A visit to Małopolska is an opportunity to see highlanders up close in traditional costumes: breeches with parzenice embroidery, hats with feathers, and kierpce leather shoes. You can also admire the bold Kraków costumes with magnificent peacock feathers on red rogatywka caps and girls in shimmering corsets and floral skirts.
But it’s not only folk costumes that express the traditional folk culture of the region. Original and still practiced customs related to religious holidays, legends and stories about old times, as well as mysteries and fears, are part of Małopolska’s rich cultural heritage. This heritage also includes wonderful regional products and unique dishes made from them. The still existing folk culture is the strongest expression of Małopolska’s diversity, where each part of the region has its own specific costumes, customs, traditions, dishes, and delicacies.
Krakowiacy
The old Małopolska was a region ethnographically diverse. Its northern part was inhabited by the Krakowiacy, whose traditional costume is one of the three Polish folk costumes that have gained national status.
Highlanders
From the south, the Krakowiacy bordered various groups of highlanders. The largest group are the Podhale highlanders, living at the foot of Poland’s highest mountains – the Tatras – who are still proud of their beautiful, traditional costume. That is why it is easiest to see regional folk attire in Podhale.
Lajkonik
Every year in Kraków, on the octave of the Corpus Christi feast (June 26, 2025), a colorful procession sets out from the Norbertine monastery in Kraków’s Zwierzyniec (one of the oldest monuments of Kraków and the second largest complex of historic buildings after Wawel). Leading the procession is the Lajkonik – a man dressed as a Tatar, who carries a horse figure on a special harness. The Tatar performs a kind of dance and strikes passersby with the mace he carries, which is meant to bring them luck. The Lajkonik procession commemorates the Tatar invasions of the 13th century, when the city’s defense was based on units formed by craft guilds. The Flisacy guild defended Zwierzyniec. During an attack, one of the raftmen killed the Tatar leader, which prevented the attack from succeeding on that side of the city. The victorious raftmen dressed as riders and brought the good news to the city. The Lajkonik is this heroic raftman disguised as a Tatar khan.
Hejnał
The Mariacki Hejnał is the pride of the city and one of the most recognizable Polish symbols. Every hour, a fireman from the tower of St. Mary’s Church at the Main Market Square plays a characteristic trumpet melody in all four directions, with the last tone suddenly cut off. According to legend, when Tatar warriors approached the city, only the watchman-trumpeter noticed them. He played to wake the city’s defenders but did not finish the melody because he was killed by a Tatar arrow\...
Kraków Nativity Scene
Every year on the first Thursday of December, a contest for the most beautiful Kraków nativity scene is held at the Kraków market square, organized almost continuously since 1937. This tradition was recognized by the UNESCO committee, which in December 2018 inscribed the Kraków nativity scene tradition on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage.
Wawel Dragon
The dragon lived during the reign of the legendary ruler of the city, Krakus. The dragon allegedly demanded regular supplies of cattle, and if its appetite was not satisfied, it had the nasty habit of killing residents of the nearby area. Krakus’s sons dealt with the dragon by giving it a sheep with sulfur sewn into its belly. After consuming it, the dragon drank and drank until its belly burst from overconsumption... That is the legend; today, in the cave of the historic dragon, there is a fire-breathing dragon figure. The Dragon’s Cave itself is a cave located within a small Wawel fault. It is unique in Poland because it was formed by the circulation of waters at elevated temperatures, which contributed to the karstification of Jurassic rock. The total length of the cave’s corridors is 276 meters, of which 81 meters are open to visitors on the tourist route.
St. Kinga and salt
Legend says that the Hungarian princess Kinga Árpád, later wife of Bolesław the Chaste (King of Poland), received a salt mine as a dowry. She then threw her engagement ring into a shaft in Hungary, and when she arrived in Poland, she stopped in a small town where she ordered her miners to dig. To everyone’s great surprise, a lump of rock salt and the ring embedded in it were mined. This refers to the salt mines in Wieliczka near Kraków. Today, in the Wieliczka Salt Mine workings located 64-135 meters underground, visitors can admire, among others, unique brine lakes, salt sculptures, old mining devices, and chapels carved from salt, including the most famous – St. Kinga’s Chapel.
Lipnica Palms
On Palm Sunday, residents of Lipnica Murowana and Tokarnia, as well as other towns in the Pogórze and Podhale regions, organize contests for the tallest Easter palm. The most famous contest has been held since 1958 in Lipnica Murowana; here, the palms reach their greatest height – over 30 meters!
