Nowa Huta Central Square and District

Nowa Huta is a planned socialist-realist district in the east of Krakow, in Poland's Lesser Poland region, centred on plac Centralny (Ronald Reagan Central Square). It was founded in 1949 beside a steel works as a model workers' town, and it is laid out symmetrically, with wide avenues radiating from the central square, monumental housing blocks, courtyards and green spaces. Visitors see Soviet-era architecture in a very different mood from the medieval Old Town, with cafes now lining some streets and murals and monuments recalling the district's history and its role in the Solidarity movement. The standard route starts at plac Centralny and follows the main avenues, passing the former cinema, the housing blocks and the former steelworks administration building, and it is often extended to the Arka Pana church. Guided tours, including tours in vintage Trabant cars, are offered by local operators. Independent visitors can walk the district in about three hours, and a full exploration can take half a day. The best photographs are of the symmetrical avenue perspectives from the square. The district is open around the clock and free to walk, and weekday daytime is the most comfortable time, with shops and cafes open and light for photography. Nowa Huta is quiet compared with the Old Town and rarely crowded. The Nowa Huta museum branch may be closed for renovation, so its status should be checked at muzeumkrakowa.pl. It is reached from the Old Town by tram in about 25 minutes.