Hermitage of Blessed Salomea in Grodzisko

The Hermitage of Blessed Salomea in Grodzisko (roughly "groh-JEES-koh") is a small Baroque hilltop sanctuary in Ojców National Park, about 25 km (15 miles) north of Kraków. On a limestone spur above the Prądnik Valley you will find a church ringed by a statue-lined wall, cave-like chapels, a stone elephant carrying an obelisk and a medieval hermit's cell hidden in the woods. It is one of the most atmospheric, and least crowded, stops on a day trip to the park.

A medieval princess and a Baroque revival

The site first appears in the early 13th century, when Duke Henry the Bearded is said to have built a stronghold here during the struggle over the young Bolesław the Chaste and the Kraków throne. After Bolesław took Kraków in 1243, he later gave Grodzisko to his sister Salomea, widow of King Coloman of Halych. She joined the Poor Clares in 1245 and in 1262 moved here with the nuns from Zawichost. She died in 1268 and was later beatified. In 1320 the nuns were moved to Kraków, but the hill stayed in their hands until the 19th century.

What you see today was built in 1677–1691, championed by Father Sebastian Piskorski, rector of the Kraków Academy, to promote Salomea's beatification. Its Roman-inspired design nods to Bernini. The church's tower top burned in 1939 and was rebuilt in the 1960s.

Things to see

• The church of the Assumption and Blessed Salomea: a compact Baroque church with a round tower, stucco vaulting and a marble high altar, plus a Gethsemane grotto by the chancel.
• The wall and gates: five sandstone statues of Salomea's royal relatives stand on the enclosure wall.
• Grotto chapels: three chapels shaped like caves, dedicated to Mary Magdalene, the Dormition of the Virgin and John the Baptist.
• The elephant and obelisk: the star of the show, a limestone elephant carrying a granite obelisk, raised to celebrate John III Sobieski's 1683 victory over the Ottomans at Vienna. The national park dates it to 1686 (a sign on site says 1687). It copies Bernini's famous elephant outside Santa Maria sopra Minerva in Rome, bears the Latin motto "Onus meum leve" ("my burden is light") and once worked as a fountain.
• The hermitage: a square stone cell dating back to the 13th century, reached by winding "rosary steps" below the church. A 17th-century hermit and Bible translator, Aleksander Soboniewski, was buried here in 1674.

Visiting tips

Allow 30–60 minutes. The grounds are open to walk around; the church interior is mainly open for services, and the parish lists Sunday and holiday Mass in Grodzisko at 12:00 (as of October 2026). We could not find published visiting hours or an admission fee, and you should not count on English-speaking staff, although the main information board is bilingual (Polish and English). The steps down to the hermitage are uneven and slippery after rain, so they are not suitable for strollers or wheelchairs.

How to get there

From Kraków, drive roughly 40 minutes north toward the small town of Skała; a short access road leads from the edge of town down to the complex. Hikers can reach it on the red-marked Trail of the Eagles' Nests, which follows the Prądnik Valley floor between Ojców and Pieskowa Skała Castle. The hill is part of the national park, so stay on marked paths.

Is it worth visiting?

Yes, if you are already exploring Ojców National Park. Combine it with Pieskowa Skała Castle and the Hercules' Club rock pillar a few kilometers north, and with the castle ruins and the "Chapel on the Water" in Ojców to the south.