3 attractions for children in Wroclaw, Poland, for a family weekend
Attractions for children in Wroclaw? Today we have for you three suggestions for attractions for children in Wroclaw π All tested by an under three year old with her parents. See what interesting things you can do with one weekend in Wroclaw.
Since the opening of the S8 road between Lodz and Wroclaw, the capital of Lower Silesia has become closer to us. We have a huge affection for this city and are happy to return here.
At first there was delight and absorbing every monument and interesting corner. Currently, we come here to relax, or we are here for interesting events. Weekends in Wroclaw every time are less intense, we find time to stop for a while and just observe, go to an interesting cafe or restaurant. There is no pressure and pressure that we have to see as much as possible, because the truth is that in a few months we will probably come here again.
This time, however, the weekend in Wroclaw promised to be exceptional. This was our first trip with four of us! So on board we had parents, a less than three-year-old and a newborn baby π We decided that this trip would be entirely for Oliwia. We will focus on attractions for children, while we adults will discover Wroclaw from a completely new perspective.
Below you can see the 3 places we managed to see. We are sure that everyone will find something for themselves among them. What's more, also adults will not be bored π
Kolejkowo in Wroclaw
Well, this is an attraction not only for children π We left the queue for last, more as an alternative if we have time left on Sunday, and this alternative turned out to be a hit!
And although the room where the models stand seems at first glance quite claustrophobic, you can spend a lot of time here admiring every last detail on the numerous models prepared on two floors.
And let's add that there is something to see and, contrary to the name, not only mock-ups with trains. Here we have a mock-up with a train traveling through Lower Silesia with Sniezka in the lead, a mock-up with Wroclaw (by the way), shown life in the countryside, rescue operations, blissful vacations, numerous vehicles and events, and all this on more than 300 square meters of mock-up space.
What's great is that every few minutes the time of day changes, and when it gets dark the lights in the windows and lanterns come on, and the mock-ups show night life.
Oliwia was delighted with the models! She could look at all the elements for hours, and most willingly she would touch each one. Philip, on the other hand, slept at his best and none of the noises and lights bothered him.
And we? We were able to play with the camera in the new smartphone and check its capabilities π
What you need to know? At the entrance there is an unguarded checkroom, where you can leave your outer clothes and stroller. It's quite cramped inside, and only stairs lead to the floor – the lack of an elevator is the downside here. It's also noisy inside – the street noises from the mock-ups and visitors make the experience too intense for the little ones.
See our new entry after visiting Kolejkowo in a new place: Kolejkowo WrocΕaw – Lower Silesia in Miniatura!.
Although it's quite cramped, there was room for a children's corner, of course, in the style of "Tom and Friends".
Ticket prices: adult – 23 zlotys, concessionary – 17 zlotys, children under 3 enter for free.
Wroclaw Zoological Garden
Wroclaw Zoo Considered the best zoo in Poland. Since it opened here Afrykarium and Oceanarium is second to none, and we decided to see how it compares with the Singapore Zoo (ok, it's on the losing end in advance, but is it really that far from the Asian giant?).
We went to the zoo on Saturday and assumed that we would spend the whole day here. And rightly! We went in around 11:00, and we stayed until closing time, and we can't write that we saw everything this garden has to offer. Before coming, we read about the long queues at the ticket offices, but still decided to take a chance and not buy tickets online (you can always do it on the spot if the queues actually turn out to be long). Fortunately, there were no queues at all.
And while we're at the ticket offices, unfortunately, this is the least pleasant part of a visit to the Wroclaw Zoo. A normal ticket costs as much as 50 zloty – at first this price knocked us down a bit, but after a while we realized a few facts. Fortunately, Olive gets in for free (ouch, we caught on), and 50 zloty is about 12 euros, which is less than in other facilities of this type in Europe… it's just that these zloty are so impressive. On top of that, it's really a packed full day.
What's more, we even encourage you to overpay for your ticket – you can buy tickets that are a zloty more expensive, and the difference goes to animal protection. A penny won't save a penny, and with the number of visitors, if everyone donated one, the Zoo would get more than a million zlotys a year to help the animals! Yes, you read right – what about Wieliczka, what about other museums or castles in Poland, it is the ZOO that is the most visited, ticketed place in Poland [source] .
At first we walked through the alleys and approached the open-air enclosures, as long as the weather was nice. Around 3pm or so, we were already tired, but in the end we left for the most important attraction, the Afrykarium, which we couldn't let go of.
This was our first visit to the Wroclaw Zoo, but you can see that the place is changing – there are many new, large enclosures, several upgraded. You can see immediately which have been prepared anew, and which are still waiting for better times. And the fact is, some seemed terribly small and cramped (including the pavilions), but nevertheless the overall impression remains positive, as you can see that it's going for the better.
We were particularly positively surprised by the enclosure for European animals, which is still under construction, but you could already see the bears in a very interestingly arranged space, where there was even room for rocks and a stream. Bears can be observed from a special wooden footbridge built above the enclosures.
And how about this Afrykarium and Oceanarium? Is actually such a wow effect? Well it was π First of all, because there is such an interesting place in Poland at all. Secondly, we were most impressed by the aquarium with manatees and the tropical forest, where we could feel like… at least in Singapore, where you are immediately struck by the high temperature and high humidity π
In the Afrykarium we will see enclosures and aquariums with animals, plants, but also birds that fly over the heads of visitors. The main idea was to show Africa and its diverse aquatic environment. And it worked – we have not yet seen in any facility so interestingly shown individual ecosystems. Here you can discover the Black Continent from a completely different perspective, because who would have thought that so many aquatic creatures inhabit Africa?
However, we were disappointed with the tunnel that was so praised – it was crowded, there was little to see and the main attraction is a water turtle… While the rest of the attraction delighted us and is really world-class, this tunnel is only a substitute for what you can see in other places.
And at the end some practical information: in the garden you can rent special strollers for children and bundles for 10 zl per day. A lot of people use it, and if we didn't have our stroller we would love to take it too.
The food offer is… average. Sausages, pork chops, casseroles and ice cream reign supreme. We did not particularly tasted, although we had the impression that not all catering outlets were open so the choice was modest as well.
Ticket prices, as we mentioned, are 50/51 zloty for a regular ticket and 40/41 zloty for a concessionary ticket. If you enter with two children over 3 r.ΕΌ. it's already worth buying a family ticket for 160/165 PLN.
>> We also recommend our post about Orientarium and ZOO in Lodz!
Hydropolis
Hydropolis is a relatively new place on the map of Wroclaw. After our admiration of EC1 in Lodz, we could not miss this place. And while in the EC1 in Lodz we learn about electricity generation and the history of the thermal power plant, here we can learn about the power and properties of water and a lot about the sewer system in Wroclaw.
In Hydropolis you bet on the wow effect from the very beginning. To enter the building with the exhibition we have to overcome the water pouring from the roof of the building! Not just pouring, because the stream of water is arranged in different patterns, so you can stand in front of the entrance like hypnotized and look at this water dance.
Don't be afraid of anything though, once you approach the door, the water stops pouring across the width of the entrance and you will enter Hydropolis safe and sound without any problem. Before entering, you can use the checkroom located downstairs.
You enter the exhibition in groups, every 6 minutes (even though you buy tickets online for the hour…). This is just to relieve the crowd, because after entering, everyone goes their own way.
Well, maybe not exactly, because the first room makes an amazing impression and everyone stays together anyway – it's a large circular room with a large spherical screen, and in the middle is the planet Earth. In the background you can hear the voice of Krystyna Czubówna talking about the role of water on our planet, with numerous interesting facts and impressive numbers and comparisons. This is the beginning and introduction to our tour of Hydropolis.
From here you move on to the next room – the Depths. Here we learn about organisms living very deep in the water even at depths of up to 11 km! We get a sneak peek at the bottom of the oceans, we can enter a capsule that explores the seabed, learn about the wrecks on the ocean floor and read about disasters, such as the. About the famous Titanic.
The next room is the Aquatic Animals. Entering here over our heads "flows" a school of fish with a shark. Here we learn about different species and interesting facts about them, e.g. through videos and animations.
Next is the relaxation zone where, on glowing white loungers, we can either look at the Amazon forest or the night moon. The atmosphere here is calm and quiet, with pleasant sounds in the background conducive to relaxation, and there is perfect humidity. Of course, with two children there is no chance to relax, so we left them quickly π
Then, you enter a room showing the history of water engineering, that is, not only ships, but also machines and tools that helped transport water and its further use. It is also a journey into history, as you can also take a look at old inventions. Here there is also an exhibition of ships, where we can look at models from rafts or catamarans to large container ships or cruise ships.
The next room is the City and Water, something for fans of all kinds of mock-ups π This is where we spent the most time! We saw what way water tries on the example of Wroclaw, i.e. how water is distributed, where the intakes are, what happens to sewage, etc.
On top of that, we saw various elements of the sewer system in Wroclaw on an interactive map. There are large, touchscreens where you can highlight individual elements and learn, for example. how the city's pipes are run and where the various elements of the city's sewer system are located. A very interesting element is the map of areas flooded during the flood of the millennium in 1997, added here.
If someone doesn't have enough attractions, you can play the role of a dispatcher and choose different scenarios for water distribution like the following. football match (did you know that the highest water consumption is, of course, at halftime of a football match? ;-)).
The next and last room is about water occurring in the environment. We can see the water cycle in nature, look at artificial snow, see how clouds form, etc.
And that would be it. How we rate Hydropolis? This is definitely a place that teaches and shows water not only by the phenomena occurring in nature, but also the influence and participation of man. The knowledge is conveyed in a very attractive way and will certainly answer many questions that parents do not know the answer to.
Unfortunately, like EC1 this is a place rather for older children. Olive was only interested in some of the exhibitions, but most are rather dedicated to school children. We parents liked it better, but we would have to come here on our own, because you need more time and quiet to study the various descriptions and use the interactive exhibits.
We also have a sense of some insufficiency. Maybe we expected more space and more exhibits and interaction. A little more history of the place. Or maybe we just compared it too much to the Lodz attraction π We will probably return when the kids are older.
I some practical aspects: Most importantly, there are no toilets in the area of the exhibitions themselves! Remember to use them before entering π
A regular ticket costs 27 PLN, and a discounted ticket costs 18 PLN. Children up to 3 years old enter for free. Tickets can be purchased in advance online, for a specific time.
There is a cafe in the building with the exhibition, where you can have a pretty good coffee and eat something sweet.
Summary
We have shown you three completely different attractions in Wroclaw that will make a family weekend in the city more pleasant. These are interesting places for children of different ages with different interests π We liked the ZOO and Kolejkowo the most, and we will return to Hydropolis when the children grow up, because it's a pity not to take advantage of such interestingly transmitted knowledge about the world.
Besides, remember that Wroclaw is also a beautiful Old Market and its surroundings, and there is something for everyone here π
And you what places for children in Wroclaw you recommend?