Crazy Guides

Crazy Guides is a Kraków tour company that built its reputation on one memorable idea: showing visitors the communist side of Poland from the seat of a Trabant. While most tours in Kraków focus on royal Wawel and the medieval Old Town, Crazy Guides heads out to Nowa Huta, the district built after the Second World War as a model socialist city. The company says more than 60 per cent of its bookings come from word of mouth, which suggests the formula works.

The core of the programme is a set of Communism tours of different lengths. Communism Basic lasts about an hour and a half, the standard Communism Tour of Nowa Huta runs to two and a half hours, and Communism Deluxe stretches to three and a half hours for those who want more time and detail. The vehicles are part of the experience: the guides mainly use classic Trabants and Soviet-era Ladas, so getting there is as much fun as the destination. Riding in the back of a small two-stroke car through the wide avenues of a planned socialist district is an experience that is hard to find anywhere else in Kraków. Groups and companies can book their own versions of the tour.

The catalogue goes well beyond the communist theme. There is a Polish food and vodka tour, a Kraków comedy walk, a communist-themed disco night, Trabant hire for those who want to drive one themselves, and a trip to Little Switzerland, around Ojców. The company also offers a few more unusual experiences, including an airport taxi prank and a Kalashnikov shooting session.

Crazy Guides suits travellers who already know the main sights and want something different, groups of friends, and anyone interested in 20th-century history. Families should check which experiences suit children, as some, such as the shooting session, are clearly adult activities. The tours complement a visit to Schindler's Factory or the Rynek Underground by covering a period most visitors know little about.

Bookings are made by enquiry through the company's website, by phone or by email. Book a few days ahead in summer, and ask about combining tours if you want to see Nowa Huta and try the food and vodka tour on the same trip.