What to visit in Wroclaw with children - advice for active families.
Wroclaw is a meeting place - a place eagerly visited by tourists from all over the world.
During the holiday season, families with children often come to visit Wroclaw. In today's blog, we present suggestions for active recreation in our beautiful city, hoping to convince you that visiting Wroclaw with children is possible.
Undoubtedly, the attractions of Wroclaw in recent years include:
The Africarium is a huge building from 2014, part of the Wroclaw Zoo and the only oceanarium in Poland. The name, which was created from the combination of the two words Africa and aquarium, refers to the fact that in Africarium mainly specimens of fauna and flora from the Black Continent were collected.
Several thousand animals are gathered in Africarium and divided according to ecosystems. These include the ecospheres:
- the Red Sea with over 60 species of exotic fish and a coral reef
- East Africa, represented by, among others the Nile hippo
- Mozambique Channel, the greatest attraction with an 18-meter acrylic tunnel
- Skeleton Coasts, where you can meet African penguins
- The jungles on the Congo River with inhabitants, that is with crocodiles and manatees, also called mermaids.
This enormous structure has accumulated as much as 15,000 tons of water, which weighs the same as 100 whales or 3,000 adult elephants. In contrast, about 140 tonnes of salt were needed to produce seawater, which is needed for the salinification of the Red Sea ecosystem.
After visiting the Africarium, it is worth taking a walk around Wroclaw Zoo. It is the oldest facility of this type in Poland, opened in 1865 and the fifth most visited zoo in Europe. Walking among historic pavilions, as well as modern catwalks, you will meet endangered animals from all over the world. During the holiday season, from the beginning of July to the end of September, visitors have the opportunity to also observe the feeding times of individual species.
The Hydropolis - this 'water city' is in the 19th century building of the former clean water reservoir. The reservoir, which almost continuously served the city for over a hundred years, in 2015 gained a second life and became the only facility and knowledge centre devoted to water in Poland.
There are many attractions inside. We especially recommend visiting Wroclaw with children and the Hydropolis in spring and summer. It is then that we can see how the water printer works, which, like a water curtain, invites visitors to the rest of the exhibition.
The interior of the exhibition is divided into 7 thematic zones, as well as a special zone for children and a relaxation area.
A visit to the Hydropolis allows you to find answers to questions such as ‘where do waves come from?’ ‘Is there life in the ocean depths?’ ‘What is glowing in the water?’ ‘How are coral reefs formed?’ You will learn everything about water in an accessible way. There are interactive games for children and adults and over 70 installations, the largest of which is a 60-meter-long panoramic earth model screen.
In this unique water city, you can see a snowstorm in the middle of summer and see how water vapour turns into fire.
Wroclaw dwarfs - when listing the attractions of Wroclaw, it is necessary to remember the smallest inhabitants of our city. Wroclaw dwarfs moved to the city almost 20 years ago and since then, their community has grown steadily. We have over 520 of them in Wroclaw to date and their number is growing constantly. When you look up, you will discover that they are climbing lanterns, sitting on windowsills and even on the balustrades of the highest bridge in the city centre. Of course, we mean the Penitential Bridge, where you will also meet 2 witches accompanied by a cat!
Most dwarfs are afraid of heights, so we usually find them on the ground, close to the buildings they inhabit. Most of the time they are very busy with everyday activities: listening to music, cycling, drinking beer, eating, running, etc. etc. Just like us in our human world.
When visiting Wroclaw with children in search of dwarfs, we often start with the biggest ‘Papa Dwarf’ and then go in search of Sisyphus, Butcher, Fencer and Odra Washer. This route takes you from Wroclaw Market Square to Ostrów Tumski and allows both the youngest tourists and their guardians to see the most popular attractions of Wroclaw whilst discovering the oldest dwarfs in the city.
Meet My City guides invite you for family walks around Wroclaw, during which they will introduce you to legends, interesting facts related to the life of dwarfs and more about the history of the city.
Kolejkowo - is one of the most popular attractions for children in Wroclaw. In the building of the former Świebodzki Railway Station, a miniature world has been created - a true representation of Wroclaw and its surroundings. In the enchanted world of Kolejkowo, everything has been reduced - even time! Here the sun goes down every 9 minutes.
You can take a closer look at the lives of the inhabitants who just like in real life, gather at the Wroclaw Market Square to celebrate, meet friends or buy flowers from florists in Solny Square. Fantastic reproductions of the most characteristic buildings of Wroclaw, hotels, shops and even whole blocks of flats delight and amuse adults also.
There are also elements borrowed from overseas in Kolejkowo, which undoubtedly include Mount Rushmore - the symbol of the United States. The creators of Kolejkowo however made sure that the images carved in the rock are the faces of Polish presidents.
In a miniature world, you can go on vacation to the countryside or to the nearby Karkonosze Mountains.
It is worth visiting Kolejkowo to see how the modellers have masterfully presented the everyday life of Wroclaw’s inhabitants, a city that never sleeps. The number of figures is considerable and amounts to 3,437 - including people and animals. As the name Kolejkowo suggests, 510 meters of track have appeared in the city, on which 15 trains run, pulling 60 cars behind them.
The Multimedia Fountain, close by the Zoo and Centennial Hall, is the largest of its type in Poland and in Europe - equipped with as many as three hundred water jets and three fire jets. A water jet mechanism fires water 40 meters high, creating water geysers, mists and water figures. Additionally, in the summer season, from May to September, water acrobatics are synchronized with music and with lights in the evening. During the day, the water chorography is accompanied by pop, classical and contemporary music. In the evening, the show is enriched with a play of lights and lasers, presenting photos and animations related to events in the history of the city and Poland.
If you are visiting Wroclaw with children, a trip to this part of the city is an opportunity to rest for a while as the water fountain shows are surrounded by the greenery of Szczytnicki Park.
The Aquapark is an impressive complex of modern swimming pools, which provides the possibility of active recreation for the whole family. In addition to recreational and sports pools, the Aquapark in Wroclaw offers several attractions for children, including the Children's Bay, an outdoor heated children's pool with playground, water cannons and a beach for children.
In the Aquapark, there are slides for children and adults, a fitness and relaxation zone with a wide range of baths, saunas and a jacuzzi. The attractions are offered so that they can be used all year round, regardless of the weather.
When searching the Internet for the following words: ‘Wroclaw tours’ or ‘Wroclaw sightseeing with children’, we invite you to familiarize yourself with Meet My City walks. We would like to introduce you to our beautiful city :)
