How to get to the Christmas Market in the Market Square and not get stuck in huge traffic jams? Practical guide

And it is better not to try that, because a visit to the market can become a source of stress and cost us a lot of time spent in a traffic jam.

The Christmas Market itself attracts crowds. The first weekend saw 200,000 visitors. On top of this, many of us go to shopping malls in search of gifts. Imagine a few thousand cars circling the Old Town and you are sitting in one of them...

Tip 1: do not expect to get smoothly by car to any of the large car parks in the city centre.

Thousands of drivers have the same plan, and even if you will find a vacant seat, for example, in the car park below the Nowy Targ Square, under the National Forum of Music or in the Galeria Dominikańska mall, it may take a few dozen minutes to get to them and then leave them.

So how to get to the Christmas Market?

The advice is not brilliant, but no one has come up with anything better so far: use means of public transport. If you are unfamiliar with how it works, you will learn here what price you need to buy a ticket. You can buy it by card or phone in any public transport vehicle.

Ticketing tips for those not so well-informed:

• if you have to travel a longer route on a single tram or bus, buy a single ticket (PLN 4.60 or PLN 2.30 – discount price),
• when you are travelling a short distance or need to transfer to another vehicle, check how long the journey will take and buy the relevant time ticket,
• if you want to visit more places, you will move around all day, consider buying a daily 24-hour ticket for PLN 15 (discount price PLN 7.50).

How to get to the Christmas Market in the Market Square?

You can get to there by all buses and trams that have the following stops on their route:

• Rynek,
• Zamkowa,
• Świdnicka,
• Galeria Dominikańska,
• Oławska.

You can find the current timetable on our website. When planning a trip, the jakdojade.pl app is very useful. You can install it on your smartphone or use it over the web.

There are plenty of bus and tram lines running through the city centre that stop at the above-mentioned stops:

• trams: 0 (weekends only and 6th December 2024), 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 17, 18, 23, 78;
• buses: D, K, N, 110, 114, 120, 132, 142.

Tip 2: How to get to the Christmas Market by car if you have no choice?

Do not push your way into the city centre by car. It really is a waste of nerve.

You can leave your car at any car park away from the Market Square. There are municipal car parks called park and ride, P&R or P+R – each of these terms refers to one type of space. Their biggest advantage is the proximity of public transport stops.

Some P+Rs have barriers, but no charges are paid. You need to have a minimum 24-hour MPK ticket. A season ticket encoded on the Urbancard is naturally acceptable. Find out more about P+R from the website of the Roads and City Maintenance Authority.

Tip 3: to the Christmas Market by train – an offer not only for Wroclaw citizens

If you live far away but close to a railway station, arrive by train. If you buy a 24-hour MPK ticket (e.g. in the app), you can use it to travel by train between stations that have Wrocław in their name (plus Iwiny station). Get off at the Wrocław Główny railway station and take tram 0, 18, 23 or 78 or bus K (or go on foot if the weather is fine) to reach the Christmas Market.

You go back home on the same ticket. The whole trip costs you PLN 15, or PLN 7.50 if you are entitled to the discount price, or PLN 0 if you are a student or a senior. Here you can read about who is entitled to discounts and who can ride for free.

If you are travelling by train from outside Wroclaw, you can buy a ticket to the first station that has Wroclaw in its name, and travel to Wrocław Główny already on an MPK ticket or, for example, on a school ID card.