Underground Chambers

Most visitors to Wieliczka Salt Mine leave thinking they’ve seen a great deal. They’ve seen 22 chambers, 3.5 km of galleries, and two hours of underground Poland. What they’ve actually seen is less than 2% of the total mine. There are more than 2,350 chambers down here — the Tourist Route is the curated highlight reel of 700 years of human activity beneath the surface. Here’s a guide to the most significant chambers on the route.

Level 1 Chambers — 64 Metres Underground

The tour begins immediately after the 380-stair descent from the Daniłowicz Shaft. The first level introduces the mine’s early history through chambers excavated from the 13th to 17th centuries.

Copernicus Chamber

The most photographed chamber on the first level. A monumental salt statue of Nicolaus Copernicus, installed in 1973 on the 500th anniversary of his birth, stands at the centre. Copernicus is believed to have visited the mine around 1493 — making him one of the first tourists in the mine’s history. The original wooden pit structures in this chamber are among the oldest preserved mining frameworks on the route.

Janowice Chamber

Located adjacent to the Copernicus Chamber, the Janowice Chamber features a group of salt sculptures depicting the legend of Princess Kinga — the Hungarian princess credited with the miraculous discovery of Wieliczka’s salt deposits. A miner hands Kinga the first lump of Wieliczka salt, her engagement ring visible within it. This is the founding myth of the mine, told at the very start of the journey underground.

Chapel of St. Anthony

The oldest surviving chapel in the mine, constructed in the 17th century in Baroque style. Though smaller than St. Kinga’s Chapel, it is notable as an example of underground Baroque interior design — chancel, nave, main altar and two side altars, all carved from green salt. Figures of the Crucified Christ, the Virgin and Child, and St. Anthony are carved into the main altar niche.

Sielec Chamber and the Burned Chamber

These adjacent chambers contain historical reconstructions of two defining features of early mining life. The Sielec Chamber depicts the earliest methods of salt extraction using wooden carts (Hungarian dogs), crates, and sledges, with a reconstruction of the horse-drawn transport system. The Burned Chamber recreates the work of the “Penitents” — miners who crawled through the underground passages at night with torches on extended poles, burning off methane gas concentrations before they could cause explosions. The blackened box cribs in the Burned Chamber show real traces of an underground fire from over 300 years ago.

Level 2 Chambers — Approximately 90 Metres Underground

Casimir the Great Chamber

A chamber dedicated to King Casimir III of Poland, who formalised the mining laws at Wieliczka in 1368 and whose income from salt revenues funded Poland’s first university. Revenue from Wieliczka accounted for as much as a third of the royal treasury during his reign. The chamber contains a bust of the king and displays related to the medieval expansion of the mine.

Pieskowa Skała Chamber

A beautifully carved chamber in bronze-toned salt, connecting the first and second levels. Named for the famous Polish castle of the same name, the chamber features carved architectural elements that echo the castle’s distinctive forms.

Józef Piłsudski Chamber

A chamber containing a green salt statue of the famous Polish statesman and soldier, as well as a figure of St. John Nepomuk at the bank of a small underground salt lake. The water in this chamber connects via low passages to other parts of the underground water network.

Level 3 Chambers — 101–135 Metres Underground

St. Kinga’s Chapel

The crown jewel of the mine and the most visited chamber. See our dedicated St. Kinga's Chapel guide for the full breakdown.

Weimar Chamber — The Underground Lake

One of the most atmospheric stops on the route. A still, green-tinted saline lake fills the lower section of the chamber, its surface reflecting the illuminated salt ceiling in perfect stillness. The water is denser than the Dead Sea. The chamber takes its name from the Weimar period, and is reportedly a popular spot for marriage proposals — several guides confirm this is not unusual. For more detail, see our Underground Lake guide.

Stanisław Staszic Chamber

The largest accessible chamber on the Tourist Route, named after the great Polish naturalist and geologist. At 36 metres high, the chamber is vast enough that Poland’s tallest native tree (the Bartek Oak) could stand inside it. During World War II, the Germans attempted to use this chamber as an underground aircraft assembly plant — the project was abandoned as the Soviet offensive approached. Today it houses the souvenir shop, and its acoustics make it a popular concert venue.

Witold Budryk Chamber — Karczma Górnicza

Named after a professor at the University of Mining and Metallurgy in Kraków, this chamber houses the underground restaurant at 125 metres depth. See our Restaurant guide for full details.

Warsaw Chamber

A large underground space with a bandstand decorated with the mine’s logo sculpted in salt, a stage, and a mezzanine level. Used for mine festivities, concerts, sports events, and underground balls. The concept of underground dancing and entertainment at Wieliczka dates back centuries — the mine’s history records underground banquets and celebrations as far back as the 18th century.

The Cracow Saltworks Museum — Optional Extension

After the main Tourist Route chambers, visitors can continue into the underground exhibition of the Cracow Saltworks Museum on level 3. This adds approximately 1.5 km and 50 minutes, covering the extraordinary Maria Teresa and Saurau Chambers, a collection of horse mills (the largest such collection in Europe), and exhibitions on salt crystal formations and the industrial history of the mine. The extension is included in the standard Tourist Route ticket.