Old Town Market Square

[Featured image © City of Warsaw]The heart of the historically oldest part of the city beats on the Market Square in Warsaw’s Old Town. Tourists will find good restaurants serving Polish cuisine and souvenir shops with postcards or amber here. The Old Town is particularly well known for its perfect reconstruction and our best rated Walking Tours.

T he history of the Market Square begins with the founding of the city in the 14th century. The square covers an area of 90 x 73 m, and at each corner two streets begin at right angles to one another. For centuries, this was Warsaw’s centre of administration and trade. The everyday life of the residents was concentrated around the Town Hall, where merchants’ stalls, the scales, the pillory and the neck iron were located. In 1817, the Town Hall was demolished and the entire Old Town deteriorated into a poor district. In 1855, the Warsaw Mermaid was erected in the centre of the square (the original is located in the Museum of Warsaw). The last market was held here in 1913.
During the Second World War, the buildings around the Market Square were completely destroyed. It was not until 1953 that the square was reopened to the public. All the townhouses on the northern side were handed over to the Museum of Warsaw.
Today, it is above all a tourist attraction of a special kind. Since 1980, Warsaw’s Old Town has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site.