Krakow boasts of having over 400 bars and clubs concentrated in the Main Market and neighbouring Kazimierz district area. I doubt anyone has really counted them, but 1 thing is sure- there is an abundance of pubs, clubs & restaurants in Krakow. It seems like Krakow is never asleep – the bars have no official closing times, meaning that what you can call an after party venue in the other cities, is a standard venue in this city. Specialist companies provide well organised Krakow pub crawl tours, as well as beer and vodka tasting activities plus cocktail making events (you might want to check their offer especially if you’re planning a Krakow stag do). That said organised tours are “an extra” thing, and you can try exploring Krakow nightlife on your own. Have a look below for my suggestions
Krakow Main Market Area:
Mr. Vavelsky Chillout Garden Bar& Cellar Pub–
If you need a relaxing moment from Krakow’s busy square area this place is a must. It’s divided into cellar karaoke dragon themed bar and the ruin bar style courtyard garden. So if you prefer something a little more lively hit the “dragon’s den” or visit the garden bar for a peaceful & well-earned rest from the day’s activities
Baroque- plush and elegant surroundings while you’re sipping on a cocktail sounds good to you ? If yes, then this bar should definitely on your list. The venue is located just off the Square is Jana street. They also serve some “comfort food” there.
Mercy Brown– probably Krakow’s 1st (but not the only 1) speakeasy bar, famous for fancy cocktails & burlesque shows. To find it it’s a bit of a riddle to solve as this bar does not display its name in the sense that there are no signs for it, but a small clue is it’s just off the Planty park, almost opposite the Jagiellonian University Collegium Novum building. The bartenders love showing off their skills and good luck in finding this ‘hidden’ bar, it’s worth it.
When it comes to nightclubs, Krakow’s pool of venues is also immense – from intimate cellar clubs to ‘no shorts allowed’ stylish venues. This city has it all- music from all genres and periods of time throughout the decades. A couple or recommended places:
Shine- a very well-known and popular glitzy club with all modern décor and 3 function rooms, so, grab yourself a VIP reservation. Up to 2000 people can party at this venue at a time- it’s massive, it’s flashy
Coco Dance Club – one of the oldest but still one of the best nightclubs in Krakow. This club holds a lot of events and special feature nights, great atmosphere & service. 2 dance floors, VIP area, professional selection on the entry. top club to pass a night away dancing to all your favourite mixes of the moment. The club offers personal service with reserved booths for your group and often has celebrity DJs.
Teatro Cubano- a super popular Latino vibe but not only, lots of chill out places and situated just of the main square in Jagiellonska street.
Prozak- one of Krakow’s most iconic & cult dance club, everybody knows Prozak.
Let’s move on to the other popular region of Krakow, Kazimierz, the Jewish quarter which has a surprisingly large amount of exciting venues for you to discover.
Le Scandale in Plac Nowy is a modern minimalist styled bar dedicated to themes of Caribbean tastes, Cuban rum &cocktails. Many different chill out areas in this sleek and spacious cocktail venue which also has a fantastic menu choice.
Sababa– also situated in the historic Jewish quarter, invokes a Middle Eastern atmosphere and unusually on the 1st floor of a town house but nonetheless it specialises in classical cocktails using exotic ingredients enhancing this Middle Eastern theme.
Klub Kabaret – rather than being a typical cellar style bar of which there are so many in Krakow, Klub Kabaret is on the ground floor, and the decor has an old fashioned interwar style. There is a curtained stage for live music and cabaret acts, the huge dance floor has balconies overlooking it. Klub Cabaret is well known for its concerts, burlesque, dance courses and theatre performances, this really is a unique place with a lot of charm which should definitely be near the top of any to visit list.
Pub Omerta – gives you that gangster Mafia setting and décor, however, the choice of local and internationally brewed beers is immense, a cool place to hang out.
Kolanko 6 has a beautiful garden area with an atmosphere of escapism, leave it all behind in Kolenka 6 with an excellent vegetarian menu and soothing music.
Artefakt Café is an oldeworlde style bar with concerts, open mic and quite hip. The 2 floors share separate themes of a bookish and theatre natureand major sporting events are transmitted plus a healthy selection of beers both local and national.
Klub Piekny Pies is another stalwart and cult pub of Krakow, the indie style music sits well with the clientele and is always one of the last places to close.
Pub Singer is not what you would expect as there are no singers in this wood, wooden adorned lively pub as the tables are actually Singer sewing machine tables! Singer is one of the oldest pubs in Kazimierz and usually attracts buoyant punters well into the night.
If you looking for the local live music scene then there are a wide variety of live music venues in Krakow which offer jazz, rock & cover bands. Many smaller bars & cafes prefer live acoustic music, however, there are a variety of venues to suit a wide range of tastes plus Open Mic Nights are very popular should you wish to show off your own musical talent.
