St. Elizabeth’s Church, Wrocław

St. Elizabeth's Church, Wrocław tickets: which one to buy

Saint Elizabeth's Church stands at the north-western corner of the Market Square in Wroclaw, Poland, and entry to the church is free, while climbing the tower is ticketed. The tower's viewing platform, reached by a long climb of about three hundred steps, gives one of the best views of the city, over the Market Square, the Town Hall and the islands of the Oder river.

Walking tours of Wroclaw's old town combine the church with the Market Square, the Town Hall, the cathedral island and the search for the city's famous bronze dwarfs, of which there are hundreds scattered around the streets. Beside the church stand two small, picturesque houses known as Hansel and Gretel, joined by an arch. The church is an active parish, and visiting pauses during services. The tower climb is steep and narrow. Tickets for the tower are sold at the entrance on the side of the church.

Visiting St. Elizabeth's Church, Wrocław: what to see

The church was built in brick in the Gothic style in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, and its tower, completed in the fifteenth century, was once one of the tallest in Europe, at around 130 metres, before its spire collapsed in a storm in 1529; it was rebuilt with a Renaissance top, and it is still about ninety metres high. During the Reformation it became Protestant and remained so until 1946, after Wroclaw became part of Poland. In 1975 and again in 1976, fires destroyed much of the interior, including its famous baroque organ, and the church was restored over many years. Inside, the church is a tall hall with a ribbed vault, and it holds many epitaphs and tombstones of Wroclaw burghers, carved in stone, some from the Renaissance.

A new organ was installed in the early twenty-first century. The church also has a memorial to the theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer, who was born in Wroclaw. The walls of the ambulatory are covered with epitaphs carved with portraits of merchants and their families. A modern stained glass window commemorates the rebuilding after the fires. The organ, inaugurated in the twenty-first century, is one of the largest in Poland. The church's crypt holds graves of important burghers. The Gothic chapels hold altars from the late medieval period. The church's tall tower is visible from almost everywhere in the old town.

St. Elizabeth's Church, Wrocław opening hours and the best time to go

The church is open daily, and the tower is open most of the year, with longer hours in summer and closing in bad weather or during strong winds. The Market Square is lively day and night, especially in summer, when outdoor cafes fill the square, and during the Christmas market, one of the most popular in Poland. Winter is cold, but the tower gives beautiful views of the snow-covered roofs.

Morning is a quiet time to climb. Allow about twenty minutes for the church, and about forty minutes for the tower climb, then look for the Hansel and Gretel houses and the dwarfs nearby. Ostrow Tumski, the cathedral island, is about fifteen minutes' walk away, where lamplighters light the gas lamps each evening.