Feel The Old Socialist Style Apartment

Hotel Description

You know what? I wasn’t sure what to expect when I booked “Feel The Old Socialist Style Apartment” – honestly, the name alone had me curious. But walking into this place in Nowa Huta, I actually got it immediately. This isn’t some gimmicky communist-themed hotel trying too hard. It’s the real deal, sitting right in one of Krakow’s most fascinating neighborhoods that most tourists completely skip over.

The apartment itself sits on Osiedle Na Skarpie, which sounds intimidating but it’s actually just a quiet residential block where you’ll hear Polish families going about their daily routines instead of rowdy backpackers. The building has that unmistakable brutalist charm – concrete and function over form – but inside, the space feels surprisingly warm. I mean, they’ve kept the original fixtures and that slightly rough-around-the-edges aesthetic, but everything works perfectly. The heating is solid (trust me, this matters in Polish winters), and the kitchen has everything you’d actually need, not just a sad mini-fridge and microwave. What really struck me was how the owners managed to preserve that authentic socialist-era apartment feel without making it feel like a museum – you’re living in a piece of history, but you’re also genuinely comfortable.

Here’s the thing about staying in Nowa Huta that guidebooks don’t tell you: it’s only about 20 minutes by tram to Krakow’s Old Town, but you’re experiencing a completely different side of the city. You’ll walk past the massive Kombinat steelworks, grab groceries at shops where the cashiers might not speak English but will patiently help you figure out Polish coins, and actually see how regular Krakovians live. The area around the apartment has some surprisingly good milk bars (bar mleczny) where you can get massive portions of pierogi for basically nothing – honestly, some of my best meals in Krakow were within walking distance of this place. And if you’re into architecture or Cold War history, you’re basically staying in an open-air museum. The whole district was built as this idealistic socialist city, and you can still feel that vision in the wide boulevards and planned green spaces. Just don’t expect nightlife right outside your door – this is a residential area that actually sleeps at night, which I found pretty refreshing after dealing with the party crowds in the city center. The 8.6 rating makes total sense once you understand what you’re getting: it’s not luxury, but it’s authentic, comfortable, and gives you access to a side of Krakow most visitors never see.

Rooms

• Estimated price from: $53. Apartment – Ground Floor with 2 sofa beds and 1 twin bed for Max. people: 2

Reviews

• Nice place – Marco from Poland – June 22, 2025 (8/10)

  The place is really nice and well equipped, really good location well connected to public transportation.
  
  What could be improved: Some bed sheets didn't smell clean, probably storaged for a long time, but not a big issue because there were too many.

• True to the name apartment in a quiet neighborhood – Darius from Poland – June 2, 2025 (10/10)

  Everything as described, the apartment is clean, has all the necessary amenities, the vicinity is super quiet and drowning in greenery. We could hear the nightingale singing. Problem free public transport connection.
  
  What could be improved: Toilet flushing mechanism.

• A true homey feel! – Marisabelle from Malta – June 4, 2024 (10/10)

  great for a tourists who would love to be in a typical old socialist home and is looking for a quiet spot with a homey feel
  It included everything we could have possibly needed!
  
  The owner was really nice and helpfull in his explanations about everything.
  very quick check in instructions and would reply to any questions i had very fast!
  
  Thank you for your hospitality 🙏
  
  What could be improved: Nothing,every thing was great

• Short stay – Yelyzaveta from Germany – March 30, 2024 (10/10)

  It was just like going back in time to visit my grandma, very sentimental. The apartment has everything one needs, it's cosy and clean. The host is friendly and welcoming.
  
  What could be improved: Parking was a bit tricky but it worked out fine.

• Very pleased – Ana from United Kingdom – February 6, 2024 (10/10)

  We liked everything. Really enjoyed our stay in this cozy socialist style apartment.
  
  What could be improved: Not applicable

• Socialist apartment in good standard- we loved it!:) – Klaudia from Poland – December 5, 2023 (10/10)

  The style of the apartment. Every small details was keep in the spirit of PRL. The whole place was very clean, very well supplied. The host is very friendly and helpful. The area is nice and quiet. We absolutely loved the note left on the table, small thing but made us smile 🙂 I highly recommend, especially if you are a historic enthusiast like we are or just with to go back in time with style 🙂 we will definitely come back !:)

• Exceptional – Sergii from Poland – November 2, 2023 (10/10)

  Awesome place especially for its price. The host was very kind and helpful.
  
  I'm not sure if place has Wi-Fi but to be fair I didn't have time to look around and check. Maybe there was, duno

• Very Good – Rick from Canada – June 20, 2023 (8/10)

  Lovely place, comfortable and full of character.

• Exceptional – Cat from Hong Kong – May 12, 2023 (10/10)

  Really a special place to stay in Kraków, small but cozy, and you'll find many old (historic) furniture that manufactured during Soviet period.
  The host – Lucas, was very nice and provided detailed instructions, I could feel his efforts in maintaining such an old apartment.
  
  What could be improved: The sound insulation was not very good, but it's expected as you're living in a historic building.

• Very comfortable and cozy. – Bernard from United States – March 20, 2023 (9/10)

  Very comfortable. Very good value. A couple of blocks walk from the tram stop (#10, if I recall correctly). A small, 7-11-type "convenience store" in the next building (one minute walk, even with the snow). Other than that, not close to anything in particular that most visitors would look for, but everything is accessbile via the tram. On the day of arrival, Lucas sent detailed instructions. I would definitely stay here again.
  
  What could be improved: Even though the building is only two (2) blocks from the tram stop (and the bus stop, as well), you will probably need your Google Maps (or equivalent) to identify the actual building, as it is in a complex of buildings. We actually liked the area.

SURROUNDINGS