KRAKOW, Poland

Krakow is the second largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in the Lesser Poland region, the city dates back to the 7th century. Krakow has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Polish academic, cultural and artistic life and is one of Poland's most important economic hubs. Indeed, it was the nation's capital from 1038 to 1569. The city began as a hamlet on Wawel Hill ans was already being reported as a busy trading centre of Slavonic Europe in 965. With the establishment of new universities and cultural venues at the emergence of the Second Polish Republic in 1918 and throughout the 20th century, Krakow reaffirmed its role as a major international academic and artistic centre.

Today the city has a population of approximately 760,000 and some 8 million people live within within a 100km radius of its famous main Market Square. in 1978, Karol Wojtyla, Archbishop of Krakow, was elevated to the Papacy as Pope John Paul II - the first ever Slavic Pope, and the first non-Italian Pope in 455 years. Also in 1978 UNESCO approved the first ever sites for its new World Heritage List, including the entire Old Town in inscribing Krakow's Historic Centre.

A beautiful and historic city to visit and one of Europe's leading City Break locations.

Business Conferences in Krakow

Over the several decades since the fall of Communism in Eastern Europe, Poland's second largest city has propelled itself to the frontier  of commerce on the Continent. Despite retaining the archaic veneer of a slow-paced medieval Slavic town, the spirit of Krakow is anything but! Photography exhibitions, city-wide events, dramatic productions, music, film and art festivals, business conferences and student fairs, along with a whole myriad of other nationally and internationally organised functions, bring the various nooks and crannies of this cobbled city to life, week in and week out.

It is no surprise that Krakow is now at the centre of one of Europe's few remaining business booms, and the likely centre of a number of new and innovative projects to transform it into a leading player in the global business conferencing industry.

www.visitkrakow.com