Sandomierz Underground Tourist Route

The Underground Tourist Route in Sandomierz (say "san-DOH-myesh") is a 470-meter (1,540-foot) walk through medieval and Renaissance merchants' cellars hidden beneath the town's Market Square, reaching 12 meters (40 feet) below the cobbles. Along the way guides tell local legends, including the story of the Tatar raids, and explain how miners saved the Old Town from collapsing in the 1960s. It is one of the top things to do in Sandomierz and a perfect rainy-day plan.

Where is Sandomierz, and why are there tunnels?

Sandomierz is a small, beautifully preserved hilltop town on the Vistula River in southeastern Poland, about 2.5–3 hours by car from Kraków and around 3 hours from Warsaw. Its compact Old Town is protected as a Polish Historic Monument, and many visitors know it from the long-running Polish TV crime series "Father Matthew" (Ojciec Mateusz), filmed on its streets.

The town stands on loess, a soft, fine-grained sediment that is easy to dig. From roughly the 14th–15th to the 17th century, townspeople carved multi-level cellars under their houses to store goods, some reaching 15 meters down. Over time many were forgotten.

In the 1960s the voids began to give way: sinkholes opened under houses and streets, and the Old Town faced structural disaster. In 1963 scientists from the AGH University in Kraków drew up a rescue plan, and in October 1964 the first miners arrived from Bytom in Silesia. For years they filled dangerous cavities and stabilized the ground. Some of the secured chambers were kept and linked into a visitor route, opened in 1977.

What you will see

The route connects 34 chambers at depths of 4 to 12 meters, running under the square and nearby streets and ending inside the Town Hall. Expect:

• brick passageways and steep stairs between levels, with some original masonry,
• cellars set up as historic merchants' storerooms with barrels and pottery,
• small displays on the town's history and crafts,
• murals illustrating legends, including the tale of Halina Krępianka, who according to legend led Tatar raiders into the tunnels to save the town,
• a modernized miners' tunnel with screens and holograms in which actors from Silesia re-enact the work of the men who rescued Sandomierz.

Tips: is it worth visiting and how long does it take?

Yes, especially with kids or on a gray day. Visits are guided and usually take about 45 minutes. Groups can book their own guide for an extra fee. It is cool underground year-round, so bring a layer in summer. Narrow passages and many steps make the route unsuitable for wheelchairs and strollers, and it may not suit claustrophobic visitors.

Opening hours and tickets (as of October 2026)

• September 14 to April 19: daily 9 a.m.–5 p.m., last entry 4 p.m.
• Main tourist season: daily 9 a.m.–7 p.m., last entry 6 p.m.

Prices are in Polish złoty (PLN): 28 PLN adult, 23 PLN reduced (students, people with disabilities). The family rate (at least three people) is 26 PLN per adult and 21 PLN per reduced ticket. Children up to 3 go free. Tickets are sold at the ticket desk and online via the Sandomierz Culture Center (bilety.esceka.pl); on summer weekends book ahead. Phone: +48 451 079 489, email: sandomierskiepodziemia@esceka.pl.

How to get there and parking

The entrance is at Rynek 10, reached from Oleśnickich Street through the courtyard of the Oleśnicki Tenement House. Streets around the Old Town are a paid parking zone on weekdays (8 a.m.–6 p.m.), and paid 24-hour lots are at Poniatowskiego Square, Patkowskiego Street and on the riverside boulevard. From there it is a short uphill walk.

Nearby

You will emerge in the Town Hall on the Market Square, perfectly placed to explore the rest of Sandomierz: climb the Opatów Gate for the view, then continue to the cathedral, the Royal Castle and the Queen Jadwiga Gorge, a sunken lane through the loess.