Wieliczka is Europe's oldest salt mine, an unrivalled underground world. Despite the fact that it is about 700 years old, salt is still mined here today. Giant salt crystals from this deposit have become the jewellery of many mineralogical collections. The deposit itself is adorned with an underground church carved into the rock. The museum is listed as a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site.
The salt mines are a labyrinth of walkways 300 kilometres long, it is 2040 halls and grottos cut out in the salt strata. The excursion lasts 2 hours. The route goes along the underground track 2 km long, where there are marvellous underground lakes and worked-out chambers, unique chapels with bas-reliefs made of salt, original collection of miners' constructions. The subjects of bas-reliefs and statues are traditional for Catholic shrines: the Saviour with the apostles and the Blessed Virgin Mary.
In the mothballed shafts at a depth of 135 metres with a therapeutic microclimate is a sanatorium, in the underground halls, decorated in national traditions, are held festivals, shows, evenings. The underground church and the Chapel of the Holy Book, located at a depth of 101 metres, are amazing. As the patroness of Wieliczka, she protects the peace and quiet of this fabulous underground.
