essential - krakow

Student popular retro style cafe: Brits burst in yelling, pushing through and spilling beer. Café empties quickly.

 

Such scenes, known to Krakowians from a few years before are now seen again, as Krakow has again become a stag party and drunk weekend jaunts’ destination. According to police statistics, emergency calls start as early as Thursday and repeat until Sunday. Interventions include wrestling, littering and noise making. Brits themselves also happened to call police once, but it was to report a missing friend, later found in a drunk tank.

 

- They get blind drunk, mixing all sorts of alcohol they can’t then bare. Hardly anyone of them can behave drunk. April has just started, and we already had to ask one group out – said the manager of one of exclusive restaurants in the Market Square.

 

Some places defend from unwanted clientage by not letting them in, some call police immediately, yet due to last year’s crisis, flood and bad weather, not many of them can actually afford it. This year's weather is however not as attractive as currency exchange rates and stable EU economical situation. – Krakow is again a destination for the British, French, Germans and Spaniards. Americans and Australians stop in Krakow on their European trips. This year will definitely be better for tourist business due to beatification of John Paul II – said Wacław Walicki, head of Krakow Tourism Chamber.

 

Is there a way for noisy and aggressive foreigners in Krakow? When Prague had a similar problem, it was solved with heavy fines. In Krakow the most severe one was 600 PLN (ca. 150 euro). – There should be no understanding for law violators, foreigners or not. Krakow can’t be perceived as city of cheap drinks. Let’s just remember that misconducting foreigners are just a small number of all visitors to Krakow – said Filip Szatanik, information director of the city office. City guards and police agree with city’s policy: order disturbance will be fined.