Old towns & squares

Market Square in Stary Sącz

Stary Sącz ranks among the oldest towns in Poland — it received its charter in the 13th century, lying on the amber route. The market square has kept the layout from the town’s founding under Magdeburg law: two streets leave from each corner, exactly as planned when the town was established.

Cobbles from the Dunajec

The square’s most distinctive feature is its paving of natural granite pebbles carried down by the Dunajec from the Tatras. Paving the first market square took 11 years. Originally 25 houses stood around the square; 22 of them survive in the original layout — one of the most completely preserved medieval small-town plans in Lesser Poland.

The town hall that never returned

A town hall once stood in the centre of the square; it burned down in 1795 and was never rebuilt — its reconstruction stands today in the Galician Town open-air museum in Nowy Sącz. The square’s character is instead shaped by arcaded houses — the arcades sheltered merchants and customers during the town’s famous fairs. One of the townhouses, the Dom na Dołkach, houses the Regional Museum.

In practice

A short walk from the square leads to the Poor Clares convent founded by St. Kinga in 1280 and still active. The square is freely accessible around the clock; parking is possible in the side streets. Come in the morning, when the cobbles are empty, and have lunch in one of the arcaded townhouses.