Bochnia, located on the river Raba at the border of the Carpathian Foothills and Sanndomierz Basin, is the oldest town in Lesser Poland. As a result of the discovery of rock salt here, in 1248, Bochnia was granted town privileges 4 years before Krakow.
Bochnia Salt Mine is one of the region’s main tourist attractions, and, until the fairly recent cessation of full-scale mining, the oldest continually operating mining facility in Europe. Therefore, it is of no surprise that the mine appears on the UNESCO World Heritage List. The crucial role that Bochnia mine used to play is evidenced by the fact that the Żupy Krakowskie salt mining company, which also owned the younger mine in the nearby town of Wieliczka, generated a third of the royal treasury’s total revenues during the reign of King Casimir the Great.
Today, Bochnia Salt Mine offers visitors several tourist routes and many attractions.
For example, a multimedia exhibition, an underground train ride, a boat ride, educational activities, integration games, as well as many others that are impossible to list in a limited space. You can even spend a night in the mine: there is an enormous bedroom in the Ważyn Chamber that also houses a disco, sports area and more. On the surface you can see a magnificent antique steam engine and a collection of minerals.
A stay in the Ważyn Chamber, the largest man-made underground chamber in Europe, is a great opportunity for you to benefit from the curative microclimate within this historic mine. The finely dispersed mineral particles in the air can alleviate the symptoms of allergy and help to improve the health of people with respiratory tract diseases.
Bochnia today is more than just about salt.
It has the “Arthropoda” Museum of Butterflies, the largest permanent exhibition in Poland, including more than 5,000 specimens from Central Africa, Australia and many islands of far Oceania, North, Central and South America, Europe, Asia, and the Orient.
Art enthusiasts will find it rewarding to visit the gallery of Polish painting at the Stanisław Fischer Museum. This museum is located in the building of a former Dominican monastery, one of Bochnia’s most valuable monuments of architecture, and has 19 thousand exhibits in its archaeological, art, ethnographic, historical and natural departments. Also included are many items of Pope John Paul II memorabilia.
Near the medieval town square stands the majestic Basilica of St. Nicholas, with a miraculous painting of Our Lady of the Rosary. The church also contains the Chapel of St. Kinga, the patron saint of salt miners, referencing the interior of the St. Mary’s Church in Cracow and designed by famous artist Jan Matejko.
Bochnia charms with its copious green areas, and visitors to this mining town are provided with many opportunities for active relaxation.
Here, it is worth mentioning the Historic Saline Park, the Plac Turka park and the Uzbornia Family Park, featuring several kilometres of walking routes, playgrounds, sports fields, and other attractions. On Summer Sunday afternoons, a miners’ band plays at the Gazebo in the Saline Park. Hills with forest complexes, jutting into the town, and close proximity to the Niepołomice Forest, complement the unique character of this green town.
The tourist attractions of the town are connected by the “Na Świecie” Bochnia Salt Route named in honour of St. Kinga, that takes you through the main surface buildings (both extant and the sites of those no longer existing) associated with the many centuries of Bochnia’s salt history.
Bochnia has plenty of accommodation choices and is therefore a perfect starting point for the exploration of the surrounding Bochnia County with its rich variety of architectural and natural features.
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