Minor Basilica

Carpathian Mountains


In John Paul II Place stands the 18th-century Minor Basilica, dedicated to the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary. An earlier brick church on the site was incorporated into the present church as its sanctuary, while outside is a monument to the pope, who lived next door and was baptised here in 1920. Pilgrims can see the font where he was baptised and, every Thursday at 6pm, pray before a reliquary containing a drop of his blood.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Carpathian Mountains attractions

1. Family Home of John Paul II

0.02 MILES

The home where future pope Karol Wojtyła was born on 18 May 1920 is now a popular museum, restored to its historical appearance. The Wojtyła family lived…

2. Town Museum

0.03 MILES

Located inside Wadowice's former town hall (which also houses the tourist office), the Town Museum comprises the five-room exhibit 'Wadowice: The City…

3. Bernardine Monastery

8.12 MILES

The immense Bernardine Monastery, which contains impressive 16th- and 17th-century paintings in its cloister, serves as the spiritual centre of Kalwaria…

4. Auschwitz I

16.26 MILES

Auschwitz I was only partially destroyed by the fleeing Germans, and many of the original brick buildings stand to this day as a bleak testament to the…

5. Auschwitz Jewish Center

16.28 MILES

In the centre of Oświęcim, this museum commemorates the Jewish community that flourished here from the 16th century until WWII. On one side is the…

6. Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial & Museum

16.39 MILES

Auschwitz-Birkenau is synonymous with the Holocaust. More than a million Jews, and many Poles and Roma, were murdered here by German Nazis during WWII…

7. Benedictine Abbey of SS Peter & Paul

16.65 MILES

About 12km southwest of the centre in Tyniec, the Benedictine Abbey of SS Peter and Paul rises dramatically on a cliff above the Vistula. Enter through a…

8. Birkenau (Auschwitz II)

17.59 MILES

Though much of Birkenau was destroyed by the retreating Germans, the size of the place, fenced off with long lines of barbed wire and watchtowers…

  • placement: superzone
  • path: Destinations/POIs/superzone
  • possible size: [970, 250], [970, 90], [728, 90], [1, 1],
  • targeting:
    {
      "url": "poland/wadowice/attractions/minor-basilica/a/poi-sig/1421396/360333",
      "destination": "Carpathian-Mountains",
      "continent": "Europe",
      "country": "Poland",
      "region": "Carpathian-Mountains",
      "position": "superzone"
    }