St Mary's Basilica tickets: 20 PLN, sold only at the visitor office on the day, with the altar opening at 11:50 and 14:10 on Sundays

💡 The Short Version: The basilica charges 20 PLN (about £4), sold only at the visitor office at Plac Mariacki 7, on the day. It opens to visitors at 11:30 (14:00 on Sundays and holidays), and the Veit Stoss altar opens at 11:50 (14:10 on Sundays). The tower is a separate 20 PLN ticket, same-day only, with no children under 7, and it can close in bad weather. The basilica sells no tickets in advance, and it is not on the Kraków Card. There is no basilica ticket on GetYourGuide. Or book a tour: the Old Town walking tourad (from £14, 2.5 hours) starts from the square.

The tickets, compared

Prices are from the basilica’s visiting page and its tower page, at about 5.15 PLN to the pound. The operator is mariacki.com. A website that sells “St Mary’s tickets” in advance is a reseller, and one states on its own page that it is not the official site.

• Reduced for the basilica: pupils aged 7 to 18, students aged 19 to 26, and seniors aged 65 and over.
• Reduced for the tower: children aged 7 to 18, international students aged 19 to 26, and seniors aged 65 and over.
• Both tickets are sold at the visitor desk only, at Plac Mariacki 7, on the day of the visit. There is no advance booking for either.
• The Kraków Card does not cover the basilica.

How to buy

• The visitor service desk: Plac Mariacki 7. It closes 15 minutes before the end of visiting hours.
• The tower: buy the same-day ticket at the same desk. The number of tickets is limited.
• The entrance: visitors use the south door. The main door from the square leads to the area for prayer, and the basilica asks tourists not to use it.

Tours worth paying for

The basilica has no ticket on GetYourGuide, so there is nothing to buy here ahead of the desk. The walking tours below start on the Main Market Square and run past it. Prices are GetYourGuide’s lowest “from” prices, per person.

The Old Town walking tour

From £14 · 4.8 stars from 1,050 reviews · 2.5 hours

Krakow: The Old Town Walking Tourad is a guided walk through the Old Town that starts at the square.

The Old Town and Wawel walking tour

From £20 · 4.8 stars from 838 reviews · 2.5 hours

Kraków: Old Town & Wawel Castle Walking Tour in Englishad adds Wawel Castle to the Old Town. Wawel’s own tickets are separate: see Wawel Castle tickets.

The two towers of St Mary’s Basilica, beside the dome of St Adalbert’s Church. Photo: Scotch Mist, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.

What to see

The basilica is a working church, and visitors tour only part of it, in silence.

1. The altar. The altar of the Dormition of the Mother of God was carved by Veit Stoss from 1477 to 1489, in oak, larch and linden. It has five wings, and the central group shows the Dormition of the Virgin among the apostles, with the Assumption above and the Coronation of the Virgin at the top. Go for the opening at 11:50, or 14:10 on Sundays.
2. The presbytery and the chapels. Visitors see the chancel, the front of the nave and the chapels.
3. The tower and the hejnał. The north tower is 82 m high, and the bugle call is played from it every hour at a height of 54 m. The call stops mid-note, in memory of the bugler shot through the throat by an arrow in the legend. The south tower is 69 m high and holds the bells.

The Veit Stoss altarpiece in St Mary’s Basilica. Photo: Hans A. Rosbach, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0.

What to skip: the tower, if stairs are a problem or you have a child under 7. The altar is the sight, and it is on the 20 PLN basilica ticket.

Hours, rules and getting there

• The altar on some Sundays and feast days stays open during the liturgy, with no opening ceremony.
• The tower: tours run every 25 minutes from 11:05 to 17:30, in groups of up to 15. The entrance is from Floriańska Street.
• Silence: visitors are asked to stay silent and follow the basilica’s rules.
• Getting there: the basilica is on the Main Market Square, with its visitor office at Plac Mariacki 7.

The Rynek Underground and the Cloth Hall are in the same square, and the Main Market Square guide covers every sight round it. Wawel Castle is a 10-minute walk away. The basilica is not on the Kraków Card. For the rest of the city’s bookings, see what to book before you go to Kraków. 3 days in Kraków and Kraków in one day fit the Sunday and weekday opening times into a plan. To sleep nearby, hotels near the Main Market Square lists the hotels beside it, and where to eat in Kraków lists places to eat. Chopin concerts in Kraków and Kraków walking tours cover the evening and the Old Town on foot.