Our visit to Cathedral Island in Wrocław, Poland
In late June and early July 2025, Nina and I visited the beautiful city of Wrocław in Poland. The photographs below were taken on Sand Island and Cathedral Island in Wrocław between 6 a.m. and 7 a.m. This timing was perfect for avoiding the crowds, yet making the most of the early morning light.
The associated map shows Cathedral Island on the River Oder, just north of Wrocław Old Town.
Photo Gallery. Sand Island and Cathedral Island in Wrocław
You can click or touch any photograph below to cycle through the gallery.
The photographs in the photo gallery above are shown in the order I took them.
The first photograph shows Sand Bridge, which links the main part of Wrocław to the Sand and Cathedral islands and to other islands shown on the map at the top of this post.
The second photograph shows a view of a tram crossing the Sand Bridge. The Wrocław Market Hall is visible in the background.
The third photograph shows the Wrocław Faculty of Philology viewed from Sand Island. Part of the Sand Bridge can be seen on the left.
The fourth photograph shows Daliowa Island in the centre and Sand Island to the right.
The fifth photograph shows the Wroclovka bench on Sand Island. Sitting on the bench, two dwarf figurines look at one another with adoration, as though the outside world didn’t exist. A ribbon that reads “Wroclove” and connects their hands emphasises the symbol of love. The seat has an extra romantic element because it was formally unveiled on Valentine’s Day, 14 February 2022. Source: Gaja Naturalnie. In Polish.
The sixth photograph shows the Tumski Bridge, which links Sand Island to Cathedral Island.
The associated photograph shows the history of this bridge.
The seventh photograph shows love padlocks on Sand Island next to Tumski Bridge. Historically these love padlocks used to be hung on Tumski Bridge. This is now forbidden due to their combined weight, which might have compromised the structural integrity of the bridge. The associated photograph has a full explanation.
instead, the Wrocław dwarves nominated a dwarf who had to carry all the padlocks from the bridge to their new home on the railings. This brave dwarf keeps guard by the bridge and moves any padlocks that have been hung on the bridge.
The eighth photograph shows Tumski Bridge viewed from Cathedral Island.
The ninth photograph shows a view from Tumski Bridge.
The tenth photograph is from my walk on Cathedral Island.
The eleventh photograph is a view of Church Square on Cathedral Island.
The twelfth photograph shows Cathedral Square on Cathedral Island.
The thirteenth photograph is a view of Church Square looking towards Tumski Bridge and Sand Island.
The fourteenth image shows a placeholder indicating that you have reached the final photograph in the Wrocław photo gallery. Clicking or touching this image will take you to the first photograph in the gallery.
The Lamplighter of Cathedral Island in Wrocław
On Cathedral Island in Wrocław, a centuries-old tradition of lamp lighting is still practised. There are 102 gas lamps on Cathedral Island still manually lit by a lamplighter. Unfortunately, I was unable to visit the island during dusk to observe this. However, I have a YouTube video for you to watch. You can set the subtitles to your desired language in the YouTube video settings.
English/Polish Glossary of Key Places Visited on Cathedral Island in Wrocław
| English | Polish |
|---|---|
| Sand Bridge | Wyspa Piaskowa |
| Tumski Bridge | Most Tumski |
| Cathedral Island | Ostrów Tumski |
| Church Square | Plac Kościelny |
| Cathedral Square | Plac Katedralny |
| Dalia Island | Wyspa Daliowa |
| River Oder | Odra |