Wieliczka Salt Mine open to WYD pilgrims also at night
Located outside Krakow, the Wieliczka Salt Mine is extending its opening hours from July 18 to August 7 ahead of World Youth Day 2016. In case of large numbers of pilgrims interested in visiting it, the salt mine will even be open round-the-clock.
The number of WYD pilgrims interested in visiting the Wieliczka Salt Mine is still growing. According to current data, the last group of pilgrims entering the mine will be admitted at 9 p.m. and it will finish touring just before midnight. Due to increased interest, the opening hours may be extended even further.
Apart from Polish, guided tours are organised in English, Italian, French, Spanish, Russian and German. Guides who can speak Japanese, Swedish, Greek, Turkish, Lithuanian, Albanian and Dutch are also available. Offering over 400 professional guides, the Wieliczka Salt Mine is usually open from 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. in the summer season and from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the winter.
Opened in the late 13th century, the Wieliczka Salt Mine features 26 shafts on nine levels, some of which are even 327 metres deep. Mining has produced 2,040 caverns and almost 300 km of underground routes. Wieliczka was opened to tourists at the end of the 18th century. It was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1978. In 2015, the salt mine attracted a record number of tourists - 1.39 million people.
World Youth Day 2016 will be held in Krakow and Wieliczka on July 26-31. It is the second time that Poland will host the event; the previous one took place in 1991 in Czestochowa. (PAP)
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