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Safety as a priority: Kraków prepared for the start of the tourist season

The steadily increasing number of tourists around the Main Market Square, Kazimierz, and the Vistula Boulevards shows that the 2026 tourist season is now in full swing. It is a time when the city comes alive—but also a period of increased challenges for services responsible for safety and public order. Mayor Aleksander Miszalski emphasizes that thanks to effective cooperation between the city, municipal guards, the police, and the State Fire Service, both residents and visitors can feel safe in Kraków.

On Wednesday, 20 May, the Mayor met with the City Police Commander, Junior Inspector Paweł Jastrząb, and the City Commander of the State Fire Service, Senior Brigadier Arkadiusz Kielin. The meeting was also attended by City Secretary Antoni Fryczek, Deputy Chair of the Kraków City Council Iwona Chamielec, Director of the Tourism Department Natalia Kulec-Greń, Night Mayor Jacek Jordan, and Municipal Guard Commander Zbigniew Ulman. They discussed Kraków’s preparations for the tourist season, during which approximately 2,000 police officers, 600 firefighters, and 600 municipal guards will ensure safety.

“Kraków remains a safe city for both residents and tourists, even at the peak of the tourist season. Thanks to close cooperation, services effectively maintain public order and respond quickly to threats, which translates into a high level of safety. All of this builds Kraków’s image as a friendly, well-organized city open to tourists from around the world,” said Mayor Aleksander Miszalski.

Strengthening Municipal Guard Patrols

The city is taking a number of measures to ensure safety for both residents and visitors. The Municipal Guard plays a key role in maintaining peace, order, and safety in public spaces. In the coming months, more officers will be deployed as a result of recent recruitment efforts, strengthening staffing and improving coverage in the most visited parts of the city.

In practice, this means a greater presence of patrols, especially in the Old Town and Kazimierz. Officers will operate on foot, by bicycle, and in vehicles.

The city’s monitoring system also plays an important role. Thanks to camera surveillance, the number of interventions increased from 7,200 in 2023 to 9,331 in 2025—an almost 30% rise.

At weekends, when central Kraków is busiest, Municipal Guard activities will be further intensified. More patrols will be present, especially in the evenings and at night, in areas where disturbances, excessive noise, and illegal alcohol consumption are most common.

Officers will work closely with the police and other services. Joint patrols and ongoing information exchange with the City Police Headquarters will improve coordination and response effectiveness.

This cooperation is already producing results. For example, in District I (Old Town), the number of offenses—such as disturbances of public order, littering, begging, and the use of vulgar language—dropped by half when comparing the tourist seasons (June–September) of 2024 and 2025.

Night-Time Alcohol Ban Benefiting Everyone

An important step in maintaining public order was the introduction, on 1 July 2023, of a ban on the sale of alcohol intended for off-premises consumption between midnight and 5:30 AM across the municipality. Kraków was the first major city in Poland to implement such a measure.

Statistics show measurable results. Despite an increase in tourist numbers, there has been a significant drop in police interventions during the hours covered by the ban. Comparing July 2025 to July 2022 (before the ban), interventions dropped by nearly 70%.

Municipal Guard interventions in this area also decreased by 33.9% when comparing the first and second years of the regulation’s enforcement.

The Night Mayor Works Beyond Night Hours

Preventive measures ahead of the tourist season have also been taken by the Night Mayor’s team. The number of joint weekend patrols with the Municipal Guard has increased from two to three per month, focusing on disturbances, noise, and violations of cultural park regulations. In many cases, team members carry out personal interventions.

“Pub crawl” groups (organized bar-hopping events) are monitored to ensure that organizers maintain control and respond to inappropriate behavior. Attention is also paid to promoters to prevent aggressive solicitation.

Regular meetings are held with restaurant owners and managers to ensure compliance with cultural park regulations, public safety laws, and internal policies governing guest behavior, dress, and cleanliness. Negotiations are also underway with venues with internal garden spaces to reduce noise-related disturbances for nearby residents.

At the Night Mayor’s initiative, the Mayor has requested that the Commissioner for Human Rights consider launching a public debate on nuisances caused by public gatherings involving excessive noise. A similar letter was sent to the Ministry of the Interior and Administration, highlighting concerns about noise disproportionate to the size of such gatherings.

Taxis Under City and Service Supervision

The city is also working to improve taxi passenger safety, particularly for women. The Department of Vehicle and Driver Records carefully verifies candidates, paying special attention to criminal records and “good reputation.” For foreign drivers, background checks are also conducted in their countries of origin.

The city supervises active drivers and cooperates with the police, border guard, and Road Transport Inspection. Additional training is provided to these services to improve the effectiveness of taxi controls.

City authorities also maintain ongoing dialogue with taxi drivers and ride-hailing platforms such as Uber, Bolt, and Free Now to coordinate preventive and educational actions.

In response to reports of irregularities in private transport services, the Night Mayor’s team distributes informational leaflets to passengers, explaining maximum fares, the requirement to issue receipts, and how to file complaints against dishonest drivers.

Kraków: A Favorite Destination Among Poles

It is worth recalling that the latest image report, published last week by the Institute for Internet and Social Media Research, confirms that Kraków is the most frequently visited city in Poland and remains the most popular among Poles. According to the latest official data, over 14.7 million people visited Kraków in 2024. Among international visitors, the largest groups came from the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, the United States, France, and Spain.