Krakow Design - Travel Guide for Design Lovers

Krakow is a beautiful city with some great gems for lovers of beautiful design.

In this Krakow design guide I share some of the best shops and galleries I found on my visits to Krakow, plus some of Krakow’s gorgeous design hotels.

Read on to find graphic and interior design, fashion, illustration and places to shop for original gifts.

Top design shops in Krakow

Krakow Design Forum

Krakow Design Forum is a massive shop, with room after room of home design, accessories, fashion, art and just about anything else a design lover can dream of 🙂

Home to independent designers, artists and creators, this huge showroom is a place where you can easily spend an hour browsing and getting inspired by endless creativity.

Szpeje – Krakow design & vintage shop

Szpeje is a stunning little vintage shop on the extra cool Jozefa Street in the trendy Jewish Quarter (like many other shops in this post).

It’s full of colourful vintage design items – decorated tin boxes, glasses, lamps, posters, clocks, bags and lots more. I really liked the retro style postcards.

Idea Fix – Polish designers

Krakow design store

Idea Fix is a spacious shop that’s popular with tourists and locals. It is dedicated to featuring Polish designers, both established and up and coming ones.

At first you’ll see mostly fashion on display, but if you look around you’ll also discover some accessories, jewellery, art magazines and other surprises.

Marka – Krakow concept store

Marka is a colourful concept store in the Jewish Quarter has some great, funky home design. Be sure not to miss the back room, as some of its gems are in there.

The shop offers furniture, lighting, wall art, ceramics, textiles, stationary, toys and more.

Krakow Poster Gallery and Dydo Poster Gallery

Both Krakow Poster Gallery and Dydo Poster Gallery are a real treat for graphic design lovers!

These two galleries are home to a private family collection of incredible posters.

I was stunned by the range of styles and innovative graphic design found in their catalogue.

The collection spans several decades and you will find posters mainly from Poland, but also from other parts of the world.

These are mostly commercial posters, such as theatre, film and festival promo posters.

During the Communist era in Poland, each international movie had to have a poster designed by a Polish artist.

This created a strong tradition of graphic design and illustration in Poland, as the local artists invented their own graphic language.

The collection features these old posters from the 50s, 60s, and 70s and if you’re into retro design, the catalogue is just fascinating.

The galleries also display contemporary posters, and apart from posters, you’ll find postcard and books on graphic design.

The Krakow Poster Gallery is in the city centre, in the Old Town of Krakow, while Dydo Gallery is a little bit outside the Old Town (but easily reachable).

Dydo is right across the street from the National Museum which I also recommend you visit while you’re there.

Warsaw also has its poster design gallery and museum – check out my Warsaw design guide.

Rzeczy Same – home design store in Krakow

Rzeczy Same is a gorgeous shop in Podgórze, not far from the Bridge of Locks. It offers stylish home design items, such as plants, scented candles, clocks, wall art, ceramics and cushions.

Everything is beautiful and carefully selected. It also has notebooks, books, mugs, jewellery, bags and purses.

Galeria LueLue – vintage photography

Galeria LueLue is an amazing shop in the Jewish Quarter. It looks really small from the outside, that I almost didn’t notice it. But when you step in you’ll find yourself in a time capsule.

It has two rooms full of vintage photos that come in different sizes as posters, framed prints and postcards.

The shop specialises in reproductions of these old photos and paintings.

It’s a really beautiful place to visit in Krakow, with a strong artistic vibe.

Pan tu nie stał – original Polish design

Pan tu nie stał is a colourful little shop sells beautiful, original t-shirts.

Apart from the tees, there are artworks on the walls, accessories and a kids’ corner with t-shirts books and toys.

Punca – home and lifestyle

Punca is a very elegant shop with an upscale feel. featuring interior and lifestyle accessories from Poland. The glassware and jewellery stand out in particular.

Lookarna – illustration studio

Lookarna is a unique little shop and studio in the Jewish Quarter, dedicated to illustrations and some hand made products.

The illustrations are sold as posters, postcards, bookmarks and magnets.

They are mostly in black and white, with a bit of colour. They seem to be for both kids and adults.

Galeria – Krakow design store

Behind the generic name is a very cool shop that looks like a good place to shop for gifts. It features jewellery and fashion, as well as paintings, furniture and ceramics.

Address: ul. Jozefa 11

Design hotels in Krakow

Krakow has some gorgeous design hotels that will make your stay in this beautiful city even more stylish.

Inx Design Hotel

A hotel known for its exceptional interior design, located in the Jewish Quarter. It’s a 4-star hotel with Art Deco and modernist design elements. The location is perfect for design lovers, as most of the design shops are in that area of the city.

PURO Krakow Stare Miasto

A 4 star hotel, located close to Central Station in Krakow, so you’ll have very convenient access to the airport. The rooms are elegant and the design is sophisticated and modern.

More spots for design lovers in Krakow

The Cloth Hall in Krakow

Right in the main square of Krakow is a historical covered market, that you probably won’t be able to miss when you visit Krakow.

It’s a beautiful and colourful market and it’s easily the best place to shop for traditional souvenirs to take home from Poland.

It has lots of typical Polish designs, dolls, jewellery, t-shirts, mugs, ceramics and so much more.

Krakow’s pasaz 13

This shopping centre in Krakow’s main square doesn’t look like a typical shopping centre at all.

It’s a little hidden, as the entrance looks very ordinary, but when you go inside you’ll find an interesting space hosting some upscale fashion stores and elegant luxury brands.

Get an offline map of this guide

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