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The Christmas tree that adorns the historic market square in Kraków, Poland’s second-largest city, has been named the “most iconic” in the world by Time Out.
Kraków came top in the magazine’s ranking, ahead of second-place Gubbio in Italy – where lights in the shape of a Christmas tree are installed on the slopes of Mount Ingino – and the Rockefeller Center in New York in third. Vilnius, capital of Poland’s neighbour Lithuania, came fourth.
“Kraków teems with Christmassy spirit all throughout December, and it helps that the city’s streets and architecture look just like the background of a Christmas card,” wrote Time Out, referring to the city’s UNESCO-listed Old Town.
“The central square is taken over every year by a charming festive market, the crowning jewel of which is the tree which sits next to the cathedral,” they added.
This year’s Christmas tree was unveiled on Kraków’s medieval market square on 6 December and will remain there until 2 February.
It is decorated with 26,000 energy-saving lights as well as over 1,000 baubles that echo ornaments from tapestries located in Kraków’s historical Wawel Castle, the former seat of Polish monarchs.
The market square also hosts Kraków’s famous Christmas market, which was last year ranked as the best in Europe. Earlier this year, Time Out magazine also rated Kraków’s Zabłocie neighbourhood as one of the “coolest in the world”.
Kraków is Poland’s most popular tourist destination, drawing 12 million visitors in 2023. In that year, it was chosen by British consumer association Which? as Europe’s best city break destination for the fourth time in a row.
Kraków’s Christmas market has been named as Europe’s best in a new ranking.
Two other Polish cities, Wrocław and Poznań, also appeared in the top ten, making Poland the only country to feature three times https://t.co/RfvWknaBGi
— Notes from Poland 🇵🇱 (@notesfrompoland) November 13, 2023
Notes from Poland is run by a small editorial team and published by an independent, non-profit foundation that is funded through donations from our readers. We cannot do what we do without your support.
Main image credit: Jakub Wlodek / Agencja Wyborcza.pl
Daniel Tilles is editor-in-chief of Notes from Poland. He has written on Polish affairs for a wide range of publications, including Foreign Policy, POLITICO Europe, EUobserver and Dziennik Gazeta Prawna.
