Lost and Found in Krakow

To lose is human but not every missing possession is gone for good. Things left behind someplace in Krakow often wait quite long untouched. It happens to sunglasses and umbrellas as well as smartphones and camcorders (even money in some cases, however miraculous it may sound). So, as soon as you realize your loss, go back and retrace your steps. There is a chance that you'll be able to recover the belongings you accidentally parted with.   

Leave no stone unturned: ask the driver of the bus, the manager in the restaurant, a desk clerk in the hotel, and the salesperson in the shop. The staff commonly act as customary custodians of unattended property found on the premises.

In the last resort one should check with the city’s several lost property offices (see the contact info below). Patience is required because it often takes considerable time – at best days and usually weeks and months – before an ownerless object of any worth makes its way to one of those establishments, notably when channeled via the police.

Note: The country’s law makes it a criminal offence in Poland to appropriate abandoned property so you'd best don’t touch anything unless it belongs to you.

There are a number of places in Krakow that may keep your missing belongings and even a bursting wallet. Separate lost property offices (biuro rzeczy znalezionych) are run by the Krakow county and the city’s local government in addition to suchlike establishments attached to various providers of public transport. All have to keep unclaimed property in their care for two years at least. Even though these days cell phones top the inventories of Krakow’s lost and found, they include movables of all kinds: from musical instruments to suitcases to wheelchairs. 

List of lost property offices in Krakow

• City of Krakow. Address: Biuro Rzeczy Znalezionych Urzedu Miasta Krakowa, ul. Wielicka 28, pok. 114. Phone (+48) 126165713. Open on weekdays from 7:40 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

• County of Krakow. Address: Powiatowe Biuro Rzeczy Znalezionych, al. Slowackiego 20, pok. 107 A. Phone (+48) 126336526.

• Krakow airport. Address: Miedzynarodowy Port Lotniczy im. Jana Pawla II, Krakow-Balice, Biuro Zaginionego Bagazu. Phone (+48) 122855121.

• Municipal public transport (MPK). Address: Miejskie Przedsiebiorstwo Komunikacyjne w Krakowie, Biuro Rzeczy Znalezionych, ul. Brozka 3. Phone (+48) 122541150. Opena on weekdays from 6:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

• Long distance buses PKS. Address: Biuro Przewozow Pasazerskich PKS. Phone (+48) 124117022 ext. 430. Or the dispatcher in Krakow, phone (+48) 124114169.

• Local trains and rail stations. Address: Dworzec Glowny Krakow. Phone (+48) 123935529. Open from 5 a.m. to 11 p.m.

In the case of property lost aboard long-distance trains the owner should check with the lost and found at Warsaw’s central rail station. Address: Biuro Rzeczy Znalezionych, Dworzec Warszawa Centralna. Phone (+48) 224745092.