridge, compact and easy on foot, and it is also one of the warmest places in Poland. About two hours, with the castle hill as a drive at the end.

A short history of Tarnow

Tarnów received town rights in 1330 and was the town of the Tarnowski family, who left their splendid tombs in the cathedral. The town has a rich Jewish past: before the Second World War Jews made up nearly half of its residents, and all that remains of the old synagogue is the bimah, which stands in the open air. On 14 June 1940 the first transport of Polish prisoners to Auschwitz left from Tarnów railway station. Most of the Jewish community was murdered in 1942 and 1943. The town centre has kept its medieval square, and today about 105,000 people live here.

The ten best sights in Tarnow

1
Market Square and Town Hall
Look up at the Renaissance parapet and its grotesque masks; the regional museum is inside
2
Tarnów Cathedral
Go in for the Tarnowski tombs on the chancel wall, among the grandest of the Polish Renaissance
3
Mikołajowski House
The oldest house in town, behind the cathedral; part of the diocesan museum
4
Diocesan Museum
Gothic altarpieces and folk paintings on glass; an hour well spent
5
Old Synagogue Bimah
Four brick pillars under a small roof, a block east of the square — all that is left of the synagogue
6
Old Mikvah and First Transport Memorial
The ritual bath building, and the monument to the first prisoners sent to Auschwitz
7
Jewish Cemetery
A large old cemetery north-east of the centre; the key is held locally, so arrange a visit ahead
8
Ethnographic Museum
Its exhibition on the history of the Roma is the reason to come, with painted wagons in the garden
9
Bem Mausoleum
A sarcophagus on columns over a pond in Strzelecki Park; ten minutes' walk north
10
Tarnowski Castle Ruins
On St Martin's Hill south of town; a short climb and a view over the city

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Tours in Tarnow →

A guide in your headphones: open the walk on our site, walk from stop to stop, and at each one your phone tells its story. No guide, no group, and free. This is the first walk in Tarnow:

Free walking tours in Tarnow

The Pearl of the Renaissance

Town Hall · The Gothic town hall was remodelled in the 16th century, probably by the Italian Giovanni Maria Padovano, with a parapet of grotesque masks. The masks have become the town's mascot: a trail of modern bronze ones is scattered around the old town.
Mikołajowski House · The date 1524 carved on its doorway makes this the oldest house in Tarnów. It now belongs to the diocesan museum next door.
Diocesan Museum · Founded in 1888, it is the oldest diocesan museum in Poland. It gathered Gothic altarpieces and sculpture from the village churches of the region before they could be lost or sold.
Tarnów Cathedral · Padovano carved the tomb of Hetman Jan Tarnowski and his son here, a monument almost 14 metres tall that fills the chancel wall. Tarnowski is remembered for his victory over the Moldavians at Obertyn in 1531.
Bem Mausoleum · General Józef Bem, born in Tarnów, led the Hungarian army in Transylvania in 1849, then went into Ottoman service as Murad Pasha and died in Aleppo in 1850. His remains came home in 1929 to this sarcophagus on six columns, and Hungarians still come to lay flowers.
Tarnowski Castle Ruins · The Tarnowski family built their castle on St Martin's Hill in the 14th century and named the town after themselves. After the line died out the castle was abandoned, and by the 18th century it was a ruin.

Jewish Tarnów

Before the war almost half of Tarnów was Jewish, some 25,000 people, with dozens of prayer houses in the streets east of the square. The Germans burned the synagogues in November 1939, and in June 1942 they began the murder of the community, in the streets, at the cemetery and on trains to Bełżec. The walk is short, under two hours, but it is not easy; the cemetery visit has to be arranged in advance.

Market Square · Jewish shops lined much of the square and the streets running east from it, toward Żydowska Street. In Yiddish the town was Tarne, and its people were tailors, merchants and Hasidim of many courts.
Old Synagogue Bimah · This was the oldest synagogue in Tarnów. When the Germans set it on fire in November 1939 the walls fell, but the solid brick bimah in the centre held. It stands alone in the square, under a roof added later, as the town's memorial to its Jews.
Old Mikvah and First Transport Memorial · In June 1940 the Germans held Polish political prisoners in this ritual bath building, and on 14 June 728 of them were marched to the station and sent to the new camp at Auschwitz — its first transport. Among them were some Jews.
Jewish Cemetery · The cemetery dates back to the 16th century and still holds thousands of tombstones. In June 1942 the Germans shot thousands of Jews here, and a broken column inside marks their mass grave.
Ethnographic Museum · The Roma were murdered in the war too, and this museum keeps a rare permanent exhibition on their history. Every summer since 1996 the Roma Caravan of Memory sets out from here to the sites where Roma were killed.
Tarnów Station · The first transport to Auschwitz left from this station on 14 June 1940, Two years later the Jews of Tarnów were deported by rail to the Bełżec death camp.

Painted cottages, rocks and music

The countryside around Tarnów is gentle farmland running up to the first hills of the Carpathian foothills. To the north is a village where women paint their houses with flowers; to the west a Gothic castle and the manor of Poland's best-known modern composer; to the south a forest of sandstone towers. This is a full day by car in a loop, or pieces of it on the way in from Baranów and on the way out to Kraków.

Zalipie Painters' House · Women in Zalipie began painting flowers on their cottages in the late 19th century, at first to cover the soot from stoves without chimneys. Since 1948 the village has held a Painted Cottage contest every year, just after Corpus Christi.
Felicja Curyłowa Farmstead · Felicja Curyłowa was the best-known of the Zalipie painters, and she covered her house, barn and even the well with flowers. After her death in 1974 her farm became a museum, kept just as she painted it.
Dębno Castle · Jakub Dębiński, a royal official, built this compact brick castle in the 1470s and 1480s around a small courtyard. It was a home rather than a fortress, and it has come down almost unchanged; a branch of the Tarnów museum is inside.
Penderecki Centre for Music, Lusławice · Krzysztof Penderecki, whose Threnody to the Victims of Hiroshima made him famous in 1960, lived in a manor here and planted a huge arboretum around it. The music centre next door opened in 2013 to train young musicians.
Petrified City, Ciężkowice · The towers are sandstone, laid down on the floor of a sea and then carved by wind and water into shapes that people named for what they saw — the best known is the Witch. Local legend says they are a town turned to stone.
Sanguszko Palace, Gumniska · From the 18th century the Sanguszko princes owned Tarnów. Prince Roman Sanguszko fought in the uprising of 1831 and was marched to Siberia in chains; Joseph Conrad told his story in Prince Roman.

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Getting to Tarnow and getting around

Tarnów Station · A grand restored station from the early 1900s; trains to Kraków in about an hour
Tarnów Bus Station · Next to the railway station; buses to the surrounding towns and villages

Cheap eats in Tarnow

Tarnów is a small city with a student crowd, so the streets around the square are full of cheap lunch: Polish bistros, zapiekanki and bakeries. There is even a Georgian bakery with khachapuri, if you miss Batumi. Prices are lower than in Kraków, an hour away.

Tandyr House Georgian Bakery · Khachapuri and Georgian bread from a clay oven, about 15-30 zł
Pyza · Polish and regional dishes near the bimah, about 30-45 zł
Tarnowskie Zapiekanki & Breakfast · Zapiekanka and breakfast plates, about 15-25 zł
Bistro Przepis · Lunch of the day off the square, about 30-40 zł
Paweł i Gaweł · Bakery near the old Jewish quarter, rolls and cakes about 3-10 zł
Lodove · Ice cream on the square, a scoop about 6-8 zł

Museums in Tarnow

Town Hall (Regional Museum) · Portraits of the Polish nobility and the town's history
Diocesan Museum · Poland's oldest diocesan museum, beside the cathedral
Ethnographic Museum · The history of the Roma, and wagons in the garden
Dębno Castle Museum · Furnished Gothic rooms in a small brick castle
Felicja Curyłowa Farmstead · The painted farm in Zalipie, now a museum

Nature and day trips near Tarnow

Petrified City, Ciężkowice · Sandstone towers in the woods; about an hour's walk
St Martin's Hill · Forest, the castle ruins and a view over the city
Strzelecki Park · The old town park, with Bem's mausoleum on the pond
Sanguszko Park, Gumniska · Old trees around the princes' palace
Zalipie · Flat farmland and painted cottages north of the city

Holy places in Tarnow

Old Synagogue Bimah · Open to the street at all hours
Old Mikvah · The bath house and the First Transport memorial
Jewish Cemetery · Visits by arrangement; men cover their heads
Tarnów Cathedral · Renaissance tombs of the Tarnowski and Ostrogski families
Bem Mausoleum · A Polish general who died a Muslim pasha, honoured by Hungary

Where to eat in Tarnow

U Jana · Polish food on the Market Square
Różana · Regional and Polish cooking on Batorego Street
Łyżka w miodzie · 'A spoon in honey': dinner north of the square
Sercem i Widelcem · Ukrainian cooking, borscht and varenyky
Browar Tarnowski · Beer by the square for the end of the day
Święty Marcin · Dinner on the square

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Frequently asked questions about Tarnow

What is there to see in Tarnow?

The top sights in Tarnow are Market Square and Town Hall, Tarnów Cathedral and Mikołajowski House. The full list on this page has 10 sights, each with a photo and a short note.

How many days do you need in Tarnow?

Three to four days are enough to see the best of Tarnow without rushing, including at least one walking tour.

Is there a free walking tour in Tarnow?

Yes. sleepntrip has 3 free audio walks in Tarnow, with no guide and no group: your phone tells the story at every stop. The first one: The Pearl of the Renaissance.

How do you get to Tarnow and get around?

The main ways are Tarnów Station and Tarnów Bus Station. Full details are in the transport section on this page.

Where to stay in Tarnow, and for how much?

sleepntrip shows only rooms in Tarnow that meet nine conditions: a good location, high guest scores, cleanliness, and a price of up to $80 a night for two. Pick your dates and see what is free.

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