New Port Hotel Krakow Review: Floating Apartments on the Vistula with a Wawel View

Early April, morning in Krakow. I’m sitting on the terrace wrapped in a duvet, coffee in hand, looking across the Vistula at Wawel Castle. It was amazing, and it’s exactly for moments like this that I’d put New Port in the “experience stay” category.

New Port is accommodation in floating houses moored right on the Vistula, a short walk from the Jewish quarter of Kazimierz. We spent one night here, and in this review we’ll show you what it looks like, what we loved, what might bother some people, where to park and what it cost us. If you’re planning your whole Krakow trip, have a look at our practical guide to Krakow.

Quick summary for anyone in a hurry

• What it is: a complex of 6 floating buildings with 31 apartments on the Vistula, each with a bedroom upstairs
• Address: Bulwar Wołyński 4, Krakow, with a view across the Vistula to Wawel
• What we paid: 4,500 CZK (about €190) for two people for one night, breakfast included, via Booking (early April)
• Breakfast: 7:00–11:00; if it isn’t included in your rate, it costs 69 zł (about €16).
• Parking: the hotel has none of its own; we parked at Parking Forum 24h, about a 3-minute walk from the accommodation, for 70 zł (about €16) per 24 hours
• Check-in / check-out: from 15:00 / until 11:00, reception is open 24 hours
• To the centre: about a 20-minute walk for us, 15 minutes to Kazimierz
• Watch out: steep stairs to the bedroom, no pets allowed

What is New Port Krakow

New Port stands right on the Vistula, with a view across the river to Wawel. These aren’t classic houseboats but dark, modern houses on the water, linked by jetties and walkways. In total you’ll find 31 apartments in six floating buildings.

There are three types of apartment to choose from:

Type	Size	Features	Price from
Standard	20 m²	smallest, only some have a terrace	370 zł (about €85)
Premium	24 m²	terrace with a view of the Vistula	437 zł (about €100)
Superior	26 m²	largest option	492 zł (about €110)

For me, the clear choice is Premium with a terrace. The whole magic of this place is the view, and you’ll enjoy it most from the terrace.

Our experience at New Port Krakow

Arrival and reception

Reception is roughly in the middle of the whole complex and well signposted, so you can’t miss it. The staff were great. And a small thing that pleased me right after we arrived: at reception you can have a free coffee from a bean-to-cup machine.

The apartment: a river instead of a TV

New Port plays up the fact that it’s on the water, and you can tell. The apartments have huge glass walls from floor to ceiling. So instead of watching TV in the evening, we watched the river, the floodlit Wawel and the boats, and there were quite a few of those zipping about.

Downstairs there’s a living area with a sofa and small tables, temperature control and a separate bathroom with a shower cubicle. For maximum comfort, slippers were waiting for us, and out in the hallway there were umbrellas in case it happened to rain. In short, they’d thought of everything.

The apartments also have air conditioning, a Smart TV with Chromecast, a minibar, a safe and tea and coffee making facilities. Wi-Fi is free throughout the property.

Does it stay warm? We tested it in April

We tested this too. Glass walls and water all around, and we arrived in early April, when the evenings were really not made for sitting outside.

The insulation is amazing: even in early April there was no cold draught coming off the glass walls.

The upstairs bedroom and those stairs

Here I come to something that’s both a pro and a con. To save space, the bedroom is upstairs, and it’s reached by fairly steep stairs. I was a bit worried about what it would be like when I went to the toilet in the night. But the stairs are discreetly lit, so, spoiler: nothing happened to me.

Upstairs, a big, comfortable bed awaits you. I hadn’t slept this well in a long time.

Terrace with a view of Wawel

Some apartments, including ours, have a terrace with a view of Wawel Castle. Having a coffee out there in the morning, wrapped in a duvet, and gazing at the castle was amazing. If I had to sum up New Port in a single scene, this is exactly it.

Breakfast with herring

Breakfast is served in the neighbouring floating house, less than a minute’s walk away. It was great: a view of the Vistula, fresh bread rolls, scrambled eggs and, as is usual in Poland, herring too. It’s served from 7:00 to 11:00.

Parking at New Port Krakow

New Port is right on the Vistula, so don’t expect a car park by the door. We parked at Parking Forum 24h (ul. Marii Konopnickiej 28), which the hotel itself recommends. It’s literally next door, about a 3-minute walk from the accommodation, no big deal.

For 24 hours we paid 70 zł (about €16). According to the hotel, the rate is 70 zł a day or 5 zł (about €1) an hour, paid when you leave. The car park is enclosed and monitored. It was big enough, and even though we arrived around midday, we parked without any trouble.

Our tip: if you have heavy suitcases, the hotel offers to take guests and their luggage from the car park by electric cart between 8:00 and 16:00. When the boulevard is crowded, the cart doesn’t run, according to the hotel.

You’ll find more about parking in central Krakow and paid zones in our practical guide to Krakow.

Location: how far it is to the centre

We walked everywhere. It was about 20 minutes to the city centre and about 15 minutes to the lovely Jewish quarter of Kazimierz. It’s roughly 1.5 km to Wawel and a little over 2 km to Rynek Główny.

For me, that’s a reasonable distance. You’re not staying right in the tourist centre, but you can walk to both Kazimierz and the city centre.

Prices and practical information

I’d put New Port in the category of experience stays, and the price reflects that. For one night for two, breakfast included, we paid 4,500 CZK (about €190) through Booking. And we don’t regret it.

Item	Price
Our night (2 people, apartment with a terrace, breakfast included)	4,500 CZK (about €190)
Standard / Premium / Superior apartment	from 370 / 437 / 492 zł per night (about €85 / €100 / €110)
Breakfast, if not included	69 zł (about €16)
Parking at Forum 24h	70 zł/day or 5 zł/h (about €16/day or €1/h)
Baby cot	60 zł one-off fee (about €14)

• Check-in from 15:00, check-out until 11:00, reception open 24 hours a day
• Luggage storage free
• Quiet hours 22:00–7:00, no smoking in the rooms
• Pets not allowed
• Children children up to 3 stay free with their parents, an extra bed for children aged 4–12 costs 60 zł (about €14)

On Booking, New Port has a rating of around 9 out of 10 from more than 2,000 reviews.

What to do when you’re staying at New Port

From New Port, Wawel, Kazimierz and the river are literally on your doorstep. These are the experiences that go best with your stay:

• Evening cruise on the Vistula – Kraków: Evening or Night River Cruise – the floodlit Wawel from the water, exactly the view you get from the apartment, just from the other side
• Tour of Wawel – Krakow: Wawel Castle & Cathedral Guided Tour – the castle and cathedral with a guide
• The Jewish quarter of Kazimierz – Krakow: Kazimierz Jewish Quarter Walking Tour – a guided walk around the neighbourhood, which is about 15 minutes on foot from New Port
• Schindler’s Factory and Kazimierz – Krakow: Schindler’s Factory & Kazimierz Jewish Quarter Tour – a museum and the Jewish quarter combined in one
• Wieliczka Salt Mine – From Krakow: Wieliczka Salt Mine Tour & Fast-Track Ticket – a salt mine just outside Krakow, with fast-track entry. We write more about visiting in our article Wieliczka Salt Mine

You’ll find more tips on spending a weekend in Krakow in the article Krakow: weekend tips.

Pros and cons of New Port Krakow

Pros:

• View: the Vistula, Wawel and boats through the glass walls, from the terrace and over breakfast
• Insulation: even in early April, no draught from the glass walls
• Sleep: big, comfortable bed, I slept brilliantly
• Details: free bean-to-cup coffee at reception, slippers, umbrellas in the hallway
• Location: peace and quiet on the river, about 15 minutes’ walk to Kazimierz, 20 to the centre

Cons:

• Price: it’s an experience stay, and you pay for it accordingly
• Parking: none by the door, and you pay 70 zł (about €16) a day on top
• Stairs: steep stairs lead to the bedroom, so you need to be careful at night
• Pets: not allowed

Who New Port Krakow is for and who it isn’t

It’s for you if you’re going to Krakow as a couple, want something extra and a weekend you’ll look back on. Ideal for an anniversary, a birthday or simply a romantic getaway.

It’s not for you if you have trouble with stairs, travel with a dog or want the cheapest bed possible in the centre. In that case, have a look at more tips in our guide to Poland.

Our verdict

New Port isn’t just a place to sleep, it’s an experience that’s worth going back to Krakow for.

We paid 4,500 CZK (about €190) for one night and don’t regret it. A view of Wawel from under the duvet, breakfast on the river and the kind of sleep I hadn’t had in ages. The steep stairs and parking a little further away are minor things you can live with.

Our recommendation: when booking, choose an apartment with a terrace, because without one you’ll miss out on the best part. And if you’re planning your whole trip, start with our practical guide to Krakow.

You’ll find another place where we stayed in Poland in our review of the Bergo Resort spa hotel in Szklarska Poręba, close to the Czech border.

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