Kraków Ghetto, Jewish ghetto in Podgórze district, Kraków, Poland.
This former enclosed district in the Podgórze neighborhood was where Jewish residents of the city were forced to live during World War II. The area covered roughly 15 streets and was separated from the rest of the city by high stone walls topped with curved shapes, with entry permitted only through guarded gates.
German authorities created this enclosed district on March 21, 1941, forcing around 15,000 Jewish people to leave their homes and move into the Podgórze neighborhood. In March 1943, the area was liquidated, with inhabitants either deported to labor camps or killed on site.
Sections of the original wall still stand in courtyards and along streets, where visitors can walk and touch the stone surfaces that once enclosed the district. The square now serves as a space where people pause to remember, surrounded by buildings that witnessed the daily life of those who lived here under occupation.
Plac Bohaterów Getta lies at the heart of the former district and is easy to reach on foot, as the streets are flat and walkable. A visit to the Pharmacy Under the Eagle on the square offers deeper insight into the period through displayed documents and objects.
On Plac Bohaterów Getta, 70 empty metal chairs are scattered across the square, recalling the furniture left behind by deported families. After dark, the chairs are lit from within, creating a scene that many visitors find unexpectedly moving.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 60,000 contributors worldwide.
