Biecz

Medieval walls, towers, and buildings that earned Biecz the nickname "Polish Carcassonne" are the main draw in this compact royal town in southeastern Poland's Carpathian foothills, on the River Ropa. By the mid-16th century one of the largest cities in Poland, Biecz flourished as a royal city during the 14th and 15th centuries before a long decline left it a compact historic town. The surviving old-town fabric also accounts for its local nicknames "little Kraków" and "pearl of the Carpathians."

• Population4,564
• Nearest water0.4 km
• Nearest mountain4.8 km
• UNESCO within 50 km9